The World's Most Beautiful Places
“The Needles” are a rock formation of the 18-mile long Mojave Mountain Range that straddles the Arizona and California border and is bisected by the Colorado River, Topock Gorge and Lake Havasu. Lake Havasu is a popular tourist destination for water sports that lies on the edge of the Sonoran and Mojave Deserts. To the west lie the Chemehuevi Mountains.
Route 66, one of America’s original and most famous highways, has gone by a variety of names, including; U.S. Highway 66, the Will Rogers Highway, the Mother Road, and the Main Street of America. It dates back to 1926, appears in John Steinbeck’s the “Grapes of Wraith”, and was a primary route for westward migration during the Dust Bowl, and the Great Depression. Its original route went from Chicago, Illinois down through Texas and ending in Santa Monica, California. Today it has been largely replaced by the Interstate system, and state highways.
The Needles, which rise as silhouetted rock pinnacles in this sunrise photo are a group of mountain peaks adjacent to Topock Gorge, and the Colorado River on the northwestern edge of the Mohave Mountains. They range in height from 1207 to 1600 feet. They are reflected in the foreground by the water of Topock Marsh, created with the establishment of Lake Havasu, a dammed section of the Colorado River. As part of the Havasu National Wildlife Refuge, Topock Marsh serves as critical habitat for migratory waterfowl, songbirds, fish, and other wildlife (including my first sighting that morning of a Bobcat in the wild). Topock Marsh and Lake Havasu form the border of California and Arizona and offer a beautiful oasis of life in the harsh Mojave and Sonoran deserts.
US Fish and Wildlife Service – Havasu National Wildlife Refuge
State of Arizona – Lake Havasu State Park
See more images from the Colorado River watershed.