Cross country to Alabama

 We're driving from Arizona to Alabama this week. Our new coach has some major problems that needs to be worked on under warranty. Red Bay, Alabama is where we're headed. This is where all the Tiffin coaches are made. Tiffin service doesn't make appointments ahead of time so when we get there, we check in, get a camp site and wait till we get called in. 

30 Mar    Camp Verde, AZ - Acoma, NM     320 miles     6 hours 15 minutes

First stop was at Sky City Casino in Acoma, New Mexico. We boondocked in the parking lot along with other RVers and a lot of truckers. The casino is still closed due to Covid so we just hung out in the RV. We gained another hour so we arrived later than I thought.

31 Mar     Acoma, NM - Shamrock, TX     447 miles     8 hours 30 minutes

Starting early

We gained another hour when we drove into Texas today. Joe felt good driving so we went a long ways. We stayed at another Boondockers Welcome. This one is a working farm, Grow Moore LLC,  they raise cattle. 

Sleeping out in the country was so peaceful. They had a baby calf that had to be bottle fed. It brought back memories for Joe when he used to work at Meadow Gold in Haleiwa. 

Beautiful sunset

 This farm is a little bit off I-40 but it   turned out to be okay because   Oklahoma was only 6 miles away.

01 Apr     Shamrock, TX - Shawnee, OK     203 miles   4 hours 45minutes

We ended up camping at Cracker Barrel in Oklahoma. They allow RV's to park in their parking lot so we took advantage of that. Of course, we had to eat there!

Cracker Barrel Boondocking

02 Apr     Shawnee, OK - Van Buren, AR     160 miles     3 hours 30 minutes

We joined an RV club called Harvest Host recently.  These are businesses that allow RV's to camp in their parking lot overnight for free. There is an annual fee but it's totally worth it. 

Harvest Host site

So our first Harvest Host stay was at Thor Elite Firing Range and Gun Club in Van Buren, Arkansas. It was an okay stay, nothing special. I wanted to stay here because I thought Joe would enjoy having a chance to shoot his rifle but he decided not to. 

03 Apr     Van Buren, AR - Forrest City, AR      233 miles     4 hours 25 minutes

Delta Ridge RV Park is a nice little park off of I-40. $35 per night with full hook ups but no amenities. That's okay because we have everything we need. We would stay here again if we're passing through.

When we got to this campground, I put out one of the slides and we heard a weird noise like something broke. Sure enough the slide wouldn't extend. Luckily, we could get it back in without any problem. Oh well, we're almost to Red Bay...add it to the list.

04 April     Forrest City, AR - Red Bay, AL     196 miles     4 hours

It's Easter Sunday and we checked into Tiffin Service Campground around 1p.m. We gave them our list of things to fix and were told that someone would come to see us on Monday morning. So now, we wait. 

In 5 days we drove from Arizona to Alabama, over 1500 miles. We're both tired because this is not the way we usually travel. But right now, we just wait. 

We anticipated this so it's okay, just hope it doesn't take too long...

 

Arizona

 19 Mar   Desert Hot Springs, CA - Lake Havasu, AZ     225 miles   4 hrs 45 mins

We had to go back to 3T's RV Repair in Lake Havasu because our jacks was still not working correctly.  The sensor needed to be moved. They took about 2 hours to complete the job and now it seems like the jacks are working the way it should be. 

  19 Mar      Lake Havasu, AZ - Parker, AZ     40 miles     1 hour

We decided to try boondocking at Bluewater Resort & Casino in Parker, Arizona. They allow dry camping up to 7 days. That's pretty long and some rigs and vans looked pretty comfortable, like they were exceeding the limit. They had two huge parking lots but there was a slope. Most rigs were parked along the edge of the parking lot, this seemed the best to level. So we found our spot and settled in for the night. 

We found that the casino had all you can eat ribs for $9.99 at one of the restaurants. Of course, we had to check it out. When we arrived at the restaurant there was a 45 minute wait. So we went to play blackjack while we waited. We both lost, so instead of a $20 dinner, it cost us $220. But that's okay, the ribs were pretty good and we had fun. 

20 Mar    Parker - White Tank Mountain Regional Park     158 miles   3 hrs 40 min

White Tank Mountain Regional Park covers 29,572 acres over 45 square miles. The range rises sharply from its base at 1,400 feet above sea level in a series of rocky ridges and fault lines to its highest peat at 4,083 feet. Infrequent heavy rains cause flash floods to plunge through the canyons and pour out upon the plain where they lose their momentum. These torrential flows, pouring down chutes and dropping off ledges have scoured out a series of depressions, known as tanks in the white granite bedrock. These white tanks give the mountains their name. 

White Tank Mountain Regional Park offers about 40 miles of hiking trails. Horseback and mountain bike riders are welcome. Picnickers have use of 240 picnic sites with table and grills. The Family Campground offers 36 sites, each having electric, water, a table, grill, and a fire pit. A restroom with showers and a dump station are located in this area. 

The Willow Campground consists of tent sites and non hookup back-in sites with a table and fire pit. It has restrooms, showers, and a dishwashing station. 

We have reservations for the Family Campground for 4 nights. Reservations are required, nightly fee $32 plus $8 reservation fee. The sites are very nice with a lot of space between sites. We're in D10, I think we have the best site here. 

Sunrise view from our site

We spent our time here with a hike every morning. All the hikes were very scenic with spring flowers starting to bloom and cactus all over the place.

The most spectacular hike was Black Rocks Trail connecting to Waterfall Canyon Trail. This is the most popular trail in the park and we could see why. The trail leads to a dark pool in a narrow granite box canyon.  It was dry when we went but after a good rain there really is a waterfall. 

    

This trail also houses the Petroglyph Plaza, some of the finest petroglyphs found in the park. 

We enjoyed our time here at White Mountain Regional Park. We're moving on to Camp Verde, our kids are coming to visit us....so excited!

24 Mar  White Tank Mountain Park - Camp Verde     103 miles    4 hours

We're staying at Verde Ranch RV Resort at Camp Verde for 6 nights. The rate with Passport America is $196.19. Nice park and very family friendly. When we pulled in there were kids everywhere! All over the roads on bikes, skateboards, scooters, running around with kites...just everywhere.

25 Mar   Our family flew into Phoenix this morning and drove out to Camp Verde. We haven't seen them for over a month and really miss them. They were all very tired because they came in on the red eye and didn't get any sleep on the flight. The weather today is very cold and windy so we just stayed in and had a nice visit and caught up on things. So nice to see all of them, especially JJ and Jade. Everyone stayed in our RV so it was kind of crowded but very cozy. Tomorrow they will check into a cabin.

26 Mar  Out of Africa Wildlife Park, Camp Verde

It was very cold and windy today but we went to Out of Africa Wildlife Park near our campground. Little pricey but I think it was worth it. Children $23.95, adults $38.95. They have a special, if its your birthday month you only pay $11.00. Josh and I have March birthdays so we could take advantage of that, in fact, today is Josh's 32nd birthday.

Watching the tiger show

This white rhino was huge!

Josh & Family

This is not your typical zoo. We got on the safari ride and got to see a lot of animals up close. We did lots of walking because everythings pretty spaced out. Good time for everybody, JJ and Jade really enjoyed it.

27 Mar    Oak Hill Snow Play Area, Williams

We drove all the way to Williams to find snow today. This is the first time for Casey, JJ, and Jade. They were so excited. We had a lot of fun building a snowman, snowball fights, and snow angels. I can't wait to take them skiing.....maybe next year.

That was hard work!

Afterwards, we drove to Slide Rock State Park and hiked around a little. The water was freezing but the kids had to stick their feet in and Josh ended up jumping in and went sliding down the rocks.

Pooped out

We didn't plan on this stop so Miki was bummed because she really wanted to jump in but didn't bring her suit. We had such a full, fun day. We went from playing in snow to a dip in the water at Slide Rock.

28 Mar   Hiking in Sedona

Josh, Miki, and I got up early and drove to Sedona to go hiking at the Devils Bridge Trail. This is a very popular hike and we thought we got up early enough. We were there at 6:20am and there were so much people there already. It was very cold, about 39 degrees. When we finally got to the bridge, Miki and Josh didn't want to get in line to take a picture on the bridge because it was so crowded. It was still worth it, very, very scenic. 

Sedona is so beautiful

We met Joe, Casey, JJ, and Jade at Big Bear Diner for breakfast. The breakfast was okay, some of the food was cold like it was sitting on the counter for a while. 

We went to the pool later in the day. So nice but lots of kids around and it started to get crowded real quick. JJ has a broken arm but he still could get in a little bit of pool time. 

We loved the pool

Josh helped us clean the roof of the RV. It was real dirty from being in the desert in California. I get nervous getting on the roof so it was good that Josh was here to do it. 

The kids leave early tomorrow morning. It was a fast trip but we really enjoyed their visit. We got a lot done in a very short time. Next time they come to visit it needs to be longer. 

We're going to miss them.

Ice cream break

The cabin was nice

Spring 2021

We added a porch & painted

Covid sucks! We've been stuck at home in Hawaii for 7 months because of it but have had enough. We need to get out in our new coach and start using it. It hasn't been that bad being home, we got a lot of major projects done to our home so that's a good thing. And we got to spend time with our grandkids. Plus, we live in Hawaii, on the North shore... being stuck at home hasn't been bad at all. 

JJ & Jade 

But it's time for us to get out there, explore and work out the kinks in our new motorhome. Covid is still a concern but it seems to be getting a little better. We probably won't be able to get the vaccine until this summer because of our age but once we get into our RV, that's our home so we feel pretty safe. 

I'm a planner. When we travel I normally know where we're headed and when we'll be in a certain area. I like to plan, very loose plans but still have a plan. If you travel by RV you know what I mean. You need to be very flexible. I like to look up places and find all the different things to explore. Joe always call me Dora the Explorer because I tend to find a lot of information on our destinations and want to check it all out. 

On this trip, all I know is we're starting in Las Vegas and heading to Red Bay Alabama to the Tiffin factory. That's where our RV was built. We're under warranty so there's a few things that need to be looked at. Right now, don't know the exact route or time frame. We bought one way tickets to Las Vegas so I guess it doesn't really matter. One thing I know for sure is our kids are meeting us in Arizona for a few day at the end of March, looking forward to that.

Las Vegas

We arrived in Vegas on February 16, got the RV out of storage and drove out to Las Vegas RV Resort where we'll be for the next 6 nights. We spent the time stocking up, and just getting the RV ready for our road trip. We got to eat our with friends. Grand Lux with the Changs and Firerock Steakhouse with the Holts.

Getting our rig cleaned before hitting the road

22 Feb        Henderson, NV - Lake Havasu, AZ        147 miles     2 hours 40 minutes

Our first stop is 3T's RV Repair in Lake Havasu. Our auto jacks are not working correctly and this shop specializes in HWH systems. Our appointment is for tomorrow morning but we'll be camping in their yard for the night. Can't grumble the view is awesome, it overlooks Lake Havasu. 

Camping at 3T's

23 Feb     Lake Havasu, AZ - Twenty Nine Palms, CA        146 miles       2 hours 50 minutes

We got the jacks fixed this morning. Seems like the sensors were not installed correctly. Everything's under warranty so we paid $85 but will get reimbursed. Got that fixed and went on our way. 

Dry camping in the boonies

We joined Boondockers Welcome, it's a RV club where you pay an annual fee and boondock on private property. Our first BW was at WonderWhy, near Twenty nine Palms in California. This is a great location, a few minutes from Joshua Tree National Park. We stayed 2 nights and drove out to Joshua Tree both days to hike. We like this park, it's the desert but good hiking. The second morning it was very cold, about 38 degrees. Joe forgot his jacket but was a good sport. 

25 Feb    Twenty-nine Palms - Desert Hot Springs, CA       57 miles       1 hour 25 minutes

A short drive today to Caliente Springs Resort in Desert Hot Springs. We love this resort! This is the fourth year that we've ended up during Spring. The hot springs and pools are wonderful and relaxing. We learned to play pickleball here. When we come here we play pickleball almost everyday. They have a special right now, so the first 8 days we got 40% off, then for the following week we'll get 50% off using Passport America. Good deal.

Pickleball courts with a view

We finally got to eat at Shermans Delicatessen and Bakery in Palm Springs. This place was featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives a  while ago and we kind of forgot but on the first day here our neighbors reminded us of how good they are. 

So off went.....we ordered a pastrami w/swiss cheese and a grilled reuben. Both were excellent! Of course we couldn't pass up dessert. We tried the cheesecake and lemon bar. Everything was delicious. 

On this trip we're trying to debug our new rig, there's so much to learn. It's not the same as our old Bounder. Joe knew the Bounder inside-out, we used it for ten years. This coach is so different, but in a good way. It's definitely an upgrade for us and we love it. Our hot water went out a few days ago. Joe's been talking to Aqua Hot, trying to diagnose the problem. For now, no hot water but that's okay. There's showers at the pool so we've been using that. 

05 Mar   We had dinner with some old friends in Indian Wells. We met Don Howle years ago through Bob Barefoot. Every year we say we'll call him and never do. This year, we made it a point to get in touch with him. Don and his wife Linda has a beautiful home in Indian Wells. We had a nice visit. 

 

10 Mar    We extended our stay here at Caliente Springs Resort for another week. The aqua hot repairman came over today to look at our system and changed the control thermostat. That fixed the problem, finally, hot water!

 

Bob Barefoot drove down from Roseville, CA to visit. 

Bob and Don showed up with Don's red convertible, so sassy. They checked out our RV, had some beers and pupu with Joe. Then off they went.....

We just got news today that our grandson JJ broke his arm, poor JJ. He said he jumped off the trampoline and landed on his arm. He's going to get a cast next week. We're just happy that they'll still visit us later this month in Arizona. 

 According to the Whitewater Preserve website, there is a "robust population of bighorn sheep, deer, and bear." Warning signs also alerted us to mountain lions, snakes, and flash floods as well. The area is considered an important wildlife corridor between the San Bernadino and San Jacinto Mountains.  

Whitewater Preserve

 18 Mar  We spent the morning at Whitewater Preserve. This was the first visit for us. The trail to Red Dome is very well maintained, rocky and sandy in some parts. There were some river crossings, beautifuls views, and we saw a big group of bighorn sheep. 


 

We've spent a little over 3 week at Caliente Springs Resort. We got a lot done on the RV, and received a lot of Amazon orders. We're just about set up in the new rig the way we want to be. Time to move on.