2009-08-02: I began this day by waking up 90 minutes early and having about 30 miles worth of fuel. According to my GPS, 15 miles through some desert backroads would get me to the highway I needed to be on. I hoped that the distance was accurate, and that the roads would be usable, and that there would be access to fuel within my range, but if not, I was prepared for both an off-road adventure and a long, hot walk. This detour did provide an opportunity for photography of this inhospitable landscape. Shacks constructed of various sorts of scrap and piles of junk could be seen periodically, and I suspect that a few of them were inhabited.
Thankfully, the directions were accurate and I rolled into a dusty gas station with 5 miles remaining. It was not yet 7:00, and the few droplets of condensation that fell from the cold drink I gulped as I refilled my tank evaporated instantly when landing upon the concrete slab that marked the boundary between this tiny shop and the shimmering amber wasteland. It seems I did not start travelling early enough. Within an hour, the temperature had risen to around 110°. Some stretches of highway scenery were devoid of any plant life and were strewn with black boulders, somewhat reminiscent of the Martian landscape as shown by Spirit and Opportunity.
I stopped in Needles, CA to rest and make sure my vehicle was in good order. I crossed into Arizona and it wasn't 10 minutes before I was stopped by a state police officer. He claimed the reason for the stop was that having my GPS attached to my windshield was obstructing my view. I asked where I could put it and his response was "not there." Then he began to ask accusatory questions, to which I gave short, blunt answers. "Is someone paying you to make this trip?" What? No. "How are you paying for it?" From my bank account. "You're coming from northern California? Lots of drugs around there!" Oh, really? "So you don't have any illegal narcotics for personal use?" No. Then he accused me of looking nervous and asked "You don't have any large amounts of drugs, like 2 kilos or more?". As if I wouldn't admit to having small amounts but I would admit to having large amounts. I don't like being treated as guilty until proven innocent. I was ready to demand a warrant should he ask to search my car. Eventually he got bored of harassing me and "let me off" with a "warning". It so happened that this wouldn't be the last time this would occur… That aside, it was an easy drive to the town of Williams, AZ, and then into Grand Canyon National Park.
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