The Great Trip of 2006

Passed through here on the way to Dinosaur Valley SP to the west where I spent the time seeing dinosaur tracks by the river.

Spent the night at the KOA here June 7, 2006. Their pool was closed, had hoped to cool off, should've took a dip in the river at Dinosaur Valley SP! Nice and shady CG tho. Ate at Harlow's BBQ nearby, saw the memorbilia room. Good food.

Passed through here and stopped to get a photo of me with the city limit sign, a local cop stopped to ask me if everything was ok. Should've stopped at the 'Welcome to' sign down the way.

Determined to find the Dinosaur Depot, was disappointed when I did, as there wasn't much to it. Left there to drive the trackway on the ridge, talk about vertigo for a flatlander, even tho I had been on some mountain roads before this! Went to eat at the Thunderbird Cafe which is near the KOA that I stayed at last year before going to Pikes Peak and Cripple Creek CO.

Seemed like a long ways from Canon City Colorado, but was only 164 miles. Probably due to lack of sleep the night before.

Was hoping to camp at the Kartchner Caverns SP, but the camping was closed due to fire danger and they had mountain lions roaming about. So wound up at the KOA, run by a nice Chinese couple. Nicest bathroom in a KOA that I had seen. Ran into a couple who were from near Mariposa CA where I was going and got some first hand travel info. Visited Tombstone the first day and the next day drove to Bisbee to see the open pit mine. Had a nice grassy spot with a little bit of shade. And cooled in their pool.

A brief stop here for pictures enroute to Beatty NV and Death Valley, two busloads of Korean tourists showed up about the time I got there! Sign said Kingman was 73 mi., my mileage was 75.3 mi. and it was about an hour and 20 minute drive from Kingman.

Took the interstate through the 'strip', there are a couple more ways you could go. Arrived here about 30 or so minutes after leaving Hoover Dam. Hit the a.m. rush hour, but it wasn't TOO bad enroute to US 95 north.

Arrived just before midday after the drive from Kingman AZ, gassed up at Stovepipe Wells (cheaper? to get gas before you get into Death Valley) went to Badwater, the resort - where I ate a buffett lunch, then up to Hebe Crater and spent the night in the Mesquite Springs CG, being the only one there. Quite windy for the tent, but the nighttime sky was the most awesome sky that I have ever seen!

Just drove through after spending the night at Bakersfield KOA. The approach from the south end had many switchbacks which made the trip into SEKI a long one. Going out the north entrance (by Kings Canyon and the Wye) didn't seem to be as torturous. It was about 2 1/2 hours from the Bakersfield KOA to the Entrance Sign and station, then about 4h 20m to 'The Wye' which is were the road spitls off to go to Kings Canyon (I went to Fresno) and this was with stops, a short one at the first area (I think this is called the Giant Forest), about 10 minutes checking out Buckeye Flat CG (there's nothing flat about it!). All the camping was full, maybe better luck on a weekday. Then about 40 minutes at Lodgepole to get something to eat and do the postcard mailing thing before heading out.

Arrived here on the first day of summer and snow still piled high on the road shoulders altho the road was clear. Easy ascent to the top, nice wide road in the park. Stopped at Apple Annie's just past the entrance station on the way out and had a buffet dinner before spending the night at the KOA in Gold Hill OR.