Riding Buttercup, Imperial Sand Dunes (Monday, February 12th, 2018)

The plank road and the border wall were very interesting, but the reason we really came to Buttercup was to ride.  These dunes are so beautiful, and we are excited to get out there!



Each time we visit the dunes, they are different than the time before.  The wind reshapes them and moves them, so although they remain somewhat consistent, they are never the same, but always beautiful!

Our friend Tony.....I told him that next time he has to carry the camera so there are some pictures of us.

Back at camp, we played a little golf between rides.  We would drive the balls and try to hit them right into the center of the power poles.  Tony got quite a few in. Steve made it once.  I guess we know who the better golf is! 

At both Glamis and Buttercup, there is a hill that is called Competition Hill.  It is a very long, steep hill that everyone likes to challenge themselves and their cars on to see if they can get to the top first.  This is the Competition Hill of Buttercup, and those are our friends climbing.  I wanted to get some pictures of Steve climbing, so I had him let me out.  He stands out because he is the only one with a white roof.

Here he is coming back down to pick me up.

 When I am taking pictures in the dunes, it is really hard to get the perspective of how big these dunes really are.  But I got a few that will help you see it.  

I took these pictures from the top of competition hill after we climbed it.  The dots below are three RZRs driving by, right where we just were at the bottom of the hill.

Here we are looking back down at our friends at the bottom.

Then back to the ride.

The views in the dunes are spectacular!

There are a lot of burned out cars in the dunes.  

As we understand it, prior to the border wall, as illegals would cross from Mexico into the U.S., they would drive their cars through the sand as far as they could.  Once the car got stuck, they would burn it so it couldn't be identified.  Then they would cross the rest of the way on foot.  

As we would come across one, it was always fun to stop and look.

Another car.

When we finished riding the dunes, we took another short ride to the Dunes Diner.  It is a restaurant just off the highway near Buttercup.  We had to cross the highway  on an overpass to get there, so that wasn't good with sand paddles, but it was fun to see anyway.

Just outside the diner, there is a gated mansion.  A little paradise in the desert.  I'm not sure who would want their mansion out here, but someone does.

It's so well concealed by the trees that you can't really see it, but it is huge.

This is the Dunes Diner.  It is closed for remodeling this year. People like to take the sand highway in their sand car, side-by-side or whatever and ride from Glamis and come up here for a meal.  Maybe some day we will have a chance to do it!

We met some great new friends on this trip that we look forward to getting together with again, and we truly enjoyed our time in the dunes.  I think we are finally learning how to ride them!

The Imperial Sand Dunes is such a pretty place, I told Steve I would love to come back sometime and just photograph it.  Not at high speed from a RZR, but up close and personal.