Today Sierra took her first roadtrip with us. For a 3 month old puppy she did remarkably well, even if she hasn’t quite figured out that it’s ok to go to the bathroom at rest stops. It would appear that we potty trained her too well!
After reading about Amboy, California in Richard Wong’s blog we decided to take a quick day trip out to this historic locale along Route 66. After a late start we headed out to the desert around 11am. A jaunt up the 60, to the 10 led us to Highway 62 through Yucca Valley and 29 Palms. Amboy Road stars just north of Yucca Valley, heads west through Wonder Valley and then veers north through the Mojave and towards Highway 40 (it actually would have been quicker to go through Barstow and Highway 40, but I thought it would be more interesting to take the back route). Amboy Rd ends at National Trails Highway just west of Amboy. The backlog of This American Life was a little stale, so we were accompanied by my favorite roadtrip playlist, heavy on the Johnny Cash and Ryan Bingham with a dash of Uncle Tupelo and Muddy Waters thrown in for good measure.
A 3 hour car ride found us in Amboy around 2pm, just in time for a quick root beer and to walk the abandoned grounds of Roy’s Motel and Cafe. A more apt description is probably Roy’s stop for gas and americana kitsch, seeing as the hotel is closed and the cafe no longer serves food. But it’s a fascinating place to walk around. And while the doors to some of the motel rooms are open according to the guy working the cash register, while the sheriff, who lives across the street, is around, you shouldn’t be entering the rooms.
The photo above is the reflection of the Roy’s sign in the motel lobby window, with some lobby furniture visible through the dirty window. I also liked how the telephone pole and some of the additional background is visible as a reflection in the window.
After spending an hour or so walking around the grounds we headed north along National Trails Highway to Amboy Crater. The Crater area contains 24 square miles of lava flow/beds, but photographically speaking I didn’t find it all that interesting. Maybe, in part, because I was in a hurry to get back to some salt flats we found along Amboy Road prior to the sun going down. Looking through the maps I’m not sure if they are the Amboy Salt Flats, or maybe Bristol Lake Salt Flats, but regardless it’s a nice little salt bed area (little when compared to Death Valley!) that’s easily accessible right off the road.
The ride back was uneventful, though we missed the dinosaur kitsch along Highway 10 on the way home. Not sure how that happened.
And the best news of all, Sierra was absolutely fantastic on her first road trip!
Sean Scanlon is a travel and landscape photographer based in Southern California, home to an amazing array of photographic wonders. He has traveled the world, journeyed on long and desolate desert roads, and spent many cold and shivering mornings waiting for the sun to rise while his partner in life, Andree, wonders what in the world she is doing up at 4am in the morning. His photographs have been presented on museum walls in Melbourne, Australia and countless numbers of family and friends.
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All content © 2010 by Sean Scanlon | redinkphotography | landscape, urban, and travel photography | fine art and stock sales
Hmm, do you think she can tell Spike how its done?