Vacation, How Do I Get Away (Pt #2)

Personal Bits, Travel

Desert Drive pictures here

Desert Drive:
Driving in the desert is life changing. The more I think about it, the more I want to go back.

We crossed over the Nevada/California border and gassed up at some bizarre station that had a connecting monorail (another mysterious monorail!) to casinos on either side of the highway. One Casino had a rollercoaster wrapped around it. Last chance for family fun! Breakfast was a bit Mormon-y in a Bob Evans style buffet. Weird shaped sausages and patties intermixed with “shit on a shingle” fixin’s! Mmm more grease, please!

We cross over the threshold of the Mojave National Preserve, just off the mountain pass, and enter the desert. Joshua trees are everywhere and I’m surprised at how green it was until SharkBoy reminded me that it was “spring” here. At our first stop, an outcropping of rocks and buckshot riddled signs, we got out of the car to get our picture and like a hammer to my ears, the silence hits me. Nothing. No wind, no birds, no Vegas carnies. Silence.

We drove on with the top down while playing various popular opera arias. I didn’t speak much because I was in awe of the view.

Then, miles from any village or highway intersection, we came upon a tall tree full of shoes. It reminded me of shoes on power lines but some of these shoes had messages on them – mostly “I wuz here!” and such but a couple mentioned their loves, fears, etc. There were even scuba flippers way up in the upper branches. SharkBoy was upset that he didn’t have any spare shoes to leave behind. It was probably the most surreal moment in the entire trip (except for most of West Hollywood).

We stopped about a mile from a crater but the road leading to it was dirt and we didn’t want to risk the suspension. This is where SharkBoy claims to have seen the largest, reddest spider in the history of mankind. I didn’t, but I did see webs which made me get back into the car. Faster than usual.

In a village called Joshua Tree, we found the only gay couple within miles who owned the local pottery shop. How is that possible?

After SharkBoy got a “Military Cut” in 29Palms – a military town full of Koreans (…?) we drive up a pass, down the other side, we pass row upon row of windmills to enter Palm Springs…

8 thoughts on “Vacation, How Do I Get Away (Pt #2)

  1. Pingback: Dead Robot » The Best of 2008

  2. Hockeyfan960

    The StateLine Casino has one of the best rollercoasters….the first drop is 150-200 feet and the last 50 feet of drop takes u underground…Little lame as far as casinos go, but it is the middle of no where on Rt 15 from LA to Vegas….

  3. Dead Robot

    Yup. Sucky visibility with the top up, the worst car I’ve ever been in. Dollar rental car can suck it for poorly maintained cars too.

  4. Dead Robot

    I totally forgot to gush about Bette’s show. It was the best live performance from her ever! I laughed and cried and sung along. Best Sophie Tucker jokes to date.

  5. SplitRail

    I’ve never really wanted to go to Vegas.
    Truth be known, I was a wee bit outspoken about how much I didn’t want to go.

    Then I got The Advocate “Vegas Issue”. I was close to changing my mind. I mean, what red blooded 40-something queer could resist Bette Midler, Cher, Frank Marino and Cirque, Cirque and more Cirque in one convenient location?

    But now I want to go just to see the desert. And that tree. That wicked awesome wierd and wonderful tree.

    Thanks for sharing.

    Split

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