This year we bought a new (ok, slightly used...2005) boat. We also got a place at the river, anticipating that we would spend all summer using said boat. Well, we've had a few kinks to work out as most used boat owners do, so we've hardly had the chance. We had a whole week of vacation lined up at the river, and the boat broke on the first day. After a few hours of being really bummed out (what the hell do you do when it's 112 degrees out and you can't go out on the water???) we decided to take the kids for a desert adventure. We were just an hour away from the Mojave National Preserve...old stomping grounds for Shane and I (we both worked at the Park Service fire station there). Our first stop was Fort Pah-ute. It was originally a stop-over for traveling Pah-ute Indians, as one of the only water sources in the Mojave Desert. It was later used as a military guard facility. To get there we drove 20 miles up a rocky dirt road, it was 115 degrees outside, and we had no cell service.
What particularly stood out for me was how afraid I was to be in such a remote place with our young kids. I handle calls at work, daily, for families stuck in the middle of the desert with no cell service, not enough water, etc. I usually shake my head and wonder why anyone would take their kids tromping into the middle of nowhere. 5 years ago, I spent a few days at a fire at this same location in mid August, and thought nothing of it. Now that I'm a mom...I thought it was a ridiculous idea to go there. Anyway, I sucked it up in the name of exposing our kids to new things. The desert is my home, after all.
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