Earp CA

From Salome, AZ we traveled about 70 miles to Earp, CA which is right on the Colorado River and across from Parker, AZ. The area is still the desert and the town of Earp is a name only with just a post office. The Parker Dam is 16 miles up river from Earp. It is one of the 3 dams on the Colorado River where the water is impounded which is used to supply southern California and Arizona with water. We did not realize the large volume of water that is taken from the Colorado River through the viaduct to supply California. The town of Parker was basically founded due to the Indian Reservation which now incorporates 4 tribes the Chemehauvi, Mohave, Navajo and Hope. The reservation is vast. There was a Japanese interned camp on the reservation during WW II. There were over 20,000 Japanese in the camps. The Japanese developed a water way to irrigate the land and were successful in developing crops that thrived in the area. When the camps were closed the land was returned to the Indians with the irrigation systems in place and the knowledge on how to continue to grow crops. This allowed the Indians to thrive and be financially successful. They now have a casino which also is a financial support for them. Kayaking was good on the stretch of the Colorado from Parker Dam to the campground. Bob got Sue to go out a couple of different times. Sue did drop Bob off below the dam and he floated the 15 miles back to the campground. The water is cold and I am not sure that it would be a place that we would want to winter as the water is just too cold to really enjoy in the winter months.