In darkness, I head up the dirt road about a mile, set up camp, then an unexpected rain and wind storm descends upon me
This gravelly road has poor traction since it's in a wash. I walk the 10-ton bike most of the uphill mile, enjoying the strangeness of having solitude in the dark while overlooking a freeway lit up by thousands of oblivious headlights.
The three hours of heavy rain and wind this evening are bracing, to say the least. I'm glad I've camped on the fan above the wash but not in it. No rain penetrates my new tent, phew, and I'm happy when the rain clouds move over toward Newberry Springs and Ludlow around midnight, allowing the waning full moon to shine again.
However the steady winds don't let up and keep beating on the tent. Cold and wet radiate from the gravel in the near-freezing temperature outside.
Aurally exhausted from the noise of the rocking tent, I finally attempt sleep at 1h, after sufficient sips of cognac.
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