We haven't been traveling since before Christmas so this trip is long overdue. We took off early this morning (5:30 AM!) and headed out through Wickenburg and Quartzsite until we got to the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge about 16 miles south of Quartzsite.
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| Looking down trail toward our TC |
I've been wanting to stop here for years, having seen a story on one of the only native stands of palm trees in Arizona being tucked away in a canyon on the refuge. We turned off U.S. 95 onto Palm Canyon trail, a dirt road with some pretty wicked washboarding. Nine miles in the trail dead ended at the hiking trail to Palm Canyon.
It was a short half mile trail with a few steep spots to a view of the canyon. There are big horn sheep out in these mountains but it was almost 10:30 am so they were not out and about.
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| Palm Canyon palms, Kofa NWR |
When we rounded the corner on the trail, we were about 400 yards from the palms, which are tucked away in a very narrow canyon that gets sun only early in the morning. It was quiet except for the calls of birds and a soft buzz of bees in the early day heat. The palms have been here for years and without easy access, hopefully they'll remain untouched for years to come.
Tonight we're staying at the FamCamp at the Yuma Proving Grounds, about 20 miles before Yuma. Tanks and armored vehicles are tested here and its a vast, desolate desert area. Tomorrow we're onto San Diego.
It's fun to be back on the road in our TC!
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