Rhyolite, Nevada

Saturday 3/31/2012

We continued with our 2nd Death Valley adventure day drive. We left Stovepipe Wells and headed on Daylight Pass Road.

We entered into Mud Canyon.

Mud Canyon was pretty in it's own way.

We were climbing for some time, so I looked back and saw this view out our back window.

I turned back around and look forward again.

We hit 4300 ft before we headed back down.

What a veiw at the crest of the Amargosa Range.

In the valley we enter ointo the Amargosa Desert and also called Amargosa Valley.

Amargosa Desert/Valley

Bare Mountain

We enter back into Nevada.

No time for Titus Canyon. You need a month to see everything around here.

Our next stop, Rhyolite, Historic Township. It was a 26 mile drive from the intersection of Hwy. 190 and Daylight Pass Road.

Rhyolite Ghost Town in the distance.

As we drove up the road to Rhyolite, we see this sign and pull in for a stop.

Icar, a female version of the Greek methology of a boy who flew too close to the sun with his wax wings. The sun melted his wings and he fell back to earth.

This is the Goldwell Open Air Museum.

"The last Supper" by Gharles Albert Szukalski from Poland made in 1984. He wanted it located in Death Valley, but it was placed here in Rhyolite.

It was made to last for two years! God is Good! It lasted long enough for Joe to join in. Human voluteers had sheets drapped over them and then plaster of paris painted on till it hardened. 

Joe thinks this is a Indian. I think it is a pink women. What do you think?

I found this big beautiful mosaic couch . I also noticed a roll on my mid section. I found a store in Arizona that sold Ben and Jerry's Chocolate Therapy in Wal-Mart. Normally you can not buy that flavor in the stores. I have only seen it in Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream stores. I bought all five pints that were in the freezer at Wal-Mart. I see those five pints have stuck to my gut! I guess no more Chocolate Therapy's for me. Since I bought those five pints of ice cream, I have found you can find that flavor everywhere out west. Wouldn't you know! On another note this picture reminds me of a picture when I was about 12 years old. A neighbor that lived across the street from us had a white rod iron bench that I liked. I had someone take a picture of me sitting just like this. I guess no matter what age I am, 12 or 57, if I find a bench I like, I like to pose in it, like.

"Sit Here!" by Sofie Siegmann 2000, born in 1964 in Munich Germany

"Tribute To Shorty Harris" by Fred Bervoets from Belgium made in 1994. A potrait of Shorty Harris an early miner. Rumor has it that the penguin was a self portait of the artist and how out of place he felt in the Mojave Desert.

"Icara", by Dre Peeters in 1992

After visiting the Goldwell Open Air Museum, we drove up to the top of Rhyolite.

The town began in early 1905 after a prospecting discovery was made in the surrounding hills.

The town's former train station, fenced in to prevent vandalism.

The town was 3500 to 5000 in 1907-08.

Another view of the train station.

Nice porch on the train station.

Cook Bank ruins

Back in rattlesnack territory.

Another view of Cook Bank.

The side view of the general store.

Front view of general store. By 1911, the town had a population of 1000, because of the 1906 San Fansico earthquake and the finacial panic of 1907. By 1920 the population was close to zero.

My favorite of the ruins was Tom Kelly's Bottle House.

Paramont Pictures restored the Bottle House in1925 for the silent movie "The Air Mail".

Back and side view of the Bottle House.

All sides of the house are covered with the ends of bottles.

This was sitting behind the Bottle House. I photographed it because Joe and I want to buy some land some day and put something like this on our land and live in our Nest for a few years under it, before we build our new home.

We left Rhyloite and headed for Beatty, NV.

We had planned to take Hwy. 95 south to Pahrump, to finish our loop drive.

As we left Beatty I saw these wild burrows. I had Joe stop, so I could take a picture of them. I wished I had some carrots.

As we headed out of town, I took this picture of the sign. I like to take pictures of signs because it help me remember where we are at, when I go back and blog pictures. Shortly after we passed this sign, Joe asked if we were going in the right direction. I told Joe that the sign had a town that started with a "T". I knew there was a town South of Pahrump that startted with a "T", so I said I though we were going in the right direction. To be sure, I turned the GPS on and put in our RV parks address. "Yep", I said, " the GPS says to continue 50 miles.

I have figured out that white ground means springs are around.

I continue to take pictures to pass the time by quicker.

After awhile, Joe said, " Are you sure we are going in the right direction? The direction we are going in, the sun is setting to the east and as we all know the sun sets in the west.. My gut feelings tells me we are going the wrong way." I checked the GPS, and it said we were to continue this direction  Joe told me to check ahead and to see the next turns. Oop! We had just gone 20 miles north not south.

I was sure glad Joe was paying attention to the sunset direction or we would have end up in much farther.

Forty minutes just wasted on time and gas!

On the bright side, the sun was casting great light for pictures.

Out in the distance we see Charleston Peak.

We got closer, plus a close up, of Charleston Peak. Now I knew we were headed in the right direction.

Do you see the face with the big nose in the mountain ridge?

The sun dipped below the horizon, but we still had light.

Enjoy the rest of our mistaken drive.

I never get to get sunset pictures except back at camp, because Joe likes to be home by 5:00.

So even though we drove 40 extra mles, there is a silver lining to the mess up.

We are definately going to get a new GPS now.

Our GPS lady quite talking to us completely just recently. She use to talk to us off and on. I always said she had a hang over when she didn't talk. It also does not hold a battery charge anymore. It has to be plugged in to work. But it never has taken us 20 miles in the wrong direction!

Sorry so many pictures, but I have a hard time cutting them down. Believe me, I have cut a ton away all ready.

Dusk

We arrive into Pahrump just before dark.

A 250 mile day drive.

We are still at Three Rivers, CA, just west of SequoiaNational Park. The park receive 2-3 foot of snow yesterday, so we only got to drive nine miles in. Hopefully tomorrow the roads will be open.