Humans May Create Beauty, but Will Never Equal the Handiwork of Nature
But Lake Mead was perfect for a much needed swim in the July desert
Date 13: July 5, 1988 Las Vegas, Nevada to Ash Fork, Arizona
The warm desert sun peaked over the Black Hills.
Any coolness in the air overnight had vanished. Even though it was warm through the night, I didn’t have any trouble sleeping — with visions of Vegas women prancing through my head.
The Mom woke early, as usual, for a load of laundry. Just how much laundry does she do? For some reason, there was no “hurry” this morning. The Mom treated for breakfast at the Silver Nugget Casino, adjacent to the campground. We all had pancakes while mom had a free breakfast of eggs and ham.
How was it free? I don’t know. The Mom knows all the deals.
We had difficulty locating our friends back in Jersey from the single and divorced parent camping group — The Freewheelers. Noelle, for some unknown reason, forgot the address of her girlfriend’s house. She knew it was “Indian Something.”
The Mom bought a map of Vegas. Indian Summer. Indian Branch — but no house number — so — fruitless. But Noelle did remember her sister Krista worked at Cinnabon at the mall across the street from the high school.
At the mall, we found that Krista and her family left on Friday for New Jersey to live with their father for the summer. Brilliant timing! Just goes to show what a lack of communication can do.
We stopped at Kmart for film. A USA Today headline read that an American fighter had just shut down an Iranian passenger plane. I bought the paper for the facts. On the road, the rest of the world gets glazed over. It’s hard to keep up with current events.
The day was extremely hot and dry and windy. Towing the camper is challenging on fine weather days, but with it being a “Sun-Lit,” its lightness gets caught up in the wind. It swayed with every wind gust.
Soon, we could easily see beautifully man-made Lake Mead
No “E.” Not the Civil War General from Gettysburg, folks. It was bizarre — such crystal blue amidst the barren desert of brown.
Strong winds rippled the lake. Lake Mead Recreation Area was busy with its marina. The project started under President Hoover — before Roosevelt started with all the internal improvement projects, like the Tennessee Valley Authority in 1933.
For 150 miles, this lake winds up the length of the Colorado River, nearly to the border of the Grand Canyon.
God, how I wish my dad had his boat here. I could really enjoy skiing!
The day was conducive for water entertainment as we all stuck to the vinyl seats of the Family Truckster. Sweat dripped from my forehead.
We stopped at Boulder Beach Park. Since the lake was not formed by hands of the gods, the beach did not contain sand. The bottom was not muddy but cement — like a boat ramp.
Humans may create beauty, but machines will never match the handiwork of Nature.
The water was warm and clean
How great to swim on such a hot day in the desert! With the waves, it seemed like an indoor wave pool. The dry heat and wind dried us off in less than a minute it seemed.
We were now the furthest west we would get on our trip. We now, sadly, set an eastern course for the Grand Canyon, climbing the Black Hills where nothing seems to take root except for stubby grass, cactus, and some hardy trees.
We approached Hoover Dam around 2 o’clock. This super incredible project created the lake and generates water and electricity for the entire region. It rises 727 feet. Electricity wires traverse the entire area — stretching in all directions.
Unfortunately, Hoover Dam was very crowded. With our camper, we could not park. So I took some pictures and said, like MacArthur, “I came through and I shall return.”
The highway into Arizona was long and hot
— for miles on end with no rest stops, towns, or fueling stations. Just lonesome wilderness. Everything seemed hard and cracked.
An hour later, we found trees. After each mile, more and more trees. So Arizona is not all desert? Tons of evergreen! Rich in vegetation!
We stopped at a KOA campground in Ash Fork, Arizona. (Its population in 2010 is 386 — down from 457 in 2000). We were all tired and hungry. KOAs are a chain and tend to be overpriced. But time and wariness sometimes warrant a rest.
By the pool, I watched two little girls play with each of their moms. Such great moms — I love moms who get in with the play.
My mom made chicken noodles for dinner. Could I get in with making dinner sometime?
We played poker until we started falling asleep — either that or Wally Chapstick was losing. Anyway. We were excited to see The Grand Canyon tomorrow — just a short drive.
And, I guess, according to Chuck back in Vegas, it is still nothing “but a big hole.”
More adventures coming! Look for these stories on The Masterpiece:
- Day 8: Le Grand Tour of Parc de Yellowstone
- Day 9: Hiking for Teton Beavers or Writing Twenty Pages?
- Day 10: Taming the Snake: Nothing is Better Than Nature’s Rollercoaster
- Day 11: Swimming in a Lake of Death, and Other Such Unseemly Things in Utah
- Day 12: Stripping with the Family and Chuck in Las Vegas
