I think I was looking forward to this day the least, as it was a ton of driving, and there weren’t a whole lot of exciting places to visit on the way. We left the Kaibab Forest, heading towards Flagstaff, AZ. Our ultimate goal was to get into California, staying overnight somewhere on route to Sequioa National Park. I knew that the Mojave National Preserve was on the way, and I had my mind set on seeing the lava tube there. I figured it would be a bit of a detour from the straight path we were on, but well worth it for our family to experience this natural attraction. We drove in high winds for hours and hours, which definitely slowed us down and made the drive a bit of a drag. After a quick stop for lunch in Kingman, AZ, we were back on the road. The state line wasn’t far away, and I felt like our vacation was really beginning to become an adventure! We had done several new things and seen some awesome sites, and I thought to myself, we can just zip through this day to get to the really good stuff at Sequioa’s parks.
As we drove into California, we were “greeted” by a young woman, full on topless flashing us on the bridge we were passing under! Dean and I were stunned, and couldn’t believe that had just happened! I was also extremely glad the boys couldn’t really see out of the windshield, because they missed the whole debacle. THANK the LORD! Then, we roll up to the mandatory stop at the border station. They asked us if we had any fresh produce, to which we answered honestly, yes. They then proceded to confiscate my brand new bag of avocados and mandarin oranges! I had no idea you couldn’t have fruit or veggies from out of state, and I was in a rage. (Mostly an inner rage… don’t worry.) My opinion of California was going sour already, and we weren’t even a mile into it!
I stewed over those avocados for what seemed like hours, and we continued to drive across barren wastelands. Finally, the exit for Kelbaker Road came, and we entered the Mojave National Preserve. I looked around and thought, gee, isn’t this what we have been looking at for the last three hours? The main road was fine, albeit a bit bumpy, but we sped forth towards the old Kelso Depot where the visitor center is located. We saw signs to lookout for tortoises crossing the road, sand dunes off in the distance, and Joshua trees sprinkled across the almost other-worldly landscape. My sour mood was beginning to soften, as I drank in the unusual scenery and noticed we were practically by ourselves out there.
31 Downing Street 