RV Park Mini-Reviews - January 2018

We wrapped up our stay at Thousand Trails Wilderness Lakes in Menifee, CA.  This park will be on my repeat list for sure.  It's laid back.  Sites are generous in size.  Good shopping is close by.  Husband likes the pool tournaments.  Plenty to do and see should I care to venture away from the rig. And best of all, friends nearby!

River Breeze RV - Ehrenburg, AZ:  This is one of my favorite parks.  It is conveniently located and well maintained.  It is right on the river.  There is an even distribution of long term residents and monthly/weekly transients.  They have a clubhouse type room, a laundromat, boat ramp, and good management.  The only drawback is the lack of shopping.  You do need to go into Blythe, CA for groceries, and even in Blythe, there isn't much of anything.  We drove out to the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge, and did a run to Quartzsite to check things out.

River Breeze RV Resort - Ehrenburg, AZ

Cibola National Wildlife Refuge - Cibola, AZ

Cibola National Wildlife Refuge - Cibola, AZ

Cibola National Wildlife Refuge-Cibola, AZ

Boondockers in Quarztsite, AZ before the big rush of the annual RV shows

Pioneer RV Park - Wellton, AZ:  This is a 55+ park, well kept with lots of activities.  I would guess that 75% are long term/extended stay residents.  It is about 20 miles east of Yuma, on I-8.  There is one small grocery for essentials in Wellton, otherwise the main shopping is in Yuma.  It's an easy drive, although on the return, you have to go through the Border Guard check point each time.  It's no big deal and we were waved through most of the time, but you never know how long the line will be in front of you.  My other complaint was the train noise and whistles.  Nothing the park could have done, but if you are a light sleeper, it can be annoying.  If you choose to stay in Yuma, then you deal with the noise from the airport or I-8, as most RV parks are either in the flight path or bordering on the freeway.  There is a great Fry's store in the Foothills area of Yuma, and a more than decent Walmart.  Lots of good restaurants.  A regular type mall in west Yuma was appealing.  We found a small portable humidifier that uses simple plastic water bottles at Bed, Bath and Beyond.  This was a godsend as I was zapping everything I touched with all this dry weather. Our primary reason for stopping in Yuma was to see some good friends who spend their winters in Yuma.  We had also intended to go to Los Algodones, Mexico for some dental work, but unfortunately that didn't happen - chalk it up to poor planning on our part.  While in Yuma, the only other excursion we did was a visit to the West Wetlands Park.  I had hoped for some photos in the butterfly and hummingbird gardens, and along the trails.  This has not been my trip for wildlife photos so far.....other than water fowl.

Not a stellar picture, but this was a sunrise shot from the back window of our rig while camping in Wellton, AZ

West Wetlands Park - Yuma AZ

Blue Heron at West Wetlands Park in Yuma

There is an RV park across the river from West Wetlands Park - looks like my kinda place to enjoy the morning coffee!

Butterfield RV Resort - Benson, AZ:  Let's start with the good - This has got to have been one of the cleanest, most well maintained parks we've ever been in.  The maintenance guys patrol the park all day, even taking time to sweep away stray gravel on the blacktopped roads.  The staff was fabulous.  There were plenty of activities.  I would guess there was a distribution of one-third full time residents in park models, one-third seasonal residents (there for the winter) and one-third weekly/monthly transients exploring the area.  They have an observatory onsite and offer free programs to guests each evening by the local astronomer, with a chance to look through the telescope.  We didn't get a chance to do this unfortunately (cloud cover one night, and temps in the 20s on the clear nights - and someone didn't bring his heavy coat on this trip) but our neighbors said it was wonderful, and they hoped to do it again before they left.  Another plus, at least in this bad flu season, was the hospital one block away.

The bad parts - and none of these should reflect on the park itself - there are train tracks two blocks away, and there must be a safety reason that the conductor blows the whistle multiple times when going through Benson.  It's bad enough during the day, but if you are a light sleeper, it is miserable.  The only grocery options are Safeway (next door to the park) and a small Walmart.  There is very little to do in Benson itself.  The Karshner Caverns have a Benson address, but they are actually closer to Sierra Vista.  We didn't get a chance to see the living caves because it was pretty cold while we were there, and there was the whole warm coat issue as mentioned above.  However, we will come back to do this as I've heard this is well worth it.  Like I said, there is really nothing in Benson - a golf course if you play but we don't.  We did drive to Tombstone (and saw a cheesy re-enactment of the Shoot Out at OK Corral.  We had lunch at Big Nosed Kate's Saloon.  We won't need to do either of those things again.  We drove done to Bisbee, mostly because I wanted to get a sense of the area as it is the setting of the Johanna Brady mystery series by J A Jance.  I wish we had allowed more time.  It wasn't at all what I expected.  A bit like a trip to Jerome, AZ but bigger.  Lots of shops, galleries, restaurants, which really is not our thing, but even the husband said we needed to come back and explore the area.  We stopped in Sierra Vista on the way back to Benson.  It makes a loop of sorts, taking Hwy 80 from Benson to Bisbee, and then Hwy 90 back through Sierra Vista.  There is major shopping in Sierra Vista (Frys, Target, Staples, etc) probably due to Fort Huachuca (US Army Intelligence base and school).  When we come back to explore the area, we will probably stay in Sierra Vista instead of Benson, and hope there are no issues with the train whistles there.

(Apparently, I did not take any pictures of the Butterfield RV Resort.  But there are pictures on their website - they cycle through photo at the top of the page.)

Boothill Cemetery

Boothill Cemetery

Tombstone, AZ

The Earp Brothers and Doc Holliday - Shoot Out at the OK Corral re-enactment

The Shoot Out re-enactment

Catalina State Park - Tucson, AZ: I love, love, love this park.  The sites are huge.  They do have water and electric only at their two main campgrounds - Section B has 50amp and Section A has 30amp, with dumpsites in the park.  The roads and sites are paved.  The restrooms and showers were very nice.  There is an overflow dry camping area as well.  We enjoyed hiking in the park, and just kicking back and relaxing.  There is great shopping in the area - anything you could want within about 10 miles.  Right across the highway is a good sized complex with restaurants, theaters, Walmart.  Groceries including Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Sprouts, Frys - all within 5 miles.  We will definitely return here.

Section B at Catalina State Park

A Coyote came to visit

Birding Trail at Catalina State Park

We didn't do much of anything while in Tucson, but we did go out to the Sonora Arizona Desert Museum.  The day we were was windy, and they did not have the Raptor Experience, so we will have to return.  I really enjoyed the hummingbird exhibit.  I will post pictures in a separate entry.

Stops planned in February - Phoenix, AZ.  Parker Dam, CA.  Wilderness Lakes/Menifee, CA.

Goodyear, AZ - How Time Flies

I'm not quite sure how it got to be Friday already.  But I've looked at my computer, my iPhone, and the paper calendar on the wall, and they all assure me that it is indeed Friday.  I may need to turn on the TV and check with Facebook to be sure, but it looks like I just lost about 3 days.

Well, technically, I didn't loose them.  Kim and I have been doing "stuff" that is hardly interesting to anyone but those involved.

I first want to take the time to say again how much I love, love, love the River Breeze RV Resort in Ehrenburg, AZ.  It is one of those jewel of a park things.  I reviewed in on rvparkreviews and was really hesitant to do so as I wanted to keep it all to myself.  I have been looking for "the" park for us to winter in, and this is definitely one that will be on the top of my list.  We are still a few years from making a long term commitment to being away from the grandkids for a whole season, and I have other places to investigate.  Now granted we were only there for two days, and as I understand it, many of the snowbirds had already left to head north again, but the park was quiet and green and peaceful.  There were a few boats on the river, and I could see how in the summer the noise from all the partying may be bothersome, but it wasn't a problem while we were there.  While the weather was summer perfect for those of us from the PNW, I'm sure the longtime Arizona folk considered it at least sweater weather, if not coats and uggs weather.  We were in shorts and enjoying the sunshine.  While I didn't use any of the facilities at the park, they did have a pool and hot tub (which they keep covered when not in use - conserving the heat and keeping it clean).  The laundry had 6 washers ($1.25) and 6 dryers ($1.00).  There was a Rec Room with a pool table, a ping-pong table, and folding tables for cards or jigsaw puzzles, along with a kitchen for potlucks and parties.  Everything was clean and well maintained.  I just loved the energy here. The nearest shopping is in Blythe, CA, across the border.  I'm already looking at when we can return later in the year.

The 2.5 hour drive to Goodyear (just west of Phoenix) was uneventful.  Not my favorite stretch of highway, but then I'm not the one doing the driving.  I'm just the one looking out the window.  I think Kim appreciates the cruise control factor more than I do.  We stopped at the Bouse Wash Rest Area for a pit stop and lunch break.

I believe there is such a thing as too many options.  Between the new GPS, Google Maps, a regular map and instructions on a website, we had 4 different ways to get to Destiny Phoenix RV Park.  Because we knew there was construction on I-10 here, new on and off ramps, and revision of other on and off ramps, we elected to follow the website directions instead of the others.  Glad we did.  The others would have had us pulling the rig all over the area.  We came off the Citrus Avenue off ramp, turned right and drove about ½ mile, and voila!

A nice park, as far as I can tell.  We haven't spent much time here - although it has been 3 days apparently.  Kim's mother and brothers live here, so we have been visiting with them.  We had breakfast with a high-school classmate of mine that I had not seen in at least 35 years.  I hope she doesn't mind my sharing our picture.

Today we are back over at my mother-in-laws for a bit, and then off to do some shopping.  I will say one thing for Goodyear, Avondale, Litchfield Park and all the surrounding areas east of Phoenix, there is no want for shopping opportunities, that's for sure!  Tomorrow, we are meeting up with some other friends for breakfast.  Sunday, more relatives arrive.  Who knows from there.  And then we leave for Verde Valley on Tuesday!

As I said, not much of interest to report this week.  Here are a few pictures of our site at Destiny Phoenix RV Resort.  With any luck, I may convince Kim to go up to Estrella County Park to check things out.  I'm not holding my breath though.  I'm trying to remember that this week is about seeing friends and his family, and not just about what Betsy wants to do.  I have 51 weeks a year for that.... wink-wink-wink.  In my dreams......

And this is an empty spot next to us.  Love having the orange trees around us!

More resort pictures to follow in the next few days....unless time continues to fly.

A Monday Drive Up To Lake Havasu City And Back

We left our nice spot here at The River Breeze RV Resort with the intention of checking out all the RV Parks on both the Arizona and California sides of the Colorado River.

Here at River Breeze RV Park, the FHU sites are grass and very level.  It's been a bit windy here so we did not put out our awning.  We didn't even really set up anything but the barbecue and the satellite dish as we are only here for two nights.  I love this little park.  Lots of green around us.  Access to the river, not that we have any water craft with us, but still it is nice.  It is quiet.  I heard freeway noise from I-10 early this morning but otherwise not at all.  There are a fair number of park models and trailers that are for rent.  This time of year, they are empty.  I imagine in the summer it gets packed and I would probably not enjoy the peace and quiet so much.  Plus it would be way too hot for me, so I wouldn't be here anyway.

As I said, then intention was to check out all the RV Parks.  We took the Ehrenburg-Parker Highway to Parker.  Not much along this road.  Some agriculture and some desert/scrub land.  You don't get too close to the river once you leave Ehrenburg, until you get to Parker.  We drove through Parker thinking we'd check out the RV Parks there on our way back so we did not keep having to cross traffic.  Got all the way up to the Cattail Cove State Park, when we realized we had already driven through that park four years ago.  We headed back toward Parker and decided to drive over the Parker Dam.  Oh oh....so much for checking out those RV Parks in Parker.  Oops.  If you haven't been over the dam, be forewarned that you can not take big trucks, trailers, MH or anything like that on that road.  Even our Ford F250 Extended Cab truck was a tight fit.  Speed limit is 5 mph.

Once you cross the bridge, you will see a sign warning about free range burros crossing the road.  And they mean it.

The above pictures show the burros free roaming around the River Lodge Resort in Parker Dam, CA. We decided to drive through the resort to check out the spaces.  It is a big place, with many of the water front sites now taken up by park models.  There are still a few back in spots that look nice.

I stopped to talk with this gal who looked very comfortable, enjoying her stay here.  This particular section had a small patch of grass under the trees.  The rigs were parked across the drive

The only downfall is that where ever there is an open patch of grassy field, there is burro poop.  I guess you just have to be careful in picking your site.  Note the RV Parks across the river; someday we will go look at those ones too.

You can't really tell from the picture above, but you would be stepping around piles all over the place.    Those burros do wander where ever they want.

We continued down Hwy 62 to Earp.  We could drive over the bridge to Parker, AZ and come back via the Ehrenburg-Parker Hwy or AZ 95.  Or we could follow Hwy 62 to CA Hwy 95 and drive back through Blythe.  We opted for the latter.  I started kicking myself before we got to 95.  It was 18 miles from Earp to the junction with 95, then 48 miles to Blythe.  It was a very long, uninteresting, boring road with no services.  And wouldn't you know it, we got stopped at the railroad crossing in Vidal.  And all I could see in Vidal was the railroad crossing.  Unless you like driving a 2 lane highway with lots of dips, no services, and a boring view, I would advise crossing the bridge at Earp, going through Parker and down the Arizona 95.  The view is not much better, but the road is and you will make much better time.  I was so glad when we could finally see the semis cruising down I-10 in the distance.

As we head off to Phoenix tomorrow, we decided to get diesel at the Flying J which is the first exit off of I-10 as you enter Arizona.  The good new is that we only paid $3.77 a gallon for fuel.  That's the best price yet!  The bad new is that they are repaving, repairing or expanding the road to access the Flying J, Wendy's and the Best Western Hotel there.  The traffic back up is a nightmare, requiring a State Patrol car, and at least 3 flaggers directing traffic.  If you are pulling a rig or driving a MH, I would advise finding a different gas station up the road.

For now, I'm off to open a Coronita (7 oz Corona bottles we found in Menifee) and sit outside to enjoy the breeze.  It's 82 degrees out which is just this side of warm for us.

Last Days At Wilderness Lakes TT Park; On To River Breeze In Ehrenburg, AZ

Our last days at Thousand Trails Wilderness Lakes in Menifee, California were quiet.  Our major outing was into Temecula to have lunch with some dear friends.  We arrived at 11:30am at Mimi's Cafe and we didn't leave until 3:30pm!  I think we stayed through a shift change, and we are pretty lucky they did not ask us to leave.  We hadn't seen these friends in about 5 years and it was hard to say goodbye.  It was only as we were leaving that I remembered to get Kim to take a picture of me with my good friends Evie and Karen.

The food was excellent, by the way.  I had the Corned Beef Hash Eggs Benedict.  I was so focused on my food that I didn't pay attention to what everyone else ordered.  Just before we left, we decided a share a dessert sampler - brownies a la mode, bread pudding, and apple crisp.  I think I had larger shares that everyone else, and you will not hear an apology from me for being a pig.  A burp, perhaps, but no apology!

The other highlight of the day was finding diesel fuel at the Circle K in Menifee for $3.89 a gallon!

After last night's unimpressive viewing of The Wolf Of Wall Street, we decided to watch American Hustle. I gotta say, I was not very impressive.  I think for Sunday night we will stick with The Amazing Race and The Mentalist.

We were up this morning and on the road at 9:45am - Kim is still puzzled how I managed to be 15 minutes ahead of schedule.  This rarely happens.  Perhaps it was magic!

Our drive to the River Breeze RV Park in Ehrenburg, AZ was an easy 176 miles.  The only "excitement" was a crazy dust/sand storm as we drove through the Palm Springs area.

It went from this:

to this is quite a hurry.

Once we started climbing up to the Chiriaco Summit, the wind let up.  The ride down into Arizona was easy, if not boring from a visual standpoint.

We pulled in to the River Breeze RV Park.  The office was closed by our site information was written on the white board outside the office.  I had reserved a specific spot down by the river and that's what we got.

With the weather in the high 70s/low 80s, we strolled down to the river for a few pictures.

Tomorrow we plan to drive up the Arizona side to Lake Havasu City, and then back down the California side, to check out the various campgrounds.  Kim's aunt and uncle had camped at the Lake Havasu State Park and it looked fabulous.