{"id":449,"date":"2015-05-15T06:33:25","date_gmt":"2015-05-15T06:33:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/?p=449"},"modified":"2015-05-15T06:33:25","modified_gmt":"2015-05-15T06:33:25","slug":"extremes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/?p=449","title":{"rendered":"Extremes"},"content":{"rendered":"

The long days finally caught up with me last night, so I\u2019ve decided to combine Day 7 (yesterday)and Day 8 (today)\u00a0together in this blog.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Day 7-We left Las Vegas this morning to return to Hoover Dam\u00a0so Theresa and Darby could take the dam tour, down inside this amazing structure. They really enjoyed the full tour, seeing the turbines and getting the opportunity to hold their cell phone outside one of the vents to snap a unique photo of the dam.<\/p>\n

\"HoovDam\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"NVMts\"<\/a>
Red Rock Canyon-west of Las Vegas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As we headed west to the CA desert and a stop in Death Valley National Park, one thing that didn\u2019t let up for the past two days was the wind. It\u2019s been strong and steady, blowing around 20-30 mph non-stop during the day. It started as we left Zion NP in Utah, returning to NV, and into CA, and refused to let up during the daylight hours. It does taper off when the sun goes down. We can certainly feel it with Big Blue\u2019s boxy shape, as sometimes he gets nudged toward the side of the road by a strong gust (more on this later, including a close call).<\/p>\n

We entered CA and paid a visit to Death Valley NP-the hottest, driest and lowest place in the U.S. Although Death Valley\u2019s conditions can be extreme, the landscapes are very different throughout the park and show a rare beauty in how they were formed millions of years ago, and are still forming today. Rugged peaks, outcroppings of black volcanic rock formations, great vast salt flats, large, wind-blown sand dunes and ever-eroding sandstone badlands paint the park everywhere you look. It\u2019s a very distinctive environment, but uniquely special as well!<\/p>\n

\"DVSign\"<\/a>\u00a0\"DV2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"DV6\"<\/a>
Water comes to the surface under the salt deposits in Death Valley NP<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \"DVSweets\"<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \"DV4\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"DV3\"<\/a>\u00a0\"SDunes\"<\/a><\/p>\n

As we departed Death Valley, we ascended up through two separate mountain passes. The first was Tower pass, at 5,000\u2019. The drive up, then back down was a bit nervy. With 10-mile switchbacks, very little guide rail, wind gusts of 30 mph or more (remember those winds I mentioned earlier) and steep drop-offs just past the shoulder of the road, my grip on the steering wheel was pretty tight. At one point, a strong gust pushed the truck toward the edge of the roadway-no shoulder, no guide rail and a 1,000\u2019 drop. Needless to say, we all took a quick breath, held on to something and froze for a minute or two. Except for me of course, since I was driving and couldn\u2019t just stop or we probably would have plunged over the edge to a very gruesome death! As I glanced in my rear view mirror I saw Darby looking like she was about to project vomit on the back of my head, while a second glance toward my dear wife saw her grabbing my Bird Field Guide and start frantically turning pages as if she was speed reading the entire book, never taking another look out her window until we had safely descended. But, no worries, I shook Big Blue back into the middle of the lane and continued down, but this time driving at a snail\u2019s pace. It was a very hairy call! When we got to the top of the second pass, there was a scenic overlook, so I asked Theresa and Darby if they would like to pull over to check it out. Their answer was perfectly timed together, with a booming \u201cNO!\u201d Later on, Darby told me if we had stopped at the overlook, she wasn\u2019t going to get back in the truck for the drive to the bottom. She would either walk the 10 miles down the other side of the mountain, or call for an air lift! I do admit, it was one of the scariest drives I\u2019ve ever done.<\/p>\n

Some of the critters (see below)\u00a0we encountered as we drove from Nevada to California included a very hungry Coyote that came right up to the truck when I pulled off the road (unfortunately, this was a sure clue other people had probably fed it), a Gambell’s Quail, a Common Raven calling to its mate and\u00a0\u00a0a small White-tailed Ground Squirrel stopping for a snack and a Desert CottontaiI that I\u00a0scared away after I laugh snorted while taking its photo!<\/em>\"Coyote\"<\/a>\u00a0\"GQuail\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"CRaven\"<\/a>\u00a0\"GSq2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"CTail\"<\/a><\/p>\n

After a long day we safely arrived in LA, tired, but ready for a new kind of adventure on Thursday morning.<\/p>\n

Day 8-The name of this two day blog is Extremes. Extreme landscapes, extreme temperatures, extreme weather conditions and now, extreme differences in visit locations. Up to this point, the trip has been mostly based\u00a0on locations that focuses on our natural resources, because,\u00a0quite honestly, that’s the kind of places we\u00a0prefer to visit. But, we also like to “dip into” our cultarl resources every once in a while as well. That’s where California kinda fits in. You can’t get\u00a0more extreme from\u00a0trekking up a river gorge in the middle of a rugged National Park one day, then stroll\u00a0down Hollywood Blvd. surrounded by thousands of people, large buildings, bright lights,\u00a0music blaring, characters in costume darting in and out, the next day, and not consider it extreme!<\/p>\n

\"LA\"<\/a>
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Downtown Los Angeles<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"HWoodSign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s time to California. I word it like this not exactly knowing what it means \u201cto California.\u201d Maybe it\u2019s a lifestyle, maybe it\u2019s an attitude (not necessarily in a negative sense), maybe it\u2019s a little of both. However, I\u2019m convinced of one thing, if you don\u2019t live in California, then you probably can\u2019t understand what it means to be a Californian, and I\u2019m ok with that. But, as promised, we were ready to check out one of the most famous places in the world-Hollywood.<\/p>\n

We took the typical\u00a0tourist route and booked a tour to \u201cSee the Star\u2019s Homes, Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Rodeo Drive…and many more fascinating sights!\u201d\u00a0 We boarded our open air van with our guide Steve and driver Danny, and headed off. It was unseasonably chilly in LA today (temps in the low 60s), and rain was forecasted for a little later in the day-something that hasn\u2019t happened in many months. As Danny raced through the wealthy neighborhood streets like a NYC Taxi Driver, Steve would point out a star\u2019s house on one side, another on the opposite and spiced the locations up with many colorful and funny stories. It was a\u00a0fun, fast-paced peek at some of the homes of the most famous and wealthiest people in the world, as well as a history of the entire TV, movie and music industry all rolled in to one. In addition, we took an extra hour and walked down the weird, but wonderful, Hollywood Blvd-with many people seeking fame and fortune dressed up as movie, comic book and cartoon characters and guys \u201cgiving\u201d (for a small donation) away their personally autographed music demo CDs. At one point I laughed as I stood and watched one of these aspiring hip hop artists trying desperately to convince a group of eager Asian visitors that he was not Snoop Dog! The more he tried to sort it out, the more Asian visitors surrounded him! His pedaling of music CDs to this visiting group completely backfired, and he vacated his coveted spot in front of the Chinese Theater quickly and quietly. The group’s attention quickly turned away from the would-be musician\u00a0when one of the visitors discovered Jackie Chan’s star in the sidewalk directly below them and they all rushed in,\u00a0huddled around snapping photos of the star and selfies of themselves next to his star-only in Hollywood!\u00a0 We also checked out the bronze stars on the Walk of Fame, Grauman\u2019s Chinese Theater and the Dolby Theater (where the Academy Awards are held). From my personal travels, I compare it to a cross between Times Square in NYC, Jackson Square in New Orleans and the Strip in Las Vegas, but w\/a few less people, and surrounded by a whole lot more money!<\/p>\n

\"RodeoDr\"<\/a>
A look down Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"street\"<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\"stars\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"HWood\"<\/a>
…….only in Hollywood!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"RStarr\"<\/a>
The entrance to Ringo Starr’s home. Notice all the stars he had custom made for his front gate!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"BHSign\"<\/a><\/p>\n

After a rainy ride north up RT 101 (Coastal Highway), we landed in Atascadero, where we\u2019ll hang for a couple days to meet up with Tyler and Amelia tomorrow. I\u2019ll be aiming to get back to my daily blog if time allows. As a note, to date we\u2019ve travelled 3,490 miles, traveled through 13 states and visited 5 National Parks-and we\u2019re not even halfway done yet! Thanks for following our travels!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The long days finally caught up with me last night, so I\u2019ve decided to combine Day 7 (yesterday)and Day 8 (today)\u00a0together in this blog.\u00a0 Day 7-We left Las Vegas this morning to return to Hoover Dam\u00a0so Theresa and Darby could take the dam tour, down inside this amazing structure. They really enjoyed the full tour, … Continue reading Extremes<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/449"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=449"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/449\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":476,"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/449\/revisions\/476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodyoutdoors.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}