Having arrived here at the KOA in Lordsburg, NM yesterday (Sunday) I paid in advance for today as well. I posted Blog #12, checked emails and watched the news on TV. I then sat outside with my book and watched the clouds change colors as the setting sun did its magic.
I made the decision to stay here today because I’ve been wanting to focus on my trip stats – the arithmetic involved to add up “to date” miles, gallons, and fuel and RV costs. I’d like to be able to do a quick update of this data soon as I get home. So, I got started and the project took me - as I thought it would, even with a calculator - a couple of hours. Following that I reviewed my maps and planned my route home. I’ll be home a week from today!
 |
Reading my
Stephen King book and watching the sun set.
Points to
you if you spot the “Apple!”
|
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15
Leaving Lordsburg, via I-10W, at 10:15 a.m., Mountain
Time, I crossed into Arizona at 9:45 a.m., Pacific Time. It was another beautiful morning to drive
through the deserts of New Mexico and Arizona.
Both states, along this interstate, have large signs alerting drivers to
the potential of dust storms…and with visibility compromised, what to do if you’re
in one. Fortunately, the winds were calm
today.
At the town of Benson I exited I-10 and drove south, via Rt. 80, to Tombstone. Stopping first at the Tombstone RV Park to pay for my reserved site I then went to the historic “Town Too Tough to Die.”
Founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin, a prospector, Tombstone “… grew significantly into the mid-1880s as the local mines produced $40 to $85 million in silver bullion, the largest productive silver district in Arizona. Its population grew from 100 to around 14,000 in less than seven years. It is best known as the site of the ‘Gunfight at the O.K. Corral’ and presently draws most of its revenue from tourism.”
Tombstone, wild in its day with saloons, gambling, brothels, and shootings, is also famous for Doc Holliday and the Earp Brothers. “On October 26, 1881, Tombstone gained national notoriety with the famous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral that involved the brothers Wyatt, Morgan and Virgil Earp and Doc Holiday against Ike Clanton, Billy Clanton, Frank McLowry, Tom McLowry and Billy Claibourne, members of the ‘Cowboys’.” A good number of original structures still stand in Tombstone, mostly within the historic district. They’ve been restored, designated as historic, and currently house museums, memorabilia, shops, bars, and restaurants. I walked around the closed-off dirt streets of the historic district, observed the antics of strolling actors in their cowboy attire, and had lunch at Big Nose Kate’s Saloon and Restaurant. Even the female servers in the restaurant were dressed as “saloon girls” of that era. Tombstone, the movie was playing (with captions) while I munched on my burger. I’ll have to see it again in its entirety.
It was during my visit in Tombstone that I received a text message -- not bad news but information that has made it necessary for me to make changes for my return home. I had planned to return to my condo in Palm Springs on October 21st - this coming Monday - and take my camper back to my usual storage facility on Tuesday, the next day. The message I got today advised me to bring the camper back on the 29th, not on the 22nd. The reason, according to David, the guy I bought my camper from, has to do with lack of space on his lot at this time. David’s company, Galaxy Campers, sells Lance campers and trailers and they participated in the recent week-long California RV Show in Fontana, which concluded just last Sunday (13th). He has to move stock around and won’t be ready to make space available for my camper until the 29th.
With the “return camper” date now scheduled for a week later, I will extend my truck camper trip an additional week as well. Back to my Arizona and California maps!
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16
Soon as the office opened at 9:00 a.m. I said “Hi” to the husband-wife owners and asked if I could remain at my site again today. Today, yes, my site, #30, is available. If I want to stay here again tomorrow, I’ll have to move to a different site because #30 isn’t available tomorrow. That prompted me to ask and, yes, because the weather around here is cooling down, RV and state parks are filling up. Good info for me to keep in mind as I plan my extra week of travel.
Having already decided to spend my extra week in Arizona I spent the day looking over the Arizona map and checking out state and private RV parks online. Around 3:00 p.m., decision made, I went back to the office to pay for tomorrow….for site #33. Back at the camper, having decided to go with Picacho Peak State Park as my next destination, on Friday, I proceeded to make reservations online. Around 4:30 p.m. before the sun started to set, I called it a day and went to the pool for a refreshingly cool swim.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17
I took a morning walk around the RV Park, mindful of the posted signs to watch for rattlesnakes. This is a really nice park, clean and spacious. At one end are corrals for horses…but, dang, ain’t no horses there. Back at the camper I secured things inside, moved to site #33, had corn flakes for breakfast, checked emails, did some writing for this blog, and then resumed my Arizona research.
The research I did today took quite a bit of time due to a couple of factors at play. Firstly, being that it is now mid-October, the nighttime temps in the mountains around Arizona’s northern regions are likely to be too cold for my comfort. I therefore kept my focus on areas not too far north of Phoenix. Secondly, mid-October is also the time snowbirds start to trickle back south from their northern homes. Like the lady in the office confirmed yesterday, RV parks are starting to fill up.
Reservations at State Parks and KOA campgrounds are the easiest to secure because of their online reservation systems. My tally as of today –
* Two state parks
* One KOA
Private RV Parks are much more challenging to reserve because they require credit card information. In order to provide that information I have to call them. My tally as of today, per VRS calls –
* One RV Park said to come on by, plenty of available sites, no reservation necessary.
* One RV Park said they were full on the date I requested.
* One RV Park said they don’t accept truck campers at their “55+ resort.” Wow, my very first rejection!
* One RV Park reserved.
It was windy today. When I finally pushed aside my map and laptop, around 4:30 p.m., I determined it was too cool to go to the pool. But the breeze sure did feel really nice when I sat outside in my camp chair with my cocktail, my book, and my view of another lovely sunset. Moving on tomorrow…
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18
After dumping the black/grey tanks this morning I left Tombstone, taking Rt. 80 about a mile back north and then connecting to Rt. 82W. Although it was partly cloudy this morning the antics between sun and clouds made for a nice drive through this flat part of the region. Far from bland, this desert landscape of grass and shrubbery was blanketed with different hues of green. The sun, doing its thing among the puffy clouds, created interesting shadows throughout the terrain. As I admired the vista before me I thought about the scene in the [Tombstone] movie and tried to imagine Doc Holliday and the Earp Brothers chasing after that outlaw “Cowboys” gang. Did their horses gallop by on this very spot? Or over there? How did they know where to go? How did they track?
At Sonoita I turned north on Rt. 83 and this turned out to be a truly gorgeous drive. The map indicates that this route is scenic…and it sure was! Rolling hills, winding turns on the road, green everywhere, bright yellow flowers carpeting the shoulders along the road. There was a Border Patrol checkpoint – on my lane because I’m going north from the USA-Mexico border. The agent asked me if anybody was up there, pointing to the camper, and when I said no he waved me through.
The road ended at I-10 and I got on that, going west towards Tucson. Since I’d lived in Tucson some years ago, I looked for the Ina Road exit and swung by the house I lived in with Lisa. From there I went to the nearby Albertsons to buy the essentials I now need for my extra week of travel. Just before 2:00 p.m. I arrived at the Picacho Peak State Park, located off of I-10 between Tucson and Phoenix and got settled at my reserved site. With saguaro cacti everywhere here – on the level ground and on the sides and tops of the rocky bluffs – this is a peaceful place to be. So I did have to go to the grocery store one more time, I will have to dump my tanks one more time, I will have to do my daily camper routine for one more week, I will write and post one extra blog. So what? What can beat this beauty that is all around me? The “going home” delay is giving me an opportunity to appreciate what Arizona has to offer.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19
I woke up just before the sun rose. I stepped outside and, noticing the striking beauty of the saguaros in silhouette, I stood there and watched the sun rise. “The saguaro is an arborescent cactus species in the monotypic genus Carnegiea, which can grow to be over 40 feet tall. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, the Mexican State of Sonora, and the Whipple Mountains and Imperial County areas of California. The saguaro blossom is the state wildflower of Arizona.” (Wikipedia)
In no hurry to move on to my next destination I sat outside in the warming sun and read my 5th book of the trip…Genocide of One. Keeping me company were birds – several Cactus Wrens and at least one Curve-billed Thrasher (I verified identification via online pictures). Observing them was entertaining because they went under my truck, hopped up on the tires, the mirrors, and the windshield. They scooted around hither and thither and paid me absolutely no mind. I think they were going after bugs and I don’t doubt there were quite a few, live or dead, on and under my truck.
On my way by 11:00 a.m. I got back on I-10W for several miles and connected to Rt. 87N which eventually overlapped with Rt. 287. At the town of Florence I took Rt. 79S to the Rancho Sonora RV Park & Inn - the place that said for me to “come on over.” The guy who registered me suggested a shady site that was fairly close to the clubhouse and the pool. So, I’m here for today and tomorrow. It’s now a little after 5:00 p.m. as I write this. The sun is starting to set and I just saw some Gambel’s Quails scamper by. That’s my cue to call it a day and go sit outside!
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20
Wide awake before the sun rose, I decided to put on my shoes, grab my LED flashlight, and stroll over, in the briskly cool morning air, to the restroom in the nearby clubhouse. This place, described as “…a refreshing oasis found in the Sonoran Arizona desert…” is both an RV Park and Inn, with guest rooms, full-sized casitas, and a “gracious Southwestern suite.” The RV Park section is beautifully well maintained and the individual sites are surrounded by various desert trees and cacti.
I’ll be moving on tomorrow for two nights at the Lost Dutchman State Park, located near Arizona’s Superstition Mountains. Since I won’t have Wi-Fi there I’m posting this Blog #13 from here today. After which I’ll go to the pool, read my book, and, in a word – relax!
At the town of Benson I exited I-10 and drove south, via Rt. 80, to Tombstone. Stopping first at the Tombstone RV Park to pay for my reserved site I then went to the historic “Town Too Tough to Die.”
Founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin, a prospector, Tombstone “… grew significantly into the mid-1880s as the local mines produced $40 to $85 million in silver bullion, the largest productive silver district in Arizona. Its population grew from 100 to around 14,000 in less than seven years. It is best known as the site of the ‘Gunfight at the O.K. Corral’ and presently draws most of its revenue from tourism.”
Tombstone, wild in its day with saloons, gambling, brothels, and shootings, is also famous for Doc Holliday and the Earp Brothers. “On October 26, 1881, Tombstone gained national notoriety with the famous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral that involved the brothers Wyatt, Morgan and Virgil Earp and Doc Holiday against Ike Clanton, Billy Clanton, Frank McLowry, Tom McLowry and Billy Claibourne, members of the ‘Cowboys’.” A good number of original structures still stand in Tombstone, mostly within the historic district. They’ve been restored, designated as historic, and currently house museums, memorabilia, shops, bars, and restaurants. I walked around the closed-off dirt streets of the historic district, observed the antics of strolling actors in their cowboy attire, and had lunch at Big Nose Kate’s Saloon and Restaurant. Even the female servers in the restaurant were dressed as “saloon girls” of that era. Tombstone, the movie was playing (with captions) while I munched on my burger. I’ll have to see it again in its entirety.
 |
Tombstone,
Arizona.
|
It was during my visit in Tombstone that I received a text message -- not bad news but information that has made it necessary for me to make changes for my return home. I had planned to return to my condo in Palm Springs on October 21st - this coming Monday - and take my camper back to my usual storage facility on Tuesday, the next day. The message I got today advised me to bring the camper back on the 29th, not on the 22nd. The reason, according to David, the guy I bought my camper from, has to do with lack of space on his lot at this time. David’s company, Galaxy Campers, sells Lance campers and trailers and they participated in the recent week-long California RV Show in Fontana, which concluded just last Sunday (13th). He has to move stock around and won’t be ready to make space available for my camper until the 29th.
With the “return camper” date now scheduled for a week later, I will extend my truck camper trip an additional week as well. Back to my Arizona and California maps!
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16
Soon as the office opened at 9:00 a.m. I said “Hi” to the husband-wife owners and asked if I could remain at my site again today. Today, yes, my site, #30, is available. If I want to stay here again tomorrow, I’ll have to move to a different site because #30 isn’t available tomorrow. That prompted me to ask and, yes, because the weather around here is cooling down, RV and state parks are filling up. Good info for me to keep in mind as I plan my extra week of travel.
Having already decided to spend my extra week in Arizona I spent the day looking over the Arizona map and checking out state and private RV parks online. Around 3:00 p.m., decision made, I went back to the office to pay for tomorrow….for site #33. Back at the camper, having decided to go with Picacho Peak State Park as my next destination, on Friday, I proceeded to make reservations online. Around 4:30 p.m. before the sun started to set, I called it a day and went to the pool for a refreshingly cool swim.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17
I took a morning walk around the RV Park, mindful of the posted signs to watch for rattlesnakes. This is a really nice park, clean and spacious. At one end are corrals for horses…but, dang, ain’t no horses there. Back at the camper I secured things inside, moved to site #33, had corn flakes for breakfast, checked emails, did some writing for this blog, and then resumed my Arizona research.
The research I did today took quite a bit of time due to a couple of factors at play. Firstly, being that it is now mid-October, the nighttime temps in the mountains around Arizona’s northern regions are likely to be too cold for my comfort. I therefore kept my focus on areas not too far north of Phoenix. Secondly, mid-October is also the time snowbirds start to trickle back south from their northern homes. Like the lady in the office confirmed yesterday, RV parks are starting to fill up.
Reservations at State Parks and KOA campgrounds are the easiest to secure because of their online reservation systems. My tally as of today –
* Two state parks
* One KOA
Private RV Parks are much more challenging to reserve because they require credit card information. In order to provide that information I have to call them. My tally as of today, per VRS calls –
* One RV Park said to come on by, plenty of available sites, no reservation necessary.
* One RV Park said they were full on the date I requested.
* One RV Park said they don’t accept truck campers at their “55+ resort.” Wow, my very first rejection!
* One RV Park reserved.
It was windy today. When I finally pushed aside my map and laptop, around 4:30 p.m., I determined it was too cool to go to the pool. But the breeze sure did feel really nice when I sat outside in my camp chair with my cocktail, my book, and my view of another lovely sunset. Moving on tomorrow…
 |
The
historic Boothill Graveyard is located just before the entrance to
Tombstone. Clever site markers at the Tombstone RV
Park!
|
 |
| A Tombstone sunset. |
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18
After dumping the black/grey tanks this morning I left Tombstone, taking Rt. 80 about a mile back north and then connecting to Rt. 82W. Although it was partly cloudy this morning the antics between sun and clouds made for a nice drive through this flat part of the region. Far from bland, this desert landscape of grass and shrubbery was blanketed with different hues of green. The sun, doing its thing among the puffy clouds, created interesting shadows throughout the terrain. As I admired the vista before me I thought about the scene in the [Tombstone] movie and tried to imagine Doc Holliday and the Earp Brothers chasing after that outlaw “Cowboys” gang. Did their horses gallop by on this very spot? Or over there? How did they know where to go? How did they track?
At Sonoita I turned north on Rt. 83 and this turned out to be a truly gorgeous drive. The map indicates that this route is scenic…and it sure was! Rolling hills, winding turns on the road, green everywhere, bright yellow flowers carpeting the shoulders along the road. There was a Border Patrol checkpoint – on my lane because I’m going north from the USA-Mexico border. The agent asked me if anybody was up there, pointing to the camper, and when I said no he waved me through.
The road ended at I-10 and I got on that, going west towards Tucson. Since I’d lived in Tucson some years ago, I looked for the Ina Road exit and swung by the house I lived in with Lisa. From there I went to the nearby Albertsons to buy the essentials I now need for my extra week of travel. Just before 2:00 p.m. I arrived at the Picacho Peak State Park, located off of I-10 between Tucson and Phoenix and got settled at my reserved site. With saguaro cacti everywhere here – on the level ground and on the sides and tops of the rocky bluffs – this is a peaceful place to be. So I did have to go to the grocery store one more time, I will have to dump my tanks one more time, I will have to do my daily camper routine for one more week, I will write and post one extra blog. So what? What can beat this beauty that is all around me? The “going home” delay is giving me an opportunity to appreciate what Arizona has to offer.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19
I woke up just before the sun rose. I stepped outside and, noticing the striking beauty of the saguaros in silhouette, I stood there and watched the sun rise. “The saguaro is an arborescent cactus species in the monotypic genus Carnegiea, which can grow to be over 40 feet tall. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, the Mexican State of Sonora, and the Whipple Mountains and Imperial County areas of California. The saguaro blossom is the state wildflower of Arizona.” (Wikipedia)
In no hurry to move on to my next destination I sat outside in the warming sun and read my 5th book of the trip…Genocide of One. Keeping me company were birds – several Cactus Wrens and at least one Curve-billed Thrasher (I verified identification via online pictures). Observing them was entertaining because they went under my truck, hopped up on the tires, the mirrors, and the windshield. They scooted around hither and thither and paid me absolutely no mind. I think they were going after bugs and I don’t doubt there were quite a few, live or dead, on and under my truck.
 |
Picacho
Peak State Park, AZ.
|
 |
| Saguaro Cacti triplets… |
 |
…and one
perfect specimen!
|
 |
Facing
west...
|
 |
| …sunset… |
 |
| …my camper in the blackness of the night… |
 |
| …dawn… |
 |
…the
triplets, silhouetted in the sunrise.
|
On my way by 11:00 a.m. I got back on I-10W for several miles and connected to Rt. 87N which eventually overlapped with Rt. 287. At the town of Florence I took Rt. 79S to the Rancho Sonora RV Park & Inn - the place that said for me to “come on over.” The guy who registered me suggested a shady site that was fairly close to the clubhouse and the pool. So, I’m here for today and tomorrow. It’s now a little after 5:00 p.m. as I write this. The sun is starting to set and I just saw some Gambel’s Quails scamper by. That’s my cue to call it a day and go sit outside!
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20
Wide awake before the sun rose, I decided to put on my shoes, grab my LED flashlight, and stroll over, in the briskly cool morning air, to the restroom in the nearby clubhouse. This place, described as “…a refreshing oasis found in the Sonoran Arizona desert…” is both an RV Park and Inn, with guest rooms, full-sized casitas, and a “gracious Southwestern suite.” The RV Park section is beautifully well maintained and the individual sites are surrounded by various desert trees and cacti.
I’ll be moving on tomorrow for two nights at the Lost Dutchman State Park, located near Arizona’s Superstition Mountains. Since I won’t have Wi-Fi there I’m posting this Blog #13 from here today. After which I’ll go to the pool, read my book, and, in a word – relax!
Enjoy that extra week—:)
ReplyDeleteGreat philosophy: when you're forced to extend your trip a week, relax! Thanks for all those photos you've shared.
ReplyDelete