Mojave

At approximately 9:30pm, I arrived at my hotel. I drove right past it, because The town of Nipton California is comprise

d of the hotel, the general store......and that’s it. A guy named Gerald Freeman bought it, the town that is, in 1986. He sunk some money into the historic hotel and general store in the hopes of attracting tourists who were on their way to the Mojave National Preserve. By the time I got there, the hotel staff (both of them) had left. There were no guests there either. The general store was closed. I was therefore the only person in the town. No shit. Completely Surreal.

PHASE ONE : NIPTON, CALIFORNIA

PHASE TWO : KELSO DUNES

After awakening at 4:30am, I left the town of Nipton without ever actually seeing a Niptonite. I arrived at Kelso Dunes, the second highest dunes in California, just before sunrise.

I spotted the highest dune I could see and started hiking towards it. After about a mile through the dune sea, I came upon it and began my ascent.

The top of the hike was a little hairy, as I followed the narrow ridge line to the summit.

I now know what that it must feel like, emotionally & spiritually, to climb a mountain. From the top of this dune, six-hundred feet above the desert floor, I had the most amazing view imaginable. And all I could see, for hundreds of square miles, in every direction, was desert. Gorgeous, wild, spectacular, desert. No cars. No people. No buildings. Just me and the Mojave. I spent hours up there. It was the most moving experience of my life.