Warmth and sunshine have finally returned and I’m sitting next to the Colorado River drying off having first immersed myself in it as well. The light is penetratingly bright and I’m already nearly dry after only five minutes. I’ve sunk one of the food boxes in the river with a giant rock and put some beers in it so they might soon be ready to drink!
The day didn’t start so well, as it was overcast and threatening to rain. We packed up quickly and got away early followed by a petrol and coffee stop. I haven’t had a bad coffee anywhere yet. By the roadside was a man holding up a sign to passing traffic saying “Willing to work – any work please” so clearly there is another side to life in the USA.
Some 30 miles inland the sky cleared and the sun came out to reveal increasingly rugged hilly country with wide valleys. It was a bit like Dartmoor in places with lots of granite boulders and tor features but the colour scheme was dominated by reds, greens and dark browns.
We climbed to over 4000 feet before descending to an arid scrubland which eventually gave way to a wide open flat plain where irrigation water was available (presumably from the Colorado) and green cropland took over. The dominant crop seemed to be grass (or a variant of it) and massive bales of hay were stacked up everywhere. Freshly cut it smelled a bit like a pea field and unlike England, it was baled up whilst still pretty green.
From El Centro we drove north to Brawley before turning east onto the 78 which delivered us to the Imperial sand Dunes, the largest group of dunes in the country.
By now it was seriously hot and the sun screen came out. Left over pasta from last night made for an excellent lunch. Back into some barren hills and a Border Control awaited us. It seemed a strange place to have one as we were still well inside the USA but it is a common route for illegal immigrants. Despite our obvious innocence the Guards still managed an air of suppressed menace although they did wish us a Nice Day as we drove off.
Eventually we skirted an abandoned river cliff that marked the western side of the Colorado flood plain and the broad strip of irrigated green land lay spread out before us. Large irrigation ditches criss-cross the entire area and crops thrive. I think I’ve seen my first ever cotton crop! However, large sections are still left as scrub and where the land was being freshly cultivated it was easy to see that the soil is little more than desert sand.
We pulled in to the River Island State Park just after 3pm and after rapidly pitching tents Sam and the girls were soon in the water. I went exploring for a while before joining them. BBQ tonight and if it stays warm I just might not sleep in the tent. We’ll see!
Just been for another wander and now the sun is starting to set and all the colours are changing. Time to get the camera out again.
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