Pahrump, NV 2013

May 13, 2013

Last supper at Goldwell Museum

Left Pahrump around 9:00 AM....we are heading to Beatty, NV where we wanted to tour their museum but I forgot to check the operating hours/days and it's closed on Mondays!  So we headed to Ryholite, NV to see the ghost town.   It's got some very old buildings that they are trying to preserve.   One of the bldgs was made of bottles!   Also in the same area is Goldwell Open Air Museum, the actual museum was closed but we got to see the outside displays.   Very unusual art work!

Ryholite ghost town

We then went back into Beatty and looked around....it's a very small town so not much to see.  We stopped at the Nut & Candy store, very similar to the one we saw in Wakarusa, IN.   We had lunch at Subway and then decided we'd head to Scotty's Castle.

We parked the coach at the junction of hwy 95 and hwy 267.  There is a very large parking lot there, so we unhooked the truck and drove the 27 miles to the castle.   We bought two tours: house and underground.  Underground was first, you get to see the tunnels, wiring, lots of tiles, etc.   It was interesting to see the tunnels and the thought process that Albert & Bessie Johnson used to build the castle.  The pool and many other areas of the castle were never completed, due to the government.  You get to see some of the 475 different types of tiles that would have been used had the house been finished.   Apparently, the Johnson's did not own the land the castle was build on and construction had to stop.   They eventually do buy the land but by then had lost interest in completing the home.

Scotty's Castle

Next we took the house tour, it's amazing!  Taking pictures is very hard as it's very dark in the house.   Make sure you have a flash!  Bessie used a Spanish influence to decorate, which makes it beautiful!   They even have a pipe organ, which our tour guide played two songs for us.   This is well worth the price of admission.

Our next stop was the Ubehebe crater.  It's approx 8 miles from the castle.   This is where a meteor landed creating this crater.   Very interesting to see.  

Ubehebe Crater

Also in this area is the start on the road that leads to the racetrack....where the rocks mysteriously roll across the desert.   It was already 4 PM and it's a 5 hr round trip so we'll have to see another time.

We'll head for Tonopah as we are having some 12 volt issues and need electricity for the evening.   Got to Tonopah and all the RV parks are full, so decided to continue onto Hawthorne.  We arrived at about 9:00 PM, long day but Bobby was able to shock the 12 volt system (thank goodness) and got it working.   When we went to hook up the water, the value broke, we'll survive on the water pump for the night and fix it in the morning.....these are the adventures of living in a motorhome!!!!





May 12, 2013

Started the day by driving out to Mt Falls Golf course.  It's a beautiful course but we could not get on earlier enough for me!   I don't like this 100+ heat....next time we'll play.  We decided to take a tour thru some of the houses they are building around the course....this is a huge complex.  
We toured 4 homes, very, very nice.   The prices start at about $150K.  

We then headed to the Pahrump museum.  It's small in comparison to some we saw this past summer, but it had some very interesting features.  One of the displays talked about the nuclear repository they hoped to build out in Nye county.    In 2010 the government stopped the funding so now they are unsure if it will ever occur.   They also had several replica buildings that we toured.


We then went to the Elks lodge, small but nice.   They were getting ready for their Mothers Day dinner, so we did not stay long.

Came home and I went swimming!   Very refreshing....the pool is sun heated, so a little cool at first.   I then came home and worked on my pictures from today, cooked dinner and now watching TV.   We'll head for Beatty, NV tomorrow.


May 11, 2013

Left the coach around 7:30 and headed towards Death Valley, via Hwy 190 from Pahrump.  First stop was Ash Meadows Refuge.   Here we saw a few birds, nothing exciting but it was amazing to see so many green bushes and trees.  You think of Death Valley as dry and brown but it was green and beautiful in this area.   We'll spend more time in this section next time we visit.

We returned to Hwy 190 and continued towards Furnace Creek. Our next stop was 20 Mule Team Canyon.   It's a one way drive about 3 miles long, you get to view many formations with beautiful colors.

Next stop was Devils Golf Course along Hwy 178!   Here you play on Salt formations....OK, you don't play.   Only the devil would play here, the salt formations are very jagged and sharp.   Bobby did take an old golf ball and hit it out into nowhere!

We then continued our drive to Badwaters, it's the lowest point in the USA at -278 feet.   On the rocks behind the display, is a sign that shows you where Sea Level is......it was a long way up!   The salt flats are very fragile and we were not allowed to walk on them.   It's not hard to believe that you'd not survive out there, especially in middle of summer.


Continued on to Natural Bridge area.....here we drive down a dirt road for 1.5 miles, then walk a mile to get to the bridge.   At 100+ degrees, it was not easy but we made it.   It's amazing to see out there in this canyon.   Would loved to climb it, but it was so hot!  We continued up the canyon to this dry waterfall.   Very interesting what water created.   Here we met a gentlemen from Portland, OR....it's such a small world!

Go back to the car and continued our drive to Artist Drive, beautiful area with many colors.  By now, Bobby is tired of driving, already put on over 100 miles and it's very hot.

We head to Furnace Creek for refreshments!  First stop, golf shop.   It's 108 degrees so if we want to play, we MUST take water, that's what the pro shop says.   I'd need more than a bottle of water to get me on this course today!   Starting Monday we could play for $30 including cart.   We'll think about it!   We then go to the visitors center....new since our last time here.   Very nice....watched a 20 min. movie.   We then go to store, looked around, did not buy anything except ice cream!  Almost forgot, make sure you get gas outside of the park, it's very expensive!

Then we head back to Pahrump.   Stopped at Smiths for groceries and got two movies to watch tonight.   Django & This is 40.   Not sure what we'll do tomorrow