Our entry into Las Vegas is great. Google maps instructs us the shortest route to our host, of which four miles are on 'the Strip', the epicenter of casino's. Along the way we see marriages in small wedding chapels and a red leather booted Elvis gives me highfive and says in a deep toned voice 'he baby'. We're on an adrenalin high navigating our loaded bikes on the busy six lane road.
Our host Kevin lives a way away from all the hustle and bustle and his welcome is a little haven for us. We are both exhausted from the weeks passed, and Kevin has us recover and rest. We share interesting conversations and he takes us out to a casino to enjoy another Vegas entity: the buffet. Really good food, it's hard to decide where to start and stop.
One night we spend walking along the neon red, blue and yellow lit up casino's of the Strip, we even win 50 dollars with roulette!
After Las Vegas a new kind of riding starts, through the desert. For the first time we have to plan our water supply, and a few times Ali hauls up 10 liters of water, often because we have no idea where the next tap will be. It ends up not being too bad.
The desert is phenomenal. We had thought deserts are somewhat monotonous, stretched sandy plains with few hills, the opposite is true. The terrain is varried, sometimes quite densely overgrown with brush, Joshua Trees, cactus etc. We ride non stop stretches of 20 miles uphill, not steep but decent grades, to then coast down for 25 miles, our fingers numb and bodies stiff from the cold.
In the Mojave desert and Joshua Tree NP we see Joshua Trees, a beautiful tree of the Yucca family, and also cactus gardens with thousands of prickly cholla's. Sometimes suddenly there are little oases, with a few palmtrees, underneath them small streams of water oozing out from the rocks. We usually camp out 'wild', a little way off the road, in the desert sand and enjoy the quiet starry nights.
From the Mojave desert we descend to the Salton Sea, a large lake below sea level. Millions of birds have their wintering grounds here, and we see pelicans and hummingbirds. Again we tread in the footsteps of Chris McCandless, the young man who hitched to Alaska to live in the wild in the early 90's. He lived in the Anza Borrego desert close to this lake for a while, and it brings up a deep feeling of respect for him that he was able to endure and enjoy these harsh deserted places.
The Anza Borrego desert is beautiful. Extremely dry. Now that it's winter the temperature is very enjoyable, but one can just imagine what it would be like in summer, mirages of hot air shimmering over the arid ground.
And then in a flash the desert changes into an oak forest. We climb our last pass, and suddenly find ourselves in a world of cars, houses and shops. After almost four months inland, we can see the Pacific ocean in the distance.
In San Diego we stay with Merle and Linda in a cabana (little shed) in their garden. Once again we are welcomed with unconditional hospitality, it touches us that people take us under their wing like this. It also allows us time to spend some love on our equipment: new tyres, new chains, extra tent pegs and farewell to the Bob trailer, Ali is going to change to panniers.
Tomorrow we are flying to San Francisco to celebrate Christmas and New Years with Caroline, leaving the saddle for a welcome two week break.
At the start of january a new chapter in our trip begins: Mexico.
Lots of love and a merry Christmas to all of you.
Anna and Alister
