Three... no... Four Days in Lake Havasu Arizona – Days 3-4
/It was dark, colder, and more blustery when we met Jeff and crew in the morning. Jeff, the pilot, had read the weather reports and was not holding out much hope for a fly day, but we needed to go through the motions until an official decision was made. Once again, as the crew headed to the mess tent for breakfast, Jeff headed to the pilot briefing. He was back at the mess tent in a matter of minutes. The mass ascension had been canceled. With no balloon events scheduled and the wind whipping through the festival grounds, blowing over vendors’ kiosks and tents, we headed back to the hotel. We were on our own for the day.
Disappointed, but certainly not vexed, we made our plans for exploring Lake Havasu City and its environs. First on our list was a scenic lighthouse drive accessed by crossing the famous London Bridge and heading to ‘the island’. It wouldn’t occur to most people that Lake Havasu City in the middle of the Mojave Desert would boast having the most lighthouses of any city in the USA. But it does!
Lake Havasu is a manmade lake similar to Lake Powell and Lake Mead, and in fact, is also supplied by the Colorado River. The lake was formed when the Parker Dam was built in 1938. The loop drive around the island took us past several miniature, but working, lighthouses. Some were best viewed from the road and others were better viewed from a paved path along the Bridgewater Channel at the beautiful London Bridge Beach, a gem of a park.
Begun in 2000 by the Lake Havasu Lighthouse Club, the miniature lighthouses were originally constructed as navigational safety aids for the lake. There are now 27+ scaled-down replicas paying homage to famous US lighthouses from the East Coast, West Coast, and the Great Lakes. All of the lighthouses on the west side of Lake Havasu are replicas of famous lighthouses on the West Coast, while the east side consists of East Coast replicas. The lighthouses around the island are all replicas of lighthouses from the Great Lakes.
According to the gohavasu website, “Lake Havasu City's claim to fame is the London Bridge. The bridge, transported from London, England in 1968, was built as a conventional structure clad with the original granite to retain its antique look. Reconstructed on a dry piece of land, the earth was then dredged from underneath the bridge, creating Bridgewater Channel and "The Island" across the bridge. On October 10, 1971, the completed bridge was formally dedicated in a ceremony attended by over 50,000 American and British spectators and dignitaries.”
We’d heard about the Desert Bar from our balloon crew. It’s a local hangout and bar out in the middle of nowhere in the Mojave Desert. The only clue to finding it was a gravel road off US95 on the way to Parker. The GPS was no help. Following a trail of dust from another car, we figured Cienega Springs Road was the right road, but we traveled for a few miles before we actually saw a sign that verified we were heading in the right direction.
This is BLM land and lots of RVs and campers were boondocking in the rough terrain along the roadside. This is evidently a good place for target shooting, too. We saw several folks firing at targets… a good safe place to hone shooting skills.
We wondered about the bar’s posted hours: High noon till 6PM only? We learned later that the bar is powered by solar only… lights out after dark.
The bumpy, dusty ride turned out to be about 12 miles from the highway… a long ride when you’re only doing 15mph. The road is narrow and very rough in parts, more suited to 4x4s and OTVs, of which there were many racing around. We certainly weren’t the only passenger car heading out to the bar though… we saw more and more cars ahead and behind as we slowly progressed towards the bar. Old, rusted cars and trucks provided some ‘ambiance' as we neared our destination. Finally, we spotted what looked like a church steeple in the distance. As we neared the Desert Bar, we saw it was a church or at least the facade of one.
Located in the Buckskin Mountains on the site of an old copper mining camp, the Desert Bar is definitely a one-of-a-kind, off-the-beaten-path kind of place. We were absolutely amazed at the number of people roaming around. There were no parking spaces available until we finally spotted a car backing out and snagged the only available spot. The bar sprawls out over the crags and cliffs and the seating areas were on multiple levels.
It’s a cash-only place. There were several food vendors serving up typical hamburger & fries type meals and the lines were long. Two bars offered beer (Budweiser mostly), spirits, and mixed drinks. Bloody Marys seemed to be quite popular.
We walked around a bit but found the lines and the menu not quite what we had in mind. Besides, we needed to get back to the balloon field for a possible evening glow or a candlestick. We’d also planned to meet with Jeff and another crew couple for dinner and a little theater performance after the balloon activities concluded.
Returning to the field, we were once again disappointed as were the attending crowds. It was still too windy and all balloon activities had been canceled for the day. Bummer! We returned to our room for some R&R and met up with the crew a bit later for dinner… also a disappointment, punctuated by a limited menu, poor food preparation (overcooked, overdone, and not as advertised), and a dearth of servers.
The performance of ‘Guys & Dolls…Jr’ was, however, entertaining. Previously unbeknownst to us, it was performed by teenagers and tweens. Not quite what we expected, but the kids put their hearts and souls into their performances and we did enjoy their efforts. After the performance, we all headed back to the hotel. One more day of balloon festival. Maybe the wind would subside?
No… the final day of the balloon festival was just as windy as the prior days and all events were canceled. Once again, a major disappointment for crew and spectators, many of whom had traveled hundreds of miles to attend. Mother Nature has no pity.
We were supposed to leave after the balloon events, but while returning to our hotel room, we tossed around the idea of staying just one more day. We could do a bit more walking at London Bridge Beach Park and wander around in downtown Lake Havasu City. Maybe indulge in an ice cream cone? We could be totally decadent and laze around and take a nap to make up for the recent middle of the night wake-ups. There was no need to rush home… right?
Absolutely right. And thus our three-day stay became four days. That’s our story and we’re sticking to it.
So… what’s next? You’ll have to wait and see. Check back soon, but be sure to have your suitcase packed just in case we’re on the move.