Goldilocks, Brother Bob, and Boondocking on the Rez

Campfire time at Shush Bezashe on Little Bear Lake.

Sometimes I feel a little like Goldilocks. Too hot, too cold, hunting for just right. Lol. We pulled into the Kofa Mountain RV Park in Quartzite, AZ on Thursday, 3/26, for a one night stay. The RV park wasn’t anything special, essentially a large gravel parking lot, but it did have full hook ups. Since we hit 101° today, the pups agreed that was essential. I also got my wish and we had pizza and a Big Blue Van (a fantastically tasty blueberry wheat beer) at Silly Al’s.

Cheers! Thanks to Bob and Carole for introducing us to Silly Al's.

Let me digress for a moment to tell you about a new vice that we’ve acquired. Paletas! Huh? You know how Rog and I love to find local gourmet ice-cream shops. We did our usual Yelp search when we were in Merced, all that came up was a Mexican ice cream chain called La Michoacana. Let’s give it a try. The hand scooped ice cream was delicious, but what really intrigued me were the variety of paletas (Spanish for popsicles). There must have been a hundred flavors! We decided to take some home, and the rest, as they say, is history. Paletas come in two main varieties: Paletas de agua (water-based): Made with fresh fruit, juice, or agua fresca. These are light, refreshing, and dairy-free. And Paletas de leche (milk-based): These are creamy and include milk or condensed milk for a rich, velvety texture. (My favorites!) The range of flavors was mind boggling. We tried some of each and yes, we’ve searched out other Mexican ice cream shops and found that paletas are a common staple. Unlike regular commercial popsicles with artificial flavors and preservatives, paletas are handcrafted using fresh, natural ingredients like real fruit, milk, and come in traditional Mexican flavors. So yummmmy!

Paletas, a tasty new vice.
Note, that is just one of a half dozen freezer cases. Crazy number of flavors!

I’d noticed Roger’s former paramedic partner from the Tacoma Fire Department, Bob Wells, was also camping in Arizona. Rog gave him a shout out, and Brother Bob decided to leave a prime boondocking spot near Sedona, AZ to rendezvous with us near Prescott, AZ.

We left Quartzite early Friday morning and parked the rig at the White Rock Trailhead on Thumb Butte Road near Prescott and unhitched the Pupwagon to scout. Rog had checked out the Prescott National Forest dispersed camping map, so we knew there were 22 camping sites along Thumb Butte Road. What we didn’t know is what would be available and what would be suitable for our rig. We’ve learned from experience not to make assumptions when we’re taking the Short Bus offroad. Lol. I’m glad we scouted, Thumb Butte Road turned into a very poorly maintained dirt road, we’re talking high clearance 4WD in some sections. We’d gone less than two miles up the road when we hit a washout that we decided was not happy making in the big rig. Luckily, we had passed a site large enough to accommodate both our rig and Brother Bob’s truck camper, which he’s dubbed the White Buffalo. We turned around and claimed it. Score!

 

Three days of boondocking bliss coming up

We got set up and Bob arrived shortly thereafter. I truly wish I could have you all join us for story time. When Rog and Bob get together, the tales they tell would have you in stitches. Trust me, I ended up laughing so hard that I think I can skip the ab workout. Lol. We shared some amazing meals together and great times around the campfire too.

Steak dinner and story time.  A great time together.

 

And the tales continue. Lol. 

The area is rife with hiking and biking trails. On Saturday we rode our ebikes up the dirt road to Sunset Lookout for fantastic views of the Bradshaw Mountains and Prescott National Forest. We did about 14 miles, that’s 7 straight up and 7 straight back down. Lol.  The weather was perfect! Sunny and in the low 80’s during the day and cooling down in the evenings. Goldilocks finally got it just right.

View from Sunset Overlook.

Rog checking out some side trails, I stuck to the road. 

Seven miles up, seven miles down. Lol.

We decided to extend our stay for an extra day. Bob and Rog took the ebikes out again on Sunday. Rog rode about 13 miles including several on single-track mountain bike trails. I opted to take Raney for a two-mile hike through the pine forest. With hardly a soul on the trail, girlfriend got some off leash sniff time and loved it. She is turning into quite the camp dog; she loves sitting out with us by the campfire and is eager to explore. Riley has slowed down considerably and shows a strong preference for his comfy couch in the RV. He still loves playtime and the water, but the play sessions and walkies are getting shorter now.

Scenes from Rog's single track ride.

Raney is becoming quite the trail dog.

On Monday, we pulled up stakes with Brother Bob and headed for another boondocking spot outside Flagstaff, AZ on National Forest Service Road 171. I wasn’t sure what to expect, so again we unhitched the pupwagon to scout. Wow. The NFS road was well maintained, went on for miles and miles, and there were tons of great boondocking spots. We found a large site in an open area next to the pine forest and set up for two delightful days. Bob rebuilt (and enlarged) the firepit and we enjoyed some great campfires in the evenings. And no, they haven’t run out of stories yet. 😊

Gotta love free camping on public lands.

 

Brother Bob was our official "fireman". Excellent job!

On Tuesday, we visited Walnut Canyon National Monument. The park preserves the ruins of cliff dwellings left by the Sinagua (Spanish for No Water) people who lived here from 1100 to 1250AD. Walnut Canyon only had seasonal water flow, and the early tribes were accomplished dry land farmers and made pottery vessels for water storage. We walked the two short trails that leave from the Visitor’s Center and chatted with Robin, a Volunteer Park Ranger. Robin was a wealth of information and showed us the “Seek” app which she said was great for identifying plants and animals even without an internet connection. We’ll be downloading that asap. Then we drove into Flagstaff to grocery up and had lunch at Dark Sky Brewery - good food, good brews, and a fun atmosphere.

 

Walnut Canyon National Monument.

The Sinagua took advantage of natural alcoves to build their homes.

The NPS has reconstructed parts of the ruins.

A close-up view of ruins across the canyon.

A new National Monument and then lunch at Dark Sky Brewery.
An excellent day.

Tuesday evening our weather luck ran out, and the forecast was for possible snow overnight. (I wish that was an April Fools joke!) From triple digits to snow, I think we may have overcompensated. Goldilocks says, “This porridge is too cold.” The snow never materialized but it rained all Tuesday night. Rain can be an issue when you’re parked in a field and weigh over 28,000 lbs. Red dirt + rain = red mud. Ugh. We made it out without a problem, but I think we added a hundred pounds of sticky red mud to the undercarriage of the RV and car.  Before we left the locals came by to say, Hi. A herd of about a dozen Pronghorns. Two of the males were doing a lot of posturing and head butting which was very entertaining. What a fun surprise!

Pronghorn visitors.  

We sadly parted ways with Brother Bob. He headed back to Sedona, while our next stop was supposed to be a dispersed camping area on the White Mountain Apache Indian Reservation. Unfortunately, the winds were howling with gusts up to 40mph so we pulled into Homolovi State Park near Winslow, AZ for the night on Wednesday, 4/1. It’s a nice park with pueblo ruins and hiking trails, but it was so windy we just hunkered down and watched a movie and ate ice cream. Yeah, I know. Roughing it. Lol. We did get to see the resident herd of wild burros, but they didn’t come too close to the campground. 

 

Resident wild burros.

We finally made it to the White Mountain Apache Reservation on Thursday, 4/2. You need a permit from the tribe for camping ($15 a night) and fishing ($10 a day). Online purchases on their website were down. Stike one. I called and was told permits could be purchased at the Sportsman’s Warehouse. When I called the store to confirm, I found out the machines had been taken out the day before. Strike two. No worries, permits are available at the convenience store at the Hon-Dah casino gas station or the Hon-Dah Outdoor Sports store. We stopped at the gas station and were told they were out of paper so couldn’t print the forms. Strike three. We had to backtrack to the Outdoor Sports store where we were finally able to purchase the permits. Geesh. 

Gotta say, it was well worth the hassle. We did our "park the rig and scout" routine.  There are 1000 campsites and multiple lakes, but we were interested in Big Bear and Little Bear Lakes, each with dispersed camping. We scouted the Shush Bezashe camping area on Little Bear Lake and decided we didn’t need to look any further. We had nearly the entire lake to ourselves. We parked in a prime spot near the boat ramp with easy lake access. Absolutely gorgeous! We enjoyed a lovely sunset and let the pups explore off lead, there was literally no one else around.

We made it and it was soooo worth it!

 

Our campsite is right next to the lake, Raney and Riley approved. Lol.

The golden hour.

Then pinks and purples, and...

...finally the fiery orange sunset. Just wow. 

On Friday, we took the pups on a hike along the lake. We were trying to go all the way around, but the trail petered out and Riley is not a fan of rock climbing. Lol. He could have done it in his younger years, but we try not to let him overdo it. The pups had a great time dipping in and out of the water and exploring. Rog spent some time fishing, but had no luck. Riley napped in the afternoon while Raney went along for a ride in the pupwagon to check out Big Bear Lake. The camping area there is further away from the water, but there were tons of really nice spots. It was also totally deserted. A few cars were coming in as we left, I imagine it’s hopping in the summer, but for now it is so quiet and peaceful. I really do love boondocking. I’m thinking maybe next year we do a whole trip that is all, or at least mostly, boondocking. Anyone game?

Morning mist on the lake and a heron taking flight.

When the sun is out, it is perfect.
View from the opposite end of the lake and our water dogs.

No pesky fish biting to disturb the peace and quiet. Lol.

Here’s a quick update on our electrical issues. So far, we haven’t had any recurring issues with the A/C. We haven’t had to run it since Quartzite, in fact the furnace has been getting a workout with the temps dropping to freezing and below at night. Careful what you wish for. Lol. The flickering in the overhead LEDs has continued, but we did figure out that it only happens when the fluorescent fixture above the sink is on. Hmmmm. Rog is hypothesizing that the ballast in the fixture may be going out and causing the voltage to fluctuate in that circuit. No other lights are acting weird and that seems to be the only condition when it happens. I’ve ordered replacement LED bulbs for the over the sink light and Rog will remove the ballast when he installs them. Fingers crossed that will be the end of the ghost in the machine!

It's a bit nippy in the morning.
Frost on the chairs and ice on the puddles. Brrrr.

Next stop, we tackle The Catwalk near Glenwood, NM. What is that?? You’ll have to wait and see. Should be fun!

Birthday Bidets and Melting in Desert Hot Springs

Our sweet grandpup, Gwendolyn.

Our next stop on Thursday, 3/12, was Rian’s in Sacramento, another awesome moochdock. We are able to park right next to her house and have 30 amp power and water. We always enjoy spending time with Rian and seeing our grandpup, Gwendolyn. She is just so dang cute! We did a couple of walkies with Raney and Gwen, but Rian wasn’t quite comfortable giving them off leash time in the yard together. Neither is aggressive, but with the size differential (Raney is more than six times as big as Gwennie), Rian didn’t want to chance a kerfuffle. So, they took turns in the yard and talked through the sliding door. Lol.

 

All the kids hanging out.

Before we arrived, I’d asked Rian what she wanted for her birthday. Last year we came down and helped build her deck. This year’s request wasn’t quite so labor intensive. She wanted bidets installed in both her bathrooms and help mounting landscape lights along the fence. We opted to have her electrician put in an outlet in the master bath and Rog installed the bidets. We got most of the lights up, but Rian wanted to trim back some plants along the fence and will finished the job later. Love the lights, skipped the bidet pics. Lol. But you really have to read the inside of the Tushy box. Hilarious. It even came with a playlist to listen to while doing the installation. Gotta love a company with a great sense of humor!

 

Love the yard lights!

Zoom in to read and let me know which is your favorite! Lol. 

While we were at Costco, Rian picked up a container of guavas. I’d never had a fresh guava and it was meh. Rian searched for recipes and made guava paste and then guava cream cheese pastries. Now we’re talking! Delicious. I am so glad both the girls have taken after their Dad when it comes to creative cooking. I am happy to be the guinea pig for any further experiments. Yum! Speaking of food, in addition to our obligatory visit to Sushi Yo, we had a redo of Thanksgiving dinner and a visit to Corti Brothers Deli. (Excellent recommendation, thank you Jess!). I don’t want to be one of those bloggers that details every meal, there’s nothing exciting about peanut butter toast for breakfast every morning. Lol. But, one of my friends mentioned they love the food pics. So enjoy these, calorie free!  

My creative cook (takes after her daddy!). 

The guava cream cheese pastries were delish!

Thanksgiving dinner redo!

Is that Gwendolyn begging at the table or did Rian adopt a fruit bat?

Corti Brothers Deli sandwiches. Gwennie approved. 

Rian and I hit the estate sales and thrift stores on Saturday. Then on Sunday, 3/15, she and Rog went fishing on Mather Lake. They opted to fish from the shore and Rian netted the biggest catch of the day. Glad we weren’t counting on fish for dinner. Lol.

There's a reason it's called "fishing" not "catching". Lol.

The temps in Sacramento were in the mid 80’s, hot but bearable. Looking at the forecast where we’re headed it was way worse, solidly into the triple digits. We opted to stay an extra day at Rian’s, as Rog pointed out, we were in no rush to get to the heat. 

We left Rian’s and spent one night on Tuesday, 3/17, at a Harvest Host site, Vista Ranch in Merced, CA. We’ve stayed here before and loved walking the dogs in the adjacent almond orchards. Sadly, the orchards are gone. I asked about it and learned that almond trees production peaks at around 20 years and they usually replace them by 25. So all the trees are down, they’ll remove them and plant a cover crop next year to help renew the soil before replanting. If we make it back next year, it will be really weird to have hay fields next door instead of trees.

Vista Ranch, a repeat favorite Harvest Host site.

The almond orchard in 2019 and today. :( 

Rog noticed this memorial along the road just outside of Merced. He was curious why there was a war memorial out in the middle of nowhere. Turns out it’s not a war memorial, the story is much more interesting. The George Hicks Fancher Monument is a testament to one man's dying wish (and ego). Fancher, who died in 1900, was a wealthy California rancher and he wanted to make sure people would remember that. His will stipulated that $25,000 be used to erect a monument in his honor. The result was this 68-foot tall granite plinth, the tallest tombstone for an individual in California. The monument was completed in 1911 after a 10-year legal battle. A local teacher wanted the money to go toward a public library in Fancher’s honor, but the family refused. Don’t you just love these quirky roadside finds?

Talk about your ego project.

Luckily the trees were all intact at our next overnight stop on Wednesday, 3/16, at Orange Grove RV Park near Bakersfield, CA. The orange trees were all in bloom and it smelled absolutely heavenly!! I really wish I had a way to give you a sniff. We were still able to pick oranges too (one of the perks of the campground), so we stocked up and are enjoying fresh squeezed OJ for breakfast.

 

Fresh squeezed OJ, coming up!

The scent was utterly sublime. 

On Thursday, 3/17, we pulled into Catalina Spa and RV Resort in Desert Hot Springs, CA. It was an *ahem* balmy 104° when we arrived. Ugh. We snagged a space with a tiny bit of shade and got set up. With the air conditioners both running the temperature inside the coach was tolerable. Then we heard a pop and everything went dark. WTF. Rog checked and we’d popped a breaker, he couldn’t get it to reset, so he hooked up to the pole in the next space. Everything was back on, then “pop” and it wasn’t. This happened a few times and the temps inside went up several degrees in just a couple minutes. No way could we survive this heat in our little metal box without A/C. Rog was able to troubleshoot and change some settings on the inverter/electrical system and then we were back in business. Whew!

 

When it's 104° every tiny bit of shade helps. 

The current temps here are 20 to 30 degrees above normal! We had two consecutive 104° days before it dropped out of the triple digits. It’s still in the 90’s, but at least psychologically it seems cooler. Lol. We are learning to get up and do things before 10am and after 8pm. It’s lovely before the sun comes up and after it sets. It’s just that pesky time in between that’s painful. Lol. Initially this heat dome event was supposed to last a week and then dissipate, now the weather guessers are calling for a more prolonged heat wave. Our original plan had us boondocking in the desert outside Chiricahua National Monument, that is no longer looking like an option. We were going to meet up with our friend Laurie who is in Gila Bend, AZ and she said it was 110° there. Nope. We spent most of Friday figuring out how to escape the heat. We rerouted the next five stops, opting to head north to higher elevation around Prescott and Flagstaff, AZ. We will still be boondocking, but temps should be in the 70’s and 80’s. Woohoo! I wasn’t happy about changing my carefully laid plans, but Rog is good at going with the flow and reminds me that no plan survives first contact with the enemy. Lol.

 

It's beautiful in the early morning...

... and late in the evening.

Raney enjoys her (very) early morning walkies.

Riley prefers his walkies in the evening.

In the meantime, we are enjoying the amenities at Catalina RV and Resort. We are just a stone’s throw from the pickleball courts and found a group of folks who play regularly. So, pickleball has been on the agenda every morning and I’m loving it! We sent pics of the gym equipment to our trainer Robyn, and she put together a ridiculous workout. Girlfriend, no need to double down just because we have access to fancy machines. Geesh. Yes, I know it’s for my own good. Yes, I’ll do it. And no, I won't stop complaining!

Pickleball every morning! Yay!!

Insane workout. Not so Yay!

One of the things I was most looking forward to in Desert Hot Springs, was visiting my friend Elaine. She recently bought a place to snowbird in Cathedral City, just 20 minutes away. Elaine has not been impressed with the crazy temps either. She also had A/C issues and when it took a few days to get it back online, seriously considered heading back to Washington. Suddenly 50° and raining doesn't sound so bad. Lol. We visited Elaine at her new place on Sunday, 3/22. She bought a lovely, fully furnished home in an over 55 community. We had a blast catching up, playing games, and eating homemade tamales purchased from a guy in a bright yellow pickup truck in the grocery store parking lot. The pups enjoyed her now fully functioning A/C, although I did warn her that she’ll be finding mastiff DNA for months. Lol.

 

Riley and Raney making themselves at home in Elaine's new digs.

On Monday evening we met Elaine and her cousin, Steve, at Willie’s Modern Fare for happy hour. Excellent food and beverages. In fact, their happy hour is so popular there was a wait list to get into the bar! Then we all went to see Project Hail Mary at the Mary Pickford Theater. We opted to try out a new (to us) technology called Screen X. The gimmick is 270 degree viewing screens for a more immersive experience. Rog liked it, I could take it or leave it. The movie, however, was outstanding. Definitely two thumbs up! Rog and I had both read the book and loved it, so we were thrilled that the movie stayed faithful to the book.

Mary Pickford Theater in Cathedral City.

Of course, we also did the obligatory adulting – a trip to Costco, grocery run, laundry, house(RV) cleaning, etc. And then after several days of the A/C running smoothly, on Tuesday evening the electrical system weirded out again. This time the LED overhead lights started flickering, even though they were turned off at the switch. Hmmmm. Then the A/C kept turning off and on. Not good. Rog spent most of Wednesday troubleshooting – he went over the system settings, checked for a loose wire or ground, everything he could think of. He adjusted more settings and it’s running now, but we’re not confident it will continue, so we may try to find a repair person at our next stop. It’s an adventure. Lol. 

Rog and I have been hitting the hot mineral springs late in the evening. I’m amazed at the hardy souls hanging out in the pools in the middle of the day. Granted the swimming pools aren’t heated, but they’re still warm. Seniors sous vide anyone? Lol. Elaine came over on Wednesday evening, our last day at Catalina. Rog made a salmon orzo salad and Elaine brought the good bread to go with it. Adult beverages were shared and we enjoyed a last soak in the pools.

 

Enjoying our evening soak.

We head for Quartzite tomorrow morning, Thursday, 3/26. Silly Al’s for pizza and a Big Blue Van is on my wish list.