Cattail Cove SP, Lake Havasu City AZ
The road to our next stop in Arizona was uneventful. Once we exited I-10, State Road 95 went north through a desert with mountains in the distance. Once we crossed into Arizona, the elevation picked up, and the road became more winding. We crossed the Colorado River in Parker, then got to Cattail Cove State Park and our campground after a half hour or so. The campground is on the shore of Havasu Lake; from our site, it's just a short walk to the beach and the boat launch. Everything in this park is about the lake and the boats. Our neighbors on both sides have boats and love to fish.
The weather changed too; it got warmer, and the last two days, it was downright hot! The park sits next to BLM land, and marked trails span into BLM. We hiked a simple two-mile lollipop, with most of the trail along the shore of Havasu Lake. There were beautiful coves, caves, and lovely little beaches where you could land your boat. The shore is high over the lake; you get a wonderful view across the water. We could see part of the intake pumps for the Colorado River Aqueduct. Colorado has many dams; it's impounded at Parker, Lake Havasu City, and just north of Laughlin at Davis Dam, which creates Lake Mohave. I didn't realize that there were so many dams along the Colorado. I thought Glen Canyon and Hover Dams were it; you learn something new every day.
I mentioned the beach at this park; it sits on a little cove and has a nice sandy shoreline. When we visited it on our first day here, I wondered why there were so few people in it. Now I know the water is cold—barely over 60 degrees! Though it felt very nice when I visited the beach over the last two days, the temperature was in the upper 90s, and the water was very refreshing in these temps. That's where I met with Melvin late afternoon, the road runner we ran into a couple of times before in our travels. He was drinking from the lake, so I was able to sneak up on him and take a picture! I also saw a couple of cute quails with their tufted heads, but these guys are fast and did not have a chance to snap a photo.
We went into Lake Havasu City, the home of "London Bridge." Frankly, I was disappointed in the bridge. Arizona local Robert McCulloch purchased the original 1830s bridge from London in 1968 but used only the outer granite blocks to build a new bridge in Lake Havasu. It's very kitschy; there's also an English village, shops, and restaurants. It's not quite for me. We did a couple of nice places to eat; one is Sam's Place; they only do breakfast and lunch. The place is unassuming, and the food is simple and delicious.
Much of the land between Parker and Lake Havasu City is part of BLM. We saw many campers and some tents in dispersed campgrounds. There are many trails for dirt bikes and ATVs in the area. We chatted with one of the ranges; he mentioned that many people live in these campgrounds. You can only stay for two weeks, then you have to move on, but that's what many of them do. Tom and I agree that we should try camping on BLM land for at least one night. I want to find a place where it's not as hot; according to the ranger, it gets over 120 degrees in summer.
