Fun Without the Sun

I forgot that I was supposed to post pictures of the park where we are staying.


So, here is our coach with our neighbors close by.


And here is a shot down the street. Hmmmm.....doesn't look so bad in the pictures. Maybe just my imagination.


Now to the fun stuff. We headed out this morning for the Mesa Swap Meet. It's huge and so much fun. We picked up a couple of things that we couldn't live without.......a set of knives, a couple of collapsible laundry baskets, some postcards and a hat for Doug.


Yup, that's the hat that has received so many comments all day. Some people were afraid that it was his real hair and some people were afraid to ask. But everyone loved it.


After the swap meet, we decided to drive east on Hwy 60 to Globe. We have heard a lot about the casino there and wanted to check it out. The drive was outstanding and pictures don't begin to do it justice.


Once we got through the tunnel, the rock formations were fascinating. The rocks were fractured and balanced precariously.


It was so beautiful that the casino Apache Gold was a let down. We left a few dollars there and were not impressed. They also have an RV park. Basically, it was a large, blacktopped parking lot with hookups. Some the rigs looked like they have been there for ten years. And the charge is $20 a night! Not for us.

We had a couple drops of rain on the way home but nothing to compare to the weather in western Washington. Sorry.........

Change of Plans

Due to some circumstances beyond our control, we have decided to spend a couple more days here in Apache Junction. Doug has some things he needs to take care of on Monday before we leave. So, our current plan is........sightseeing on Sunday, business on Monday and head out on Tuesday.

However, like all plans carved in jello, this could change too! Be back tomorrow with lots of pictures (hopefully) of our sightseeing.

We had our first really cloudy and cool day today. But, after speaking with our families in Washington, we were thankful to be here. In eastern Washington, it's already snowing and on the coast it's about to snow. If we could package up the sunshine, we would send each of you a big package for Christmas.


We are near the Superstition Mountains and have done very little sight seeing. Doug has been getting some work done and I have been working on the computer.


But, we took a ride into the desert in the late afternoon and caught the sunset on our way back. Everything is green and beautiful, but the roads are dusty.


The sky is filled with all kinds of wonderous things. We love the hot air balloons and their whooshing sounds as they fill and rise.



We also saw this hang glider drifting on the currents.

As you can tell, we love it here. Although Doug is a little disappointed that he hasn't seen a rattlesnake yet!

Missing In Action

No, we're not missing in action, we're in action in Arizona. Yup, we finally made it across the border into the state of Arizona. It's a long, straight drive along I-10 through the desert and we were glad to get to the Phoenix area. Actually, we are in Apache Junction at a less than exciting rv park.

We arrived at 4:30 pm and the office was already closed. So we found someone who could show us to a space and advised us to check-in in the morning. This park appears to be mainly small mobile homes with rvs parked in between. The spaces are very tight and the views are terrible. Oh well, we are only here until Sunday. (I will have some pictures of the park for you tomorrow.)

Doug will be doing some work on his Grandma's house and I will be soaking up some sun.

On Saturday, my son Mick and his girlfriend Adriana are moving to their condo in Phoenix. So, we are looking forward to a visit with them while we are in the area.

There wasn't much to blog about the last couple of days. Sunday, we tried some geocaching.


This mini cache was behind the Albertsons store. It was easy to park and search without a lot of people around. But there was a dog on the other side of the fence barking his head off.


Doug figured out pretty quickly where the cache was hidden and we took it back to the car to examine it. The black metal plate on the light pole lifts up and the film container was tucked underneath. Geocachers like to keep hiding places secret from "muggles" who are non geocachers. It's an entertaining game and let's us explore some places that we might not ordinarily find. (But we can usually find Albertsons)

On Monday, we took care of some banking and then drove to the Heritage Palms residential area to visit some friends who have now retired from rving. They purchased a coach that was almost identical to ours and it turned out to be a lemon. They have filed a lawsuit against the now defunct manufacturer and the dealership that sold them the coach while their beautiful motorhome just sits in storage.

And, to top it all off, our friend has been diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) and is rapidly losing control of his body. We had a lovely lunch with them and his mind is still as sharp as ever. But, it's terribly sad to know we will soon lose a good friend.

The evening ended with good wishes and hugs and a promise to return for another visit when we are back in the area..

Exploring the Park

We always enjoy exploring a new RV park. Each one has it's own character. Some are functional, some are pleasant and some are resorts.

Indian Waters qualifies as a resort. The streets are wide and paved. There are flowers and trees everywhere. The sites are spacious and the people are friendly.

Giant Rv (a local rv dealer) is having a display of new and used rvs here in the park. So, of course, we toured the different coaches. We are always looking for ideas to implement in our coach, just not looking for a new coach. After going through 7 or 8 rigs, we decided there wasn't a single one that we would trade for ours.

Then, we took our bottles of water and wandered through the park. We found several small ponds with ducks and turtles. And lots of coaches decorated for Christmas. Some people get very creative.


We arrived back at the clubhouse/office which is the hub of the park. The pool and spa area are lovely surrounded by grass and trees leading up to a shady patio area with tables and chairs.


There is a pool room with three tables for the weekly pool tournament and inside the social room are books, bulletin boards with tons of information. puzzles, tables and chairs and couches. Certainly a welcoming venue.


And of course, my favorite area is the book lending shelf.

We wandered into the dining area where the sign up sheets are for the zillions of activities. There were probably twenty clipboards with sign ups for craft making, hiking, computer classes, dinners and other activities. A Cookie Lee Jewelry show was being presented while we were in there. And there is always a volunteer ready to visit and share information or answer questions.

Back outside again, we found the horseshoe pits and the shuffleboard courts.


Every senior plays shuffleboard at some time or another. So, here is mine.

When we got back to the coach, I discovered a project for Doug. I was hanging clean clothes in the closet and noticed that the bar was sagging in the middle. The center support bar was pulling out of the ceiling. So, after totally emptying the closet, Doug took it all apart and reinforced the support section. It had been assembled with minimal screws, glue and staples. Now, it can withstand anything! With the repairs finished, we restocked the closet and fell into bed.

Eight Mile Drive

We drove a whopping eight miles to our next park. All the way from Palm Desert to Indio.


We are now at Indian Waters RV Park. It is a Western Horizons park that we can use through our Resorts of Distinction membership. It's a beautiful park.


But, like many parks now, they have instituted a $3 a night electricity surcharge. It appears that a lot of the parks are going to nickle and dime their members to solve their economic problems.


I don't want sound like I am complaining. It is a beautiful park and very friendly. Where else can we stay for $3 a night!


We did a Walmart and Costco run for a few things and found the post office to mail a letter. Then returned to the park for the 5.5 magnitude earthquake. The motorhome rocked gently and it wasn't the least bit unnerving. There were nine aftershocks within the first hour but we couldn't even feel them. Being a Washingtonian for so long, I am amazed at the number of seismic events in southern California. As long as we don't have "the big one" while we are here, it is quite interesting.

The Spaghetti Closet

Sorry there was no post yesterday. We had a little family drama that took up most of the day and all of my energy. All is settled now and I guess we move forward.


Today, Doug took apart our "spaghetti closet". This is the cupboard where all of the boxes, connections and cords for the tv, vcr, dvd, wii and whatever are stored.


Over the last couple of years, several technicians from different companies have had their hands in there to "fix" things so their product would work. As a result, nothing worked properly. So, Doug started from scratch. Everything came out and one by one everything was reconnected.


This is the final result (almost...there are still a few cables to be velcroed to the back)

We also met some new neighbors and some old friends while we were picking grapefruit and lemons.

Breakfast Hanging Over the Coach

What a neat treat! We discovered that we have grapefruit trees, lemon trees and tangerine trees scattered throughout the park. We are welcome to pick any fruit that we will use in a day.

As you can see, all of the low hanging fruit has already been picked. So Doug found his grabber stick and added three feet to his reach. First, he grabbed a couple of lemons and they smell heavenly.


He also picked some tangerines while standing on an empty picnic table. And finally, we picked a couple of small grapefruit. They aren't as sweet as I hoped but sure taste good.


After our gleaning, we ran into town to find a grocery store and saw a hot air balloon rising over the freeway. It seems like everyday brings something unexpected.

Palm Springs Thousand Trails

We didn't get a very early start this morning. Our neighbor came to ask for Doug's help setting up his satellite dish for tv. Doug is becoming quite the expert on this now, but Jonas' setup is Canadian. They are from Vancouver Island and Doug is not familiar with the satellite setups that are used by their company. So, together, they worked on it for over an hour with no results.

We started getting our coach packed for travel and were ready to go when Jonas and his wife Pia stopped over to wish us safe travels. And, we visited for quite a bit more. Turns out that they live less than 50 miles from Nanaimo where my great aunt Minnie lived all of her life. And, they are Swedish. So, they offered to help with my swedish genealogy by email. How cool is that!

We finally started down the mountain about 11 am. It is only 50 miles to the next stop so we weren't too worried about it. By the time we hit I-10 it was 85 degrees and traffic was light.


The windmills on both sides of the road seemed to go on for miles. They are quite mesmerizing.


The pass we traveled is one of the windiest places in southern California but wasn't too bad today. (Sorry about the picture. It's hard to take pictures through the front windshield.)


It even looked like the windmills were growing out of the freeway overpass!


We arrived safe and sound at the Palm Springs Thousand Trails resort. It's address is Palm Desert, and the sign nearby says Welcome to Thousand Palms. So, I'm not sure exactly where we are. I do know that we are right next to the freeway and a railroad track. Everyone is packed into the park like sardines. But, it is a nice park with lots of friendly people and activities.


The activities range from pickeball and horseshoes to day trips to Los Algodones, Mexico for shopping. There are dinners and exercises, swimming, pool tournaments, craft classes, card games and the list goes on. We are only going to be here for four days so we probably won't get too involved.

Tomorrow, we go sightseeing.

Prep Day

November is on it's way out the door and so are we. Tomorrow we will pack up the coach and move down the road. We aren't going far but are excited to move. We have two sets of friends that we haven't seen in two years and we are looking forward to a good visit.

So, today consisted of putting things away, packing things back into the Jeep and basement, taking down decorations (outside) and planning the route. The longer we stay at a park, the longer it takes to get ready to go.

I use no-skid on the kitchen and bathroom counters for the cannisters and containers that stay on the counter. Several items are set in the shower stall for safe travel. The steering wheel table is cleared and stowed on the couch as we move, ready to be set back up when we stop. All of the map books and campground books are stacked (semi neatly) by my seat for easy access and we are prepared for morning.

The whole process doesn't take long, as we do a little bit all day long. And in the morning, we can be on the road within an hour.

We also went searching for the space shuttle today. We read that it was landing at Edwards Air Force Base which is northwest of where we are located. We thought we could see the descent and hear the sonic boom since we had such a clear view of the sky from several places outside the park. So, we watched and waited with our cameras ready.............and...........nothing. We heard nothing and saw nothing. The best laid plans of mice and men...yada...yada...yada.

Oh well, it was a beautiful day to sit in the sun and gaze at the sky.

Staying Close to Home

It was such a pretty day today that we decided to find some geocaches. Doug downloaded the latitude and longitudes to his gps and off we went.


We didn't have to go far to find the first one. It was a short ways outside the park. We climbed a small hill and searched around the boulders. The cache was a small plastic container about the size of a pop can tucked between two rocks and a bush.



Doug popped it open and laid out the treasures while I signed the log book inside with our geocache name and the date. The last time this one was found was September. There wasn't anything that we wanted but we left a Washington State 25th anniversary lottery coin.


The next cache was only about a mile away. The gps pointed us to the sign for the Diamond Zen Center. We searched and searched for the mini cache and finally discovered it.


It was buried inside a fake rock nearby. It sure looked real! Once again, I signed the log book and we took nothing. I guess it's just the thrill of the chase. And geocaching leads us to some interesting places that we might not otherwise find.


When we got back to the park we checked out a section that had caught our interest earlier in the week. It was fenced off and marked Silent Valley Indian Preserve. We grabbed our cameras and walked a short way in.


There were huge boulders with grinding holes from the Indians. Unfortunately, they were all full of rain and leaves and debris due to the storms that had passed through.


Some boulders had only one deep hole and others had two or three. It was great fun seeing a bit of history and climbing from rock to rock to discover more holes. It was great that the park recognized the value of these and protects them.

The rest of the day was spent cleaning the coach and mundane chores.

The Day After

Hope you all had a pleasant turkey day yesterday with lots of friends and lots to eat. (With lots of leftovers!)

We had a quiet day with an unconventional thanksgiving dinner. Doug prepared sea bass in a jalapeno ranch sauce and served it with rice, steamed peas & carrots and biscuits with light garlic butter. We also had shrimp poppers for an appetizer. I know.....it's a rough life. And, we have leftovers! So, no cooking tonight, just reheating.

It was a nice way to spend the day and we wished you all well as we dug into our vittles. Gobble, gobble.

If you went shopping this morning, good luck. We are scaling back our Christmas shopping and it felt great to sleep in and not worry about the crowds, mess, noise and $$$$$.

Snow???

After the rain subsided, we decided to visit the town of Idyllwild on the other side of the mountain. The road is winding and crazy with views to die for. (not literally!) We passed a wide spot in the road with several cars parked near and were curious what they were doing. It turns out that it is Bay Tree Springs. It's a pipe coming out of the rocks with fresh spring water. The people were filling large water jugs and their cars were full of them. Everyone was waiting patiently for their turn. It must be some good water!


The mountains received a dusting of snow last night and are very pretty against the blue sky.

We arrived in Idyllwild just in time for their Holiday Bazaar. The entire town was full of people on the streets and in every shop. Christmas decorations festooned the streets, shops and people. We wanted to stop, but couldn't find anywhere to park. We don't need a darn thing, but the spirit is contagious.

We also found another Thousand Trails park near the town of Pine Cove. We took a drive through it for future reference and weren't very impressed. Very few sites were large enough for a 40' motorhome and they were very unlevel. Most of them were on the hillside and we couldn't even figure out how people accessed them. And, they had no sewer hookups. That's not a deal breaker, but when you put everything together, we will probably pass by this park.

With Thanksgiving behind us, I feel the Christmas spirit coming on. There's Christmas music on the radio, holiday specials on the tv and shopping news everywhere. Unfortunately, not all of the news is good, as greed and impatience also marks the holiday spirit.


So, Doug got into the Christmas spirit with our Christmas palm tree. The neighbors are enjoying it as much as we are. And I am dragging out the holiday recipes. As much as we love Christmas, it looks like a quiet, homemade one this year.

Hope you are all feeling the spirit.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

To all of our family and dear friends, Happy Turkey Day. We are so thankful for a roof over our heads (on wheels), full cupboards, loving friends and the internet, so we can thank you all without being there in person. We love you all and miss you today.


Doug decorated the table with treasures that we found right here in the park. He is so creative! There will be a Thanksgiving dinner at the restaurant here, but we will just have our own little private dinner and reflect back on this year.

We've lost loved ones, but are immensely grateful for having had them in our lives. We've driven away from all we knew, but are grateful for new experiences and friends. And, we are grateful for sunshine. Although it's been a couple of days since we have seen any.

We hope you are having lots of family, food, friendship and love.

Rain....Rain????

Ok, for all of you in the northwest, don't feel too bad. We have rain today. As you can see in the picture, there's rain on the windshield. Oh well, it's still 65 degrees and t-shirt weather. Our neighbor said to expect a good storm of 5 to 6 inches. (He was wrong)

It rained off and on all day but Doug found a couple of dry interludes to complete some more projects. First, he releveled the coach. We have a jack in the back that won't stay down due to the hydraulics. Then, he repaired our shade that covers the door and assembled & cleaned the new (to us) bbq he found at a garage sale last summer. I did some cleaning and paid some bills. (yuck) Basically, just a quiet day at home.


For dinner, Doug barbequed hot dogs on the new grill and I fixed mac n cheese to go with it. I guess everyday can't be exciting. Some times it's nice to just relax.

Silent Valley Camping

Hooray!!!! Pat yourselves on the back. We reached our 500th visitor yesterday. Thank you all!

This morning we left the Country Hills RV park around 10 am. We knew we were only going about 20 miles to Silent Valley Camping Club but we also knew we were going up a windy mountain road with lots of switchbacks and drop offs.

It was slow going and I am not looking forward to the trip back down. We are now at 3500 feet elevation in a beautiful valley near the top of the mountains. It's a huge park with 850 camping sites and we took our time driving around to find one with good cell service. I would guess that the park is about a quarter full and that is probably due to it being Thanksgiving week. There are quite a few kids here and lots of bikes and tents and families.


We found a nice open site and while it is not very private or secluded, it will do for a few days. We are using our ROD (Resorts of Distinction) membership here and can stay for free for 7 days. I don't know if we will stay that long, but who knows....... Our plans are carved in jello.

In the early evening, Doug wanted to run to the store. As we drove along the Banning-Idyllwild road, we kept climbing. When we saw the sign at 6000 feet elev. , we were totally surprised! And then the sun started setting. The view from 6000 feet is incredible and it lasted what seemed like forever.


Doug pulled into the first vista point we could find. And this is what we saw.


My favorite photographer (who doesn't like heights) scrambled to the top of the tallest rock he could find and snapped pictures as fast as he could.


And the sky kept getting more spectacular.


I hope I'm not boring you with the pictures, but it was breathtaking.