Cloud cover was welcome all morning keeping the day cool; frontage road leaving Quartzsite was filled with sites for desert camping, a popular tourist activity in these parts (most tourists gone by now). Then cycled on to I-10 with debris-filled bumpy shoulder and gusty winds. But we made it up and over and down to and across the Colorado River into CA!!! The Colorado River is the state line between the towns of Ehrenberg, AZ & Blythe, CA. I am so thrilled!
We kept cycling from Blythe south on Hwy 78 south and west across the huge agricultural Colorado River basin. At Palo Verde at the south end of the valley, I called it quits again from the wind, even with help from drafting, it was too difficult. And hwy 78 gets curvy with no shoulder and lots of traffic (including big trucks!) going into the very dry volcanic Palo Verde Mountains heading SW. The guys kept going another 10 miles and called it a day, too – wind and road/traffic conditions. Thank goodness. The road was treacherous. Then we drove into Brawley past some huge mines (gold, manganese and more) and the Imperial Sand Dunes. What a sight! Once again we were glad to be off our bikes as the sand airlifted by the wind was stinging our legs at the Dunes viewpoint. Me: 42 miles, 470’. Guys: 52.2 miles 798’
Arizona stats for part of or all of 7 days – 433.6 miles, 16,138’ elevation (Kathy); 453 miles, 16,613’ elevation (guys)
California!!
- Nickname: The Golden State
- Bird: California quail (we saw a lot in NM & AZ)
- Flower: California poppy (not to be confused with the big white TX poppy)
- Motto: “Eureka!”
we head more south to San Diego
TransAm Cycle 3.0 