During December, we went from Nevada to Arizona to California.
After leaving Bullhead City, AZ, we drove to Pahrump, Nevada.
Pahrump, NV - Wine Ridge RV Park: This is a nice, well kept RV Park, with great amenities and lots of activities. We are not activity people, but there is plenty to do if you like that sort of thing. Bonus points for the winery that is attached to the park! We spent our time in Pahrump relaxing and just driving around, checking things out. I won $50 at Irene's Casino, which is a little hole in the wall place with a good restaurant, a bar and about 250 machines. We also drove out to Ash Meadows Wildlife Refuge, an oasis in the desert and worth the trip - we were only gone a few hours. They have a nice visitors center and well informed rangers.
Las Vegas, NV - Thousand Trails Las Vegas: There were a couple reasons we stopped here for a few days. First was just to check it out. People either love or hate this park, or they admit that it is primarily about location, location, location, plus a free place to park the rig if you are a Thousand Trails member. I will say this is not my favorite, or even close to favorite park, but what it does have going for it, aside from the location aspect and as a base camp for exploring LV, is the staff. All the rangers and staff we met were very friendly, helpful and on the job. The spaces are tight, and it is basically a gravel parking lot, and not the type of campground where you sit outside and visit with people walking by.
The other reason was to see our niece who lives in Summerlin, and whose sister was also visiting from Washington, so two nieces in one trip, and a wonderful late breakfast at the Peppermill. That alone made the stay at this campground worthwhile!
Lake Havasu City, AZ - Lake Havasu State Park: This park had been recommended to us over and over again. Let's get the bad news out of the way first. These sites are W and E only. There is a dump station in the park. Inconvenient, yes, but certainly doable. We had a river front site, and the boats were loud. I can't imagine what it is like during the summer. Those are really minor gripes. The big sites, the beautiful views, the trails, everything else - I loved this park and would highly recommend it.
Palm Desert, CA - Thousand Trails Palm Springs RV Resort: Truth be told, we came to this resort expecting to just hate it. It pretty much borders on a busy section of I-10 (there is a frontage road between the resort and the freeway). Many reviews of this park were not good. You will hear that the spaces are tight, it's too loud, there are trains at all hours, etc., etc., etc. However, you will also hear the people that love it at this resort. We decided to check it out for ourselves. We were surprised how much we did like it. There is a 50 amp section, which is tight - most spaces are between palm trees. There is also a 30 amp section, where spots are much wider and bigger. This is where we stayed. There are lots of activities, again if you like that kind of thing. While we were there, we encountered many friendly campers and people to chat with. Kim joined in on the daily pool tournaments, and he really enjoyed that. There are so many things to do and see around this area, even if you are not the touristy type - which describes us. We did drive out to the Salton Sea, Slab City, East Jesus and through Joshua Tree National Park. We will be going back because there was still so much we didn't do or see. As Kim often reminds me, we are not on vacation. We are full timing. We don't have to do and see everything the first time there. We know we will be back.
Menifee, CA - Thousand Trails Wilderness Lakes: This is a park where we had stayed about 7 years before. At that time, there was a big dairy farm nearby, and you could smell it. The dairy farm closed down but the property has remained agricultural, minus the smell. We like this park. The site spaces are big. It is low key, but close to shopping. Hemet, Temecula and Lake Elsinore are just 10-20 miles away plus you could easily make a visit to San Diego in a day trip. This park also has plenty of activities, plus a separate family and adults only pool. Kim enjoyed the daily pool tournaments here as well. We have a number of friends in the area which is why we continue to come back.
