MaryJean and Gracie go to the BIG City!

We are driving back to Tucson today from spending last 2 days in Laughlin, NV and Oatman, AZ.  Went to visit Lowell Mac. his wife and daughter and also to see him and Kim play yesterday in historic Oatman, AZ, home of the wild donkey herd.  We left on Sunday, picked up Kim in Phoenix and off to Laughlin we went.  When we got there we realized that Laughlin is like little Las Vegas and that MJ and Gracie would be staying in a fancy hotel/casino on the Colorodo River.  Lowell's daughter Kim works there and got us a really great cheap deal on two rooms.

In the elevator

They played a good game of pool, except I think Gracie cheated.

Of course they had to play the slots

Oatman!

Donkey's are everywhere here, this baby just layed down and went to sleep in the street.

Of course they are so fuzzy wuzzy we couldn't keep our hands off him and he never woke up from all the attention.

Bobe and his new hat!

Bobe, Lowell and one of the other musicians.

Kim and donkey friend.

In the historic town of Oatman, Arizona sits the haunted Oatman Hotel. Oatman was first established as a tent city in the early 1900s and the historic hotel, called the Drulin Hotel, was built in 1902. The eight room hotel did a brisk business to area miners, especially after two miners struck a rich vein that would end up being a 10 million dollar gold find in 1915. Prior to that time the town had been little more than a mining camp. The rich gold discovery brought hundreds of new settlers and within one year’s time, Oatman had grown to more than 3,500 residents. In just a few short years, Oatman suffered three major fires that almost destroyed the town. However, the town was rebuilt, and the old hotel was repaired in 1920, continuing to host its many guests. However, both the population and the mining boom were short-lived. The largest mining company, United Eastern Mines, shut down its operations in 1924 and the town almost died. But with the advent of Route 66, the old town and the hotel hung on, catering to the many travelers along the new highway. On March 29, 1939 Clark Gable and Carole Lombard spent their wedding night at the old hotel after having been married in Kingman, Arizona. Remembering this memorable night, the couple often returned to the hotel for the peace and solitude it afforded them. Clark was known to spend many a night playing poker with some of the miners.  Sadly, Carole Lombard was killed in a plane crash in January 1942. Though devastated, Clark continued with his life and his career and later married again.   Over the years, the old hotel carried a number of names but was changed to the Oatman Hotel in the 1960s. When Route 66 was replaced with the interstate, Oatman again suffered a devastating blow and dwindled to just a few gift shops and restaurants. Today only about 100 people live in Oatman year-round.

Another baby just hanging around.  More Donkey's to come!