Just realized it's been a couple of weeks since my last post. I guess that's going to be the way things go for a while here. I'm settling in to my summer home on Lake Mohave and while I love a lot of things about it, I miss having internet access. Sometimes if I stand on my patio and hope around on my left leg with my tongue hanging out of the right corner of my mouth I can get a hint of a signal, but it seldom lasts long. Guess that deserves an explanation.
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| Boulder City is filled with trivia about the dam. |
After finishing up my tour of duty at Bosque del Apache, packing up, hooking up, and heading down to the Arizona/Mexico border to visit with my friend Ann it then seemed like a good idea to just wander around northern Arizona a bit. By the last week of April I found myself in Boulder City, Nevada where I stood on the new bridge looking down on the Hoover Dam. Boulder City is a cool little village really that reminds me very much of Old Hickory. Both settlements developed around an industry and stayed small despite being in the shadow of large cities (Nashville and Las Vegas). I really liked the area and thought why not stay here for the summer and play in the lake on my days off? As it turns out the only position I could get was at Cottonwood Cove which is in the Lake Mead National Recreational Area (a very large area that straddles Arizona and Nevada). At first I wasn't sure but then I drove out for a visit and well, as my friend Ann claims, I have a knack for planting myself at the ass end of nowhere. This time I really did get to the ass end I think. But it's beautiful.
Just west of Boulder City is highway 95 running south toward Bullhead City in Arizona and Needles in California.
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| Highway 95 is long and lonesome with little cell service. |
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About 9 miles above the lake and where I'm parked
for the summer. See all that blue water? |
About 30 miles down 95 is the town of Searchlight (population 539 plus 2 casinos, 2 convenience stores with gas pumps, one sketchy looking motel, and a McDonalds). Take a left on Cottonwood Cove Rd. and keep going until the road hits the water, about 14 miles straight down the hill. I'm not kidding about the hill. The elevation at the intersection of the road and the highway is 3600' but when you get to my rv spot you're at 600'. Be sure to chew some gum to keep your ears from popping! And be sure to take advantage of the pull offs to just admire the view. Rising cliffs on the other side of the lake are in Arizona. Old played out mines dot the hills on either side of the road as you continue down. Look out for big horn ship and an occasional wild burro as well as the usual desert snakes and scorpions.
I am 43 miles down the river from the base of Hoover Dam and technically
I'm on Lake Mohave. Folks come here from all over to stay in the motel right on the water (I'm the one who checks you in at the desk) or to rent big luxury houseboats and cruise the blue waters. In fact, the cove is so big that you can see it from 12 miles up the road like a big blue jewel in the middle of the desert. It really is a great spot to spend the summer.
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| Rental boats on the beach at the motel. |
I'm looking forward to some good kayaking and swimming over the next 3 months.
And every now and then I will drive up into town, but a happy meal, and sit in the back corner with my laptop updating the blog.
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| And bigger boats for rent at the marina. |
Until then.....
