Escaping the Desert Heat

It was 103°F (39.4°C) when we left Las Vegas, and the thermometer was continuing to climb. It’s been triple digits here for days, with more in the forecast. The highest temp so far this year? 109 °F a few days ago, and June is typically not the hottest month; July is. There’s not much to do about it, and we really can’t complain. We choose to live in the Mojave Desert, and deserts get hot in the summertime. Though we can’t change the nature of the desert, we can do our best to cope with the heat. Coping includes leaving the house at 0500 every morning if we want to walk in reasonable temperatures (high 70s-mid-80s) or taking an extra lap or two around an air-conditioned big box store or supermarket when we’re out shopping. Coping means running the A/C 24x7 (thank goodness we have solar) from May through September. Coping can also mean heading to one of the Spring Mountain Recreation Area campgrounds operated by the National Forest Service. Part of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest,…