London Bridge via Sunset Trail

Lake Havasu State Park

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I must admit to feeling a bit uninspired by Lake Havasu. It seems like a place supposedly geared toward an outdoor life that merely tolerates me at its edges. It is full of big RVs and big boats and if you forgot yours (or just couldn't bring it while you flew in), there are a dozen places to buy some. There is a sense of a Disney World to the place that probably started long before there was one to emulate. The London Bridge was purchased in 1888 and brought over in numbered pieces. It is actually only the outer stones of the bridge which were placed on a concrete structure, so it isn't quite so ostentatious as it sounds. Still plenty ostentatious. And you've got to see it. That's why he did it, so you'll come and see it. And there is sort of a way to do it on my own terms as part of a hike: via the Sunset Trail. It's right there in the AllTrails list. The state park wants $15 or $20 entry depending on the day.

signs blocking the scenery — Signs, signs, everywhere, signs. Just so you know. Fee area.

sandy beach — There's nothing unnatural about this beach at all. Sure the sand is pebbles at the water line but the palms might have a relative growing naturally in a few hundred miles.

Move around the lot far enough, and I can find the trail. It has a nice big sign with a bit of information including a map. Behind it is a very wide sandy trail that is very easy to walk along.

trailhead sign — Information on plants and animals to inform the public and a map of sorts.

city right behind — Right behind the narrow strip of state park, there is the city. Behind that, Crossman Peak.

fishermen on the lake — But here, you can be right on the lake. Maybe not quite as "on" as some.

The trail winds a lot. It passes between high brush which is a mix of tamarisk and something that at least does get a mention in the native plant garden along the way. There are a few spots to stop for a picnic on the beach, too.

The native plant garden has a lot of different kinds of prickly pear, most of them more purple than the "purple prickly pear".

informative signs among the garden — Besides simple plant naming signs, there are also complicated ones on the local ecology.

The trail finishes off a little early to get to the bridge, but there is plenty of walking path to finish the route. It goes past a few of the 1/3 scale model famous lighthouses that also mean to bring the tourists although they don't have a sign on the interstate 20 miles away like the bridge.

one lighthouse on a spit of land — One of the scale model lighthouses on a spit of land because that is how lighthouses should be. Or on chunks of rock.

another lighthouse, this one could have a person in it — Another lighthouse. This one looks like if you scaled it up, it could actually fit a person inside.

a lot of lake — After passing quite a lot of RV campsites that come right down to the trail between brush canyons.

I make my way through a park area and back to the beach, then out onto some sidewalks by shops to get to the bridge. The bridge does sort of define the center of town, so it is quite busy there.