we went to see King Clone and it didn't work out

So, we wanted to see this creosote ring named "King Clone." It's a clonal colony that's been around for 11,700 years, which is a long time. For reference, that makes King Clone older than all of the bristlecones and all of the giant sequoias. It's older than all states, nations, and dynastic lineages in all of recorded history and reconstructed prehistory. It's older than every extant religion and ideology. If we uncritically accept the claims of the Book of Genesis and its biggest fans, then this thing is older than the Flood. It's older than human agriculture, the concept of currency, and the institution of written language. It's old!

We got all the way out to it, but our Civic couldn't handle the very last stretch of road. If we had a 4WD vehicle, it would've been about 15-30 minutes round-trip down a gravel track. Since we had to walk, though, it was looking more like an hour round-trip, and it was hot. It was so damn hot. I could feel the heat of the sand through my sneakers, and the wind physically stung against my skin. There was a moment when a solitary cloud passed over us and the temperature just dropped, but it was very brief. We gave up, but maybe we'll see it one day. I doubt it's going anywhere.

This is the intersection of Dune Road and Bessemer Mine Road. It really was that hot. 107F/41C, for realsies. The mailboxes and powerlines are there because there are actually houses at the end of this road, way out on the horizon.   Another view of the same spot.   This is the exact moment that the cloud passed overhead.   This is the truck stop we filled up at.   There's lots of big turbines at San Gorgonio Pass, along the freeway near Cabazon and Morongo Valley. It looks like the Altamont Pass, but without any grass. There's a cool whitewater river that passes through the turbines, though. It caught me off guard when I saw it, so I didn't have time to snap a photo.

I like visiting the desert in short bursts, but I can't imagine actually living out there.