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Thursday, January 31, 2019
Anza Borrego State Park
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Tuesday, January 29, 2019
The morning call...
Some folks wake to the call of a rooster doing his daily duty... but here in the Anza Borrego Palm Canyon campsite - as the dark skies slowly fade to grey in the early morning hours, we wake first to the single lonely call of one coyote and then to the chorus his call stirs up.
I must tell you that, particularly in the late afternoon and early evenings, the coyotes here sound very, very near to us. They ring the campsite with their calls and are so close people wander to the narrow road that circles our sites, peering out into the scrub and bush searching for a glimpse of said wild creatures. Somewhat eerie to be so close; and somewhat 'cool' for the same reason. Definitely a place where the 'Keep your dog on a leash' rule is readily obeyed. I don't think any single pooch who shook off his leash and slipped away for a wee walk-about would last even an hour out there.
It's quiet now. The calls started just after 0600 and lasted for about half an hour. Guess they're busy sorting out who's hunting where this morning.
More on this great location later. Time for a little more sleep for us humans. Zzzzzzzzz
Sent from my iPad
I must tell you that, particularly in the late afternoon and early evenings, the coyotes here sound very, very near to us. They ring the campsite with their calls and are so close people wander to the narrow road that circles our sites, peering out into the scrub and bush searching for a glimpse of said wild creatures. Somewhat eerie to be so close; and somewhat 'cool' for the same reason. Definitely a place where the 'Keep your dog on a leash' rule is readily obeyed. I don't think any single pooch who shook off his leash and slipped away for a wee walk-about would last even an hour out there.
It's quiet now. The calls started just after 0600 and lasted for about half an hour. Guess they're busy sorting out who's hunting where this morning.
More on this great location later. Time for a little more sleep for us humans. Zzzzzzzzz
Sent from my iPad
Monday, January 28, 2019
Rio Bend ... Part 2
So, re-reading my last post I realized it was quite dry and while, as some of you know, we're not much prone to partying 😉 I figured I'd better fess up a little. Yes, we had a great time! Not only did we practice our beginners style Pickle Ball (oh, if only I could serve; Kathy serves so well!)... we also golfed 9 with some borrowed clubs (even managed to not lose too many balls) and enjoyed some Happy Hours with neighbours and friends. The resort is a good size; not so large it feels like a small town and small enough that folks tend to at least recognize each other and know quite a few others.
We were well received by the friends of our friends who we were there to see. Well enough received that, having been lured to the Fish Fry dinner on Friday evening, the good music that followed (that kick up your heels, thigh-slapping, toe tapping kind of music)... well, you guessed it, up kicked our heels and with petty-coats flying... into the fray we leaped. Danced our legs off we did... and it was great fun. OK I did exaggerate a wee bit there... we weren't wearing petty-coats... but we had fun anyway. The next day, Saturday, found most of us a little subdued, but not too much. We were able to squeeze in a bike ride, more Pickle Ball, a little visiting... and some rest.
Sunday was the day of our departure... and we did, depart that is. Spent half the day picking up groceries and fuel (which is always fun cuz Lucy seems to be just a little smaller than the stuff we pick up and need to store).No complaints though. We love Lucy and we always find places and Ricky offers up room for whatever won't fit. We did well and then hustled on to Anza Borrego, arriving just at dusk after being delayed by traffic build up due to a security check point on the highway.
Hope everything is well with each of you and you're finding joy in each day. Some days seem tougher than others... that's for sure, but I think they test us in many ways and make us stronger too. Thanks for following our blog. It means a lot.
Adios for now... CJ
PS: for newbies.... Lucy is our little Casita trailer and Ricky is our truck. 😀
Sent from my iPad
We were well received by the friends of our friends who we were there to see. Well enough received that, having been lured to the Fish Fry dinner on Friday evening, the good music that followed (that kick up your heels, thigh-slapping, toe tapping kind of music)... well, you guessed it, up kicked our heels and with petty-coats flying... into the fray we leaped. Danced our legs off we did... and it was great fun. OK I did exaggerate a wee bit there... we weren't wearing petty-coats... but we had fun anyway. The next day, Saturday, found most of us a little subdued, but not too much. We were able to squeeze in a bike ride, more Pickle Ball, a little visiting... and some rest.
Sunday was the day of our departure... and we did, depart that is. Spent half the day picking up groceries and fuel (which is always fun cuz Lucy seems to be just a little smaller than the stuff we pick up and need to store).No complaints though. We love Lucy and we always find places and Ricky offers up room for whatever won't fit. We did well and then hustled on to Anza Borrego, arriving just at dusk after being delayed by traffic build up due to a security check point on the highway.
Hope everything is well with each of you and you're finding joy in each day. Some days seem tougher than others... that's for sure, but I think they test us in many ways and make us stronger too. Thanks for following our blog. It means a lot.
Adios for now... CJ
PS: for newbies.... Lucy is our little Casita trailer and Ricky is our truck. 😀
Sent from my iPad
Friday, January 25, 2019
El Centro, CA
Hook down, winds and seas calm. Oops, guess I mean, stabilizer legs down... winds calm, and no rain in sight :-). Waving goodbye to Desert Hot Springs yesterday morning we headed on our way. We drove into Anza Borego State Park on our way and checked out the Palm Canyon Campsite... very nice. We've booked in there for the 27th and 28th... when we'll return and do some desert hiking. In the mean time we are tucked in at the Rio Bend RV and Golf Resort, El Centro, where we will spend a couple days relaxing, (still) looking for places to stow things away in our little trailer, and visiting with cruising friends who now winter here instead of the Sea of Cortez.
Hope all is well with each of you. It's been a tough year for some, and for others... the challenges continue. Know you are in our hearts and thoughts. CJ
Sent from my iPad
Hope all is well with each of you. It's been a tough year for some, and for others... the challenges continue. Know you are in our hearts and thoughts. CJ
Sent from my iPad
Monday, January 21, 2019
Catalina Spa RV Resort...
It's windy outside. So, windy little Lucy (that'd be the trailer) is rockin' and rollin' with every blast that hits her and we're pretty certain there won't be Pickle Ball this morning. Sigh. I'm just glad I checked the weather forecast before going to bed last night and figured I'd rather take the awning down then, in the peaceful quiet evening in the light of the blood moon, instead or wrestling it in like a wild parachute in gusts of 70MPH.. much better sleep as a result. This mornings forecast says the winds are going to carry on until Wednesday which may put a crimp in our plans to leave tomorrow (Tuesday) morning. We shall see what the wind gods decide.
Guess. I should back up a bit here.... Hi everyone, we're finally back to Desert Hot Springs where we left Lucy and Ricky (that'd be the truck) in a small storage lot inside the Catalina Spa RV Resort. Our flight landed at 1545 hrs. And friends picked us up and hustled us over to the resort in time to get there before the storage lot closed. The 'rig' was fine when we got here. Truck started first try and all six wheels turned when asked to... so off we went to our assigned slip...er I mean site. Unfortunately the site was not 'to our taste'. Why? You might ask. Well for starters it was very narrow and overshadowed by a huge tree on one side. The other side was the backside of a building with an air conditioner running full tilt boogey. And, it was definitely not the site we had reserved which was much nicer, larger and with a view. So, off to the office I trotted to beg, plead, say "please" real nice and ask for a different site.
Thankfully the gal in the office was very nice and understood my plea. She found us another site. The late afternoon sun was sinking as we made the approach and entry to the new site. It was in a much nicer location and we were very pleased with our success. We quickly set up the awning, chairs and little table so as to enjoy a celebratory glass of wine with our friends. It was about then Kathy decided to plug us in... well, actually, it was Lucy she went to pub in. "We" were fine :-)
Hmrph. Turns out we couldn't plug in. There were no 'guts' in the pillar to plug into. We looked around for an available outlet in a neighbouring site... no luck. Back I trotted to the office to explain our situation. I'll only say here that the office seems to be undergoing some reorganization (if they're not, they should be). Three different people, all apparently working off different 'floor plans' with different data, couldn't agree on what sites were already taken, about to be taken, reserved, or available. They finally picked one that maybe or might be available in the morning IF we wanted to move. The IF was because one of the fixes was to wait for the store to open in the morning and the maintenance guy would buy a splitter so we could plug into the neighbours working pedestal. Oh, forgot to mention... none of them had any idea there was a slight problem with the power in our site.
The final result? We had a quiet night and a lovely sleep in our very nice (but powerless) site. Woke up yesterday (Sunday) and found out when the store finally opened at noon, they had no splitters. Being Sunday, none of the RV stores were open and tomorrow (today) is a holiday so the RV stores may or may not be open. We shall see. We have decided a splitter might be a good thing to add to our inventory so will be off this morning in hunt of one.
Believe it or not, one of our neighbours, staying in a rig not much bigger than ours (Lucy is a Casita 17 which means she's a 15' trailer on a 17' trailer) offered to help us out with a little power to charge up our battery. He's plugged in to his power pedestal and we're plugged in to his trailer. Nice guy.
And so, that's a long winded way of saying we are fine. We arrived safely, truck and trailer were none the worse for wear, we've had fun visits with dear friends, and we're about to start tidying truck and trailer to improve our living space for the next couple months.
Please know our thoughts are with friends and family at home, as well as our readers we haven't met yet, and we wish all of you a peaceful day (with less wind than we are experiencing right now :-). Adios for now. CJ
Sent from my iPad
Guess. I should back up a bit here.... Hi everyone, we're finally back to Desert Hot Springs where we left Lucy and Ricky (that'd be the truck) in a small storage lot inside the Catalina Spa RV Resort. Our flight landed at 1545 hrs. And friends picked us up and hustled us over to the resort in time to get there before the storage lot closed. The 'rig' was fine when we got here. Truck started first try and all six wheels turned when asked to... so off we went to our assigned slip...er I mean site. Unfortunately the site was not 'to our taste'. Why? You might ask. Well for starters it was very narrow and overshadowed by a huge tree on one side. The other side was the backside of a building with an air conditioner running full tilt boogey. And, it was definitely not the site we had reserved which was much nicer, larger and with a view. So, off to the office I trotted to beg, plead, say "please" real nice and ask for a different site.
Thankfully the gal in the office was very nice and understood my plea. She found us another site. The late afternoon sun was sinking as we made the approach and entry to the new site. It was in a much nicer location and we were very pleased with our success. We quickly set up the awning, chairs and little table so as to enjoy a celebratory glass of wine with our friends. It was about then Kathy decided to plug us in... well, actually, it was Lucy she went to pub in. "We" were fine :-)
Hmrph. Turns out we couldn't plug in. There were no 'guts' in the pillar to plug into. We looked around for an available outlet in a neighbouring site... no luck. Back I trotted to the office to explain our situation. I'll only say here that the office seems to be undergoing some reorganization (if they're not, they should be). Three different people, all apparently working off different 'floor plans' with different data, couldn't agree on what sites were already taken, about to be taken, reserved, or available. They finally picked one that maybe or might be available in the morning IF we wanted to move. The IF was because one of the fixes was to wait for the store to open in the morning and the maintenance guy would buy a splitter so we could plug into the neighbours working pedestal. Oh, forgot to mention... none of them had any idea there was a slight problem with the power in our site.
The final result? We had a quiet night and a lovely sleep in our very nice (but powerless) site. Woke up yesterday (Sunday) and found out when the store finally opened at noon, they had no splitters. Being Sunday, none of the RV stores were open and tomorrow (today) is a holiday so the RV stores may or may not be open. We shall see. We have decided a splitter might be a good thing to add to our inventory so will be off this morning in hunt of one.
Believe it or not, one of our neighbours, staying in a rig not much bigger than ours (Lucy is a Casita 17 which means she's a 15' trailer on a 17' trailer) offered to help us out with a little power to charge up our battery. He's plugged in to his power pedestal and we're plugged in to his trailer. Nice guy.
And so, that's a long winded way of saying we are fine. We arrived safely, truck and trailer were none the worse for wear, we've had fun visits with dear friends, and we're about to start tidying truck and trailer to improve our living space for the next couple months.
Please know our thoughts are with friends and family at home, as well as our readers we haven't met yet, and we wish all of you a peaceful day (with less wind than we are experiencing right now :-). Adios for now. CJ
Sent from my iPad
Thursday, January 3, 2019
Gettin' a little wet and chilly...
Now, I don't want you thinkin' we're afraid of a little wind and rain... but it goes without saying... there are choices to be made here. And, I'm not saying we don't love the seasons (missed them even) and we absolutely love helping out the winter birds in the neighbourhood, and seeing our dear friends and family... but fact is... well... there are alternatives, appealing alternatives.
So, I'm here to tell you we have made a decision; actually we knew about this back in November when we deposited Ricky and Lucy (that'd be the truck 'n trailer, aka "the rig") in Desert Hot Springs, in a small storage lot, secured within a recovering RV park (recovering because it has new owners and they're doing a good job of bringing the place back to life).
Yup, we kind of figured we might need a wee break from our beloved BC winter and so we set up this plan, see... It calls for us to take off... not for 7 months like before, not even for 6... just a wee short 2 months (8 weeks) hardly any time at all. But, it will be time enough to warm up, catch a little fix of desert, and see a few friends (some of them even cruisers like us who are currently enjoying more sand and sun than water).
And so, we are in that final leg of preparation; preparing boat, house, car and selves - for a little adventure :-) We'll head out mid-January and be back before the end of March... that's the plan. I'll blog as we travel for those who are interested in the places we visit. And I'm carrying the draft manuscript of Women in Blue with me... no worries there - the editing continues. We hope to be ready to publish by the end of next summer so stay tuned on that front.
I want to take a moment to thank you folks for supporting this blog and my writing. It means a lot to me and it's very motivating as well. I also want to wish each and every one of you all the best in 2019. It will be an interesting year for sure; lots to keep up with in the news and many changes happening closer to home.
So for now, know we are well and planning on heading out soon. And, we're wishing all of you a Happy New Year. May 2019 provide all you wish for, along with some peace, happiness and good health.
TTFN (tatafornow) CJ
So, I'm here to tell you we have made a decision; actually we knew about this back in November when we deposited Ricky and Lucy (that'd be the truck 'n trailer, aka "the rig") in Desert Hot Springs, in a small storage lot, secured within a recovering RV park (recovering because it has new owners and they're doing a good job of bringing the place back to life).
Yup, we kind of figured we might need a wee break from our beloved BC winter and so we set up this plan, see... It calls for us to take off... not for 7 months like before, not even for 6... just a wee short 2 months (8 weeks) hardly any time at all. But, it will be time enough to warm up, catch a little fix of desert, and see a few friends (some of them even cruisers like us who are currently enjoying more sand and sun than water).
And so, we are in that final leg of preparation; preparing boat, house, car and selves - for a little adventure :-) We'll head out mid-January and be back before the end of March... that's the plan. I'll blog as we travel for those who are interested in the places we visit. And I'm carrying the draft manuscript of Women in Blue with me... no worries there - the editing continues. We hope to be ready to publish by the end of next summer so stay tuned on that front.
I want to take a moment to thank you folks for supporting this blog and my writing. It means a lot to me and it's very motivating as well. I also want to wish each and every one of you all the best in 2019. It will be an interesting year for sure; lots to keep up with in the news and many changes happening closer to home.
So for now, know we are well and planning on heading out soon. And, we're wishing all of you a Happy New Year. May 2019 provide all you wish for, along with some peace, happiness and good health.
TTFN (tatafornow) CJ
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