Everything Old is New Again.

I wish I could say we have new and exciting destinations to share, but this blog post is really going to feel more like déjà vu all over again. Lol. Our route after we left Rian’s on Sunday, 3/5, hit several of the same stops we made last year. Even though we’re almost a month later in the year, the weather has remained decidedly on the chilly side, much more so than last year.

 

Look closely, that's a double rainbow!

Our first stop was Vista Ranch Winery, a Harvest Host location in Merced, CA. This is one of those gems we found several years ago and keep coming back to. It’s conveniently located and it’s always more fun to spend $ on wine and tasty treats than campground fees. We were lucky enough to arrive while the almond orchards adjacent to the winery were still in bloom. We had passing showers (and that gorgeous rainbow!) on our arrival day and blue skies to see us on our way. We took the puppers for several walks through the orchard and they had a blast racing through the trees. The scent of the almond blossoms was heavenly.

Almond tree blossoms. 

 

On a stroll through the orchard.

The walnut trees were bare, but beautiful too.

Such a lovely, peaceful scene... 

...and then here comes the hooligans. Lol. 

Our second stop at Orange Grove RV Park near Bakersfield on Monday, 3/6, was another repeat performance. The campground really is situated in an orange grove and because the blossoms hadn’t set yet, we were able to pick as many fresh oranges as we wanted. The RV park even supplied the fruit pickers and we put them to good use. We will be having fresh squeezed orange juice every morning for the next couple weeks. Lol. Raney also made friends with Nana, a 2 year-old Newfoundland, in the doggie area.

Rog picking our morning oranges. 

 

The fruits of his labor. Lol.

Raney and her new friend, Nana.

Mommy, where did my friend go?

We had booked two nights at Orange Grove with the express purpose of driving over to Indian Wells Brewery in Inyokern, CA to stock up on some of our favorite beverages – their Lunatic Lemonade and hard orange soda. It’s about a three hour round trip though, so we wanted to be sure they had both in stock. I must have called a dozen times and left two messages, but no one ever picked up or returned my calls. We finally decided to skip it since we didn’t want to drive all that way to be disappointed and we knew that was a real possibility since last year they were completely out of the bottled Lunatic Lemonade. Sigh. As a consolation prize, we walked over to the California Fruit Depot and loaded up on some amazing goodies. And free samples of everything!! They have an incredible array of snacks, nuts, fruits, and other delicacies. The next morning I call a call back from Indian Wells. Too little, too late. She apologized and said the guy who works Sunday and Monday won’t answer the phone. Really? Insert eye roll here.

 

California Fruit Depot, always a tasty stop.

Our third stop on Wednesday, 3/8, at Amboy Crater was one we also made last year. Are you sensing a theme here? This time we stayed on I40 longer and passed huge solar arrays and wind farms. Rog says you can tell you’re in the desert when you start seeing the wind generators. It was a little disconcerting and certainly new to see them on snow covered hills!

Snow in the foothills along CA Hwy 58 at Tehachapi Pass.

Wind generators in the snow. A first for us!

An aircraft graveyard in front of the wind machines.
Coincidence or sacrifices to the wind gods?

We had the entire overflow parking area at Amboy Crater all to ourselves, so the pups got lots of off-leash play time. I must say that Miss Raney has started to show some teenage attitude. Rog was playing ball with Riley, so I took her across the road to another sandy wash to play. She saw that Riley had the ball and took off in his direction. When I called her back, she looked over her shoulder at me and clearly understood what I wanted then looked me straight in the eye and turned around and kept on going. In case you think it’s a mother-daughter thing, she did the same to Rog a few days later. Spicy little wench. Lol. Somebody is getting enrolled in obedience class when we get home.

 

Parked at Amboy Crater.

Our handsome sandpuppy.

Looking for trouble. Lol.

Riley and Rog.

Who says naughty doesn't pay. I got the ball!

We walked the pups to the observation point but chose not to do the hike to the crater. It’s only a little over two miles roundtrip, but it’s up the side of a cinder cone and we didn’t think it would be very dog-friendly footing. The signage also said to leave three hours to do the hike, so I’m guessing it’s not an easy two miles. Lol. We did learn that Amboy Crater is 250 feet high and 1,500 feet in diameter. It is situated in one of the youngest volcanic fields in the United States, with its most recent eruption approximately 10,000 years ago. (Still older than me! Lol.)

 

Amboy Crater.

Since we wouldn’t want to mess with our new tradition of no new places 😊, our next stop on Thursday, 3/9, was La Paz County Park near Parker, AZ. We stayed here for a week last year and really enjoyed it. Last year it was all first come/first served and we got super lucky and scored a site right on the river. This year the park had adopted a reservation system and we somehow ended up in the exact same spot as last year and we even had the exact same neighbors on both sides! Hilarious. Most of the regulars come down from Canada and stay for six months. They are delightful folks, and it was fun to see them again.

 

Site #208. We were so lucky to get the same spot twice.

We also planned to meet our friends Bob and Carole and their pup Ruby at La Paz on Thursday, 3/9. Bob and Carole left Washington a week after we did and managed to hit a weather window to made it down I5 over Siskiyou Pass. Our route and destinations were all different, but after leaving Amboy Crater, we were driving down Hwy 62 when Carole texted me to ask where we were, because she though they might be just a mile behind us. They were! Wow, we couldn’t have timed it that well if we tried. We pulled into La Paz together and got set up in our riverside spots. Ruby is Raney’s BFF and a favorite of Riley’s too, so the puppy reunion was joyful!

Best friends together again.

 Speaking of puppers, how is it traveling with the two big dogs? Glad you asked. And if you didn’t, just skip this part. Rog and I are now Olympic-class dog vaulters. I swear they insist on laying in the most inconvenient spot possible. Most importantly, they are doing great together. Riley has become so much more tolerant of Raney and she has learned to read his mood a lot better. Watching them jockey for position and toys is hilarious. The best spot or best toy is always whatever the other one has. Raney is also pushing limits just a bit more, that teenager thing again. When we’re moving, Riley likes to ride laying next to Rog with the vent blowing in his face. Raney’s favorite spot is on the dog bed at my feet, but she’s not above stretching out so she’s still claiming the bed and nudging Riley aside so she can hog the vent to. The looks he gives me. Pathetic. We try not to intervene too much, so they learn to sort it out themselves, but neither do we let one bully the other. Riley appeals for help more often than Raney. In fact, the other night he got me up in the middle of the night and wanted me to make Raney get off the couch! Nope. You had it and got off; you figure it out. Geesh. Kids! Raney still loves her morning snuggles, but she also would like to expand that window. So every couple hours, I get a whine and nudge, “Is it time yet?”. Anything before 6am and she gets sent back to her own bed. Someday maybe I’ll get through the night without one or the other whining, Mommmm. Bottom line, it’s a lot like traveling with two very large toddlers. Lol.

 

Raney enjoying the view after morning snuggles.

Would love to know just what he's thinking. Lol.

We had three nights booked at La Paz and really wished we could have stayed longer. There is just so much to do in the area. On Friday we took the kayaks to Lake Havasu City and planned to paddle under the London Bridge. I still can’t get over the fact that it’s the real deal. I wrote about it last year, along with more details on La Paz and the area, so check it out here if you are interested: Go Around the Bend: Lake Havasu City and Up SARA's Crack. Unfortunately, the afternoon winds had kicked up and we decided to hold off on the paddle. The trip wasn’t wasted though, because we hit another favorite spot, College Street Brewery. We had lunch and sampled some great beers and filled our growlers for evening Happy Hour. College Street brews Carole’s absolute favorite beer, Big Blue Van, and I gotta say it’s close to the top of my list too.

Now there's a cast of characters.
Rog, Teddi, Carole and Bob.

View from Rotary Park in Lake Havasu City.
It was windy and the water was a little choppy for inflatable kayaks.

College Street Brewery.
No trip is a bust that ends with a "Big Blue Van". Lol.

Saturday was our last day at La Paz and we stuffed it full. Carole and I started it off by hitting the swap meet just down the road. We were happy to find several local crafters, some flea market finds, and an excellent produce stall. I bought two large pieces of elk antler for Raney and Riley. The antlers are even better chewies than bones, but they are pricey and the ones in the pet stores just aren’t large enough for the big kids. Needless to say, they were a hit and I was the favorite mom, for a little while anyway. Lol.

 

We always find fun stuff at the local swap meets.

By 11am we had sunshine, temps in the high 70’s, and almost no wind – perfect weather for kayaking. Bob and Carole have a new inflatable, it’s a Sea Eagle like ours, but a different model. They got the Fast Track, it sits a little lower in the water and is sleeker and faster than our older version. This was the first opportunity they’d had to get it in the water and it was Ruby’s first time kayaking ever. She did great! We paddled down the Colorado River which was lined with RV parks, small vacation cottages, and enormous private homes with just a few stretches of nature on the California side. It’s difficult to imagine this is the same river we spent 16 days floating through the Grand Canyon wilderness. Lol.

 

Bob and Carole's newer model Fast Track on the left. Both are great fun!

An excellent time on the water.

Pulling out of the river right at our rig. Doesn't get any easier than that!

After our successful kayaking adventure, we beat feet to the Nellie E Saloon and Desert Bar. We visited last year and just loved it. The drive there is an adventure in itself. It’s about 5 miles down a challenging dirt road, totally off the grid, and only open 12-6pm Saturday and Sundays. It was also packed and had an excellent band, Mudfish, that we were beyond thrilled to see again this year! We took Ruby and Raney along and were impressed with how well behaved they both were. Also, purely as a public service, Raney ensured that the clean up crew did not have to worry about any stray French fries under the tables. Lol.

Gorgeous drive out to the Nellie E.

Did I mention the wildflowers are blooming?

 

A fun time was had by all. :)

Different perspectives of the chapel built next to the saloon.
Hmmm... drink, repent, rinse and repeat? Lol. 

Raney and I checking out the chapel.

Saturday evening was also hopping at La Paz. There was a private party in the event center and another gathering with live music behind us. Even our Canadian neighbors had a little impromptu jam session. After our busy day, it was delightful to enjoy the sunset and a relaxing fireside chat listening to the music. One of the things we loved about La Paz was how quiet it was at night, especially considering how closely packed in everyone is. We often joked that the Canadians were all in bed by 8pm and up at 6am. Unfortunately, this evening was the exception and the guitarist behind us (definitely not Canadian) belligerently continued far into the night. Maybe we wouldn’t have minded if he had been anywhere near as talented as Mudfish. Lol.

Carole got this stunning shot of our lovely sunset.

Happy Hour(s). 

Lots of Happy Hours in progress down the line. 

A few stars were visible. 
A lovely last evening at La Paz.

Sunday, 3/12, was moving day. We have one more repeat stop and then we’ll be exploring some new territory and…drum roll please…getting to the main event. But that’s for the next post. 😊