Wednesday October 11th 2017

Today wasn’t one of my better travel days. It was full of little mishaps and annoyances. The drama started when I closed the door to get underway. The steps wouldn’t retract. Driving with the steps deployed is asking for a disaster.

The steps have an electric motor to retract and deploy the steps when the door is opened and the vehicle motor is running. I’ve known the steps had issues. Over the last month it has been making a disturbing noise every time it was operated. I lubricated it when it started, but suspect the problem was with internal gears breaking. It didn’t make any noise today. It just didn’t work.

Site 135 at the Williams Circle Pines KOA.

I got a mat and some tools and crawled under the motorhome to diagnose the problem. I confirmed it was getting power to the motor which probably means the motor is burnt out or the gears are broken. To get underway I needed to retract the steps manually and tie them up somehow. I pulled the pin connecting the steps to the motor and closed the steps. To keep them in the closed position I wrapped some wire around the steps then added two additional wraps of duct tape for good measure.

Once underway my day of annoyances continued. The gas station I had scoped out to fill the tank didn’t work out. When I arrived a fuel delivery truck was parked right in the middle of the area I needed to negotiate. I looped around the station and head up the road. The backup plan was to stop for gas at the station where I planned to but propane. The draw back was I would be under a quarter tank when I got there. I try to buy gas before I get that low. The black cloud continued. The exit for the backup gas station was closed for construction. I arrived at my destination without seeing another gas station. The gauge hasn’t reached the red zone yet but I better find a gas station before I head for the Grand Canyon on Friday.

My wired and duck taped steps along with my make shift pile of wood step. I’m still debating how to proceed.

The last of the days annoyances is a by product of the step issue. I’m parked on a down slop. To get close to level the front end of the RV is raised up a few inches. Even with the step working, the last step would be a big one. Without working steps, I’ve made a stable pile of wood, but it is nowhere near high enough as a step. I’ve added an obstacle to the inside stairs to remind me to slow down. The last thing I need to do is step out without remembering the drop off.

It is much cooler here than it was near Phoenix. It was over ninety when I left this morning and around seventy when I got here. I’m over 5,000 feet higher. I hope the cool temperature will allow for a good nights sleep. After bad nights earlier in the week and today’s mishaps I really need one.

Tuesday October 10th 2017

It was a long night. The wind that woke me up yesterday morning returned last night. It never reached the extreme state that caused me to bring in the living room slide yesterday, but it was strong enough to make a lot of noise. It seemed like every hour a band of strong gusts came through to wake me up. After a few minutes it calmed down to a base level that allowed me to get back to sleep. Finally around 9AM it started to quiet down for good.

Sailboats like this are common on Lake Pleasant. There must be a rental facility on the lake.

More sailboats.

The winds of the last couple of days have been coming from the north. They’ve been caused by the same set of weather conditions that caused the winds feeding the fires in California. Unfortunately for me a northern wind direction hits my motorhome in a way to create maximum havoc. Even with four stabilizer jacks and six wheels on the ground it was rocking pretty good.

Today is my last full day here at Lake Pleasant Regional Park. Tomorrow I’m moving back north to Williams AZ for a couple of days. On Friday I have reservations for the weekend at the Grand Canyon South Rim. That area is a mile higher in altitude, but only one hundred and fifty miles north. The daily high temperatures are twenty to thirty degrees cooler this time of year. I’m looking forward to more fall like temperatures. I can put the shorts away and get the long pants out for a change. With the exception of a couple of evenings in early September, I haven’t worn long pants in a long time.

The lack of sleep over the last couple of nights impacted my energy level today. I did a few travel preparation tasks, but have put most of them off until tomorrow morning. Falling asleep in front of the TV this afternoon was the big accomplishment of the day.

Monday October 9th 2017

I was serenaded in the middle of the night by the coyote pack in the area. This set of calls and barks were further away than the set last week, but they were close enough to wake me up. They kept up the communication for a few minutes then went silent. I probably stayed away for another half an hour or more waiting for them to start up again to no avail.

Sunset over the desert.

The night was short. Around six this morning the wind started to blow. It was rocking the RV and howling across the roof obstacles and the slide out room awnings. I tried to ignore it but the wind continued to intensify and the noise continued. Around 6:30 I gave up and got up. The first order of business was to bring in the big living room slide room. This quieted things down enough that I could hear the TV. The roof noises continued. I’ll have to get up on the roof on a calm day and see what’s causing all the fuss. It has always been noisy in the wind, but it seems to be a little worse today.

The wind continued most of the morning. This afternoon it had settled down to a stiff breeze. I put the main living room slide back out. It is much more comfortable in the RV with the extra forty five square feet the slide creates. This evening, as I write this blog entry, the wind has picked up again. The gusts are just as noisy as things were this morning, but the steady state is calmer and the gusts aren’t as frequent.

During the middle of the day I went out to run some errands. Once again I was struck by how far in the middle of the desert I’m located. The only thing of significance for ten miles in any direction are some really impressive Saguaro cactus. Interstate 17 is twelve to fifteen miles to the east, the town of Peoria is a little further to the south and US route 60 is twenty plus miles to the west. I don’t know of any roads that go north between US 60 and Interstate 17. Once you reach the interstate or Peoria you are in metro Phoenix in a big way. The traffic is heavy probably because of all the businesses and housing lining the roads.

I made a big loop into the north part of Phoenix. I went south on Interstate 17 to the loop 101 west to US 60 northwest back to Arizona 74 east to the Lake Pleasant Regional Park. Along the way I filled up the car’s gas tank and stopped at Walmart for groceries. Every Walmart I go into has something that catches my eye. A this one I observed that almost a third of the bread isle was dedicated to tortillas wraps or shells of all varieties. The English muffins and bagels that I was looking for were relegated to the next isle. I guess they know their clientele.

Sunday October 8th 2017

The weather forecast called for cooler temperatures today. It was about 3 degrees cooler topping out in the low 90s. That’s still hot.

The rabbits in this park are very cautious. They run for brush as soon as they see or hear you.

Unless I have something specific planned, I generally get active around 10:30 or 11 in the morning. By that time I’ve finished breakfast and I’ve caught up on the news and such from the Internet. On weekends the time zone gets in the way. For example, this morning the NFL coverage started at 9AM and the games at 10AM. I got sucked into watching football games, with a little NASCAR thrown in, all day. I’m not addicted enough that specific plans wouldn’t have prevented such laid back behavior, but sports action combined with the comfortable AC kept me in most of the day. If I’d been in an eastern time zone I’d probably be out doing something when the games started unless watching the game was part of my plan for the day.

The campground emptied out more than I thought it would today. There are still more people here tonight than last Sunday night, but I guess this is not a big three day weekend in this area. Schools are off but businesses are probably all up and running. I’m not complaining, I get a quiet campground again. All of the big noisy groups in tents have gone home.

One of many birds that sit on the top of the cactus and sing.

Wednesday is a travel day. Hopefully, between now and then I’ll see some of the wildlife in this area. On my late afternoon walk I saw one bunny and a bunch of birds. I haven’t gotten a close enough look to attempt an identification, but one variety of bird seems to like to sit on the top of Saguaro cactus and sing. I’ve passed several of them on my hikes.

I will probably (note the uncertainty) get out of the campground and do something tomorrow. If for no other reason than I’m running out of quasi junk food like bread and cookies. I have plenty of meat, vegetables and dairy. Just not the stuff that makes everything fun to eat.

Saturday October 7th 2017

Today was a beautiful hot day. I didn’t do much more than hiking around the park a bit in between reading and watching college football.

Saguaro sentinels.

The day started on a sour note. Sometime while I was still asleep I got new neighbors across the street. There are two families with a total of four kids and a dog to go along with the two couples. I didn’t hear them arrive, but I did hear the kids using their playground voices not 3 feet outside my bedroom window. They woke me up. It would have been one thing if they were still on their own site but they weren’t. For some reason they were on the opposite side of my RV from their site. If I had my awning out they would have been standing under it. I can think of no reason for them being where they were. I doubt the parents were paying any attention. I don’t think my language was inappropriate, but my tone wasn’t very pleasant when I yelled at the kids to get off “MY” site. They went back to their site without even acknowledging having heard me.

Pontoon boat on Lake Pleasant.

As much as I like public campgrounds for their natural settings, they have some drawbacks. One is the inexperienced and occasional campers they draw. My new neighbors and several other groups in the campground this weekend are not familiar with basic campground etiquette. They don’t think anything about cutting through other peoples sites, keeping their campfires under control or observing the posted quiet hours. The campground host has been busy this weekend. My neighbors are actually doing pretty well compared with the group at the other end of the loop. (That concludes my “grumpy old man” opinion for this blog entry.)

Sailboat on the far side of Lake Pleasant.

To end on a positive note. I really like this campground. I don’t dislike my fellow campers. To a large degree they are entertaining. If I were awake this morning I would probably have reacted differently to the kids in my space. Besides, by Monday this campground will be almost empty again.

Friday October 6th 2017

The temperature topped out in the upper 90s today. If the TV weather forecasters are to be trusted, it should be leveling off over the weekend and be cooler by Monday. I’m just going to wait and see.

The water in Lake Pleasant is at its lowest level of the year. The water is pumped in from the Colorado River near Lake Havasu.

This afternoon I completed the hike I cut short yesterday. I wore a more opaque shirt so the sun didn’t get through. The trails are fairly easy to follow but you need to be careful of the loose rocks. You also need to be prepared to climb some significant slopes. They are short but steep.

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On my hikes I’m always on the look out for animal life. Some of that is self protection. I wouldn’t want to surprise a rattle snake for instance. Mostly I’m looking for animals for the enjoyment of nature. Today I saw plenty of birds and few rabbits, but nothing surprising. There is plenty of evidence of the wild burros that live in the area. In several areas on the trails they have left their calling cards. I even found their droppings on the campground road 20 or 30 feet from my campsite. My guess is they are in the area overnight or in the early hours of the day.

Boaters on Lake Pleasant.

The campground is filling up for the long weekend. Many of the campers are arriving with boats and ATVs in tow. My guess is the quiet during the week is over for the weekend. The campground has been nice and quiet all week. My guess is that is over for the weekend. I doubt the burros will be wandering through a full campground.

The boaters on the lake were also more active today. I saw a couple of sailboats and several boats towing water skiers. It will be interesting to see how busy it gets over the long weekend.

Thursday October 5th 2017

Today was a repeat of yesterday weather wise. The mercury or rather the electronic temperature readout topped out in the mid to upper 90s. It wasn’t a good day for outside activity, but I did take a short walk on one of the trails this afternoon.

View of the deep blue waters of Lake Pleasant under the cloudless sky.

I booked this campground for two reasons. I thought it was close enough to civilization that I could get some shopping done. I’ve been putting off buying a few things until I’m in a good area. It turns out I’m further away from big shopping areas than I thought and my new plans put me in Las Vegas in a couple of weeks where I already know the stores. All this adds up to it being unlikely that I will do any significant shopping while I’m here.

View of the dam and marina from the Discovery Center at Lake Pleasant Regional Park. The saguaro cactus is a big old specimen.

The second reason for picking this location is for the hiking and nature viewing opportunities at this recreation area. The extra few degrees above normal temperature are making that difficult. Today I made an attempt to get out and explore the park despite the heat. I loaded up with sun screen and water before setting out. I climbed the hill to the Discovery Center which overlooks the lake and the dam. From there I started on the Roadrunner trail which follows the shore of the lake. None of the vegetation was very tall or dense making shade nonexistent. The heat wasn’t a problem and the sun screen was doing its job on the exposed skin, but I started to feel the sun on my back. I’m guessing that my shirt was thin enough to allow the sun to come right through. Not taking any chances, I cut the hike short and returned to the air conditioning in my RV. I don’t need a sunburn.

The views of the lake were impressive. The water was deep blue, the sky was light blue and the mountainous shore separating the two was a combination of white and brown. A perfect contrast. There weren’t many boaters on the lake today. I only saw one water skier behind a boat. This weekend should be different. The campground is starting to fill up. I understand Arizona does celebrate Columbus day on Monday making this a long weekend.

Wednesday October 4th 2017

It was a few degrees warmer than yesterday and the breeze was gone. Some areas of the greater Phoenix valley got up to 99 degrees today. It was only about 95 here, but it was uncomfortable. Leaving the air conditioned RV was hard to do.

I went out to get familiar with the area and to buy some groceries. The stores are about 10 miles south in the community of Peoria. This community has clearly grown out of the desert in the last decade or so. There is an abrupt transition from a narrow two lane road crossing open desert to wide roads along heavily landscaped areas. It is hard to tell what is along the road behind the landscaping if you don’t already know. In some areas it is housing developments and in other areas it is shopping areas. There is little to no advertising along the road. I knew from Google map searches before I departed the RV that there were grocery stores and a Walmart along the road. Even so, it was hard to find them.

The Walmart was a large store. It had a lot of space allocated to the produce, bakery and deli section without taking away from other areas of the store. The store seemed to be well stocked. In my opinion they are overstocked in the area of Christmas decorations. Couldn’t they have waited until after the Halloween stuff came down before moving all the Christmas decorations and other seasonal paraphernalia out for display. It looked like they had expanded the toys section for the holiday as well. (I know; Bah Humbug!)

Moon rising at dusk. It is full tomorrow.

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I was only out for a couple of hours before I returned to the air conditioning in my RV. This evening as the sun was setting I walked around the campground looking for signs of wildlife. The other morning around sunrise I saw a couple of wild burros down the hill from my RV. They were moving right along so I couldn’t get to my camera in time to capture a picture. I also heard a number of animals that I assume were Coyotes howling and barking near my RV last night. It was dark so I couldn’t see them but they were close. I like that fact that you are camping near nature in state parks as opposed to the urban aspect of some of the private RV parks.

Tuesday October 3rd 2017

The temperature was up a couple of degrees today into the mid 90s. It is a little above the average for this time of year. It isn’t bad outside if you stay out of the sun. A nice breeze is blowing to keep it comfortable. Inside, I’m running the AC to keep it livable. The good thing is that the night time temperature gets down to the sixties for good sleeping.

One of the residents at the Lake Pleasant Regional Park. 

I finally got around to locking in some plans for the next few months. Ever since hurricane Harvey, my plans for the winter have been up in the air. The large scale flooding in southeast Texas caused me to change my plans. I want to give the Texans a chance to get things back closer to normal before I spend a lot of time in the area.

I haven’t stayed in any one place longer than two weeks since April. Most of the time I’ve been moving on in less than a week. One of my goals for the winter is to stay in one place for a month or more. Somethings are just easier to complete when you don’t have to worry about where your going to be next week.

One of my prime criteria for a long stay is a place with a lot of things to do in the area. Most long term RV parks have local social activities, but those aren’t really my cup of tea. I need an area with plenty to do in the surrounding area. That usually means a vacation area or a city. I’ve investigated the San Diego area and found only expensive options. The Phoenix and Tuscon areas are possible, but I saw a lot of the big attractions last winter and spring.

The other option that has been quietly screaming at me is Las Vegas. It has been my favorite vacation spot for years. RV sites can be found at a reasonable monthly rate and there is plenty to do. The only reason I’ve been holding back is the concern that I’ll spend too much on entertainment. The bottom line is I’ll be happy there and the monthly rate will provide me significant savings over nightly rates elsewhere.

My campsite looking up from the bottom of the hill.

Las Vegas has a lot going on during the holiday season. It’s one of the times of year I enjoy the city the most. The Professional Bull Riding (PBR) finals in early November bring the headliners to town. Thanksgiving brings tons of people and more headliners. In the beginning of December the National Finals Rodeo and lots of ranch hands from around North America invade the city. It quiets down for a week or two only to get busy again for Christmas and New Years. So there will be plenty of opportunity for people watching and catching a visiting headliner or two.

I have reserved a site in Las Vegas for three months starting near the end of this month. I’ll be staying in the same park I stayed at in April. When I leave here next Wednesday, I’ll head for the Grand Canyon South Rim area. Then I’ll make my way west to Las Vegas. I’ll stop for a few days in the Lake Havasu area on the way.

Monday October 2nd 2017

The day started with the news about the tragic shooting in Las Vegas. The heavy TV news coverage drew me in and delayed the active part of my day. It doesn’t take long to learn the basic known facts from the TV coverage, but the anchors and commentators continue to talk. The more they talk the more I’m entertained and appalled at the contradictions and mistakes that come out of their mouths. I think a two to five minute interrupt at the top or bottom of the hour to provide an update is all they really need. That would give them more time to think and get their facts straight.

Lake Pleasant

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I’ve been to Las Vegas many times over the last twenty years and have even been considering spending a couple of months there this winter. Every time I have been there I’ve considered the tempting target it would make for terrorists. It hasn’t deterred me in the past and won’t going forward. You can be in the wrong place at the wrong time anywhere. Being aware of your surroundings and the location of the exits is good, but it wouldn’t have made much difference in this situation.

After the TV coverage slowed down I got outside and finished up my unpacking from yesterday. Specifically, I took my bicycle off the rack and locked it to the ladder on the back of the RV. The picnic table is my normal choice for locking the bicycle, but the one on this site is not conveniently located. I also took the bike rack off the car and stowed it under the motorhome. At that point the car was ready to travel, but I didn’t have anywhere in mind to go.

A couple of ordinary saguaro

Old cactus with lots of branches

Later in the day I took a walk around the campgrounds here at Lake Pleasant Regional Park. There are not many people here this week. I suspect it will fill up toward the weekend. The lake level is low. This is normal for this time of year. It is at its highest level in the late spring. There is still enough water that many people were enjoying the lake in boats and jet skis. The lake and the saguaro cactus are the two most prominent features that I saw on my walk.