I love camping and climbing in the desert. There’s something beautiful about the desert landscape. I lived in Las Vegas for nearly a decade and guided there. Now I spend about six weeks a year in the desert, camping, guiding and climbing. When I’m camping there, I love the beauty at night and I love the beauty in the morning.
What I don’t love is the wind.
The desert wind can be incredibly viscous. Forty, fifty and even sixty mile an hour winds arrive in the desert with an alarming frequency. If you camp in the desert for more than seven days, you will definitely experience a wind storm.
The wind seldom has an impact on climbing. You can usually find a crag that is sheltered. Camping, however, is another story.
Our booth in Red Rock Canyon during
Red Rock Rendezvous after a major wind storm.
Our pop up was attached to our neighbor’s, and both were ripped up
Every guy line should be attached to rocks.
Even small rocks will keep your tent from drifting.
I think that the most difficult part of my long desert trips is the wind. When I do a trip with no wind storms or only one or two, I always feel like I got away with something.
You can always go and hope for no wind…but my feeling is that it’s always best to be prepared…
–Jason D. Martin