Lava Beds National Monument

The smallest entrance we did, but worth it. 

Sunshine Cave.

    While looking for a new route home that didn't involve I-5 any sooner than necessary, we discovered the Lava Beds National Monument and thought it would be fun to explore. Have I mentioned how much I love Google Maps? Well I have 'visited' many places via Google Maps and it's an invaluable tool when planning a route since I can zoom in a see if a motorhome of our size can actually get into that gas station, a parking lot at a grocery store, or where is that turn-off-- really?--so we don't have to unhitch to turn around. A fair amount of preplanning takes place before each leg of a trip and it has prevented several problems and revealed some real gems along the way. Lava Beds was a real gem as was the RV Park where we stayed. Tionesta, CA is a tiny collection of less than 20 homes and 2 RV parks. The first one you come to (Hawk's Nest) has several small cabins that can be rented and it's a cute and well kept place. At the end of the road is the one I had chosen (Eagle's Nest) and it turned out to be a win; free Wi-Fi, great phone reception, grass and friendly and helpful hosts. We splurged and got full hookups for the 3 nights we were there since the night time temps got down to freezing and below.

Headache Rock: thankful for those hard hats!

    After a visit to the Visitor's Center, we checked out several nearby caves. At the last one we went in, I twisted my ankle a bit, so we curtailed our tromping around. After putting some Arnica and other herbs on it and resting and elevating it, the next morning we checked out a cave our hosts told us about. It turned out to be a really fun cave, once you got past the opening! The bottom was sandy and not as rugged as some of the other caves.

Glittery ceiling, colorful and fascinating.

    Our hosts provided hard hats for spelunking and we each had a hat light as well as a hand held one. Being well equipped helped and after seeing other people who we not, we were thankful. It's amazing how much each cave differed. In "Golden Cave" there is an abundance of a bacteria that creates a golden (and sometimes silver) sparkle. To look up on the ceiling and see what looks like an explosion of glitter was pretty fun. Some caves had craggy, rocky ceilings and rough floors. Some were damp, some dry. Some more smooth and others with broken areas that let in the sunshine after a hundred feet or so. Some fairly level and some that went way down deep. Some you could stand up straight with high ceilings, some had sections you had to crab walk through or crawl. The caves are rated so you have an idea of what you're getting into and we skipped the more difficult ones. I'm sure hard core spelunkers would have a great time in those and we left them to it!
  Before we left, we drove all around the Monument and encountered many different terrains, lava flows and rocky outcrops. We couldn't see it all since some of it was still under a blanket of snow, but we were satisfied with what we saw.  It's a fascinating place and one we'd enjoy returning to some day.

Meandering Homeward

South of Wickenberg, a BLM spot to overnight.

Since it is late April and warm enough to do so, we are heading homeward east of the Sierras. The two years before, it was cold enough in late March to be concerned about snow, so we stuck to I-5. This year we get to see some new scenery. But it also means we have to hunt out new places to stay.

Overlooking Kingman, AZ on BLM land again.

  Our first night after leaving Tucson was spent at a BLM spot outside of Wickenberg. What a beautiful view we had there! Then it was on to Kingman where we found another BLM spot up in the foothills that overlooked the valley. Another gorgeous view and for free.
  As we headed north and westward, we passed Las Vegas and I got some pictures of the high rises. We didn't stop, but went on to Pahrump where we stayed at the Escapees Pair-O-Dice Park to see what it was like. Pretty quiet, but we enjoyed our walks around the park. The scenery is beautiful, surrounded by mountains. It was nice to take a few days to rest, do laundry and stock up on groceries.

Flowers at the Kingman overlook.

Rock formation along the way.

Amazing rocks near the Hoover Dam; we didn't stop.

  We had one day where the wind was pretty intense, and looking at the forecast we debated where to land and when to drive there. Jerry woke up early with hitch-itch and I woke up to the sensation of the truck getting hooked up! So up I got and we got all travel ready and off down the road just after 7am. For us that's pretty early, but sometimes we like to do that on travel days. Especially when the wind picks up in the afternoon. Driving and dealing with the wind is not fun. Our first stop at a rest stop just west of Tonopah turned out to be a great place to park head into the wind and wait it out.

North towards Las Vegas, the road turns West to bypass it.

  We left early the next morning as well, getting on the road before anyone else (I think a first for us!) and getting on the road before 7am. When we leave early, I make Bullet Proof Coffee and my porridge and we take off. We eat breakfast somewhere along the way, although breakfast on Wednesday wasn't until we arrived at the rest area around noon! I'm glad I had my snacks because Jerry can go much longer than I can without food.
  Tonight we are staying in Fernley, and when we head out tomorrow we'll head for Tionesta an RV park there near the Lava Beds National Monument.

Bypassing Las Vegas, we headed through this beautiful pass to Pahrump.

At Pair-O-Dice park in Pahrump surrounded by mountains.

Tucson camping

sunset turning the Catalina mountains to pink.

After leaving Phoenix, we went back to Tucson and stayed at Catalina State Park for a few days. Jerry's friend and one-time next door neighbor from gradeschool is living part of the year in Oro Valley, and we wanted to spend a bit more time with he and his wife and see his house. Just before we left Phoenix, the truck started acting up and even though Jerry replaced the cap and rotor, it still wasn't running smoothly. We decided to go ahead and go to Tucson and see about getting it fixed there. We're getting pretty good at finding decent repair places! We love the online reviews. They help quite a bit. We got it fixed at Oro Valley Automotive. They were quick and it runs great now.

Our campsite at this beautiful park.

    In the park we saw a couple of Roadrunner birds, a couple of Jack rabbits--such long ears!--and some small rodents that make a funny clicking/squeaking sound, pound their feet and nibble on the grasses. We took several walks around the campground enjoying the view and checking out the different RVs that were there. We enjoyed the shore power and the AC while we were there as temps got into the low 90s.

  Not only did Neil  and his wife Tammy feed us dinner twice, but they encouraged us to swim in their backyard pool, and they loaned us one of their cars while we had repairs done, It was a fun visit, even the adventure of trying to catch the gecko that their cat had brought inside! They are fast little critters.

From Tucson, we begin our meaderings back to Olympia, WA. Although we are not really in a hurry to get back to the rain, we have some tabs to deal with on our vehicles which gives us a date to aim for. Plus we have things on our lot we want to work on and family to see. We are taking a different route northward this time, so it will be interesting to see the differences.

Traipsing off to Page, AZ

snow capped mountains near Flagstaff, AZ

While the roof was being repaired, we enjoyed spending the time with my friend Ruth and her new husband Tim. We 'moved in' for 2-1/2 weeks and had a great time. The second week we were there we went on a road trip to Page, AZ. What a beautiful place! It's about a 4 hour drive and our phone cameras were busy. We discovered that we had no way to recharge our phone enroute, so that put a bit of a damper on it. It was a fun surprise to pass snow along the way.

Wahweap overlook of Lake Powell

 We were able to get a 'room' which was like a small 2 bedroom apartment with a full kitchen for a very reasonable price. The owner of the Red Rock Motel was very helpful in pointing out places of interest around Page. We made it to the Wahweap Lookout just as the sun was setting, and it was gorgeous! 360 degree views and fascinating rock formations all around. But the wind was cold, so we didn't linger.
    The next morning we went on a tour of the Glen Canyon dam which was quite interesting. The town of Page essentially grew up around the people who came to build the dam.

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With so much to do here, it seems that only 2 nights is not enough time. Next time a week! I really want to do the raft trip that starts at the base of the dam and goes to Horseshoe Bend and back. It's hard to see in the picture, but there are blue rafts in the river.

Jerry and Ruth coming through the slot canyon,

Ruth coming up the ancient aluminum ladder!

Tim climbing up to the rock formations.

This shows the scale of Cathedral Canyon.

The Four Sisters rock formation, a part of our tour.

Ruth had especially wanted to see Antelope Canyon, the most famous of the red rock canyons, but tours were booked out weeks in advance. I think the tour we took to Cathedral Canyon and to see a couple of other rock formations in a group of 7 was much better than dealing with the crowds in Antelope Canyon which can be as many as 200! It was a fun tour and well worth the time and money to see it. We had a 4-wheel ride in to see it on sandy roads which just added to the fun.

Panoramic view of Horseshoe Bend, just south of Page, AZ

When we headed back the next day, we stopped at Horseshoe Bend and hiked the 3/4 mile to the rim. It was pretty amazing to see in person and there were lots of people there. I heard all kinds of languages, and people came from many different countries: China, Japan, Australia, England, Mexico, France, Germany, etc. were some that I identified.

Selfie at Midgley Bridge in front of Oak Creek as it flows towards Sedona, AZ

    What a fun road trip and a great way to spend my birthday.

    But wait, there's more! Not only did I get to spend my birthday with Ruth, but when we got back to Phoenix, she had a dinner party for me. She invited a couple of friends over and after a yummy dinner and candles in gluten free cupcakes, we played games. She even got me a dozen red roses! 

   But wait, there's even more! My cousin Stephanie was able to come from Deming, NM. I haven't seem her for over 30 years and it seemed as if we just picked up where we left off--but with quite a bit to catch up on! The next day we went and had pedicures and manicures together for a fun girly time. Next year it's on my "must-do list" to go to Deming to visit with her and her family.

New Roof in Phoenix

APR RV has great decor and antiques.

new decking applied

The shadow by his thumb shows the thickness.

       It turns out that much of the decking needed to be replaced (the wood under the rubber roof) and the leak that we had noticed in the last several months was not the only one to leave its mark. It turns out the the 'oops' I had done, going under low power lines and breaking the booster antennae had an up side. The small hole, that we had a hard time finding, did some damage and took awhile to find and patch. When I talked to APR RV and told them about the roof, they suggested I check to see if insurance would cover it. They did, and we are SO thankful! It was covered under the Collision clause, so we only had to pay for the extras that we had them do while they were at it. The Flex-All roofing material they put on is thicker than anyone else and guaranteed for life, even if you sell the rig. We got a new bathroom fan installed (included) with 2 MaxxAir vent covers, a new TV antennae, and all the solar panels replaced in a more orderly arrangement. And no more caulking ever! I love that. Now to figure out how to fix the stains inside....

Repairs are an expected part of life on the road and we seem to be having a season of 'catch up'.
    We have known for months that our roof would need replacing, and before leaving Washington, we did some research and found a place in Mesa, AZ, knowing that we'd be down here for a few months. They had good reviews and could do the work we needed. (APR RV) A bonus was getting to stay with Ruth and her new husband Tim in Phoenix while our rig was in the shop.
    We did get an estimate from RV Armour while at the Escapee RV Club Escapade in Tucson, but decided to go with our original plan since they work on it indoors. That appealed to us over having the other guys come to us in Washington
and be exposed to the elements (and bugs, birds, leaves, etc!).
   We rely on reviews quite a bit when trying to find someone to fix something. Our various forums and groups are helpful, and I also found another great resource:   RVServiceReviews.com. It always helps to see what others experienced.

New roof, all solar panels reinstalled.