My wife and I had a chance to head out to the desert earlier than usual this weekend (Friday around noon vs. late Friday night). As we headed east on the 10 and saw the Whitewater exit, we made a spontaneous decision to check it out, since we had the time. It's surprisingly pretty... very green and worth seeing.
The preserve is a short drive (about 5 miles) off the 10. Right now they have signs posted about high fire danger, and they don't want people pulling off the road and hiking out to the river. As you pull into the Whitewater Preserve, you will notice small man-made lakes, people camping, kids swimming, lots of picnic tables, etc. Interestingly, Whitewater appears to have started out as a trout farm/fishing area before the official "preserve" designation. It's got a wonderful old Visitor Center which is big and feels very old and comfortable (lots of knotty pine and beams). There was an older couple playing cards as we walked in and they made us feel very welcome!
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| Can't read everything, but definitely appears this used to be a trout farm! |
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| Visitor Center: "Whitewater Trout Company - Founded 1939" |
The ponds are well stocked with huge rainbow trout. One of the rangers said fishing is still allowed on certain days, but only children and only catch-and-release. I would love to see a kid hook in to one of these big rainbows!!
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| My wife checking out one of the ponds. |
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| Big, healthy trout were abundant! |
There are also multiple trail heads that start from this area, so if you're looking for a hike, you might want to check out Whitewater Preserve. Otherwise, a great place to visit and have a picnic.
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| View looking back towards the Visitor Center |
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| Because of year-round water, bears and mountain lions are sometimes seen. |
Blog Entry Part II: 68050 Kern
When we got out to our place Friday afternoon, we walked across the wash to the next street over. There is a small homestead cabin that we have never seen anyone use and always wondered about. It has a blue van parked beside it, but in more than a year, we've never seen it move. I wanted to go over a take a few pics as my curiosity got the better of me. Up close, it's obvious nobody has been in this place for a long time. Shortly after I took the below photo, I heard a little yell out of my wife... she found herself standing very near a knot hole with swarms of bees going in and out!
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| Weathered tongue-and-groove, and the 'Dutch Model" trying to stay out of the photo! |
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| Great location (right up against the hills), but a real fixer! |
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| Another view. I think this is my favorite of the three photos... very "old-timey" looking! |
My final photo entry: walking back home at sunset!
Beautiful pics....I know a tall young man who's looking forward to doing a lil' fishing one day down the road...too big for Whitewater...he"ll have to head towards havasu. Seems bees like to take ownership of these little homesteads...have a great weekend
ReplyDeleteFishing in Havasu sounds awesome! Let's plan on it!
ReplyDeleteI love Whitewater Preserve. I sneak up there with the dogs whenever the heat gets too much for me. In fact, last time I was there one of the dogs jumped into the trout pond! I was crouching down looking at dragonflies, not paying much attention to the dogs when there was a big splash beside me. I quickly hauled the dog out and look around to see if I'd been busted. I got lucky on that one. The splashing pulled in a lot of trout, no doubt thinking they were going to be fed, and I was able to get a couple of nice pictures. All's well that ends well, right?
ReplyDelete