Western States (2)

US/Mexican border

NAS Miramar: Topgun

On the way to Death Valley we passed the Naval Air Station Miramar which at the time was the home of Topgun, or more properly the United States Navy Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor program. We decided to stop and see if we could take a look around the place. They said there were no public tours but as we both had our British Army IDs on us then they'd see what they could do. A couple of women officers escorted us around the place. The best thing I remember about the place - apart from the fact that neither of the women could get any more into their uniform blouses if they tried - was a hanger full of F117 Stealth Fighters. We were told not to touch them, apparently finger grease ruins the paint's properties. Unfortunately we were also told no photographs of them. [In 1996, the facility was turned into a Marine Corps Air Station and Topgun was merged into the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center at NAS Fallon, Nevada.]

The following photos show the scenery on the way to Furnace Creek near Death Valley in the Mojave Desert...

We got to Furnace Creek after dark but I was up again at around 5am taking pictures of the sunrise in the mountains. Whilst I was taking these photos a couple of what I at first thought were dogs wandered out of the trees but looking at them I changed my mind and thought they were coyotes.

This page created 29th August 2011, last modified 30th August 2011