Las Vegas to Palm Springs

On our way down to Palm Springs from Vegas, we decided to make a stop at the "Calico ghost town", a boom town founded in the 1880's. Mining for silver was what brought people to this dry spot in the desert. Over a very short period, about 30 silver mines were established here, and a town with 23 bars, a school etc grew up. However, already i 1907, because of plummeting silver prices, the town was abandoned and became a ghost town.

In Calico Ghost town - the heat was almost unbearable.

We found the ghost town experience a bit too commercial: First you pay entrance to access the town, then you find out that most of the buildings are actually shops or "restorations" (actually reconstructions in many cases). The roads are broad and paved with asphalt, which does not appear very authentic. Within the town you must then pay extra to access a silver mine (which we did and found quite interesting) or you can take a train or visit "a shack" of wonders - all for a fee. The restaurants and shops seemed overpriced. In short: a tourist trap.

We continued towards Palm Springs but were delayed because of heavy traffic on the Interstate Highway 10 (L.A.). The traffic got very intense and ruthless - a clear sign that you are near a big city in the US. We arrived in the late afternoon and met up with my brother, J, and his girlfriend P, who were on a long trip from the northern most point of North America to the south tip of South America. We spent the late afternoon in the hotel pool catching up and then went out for dinner i Palm Springs.