In hot water: the mineral springs of Desert Hot Springs (and photos of others we've visited--Breitenbush, Sol Duc, Esalen, Fairmont, Gold Fork, and The Boiling River)

By Jack Brummet, Geothermal Editor

The Hacienda Hot Springs

Over the years, I've written about some of our visits to hot springs, like Esalen, the Boiling River, Fairmont Hot Springs (one in B.C., and one near Butte, Montana), Sol Duc, and others, mostly on the west coast, Idaho, and Montana, but also one we visited in Turkey (an amazing Olympic-size pool that they opened up just for our family that night).

This map shows the locations and temperatures of the underground mineral springs in Desert Hot Springs.  The Hacienda, where we stayed, is in the 150 degree zone, and allegedly has the best water, because the hotter water dissolves more minerals as it rises to the surface.  They add water from a nearby cold water mineral spring to cool the water down to 100 for the pool, and around 106 or so for the hot pool.  It was some of the silkiest mineral water I've ever felt, with virtually no sulfur smell (which I actually don't mind).

My son Del, and nieces Mackenzie and Melanie in the Boiling River at Yellowstone

the beautiful pools at Esalen, on a cliff over the Pacific

We met a woman, Anne, at The Hacienda, who was looking to buy an old spa, or a piece of property/house in the spa zone (it costs around $30,000 to drill down to the hot springs and create a pipe and valve for on demand hot mineral water). 

Chico Hot Springs in Montana

At Breitenbush Hot Springs in Oregon, where Keelin goes twice a year for retreats, they also sit on top of a hot springs.  They have tapped into the springs and use it to heat their entire complex--via radiators and in floor piping.  I don't know if they also use the hot water to generate electricity. . .

The hot springs at Sol Duc, on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State

Breitenbush Hot Springs in Oregon

Fairmont Hot Springs

Gold Fork Hot Springs near McCall, Idaho

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Rocks: rocks and rock formations in and around The Mojave Desert

By Jack Brummet, Travel Editor

I was fascinated by the rock formations we saw in, and around, The Mojave desert this week.   There are many more I wanted to see, but time was limited.  Here are some of my favorite rocks:

That's Keelin in the center of the photo

Split Rock

a view of the Coachella Valley - you can see The Salton Sea in the center below the clouds

These last shots are of my favorite, Skull Rock

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The cactus garden at Joshua Tree National Park

by Jack Brummet

While it is called a garden, nothing was planted, or taken out of this garden.  Like many places the desert, the soil, and relative availability of water determines these odd gatherings of plants.  This cactus garden has several different kinds of cactus, but mainly cholla.  And they are nasty if you brush up against one--I did once years ago in the Sonoran desert.

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The Susan G. Komen Foundation Mess

By Mona Goldwater, Ethics Editor and Pablo Fanque, National Affairs Editor

We have many mixed emotions about the Susan G. Komen Foundation's withholding of funds from Planned Parenthood.  We're not posing any solutions, or even opinions here. But we do have a lot of anguish, and questions:

• The SGKF has done a lot of good work and funneled a lot of money into a critical cause that previously wasn't even as well-funded as erectile dysfunction research!

• This plays right into the hands of religious fundamentalists, who would like to see Planned Parenthood shut down tomorrow.  Have you been reading the far right news sites and blogs?  There is a celebration going on.

• We've never fully understand how this intra-charity giving works?  While PP is a very noble cause, why does SGKF grant them money they raised for breast cancer research?

• If this boycott continues for very long, the most effective and organized group for raising cash and raising consciousness of this issue will be stifled and probably run out of business.  Does anyone really think the government will step in to replace that money?  We know the government cannot raise awareness; generally when they pick up the mantle of a cause, it becomes a lost cause (remember W.I.N.--whip inflation now?, or D.A.R.E.?).  

• We understand the outrage, and the instant (and emotional and intense) public response of cutting off funds to SGKF and sending those funds to PP.  The digital age means that reactions and movements like this can makes their voices heard within hours.

• Today SGKF leaders--stunned by the blowback--backtracked and claimed their cutoff of funds had nothing to do with the "investigation."  Komen founder Nancy Brinker said the organization wants to support groups that directly provide breast health services, such as mammograms.  Planned Parenthood only provides mammogram referrals.  If they had said that in the first place, would this have almost gone unnoticed?  But they didn't, and now the genie is out of the bottle. 

• If you believe (and support) SGKF's initial statement about not wanting to fund a group under investigation, should you also quit paying your federal income taxes tomorrow?  Because, after all, out of 535 members of congress (give or take a few depending on deaths, resignations, and indictments), these guys are all currently under investigation (roughly 3% of Congress!):

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-New Jersey)
Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) (deceased, but investigation continues)
Sen. Roland Burris (D-Illinois)
Rep. Charles Rangel (D-New York)
Rep. John Doolittle (R-California) - Retiring
Rep. Tom Feeney (R-Florida)
Rep. Bob Filner (D-California)
Rep. Jane Harman (D-California)
Rep. William Jefferson (D-Louisiana) - Indicted
Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-California)
Rep. Gary Miller (R-California)
Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-West Virginia)
Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pennsylvania)
Rep. Rick Renzi (R-Arizona) - Indicted and Retiring
Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska)

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Las Vegas's Neon Museum/Neon Boneyard

The Neon Museum collection of signage consists of a vast Neon Boneyard, and a small collection of restored signs, "the Fremont Street Gallery," and several more signs along Third Street. 

The Boneyard is one of the coolest things we saw in Las Vegas.  It contains hundreds of donated and salvaged signs from the late 1930s through the early 90s from mostly Vegas hotels, businesses, and casinos.  The Museum will open sometime later this year.  In the meantime, they do controlled tours of the Boneyard. 

The Museum's Fremont Street Gallery and Signs Project also has actually fully restored some signs and placed them along Fremont and Third Streets. One small sign cost $20,000 to restore and re-electrify.  We went to see these too, but not at night unfortunately, when they are lit up.

It's about a ten minute drive from the strip and well worth a visit.

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A public scolding in Las Vegas of the Schwartz Law Firm

Photo by Jack Brummet

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Self-portrait: The mural

By Jack Brummet