Dispatch From A Mojave Desert Motel 6

If there is anyone out there wondering if I made it out of Iceland a couple weeks ago, the answer is yes. The freakish high winds finally calmed down long enough to fly home. But if you're wondering where I am right this minute you can find me in the Mojave desert at the Motel 6 in the middle of a freak wind storm!! Believe me I wouldn't make this up.

This is the third crazy wind storm I have been in in the last two months! I am in extreme weather hell. First the Santa Ana's and Malibu fires, then Iceland and now this. Like the Griswold's family Christmas road trip, we packed up the car, loaded up assorted kids and headed for beautiful Mammoth ski resort.

Just two hours in (two rest stops and one DVD later) the wind kicks up just past Lancaster and with it a full scale brown out sand storm! Traffic slowed to a crawl, white knuckles gripped the steering wheel and we inched forward. Then a police car blocked the way and said all roads leading to Mammoth are closed till the winds die down.

Probably tomorrow morning, maybe.

Comments

[belladawna]

good to hear and know. thank you and have a happy new year :)

[Wombat]

Mojave! Where old airplanes go to die. No, really. Check out the old airplane bone yards out there. When the wind dies down to a low roar- of course. Good Luck Laurie and family

[greggp]

Let's try it again. It must be terrible what you have to endure in MALIBU and ICELAND. Now you're in a Motel 6. The horror!

God, I hope the ice machine isn't broken.

[TomR]

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This is the third crazy wind storm I have been in in the last two months!
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Laurie, have you considered cave exploration as a vacation idea? But please, no cruises in the Caribbean--doesn't sound like you're the sort who should be tempting fate in the Bermuda triangle. Kite flying, well maybe, but no hot air ballooning either.

I think you have a real future as a spokesperson for the Wind Energy Association.

- Tom

[TuffPosh]

I've been driving up 395 for years, and I've never seen the dust storms as bad as they've been during the Bush administration. I think it's even worse than we fear. Not only are they ignoring Global Warming, I think they must be engaging in some form of weather modification or something.

[xenubarb]

Yeah, some pretty crazy weather, but not unusual for this time of year. I rode my motorcycle from San Diego to Murrieta Saturday, and was startled coming through the pass north of Escondido when I was suddenly shoved over a lane by a gust of wind.

The mountains are razor sharp against the sky, I could see snow on the San Bernadino mountains. The wind cut like a knife; gusty, out of the east. I had to bank my bike into the wind all the way to Murrieta. What a ride!

[TedB]

My parents just barely made it up yesterday and had some pretty crazy tales to tell---like a Volkswagon-sized tumbleweed that nearly removed a sideview mirror! It will be worth the wait though; we sould get a couple feet of cold powder by saturday morning.
Drive safe!