This alien looking geyser on the edge of Black Rock Desert is actually man made. Man made by accident, that is.
There are actually two geysers on the property. The first was created nearly 100 years ago as part of an effort to make a part of the desert usable for farming. A well was drilled and geothermal boiling water (200 degrees) was hit. Obviously not suitable for irrigation water, this geyser was left alone and a 10 to 12 foot calcium carbonate cone formed.
In 1964 a geothermic energy company drilled a test well at the same site. The water they struck was that same 200 degrees. Hot, but not hot enough for their purposes. The well was supposedly re-sealed, but apparently it did not hold. The new geyser, a few hundred feet north of the original, robbed the first of its water pressure and the cone now lays dry.
This second geyser, known as Fly Geyser, has grown substantially in the last 40 years as minerals from the geothermal water pocket deposit on the desert surface. Because there are multiple geyser spouts, this geyser has not created a cone as large as the first, but an ever growing alien looking mound. The geyser is covered with thermophilic algae, which flourishes in moist, hot environments, resulting in the multiple hues of green and red that add to its out-of-this-world appearance.
The geyser is on Fly Ranch, is private property and trespassing is illegal. However, if you drive to the neighboring town of Gerlach and go to Bruno's restaurant they can put you in contact with the owners who do day tours of the spring for seasonal pricing.
I just wrapped up a sub-48 hour trip to Germany, during which I got very little sleep. While dragging myself out of bed and to the airport this morning at an ungodly hour I walked through my hotel's lobby and for a second thought I was in the airport's lost luggage department. There were about two dozen massive suitcases, and then two dozen rollaboard suitcases, all neatly lined up.
I looked up and saw a crew from a major Asian airline. An airline where crews just have a 1-2 night layover and then turn right around. And it got me wondering, what the hell does each crew member do with two suitcases for such a short trip?!
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the system that non-US airlines have. At US airlines, flight attendants carry on all their bags, and many times they have a handful of bags each which look more like an RV than a carry-on. And that's frustrating, since in many cases they're competing with passengers for limited overhead bin space.
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British Airways is running an award redemption sale through November 17 for travel through January 31. The sale is for economy travel to specific destinations, though there are quite a lot of them, and travel dates vary for a handful. Here are the cities that are 50% off US East Coast and Chicago – London […]
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Via Head for Points, Virgin Atlantic has quietly updated their change and cancellation policy. Going forward, if you've redeemed Flying Club miles for an award, you won't receive a refund of your miles if you cancel within 7 days of the flight.
The Virgin Atlantic website now reflects the following terms [emphasis mine]:
"Once tickets for a Reward Booking are issued, no name changes are allowed. If for any reason a flight Reward is cancelled by the Member outside 7 days of departure, 100% of the Miles will be re-credited to the Member’s account. A cancellation fee of £30 for changes to flights originating in the UK, US$50 for changes to flights originating in the US or local currency equivalent of US$50 for changes to flights originating in any other region will apply
If for any reason a flight Reward is cancelled by a member within 7 days prior to departure, no Miles will be refunded and a £30 administration fee will be charged to process the refund of any taxes, charges/surcharges. If you change the original travel date (within 7 days of departure) and later decide to cancel your flights, you will forfeit the mileage used for the Reward. Once travel has commenced Miles cannot be refunded."
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To celebrate the opening of the American Express Centurion Lounge, Uber is offering free Uber Black rides to San Francisco Airport today.
To be eligible:
The post Today Only: Free Uber Rides To SFO appeared first on One Mile at a Time.