Nov. 4, 2013 – Fort Stockton, TX.

I wrote this morning from El Paso, TX.  Today we drove about 260 miles to Fort Stockton and checked into the Comanche Land RV Park.  Not much to look at, but full hook-ups for just $16.

Here are some of the photos from the last few days:

The desert is a dangerous place—for Saguaros at Holt’s Shell station.  These snakes are about 6 ft. tall!

Here we are parked in Cochise Terrace in Benson, AZ. And this is Don and Sharon’s beautiful spot.

Their RV just barely clears the top—glad I don’t have to back it in.  But Sharon is an instructor for the RV Driving School—so she has the skills to manage the task!

It rained during the night and I got up early to take some photos of the clouds. 

Texas Canyon with its beautiful rounded rock formations shaped by wind and water is one of my favorite spots along the I-10 corridor..

So many are perched precariously on top of each other, I don’t think I would like to be up there in a storm with strong winds!  Watch out below!!

One of the reasons I didn’t get to post on Sunday afternoon is that we had a small maintenance item—well, actually a big one! When I pulled of I-10 for the Anthony Flying J, I noticed the car seemed to jerk when I stopped at the light—and again after fueling.  Once we got to the American RV Park, Larry took a look and noticed the ball on the stinger was lose.  As he had just tightened it the day before because it felt lose when we hooked up, we decided a visit to share some money with Camping World was in order!  I mean, who wants to lose a car in downtown El Paso???

We picked up a new stinger and ball, but forgot that we had reversed it so it raised the ball, not dropped it two inches.  Larry’s big tools to reverse the new one are in the storage locker in Antioch.  Back in the car, back down the hill—return the first one and the only thing they had was a straight stinger with 3 different ball sizes.  Bought that and new pins for the hitch and back to the campground to install.  It is working great—and feels more stable than the old arrangement. 

Once the work was done, I had to go do a load of laundry which took a while—so it was dark and almost bedtime before I could post.  And I was just too tired at that point—off to bed!

RVing really is the art of adapting to new situations without a lot of cussing!  Minor cussing allowed, but major cussing is reserved for medical issues—as they are the situations that really count in one’s life!

Junction, TX, is our destination for tomorrow. 

Nov. 4, 2013 – Almost home in Texas, well--over half way there!

We are in Texas, but just at the border in Anthony, TX.  We have about 800 miles to go in this 2,000 mile trip. 

We spent the previous night in Benson, AZ, where Sharon and Don Del Rosario call “home.”  At least that is where they own a lot and storage shed, smile.  We passed through Tucson early Sunday morning and then ran into a lot of wind.  So, we decided to stop in Benson and wait til the following morning to pass through the AZ and NM dust-blowing areas.  I have photos of the Del Rosario’s homestead, but I am short of time this morning.  Will try to post this afternoon from Fort Stockton.

We had a lovely visit with Don and Sharon and all went out to dinner at Pablo's in Benson.  It was nice being able to spend some time hearing what wonderful adventures they had this summer.

It rained in Benson and Lordsburg Sunday night, so we didn’t have any trouble with dust or the wind. However, instead of spending the night in Deming, NM, as planned, we decided we had to push on to make today a shorter trip of 250 miles.  We stopped and ate our lunch while visiting with Jim and Penny Scott and continued on to Anthony, TX, to stay at the American RV Park just up behind Camping World.

More on that later today.  We are headed for Fort Stockton for tonight—a long haul for us on this trip—256 miles!  Chat with you later today! 

Sat., Nov. 2, 2013 A long day’s drive to Benson, AZ.

Today was another short driving day.  Yesterday we drove 60 miles from Gila Bend, AZ, to Casa Grande, AZ.  I wanted to get closer to Tucson in order to go through the area between Casa Grande and Tucson early in the morning to avoid possible dust storms.  We ran into a dust storm on the way out last December and it was very scary.  If we needed a reminder of dust-storm dangers, which we didn’t really need, sixteen cars and trucks piled up Tuesday in that area resulting in 3 fatalities.

And the best reason for the Casa Grande stop was to visit with long-time friends, Jerry and Mary Frye.  They have a beautiful fifth wheel set up at Fiesta Grande RV Park for the winter season.  We missed seeing them this summer in Poulsbo, WA, or on their way south, so it seemed as the perfect time to visit.  We planned on going to the Elks’ Club, but I happened to notice Fiesta Grande was a Passport America park…perfect for us!

The Fiesta Grande is a wonderful destination park for spending the winter season!!  However, the traffic in the east end of Casa Grande, as well as the number of people in In & Out Burger and Wal-Mart is enough to send me running to QUIET Quartzsite—during the busy season in January!  Wow, Wal-Mart felt like I was in an area for a popular concert or ball game—people every where!  And it was Friday and before the busy Snow Bird season has started.  Where did they all come from? 

We had a lovely visit with Mary and Jerry catching up on all the news and Mary fixed a delicious dinner for us.  She is a outstanding cook!  And the desert---ahhhhh.  Let’s just say Carol fell off her “sweet-free life” again.  It was a good fall----and I enjoyed every yummy bite!

Today we are with long-time friends, Don and Sharon Del Rosario.  We weren't sure we would stop as we wanted to get past the dust-blowing areas around Wilcox, AZ, and Lordsburg, NM.  However, the wind picked up in Tucson and was blowing pretty good 25 miles west of Benson, so we stopped for the night and will get an early start—again—to get to Deming, NM, tomorrow. We did manage to drive about 90 miles today. 

Don and Sharon has have a beautiful RV lot in Cochise Terrace in Benson, AZ.  They were able to borrow an absent neighbor’s lot for us for tonight.  We are enjoying catching up on all their news.  They live a much, much more active life that we do, smile.  Fun to live vicariously through their adventures.  Several years ago, Sharon showed me how to blog and started me on my path to long-winded posts.  Blame Sharon if you are tired of reading what we do, smile.

Photos tomorrow of this area.  We are moving—just really, really slow.  It is okay, that is what retirement life is all about. 

October 31, 2013 Happy Halloween from Gila Bend, AZ

We made it out of California this morning!  The last 20 miles involved driving on new-graveled highway—what a mess! I was afraid we might have coated the front of the car, but it was fine when I stopped to check.

We are at Holt’s Shell Station and RV park for tonight at the crossroads of I-8 and Butterfield Trail in Gila Bend, AZ.

 

The desert air is crisp and feels so inviting.  I have missed it.  We have the air conditioner running instead of the heater.  I expect the heater will be on tomorrow morning as mornings are a bit too chilly for Larry.

This place is interesting.  In addition to a Shell fuel station for autos and big trucks and a RV park, it offers free water and dump station to desert campers as well as a touch of Mexico for shoppers.

And for those who want to shop in Mexico without crossing the border, here you go:

 

Didn’t see your heart’s desire?  Walk around the corner.

I wanted to adopt this flower, but it was $129.   A bit beyond my budget!

It’s five foot tall and would have added some life to our yard in Texas!  Well it was fun looking, but I don’t have ANY room in the truck, camper or car for “treasures.”  We are loaded to the brim!

Tomorrow night we are going to live in a bit of luxury at the Fiesta Grande RV Resort in Casa Grande.  Our friends Mary and Jerry are there for the winter season.  I noticed it was a Passport America park and called for one night’s reservation.  It is a super nice park!  It is fun to splurge once in a while!  More tomorrow night.  

October 30, 2013 -- --In Needles, CA, for tonight.

We had an interesting thing happen last night in Bakersfield, CA.  We went to bed around 9 p.m. and when we woke up at 11 for the first of the “nightly old-age calls,” we discovered our electricity was off.  Weird?  The first thought I had, cynic that I am, was that possibly someone was up to “no good” and waiting to see if we would come out and check why the power was off.  Just in case, we didn’t respond.  It really isn’t the best part of town and we didn’t need to be outside in the dark.

So, we just went back to bed and decided to check it in the morning—as the refrigerator had cycled over to gas and was working fine.  Someone could have caused the power outage by pulling the plug or flipping  the breaker switch, or it could be trouble with plug or our cord.  At 5 a.m., I decided I needed to see if it was our plug or something in the camper—which would mean a trip to Camping World and Larry could sleep in until 8 a.m.  (Figured it was safe by then.  If someone had hoped to lure us out,  who would stay around all night??) 

I went out and looked at the breaker and it was off?  I flipped it and we had power—giving Larry nice warm heat when it was time to get up.  Went back in and back to bed for another hour.

We were up and on the road by 8, a great time to climb up Tehachapi Pass. We drove to Barstow for fuel and then on to Needles, CA, Elks’ Club. We expect a much quieter night here.  Tomorrow we head for Gila Bend, AZ.  Tonight was decision night of going I-40 or I-10.  There is some ice warning up on I-40 for the next day or so—so I-10 and possible dust storms wins.  We will move from Gila Bend to Casa Grande, AZ for a night to get an early run through the Tucson area to try to beat the winds.  If windy, we will delay another day.  Those dust storms are really terrifying!

So, until tomorrow night—good night.

October 29, 2013 Parked in Bakersfield, CA

The Lodge RV parking area is much to brag about, but it gives us a place to spend the night with electric hook-ups—and we stop here on a regular basis.  We find it convenient to stop and spend the night and carry on the next day—with the ability to run the A/C or heater.  What’s not to like?

We had a smooth ride down I-5, but I didn’t take any photos as the air was quite dusty-looking all day.  Earlier today, It rained here in Bakersfield and we expect there may be a smattering of snow when we go up Tehachapi Pass tomorrow morning.

We are heading to Needles, CA, for tomorrow night.  Slow but at least forward moving……Good night.

October 28, 2013 -- Going to try it again….

We have been here at Sugar Barge Resort for a month.  We enjoy our time here in this beautiful park.  We enjoy the wonderful staff—they are friendly, outgoing and helpful.  The laundry room is clean and neat—it’s easy to do our laundry here.  It has everything going for it—I enjoy walking in the evenings because I feel safe.  I have even did a bit of weeding just to keep my hands busy—but it is time to try and head for Texas.

We really enjoy being on “rally row.”  This road was filled this weekend with Elks’ Club members from Chico.  They were just one of many clubs holding rallies in Sugar Barge.  I enjoy visiting with the visitors—they have interesting stories.  But, it is still time to head south and east!  We have had wonderful weather most of the time.  A bit of wind now and then—but it is still time to head out.

Larry’s blood pressure is back into the safe range.  The doctor added two more doses of his current medicine and over time, it seemed to help.  He added a daily walk into his routine again.  We stopped eating out so I could control his sodium intake—which helped too. So, unless something else happens in the next 24 hours, we are heading out.

The car is packed again—for the fourth time.  The camper is washed—and tomorrow morning, we cut out electrical, water and sewer ties to Sugar Barge Resort and head to Bakersfield.  We are only about 5 weeks behind schedule!

Keep tuned to see how our trip goes—as we will post every other night as we creep along toward Livingston, TX.