Episode #883
January 3, 2026
To celebrate my brother Walt’s birthday
his wife Tina, Paula, and I decided to meet
at Red Rock Canyon California State Park.
In preparation for the four-hour drive, I checked the motor home for water, propane, and startup. The RV would not start. The factory battery was dead. Using the marine battery emergency start switch, I drove the RV to Walmart. A new battery solved the problem. While in town, I stopped at America’s Tire to check the tire inflation. The right rear inside dually was flat. Two hours later, with a new fill valve, the RV was ready for the road – no charge. Thank you, America’s Tire.
With the Go List all checked off, Paula and I were on our way. The RV drove like a dream. The dream became surreal on Highway 14 as we entered Red Rock Canyon Park.
The rock cliffs are a rich tapestry of colors—deep reds, burnt oranges, and golden yellows capped with a dark brown basalt lava flow. Tilted horizontal layers of sediment reveal the park’s long geological history. The spires, columns, and crevices combine to create cloud-like illusions of sculpted faces, animals, and objects. Two Greek philosophers discussed the architecture of the Roman columns and the stone praying hands that pointed toward the heavens.
Ricardo Campground is nestled in an ancient post-glacial lake bed. The campsites are tucked into the base of the Red Rock cliffs. Walt and Tina would be joining us the next day, so we picked out side-by-side campsites.
It was late in the day, so we walked along the cliff base. The sculpted face was sand-white from the eons of dust storms coating and embedding the desert dirt into the red rocks.
Along the base were red boulders that had broken off from the sediment above.
I said, “There are fossils here.” “Let’s find some,” said Paula. On top of the boulder were the strata lines. On the face of the strata was a shale-like slab with the impression of an ocean worm. It had worm segments and feet like a centipede. We felt like paleontologists.
Back at the RV, we played cards and had a delicious soup dinner, then read ourselves to sleep.
We woke to the caws of ravens scavenging the neighbor’s campsite. Walt and Tina were due to arrive this afternoon. Paula and I decided to walk the washes that criss-cross the valley. Being November, the chances of seeing a rattlesnake were slim, but we kept our eyes open just in case. On the walk, we paid for the campsite and walked two nature trails. The first trail was short, but it introduced us to the flora.
Rare and native to the region are Red Rock tarplant and Red Rock Canyon monkeyflower. Creosote, beavertail cactus, blackbrush, piñon-juniper, and Joshua trees were abundant. The second walk climbed up to a ridge trail, which we plan to hike on a future trip.
On our way back to the campsite, we saw Tina and Walt’s truck and trailer rig entering the campgrounds. As we arrived back at the site, so did they. I helped Walt drop the trailer. Walt cooked an asian pork tenderloin over an open campfire, which was delicious.
The clouds cleared long enough for us to see the International Space Station appear on the horizon and jet across the sky, winking out straight overhead.
Our warm conversation, occasional laughter from our neighbors, and the hoot of an owl broke the silence of the night.
The next day, I made coffee, blueberry pancakes, sausage, eggs, and orange juice. We drove to Pinacle Valley, where we hiked Red Cliffs Nature Trail. We had the entire valley to ourselves. The vista from the ridge trail is vast.
That night, it was Paula’s and my turn to make dinner. Another excellent fire was made. We had split pea soup and bruschetta. Much drinking and dice games rounded out the day.
It rained that night and into the morning, so we decided to break camp and go home. It was a good decision, according to the docent at the information center. She said that the forecasted rain would bring flooding that would trap all of us in Ricardo Valley. The flash flood would block the valley entrance road, and the silt would take days for the bulldozer to remove.
We spent some time in the center reading about the flora, fauna, and geology of the park. The video was Huell Howser’s Red Rock Canyon State Park episode from the California’s Golden Parks series.
The drive home was punctuated by a delicious breakfast at a restaurant next to a giant Borax factory dump truck in Boron, CA. Boron is an unlikely oasis in the middle of the Mojave Desert.
Back home, the cats were so happy to see us, they purred.
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