Super Bloom at American Girl Mine BLM

The late November rain storms that soaked the southwest provided the moisture necessary for dormant flower seeds to pop open, creating spring super blooms all across the desert. 

We camped at American Girl Mine in February with a Homes On Wheels caravan group. It might not look spectacular but when one of our knowledgeable members lead a flower walk, we spotted flowers in bloom that we've never seen at AGM even though we've camped there every spring for years. 

           

The BLM land at American Girl Mine is flat and large so finding a camping spot is never a problem. The combination of rocks and sand make it a bit difficult at times for wheelchair users. American Girl Mine  32.8356, -114.81039

 

Salton Sea Headquarters Campground and Visitor Center

We traveled along the Salton Sea in 2021 and stayed at New Camp  which is a part of the Headquarters area of the park. This time we chose the Headquarters Campground for the convenience of a full hookup site to dump our waste water and fill our fresh water. The campground is along the east side of a large picnic area parking lot with fourteen sites lined up in a row. The campground appears to get little use so the lack of privacy due to the closeness of the sites is slight. The host site was the only occupied site when we visited.  

The visitor center is at the south end of the lot. It's small with a few exhibits about the sea that are a little out of date. The water now in the Salton Sea is the result of a cut made in the bank of the Colorado River in 1905 when irrigation canals were being dug. Water flowed into the valley for two years before the breach was repaired. The beautiful fresh water lake became of a vacation paradise for a short period but soon increased salinity of the water, algae blooms, fish die offs and agricultural pollution left most of the small communities ghost towns. The large parking lot at the Headquarters is evidence of how popular boating, fishing and swimming was in the 1950s and 60s. 

None of the campsites are designated as accessible but most can be used. The visitor center is accessible. The trails to the lake are sandy and not accessible. Headquarters   33.50533, -115.91479

 

The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens

 The zoo was established in 1970 as a  wilderness preserve and gradually became a full fledged zoo as animals were added. All of the animals are desert dwellers so they are comfortable in the hot climate of southern California. Most of the enclosures are very roomy. The  giraffe and ostriches roam around on a grass covered hill with palm trees for shade. A special enclosure for the wallabies allows visitors to walk paths where the animals live and play. 

    Over 1,200 plant species are featured in gardens that represent different regions of the world. 

The main paths are wide, paved and fairly level. Visitors using wheelchairs may need assistance on the sandy paths. The five mile loop nature trail, with connecting trails to make shorter loops, is not accessible do to loose sandy soil. Some viewing areas are partly blocked by the fencing but most have alternate viewing areas. The shuttle tours are not accessible. 

The parking lot is large enough for any vehicle if parked across the spaces. Zoo   33.699, -116.37502

 

White Sands National Monument

The white sands of the monument were formed over thousands of years as rain water and snow melt, which dissolved gypsum from the San Andres Mountains, flowed into the Tularosa Basin. The shallow lake that formed dried up as the climate changed, leaving behind a large gypsum playa. Strong winds from the southwest are constantly breaking down the gypsum crystals into the fine sand of the dunes and piling them up into ever-changing shapes.

 The monument has a small visitor center with exhibits and a short video. A sixteen mile scenic drive winds through the dunes with stops at picnic areas and hiking trails. 

    The visitor center and theater are accessible. The Interdune Boardwalk is accessible however the area is off limits due to the 2024 crash of an Air Force jet. The pilot ejected before the crash and was uninjured but the area is not safe for visitors. The Playa Interpretive Trail is about 1/3 of a mile out and back. It's hard packed and accessible with assistance and leads to a seasonally wet area where gypsum crystals form. The interpretive signs are too high to be read from a seated position. The other trails and the dunes are not accessible with a standard wheelchair. 

The visitor center lot has long RV spots. Most of the other parking lots are large enough for any vehicle. Monument   32.77918, -106.17214

 

James Canyon Campground

This pretty little campground is right off of Hwy 82 so it's not secluded or private but it is convenient. It's also very small with two sites that are large enough for RVs and three tent sites that are accessed by crossing a bridge that spans a dry stream bed. 

The campground web site states that it's limited to RVs 16' or less in length which I didn't notice that when I was researching. Our 25' RV fit into the sites but I don't recommend turning into the campground if your RV is long or if you are towed or towing because there isn't much room to turn around. 

Amenities include picnic tables, fire rings, and vault toilets.  

The RV sites are accessible with hard packed dirt, picnic tables with extended tops, and fire rings with high sides.   Campground   32.90454, -105.50528

Coleman RV Park

There are two sections in this city park campground. The west section has trees but the sites are not well marked, the ground is not level,  and the electric may not work. The east section has sites marked off with telephone poles laid on the ground and new electric hookups. The east section was fairly crowded with large fifth wheels when we pulled in but by early evening they had all packed up and left. We figured they were oil workers and had been called to a new job-site. 

The campground has water, a dump station, and a dumpster but no restrooms or picnic tables. Several parks with playground equipment, ball fields, and picnic facilities are within walking distance. 

The eastern sites may not be wide enough to deploy a lift.   Park    33.17287, -102.27534

 

Buddy Holly Center

 Buddy Holly was born into a musical family and spent his childhood in the little Texas town of Lubbock. After graduating from high school, Buddy formed a band and often opened for national acts when they came through town. Buddy and the Crickets were soon recording their own songs and had their first number 1 hit with "That'll Be the Day" in 1957.

The Crickets split up a year later. Due to financial problems caused by the breakup, Holly went on a winter tour in the Midwest - an exhausting schedule of twenty-four performances in twenty-four days. The freezing weather, unheated buses, and breakdowns caused so many problems that halfway through the tour Holly charted a small plane to go to the next stop. Richie Valens, and the Big Bopper, J.P. Richardson, part of the tour group, joined Holly. The plane crashed shortly after takeoff killing everyone on board. Buddy Holly was only 22 years old. 

The museum is small and we were disappointed that there weren't headphones to listen to the music. The exhibits tell the story of Buddy Holly's life and short career but very little about the tragic plane crash. No photos are allowed in the Buddy Holly galleries but, not realizing that the restriction covered both galleries, I took some photos of the bedroom suite Buddy Holly had as a teenager and a  dinette set that Buddy and Maria Elena Holly had in  their New York City apartment. The museum also includes a fine arts gallery featuring changing exhibits by local and regional artists.

The museum is accessible.

We missed touring the J.I. Allison House, where Allison, the drummer of the band "The Crickets", lived as a teenager and where many of the group's songs were written. 

The parking lot is large enough for any vehicle.  Center  33.5785, -101.8423