C2C Day R Dateland

We ended up at a muddy campground in Dateland. Bubba claims this town is the origin of Tinder and Match.com.

The Medjool dates are world famous.

Tha salad bowl was muddy and damp and lettuce was being shipped out and the date and cactus shakes were fabulous,

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We went. 70 miles from Yuma to Dateland today . This postva bit scattered due to some rain in camp and a failure of my tent. Fingers crossed the sustitute tent holds.

The ride had no rain but skies looked moist all day long.

Here is your Yuma info

Dateland

Don`t forget to get a Date Shake! (hint: Unless you like VERY sweet shakes, ask for half the date syrup!)

During the 1940’s, Dateland Arizona was the site for two of General Patton’s desert training camps, Camp Horn and Camp Hyder. In addition, in 1942, three airstrips were built here in Dateland for training B25 Bombers. Unfortunately, the airfields were only utilized for about two months. The buildings that were built for the airstrips were later used as part of an Italian internment camp. Of course, all of the buildings are long gone, but the airstrips, and many of the original foundations are still in existence.

At one time, there was a hot springs located in Agua Caliente, just a few miles from Dateland. It was considered an exclusive resort, and was visited by many of the famous movie stars of that generation. But, eventually, the hot springs dried up due to the tremendous amount of agriculture in the valley.

In 1965, when Interstate 8 was built to replace old Highway 80, Dateland moved about a block north of its original location. The old building stood for many years, until it was finally torn down in 1997. All of the original pieces of the business still exist, the cafe, the gift shop, the gas station, the RV Park, and the Date Grove. The local community has grown a bit on the north side of the interstate, and we now have an elementary school that currently has an enrollment of around 150 students.

Enjoy, tomorrow we ride to Gila Bend and camp.

Love to all

NW

Because of the hot desert environment, the military still uses the Dateland area for periodic training. Many of the American troops that were in Iraq, or who have been to Afghanistan, have spent some time training here in Dateland.