Nose to tail campers in the snow

Pretty much all by ourselves at Red Rock State Park

The Red Rocks

Snow, snow everywhere

I posted the pictures yesterday morning of the snow as we left Bullhead City, and it got worse and worse as the day went on.  We pulled over in Williams, AZ, elevation about 6,000 feet, and the snow was just wild.  There were few people on the freeway and Julius was blazing a path on the right lane.  No tracks in the snow at all in the left lane and just a couple in the right lane ahead of us.  We talked about it.  The women thought we should stop in Williams for the day but the guys thought we should push on in the snow, worrying we could get stuck there for days.  So since they are doing the driving, push on we did.  Past Flagstaff, things improved and we decided to drive on to Gallup, New Mexico and get a little jump on our schedule in case we did need to stop for weather in the future.  We camped at Red Rock State Park and it was amazingly beautiful.  There were only two other trailers there, long termers, we think, people who work in the city and camp in the park.  It was snowing hard again when we pulled in and the park ranger told us she didn't think there were any sites with working water because it was so cold.  Julius had very little water in his tanks though we were full, so we needed water.  The park ranger went to a couple of sites where she thought there might be water, and sure enough, there was working water.  Julius filled up, put away the hose, and we started settling in for the night.  Sam and Lucy loved the snow.  We parked our trailers in an "L" to help block the 25 MPH wind.  Hal hooked up the electricity and stabilizers, we got the dogs pooped and peed and bundled into the trailers.  Patricia made a heavenly soup/stew, warmed up some fresh bread, we opened a bottle of red wine and were toasty warm in their trailer for a great dinner.  We opened up all the interior cabinets to help keep the pipes from freezing, turned on the electric heaters and the propane furnace, turned on the mattress pad heaters and settled in for a very cozy night.  The park is just lovely in the snow and as the sun set, it was kind of magical, out there, mostly by ourselves in this snowy wonderland.  This morning we were going to go to Santa Fe, but we decided to push on and make some more good time today.  The sun is bright and warm and the temp outside is a balmy 22 at 7200 ft. altitude.  We feel so fortunate to be able to do this.  I personally feel so fortunate to have a husband who can pull an 8,000 pound trailer through snow and ice and still be in a good mood when we get to our campsite!  And we feel fortunate to have such great friends to travel with on this amazing trip.  As I write this, we just crossed the continental divide

campground at Davis Camp

Campground at Davis Camp

Tom and Mollie, fellow campers at Davis Camp

Davis Campground on the Colorado River

The road out of Kingman, AZ

Bullhead City

I’m not sure where the name Bullhead City came from, but we stayed there last night (Arizona).  It’s right across the Colorado River from Laughlin, NV, a major gambling spot.  We found a terrific county park called Davis Camp.  It’s right on the river and it’s quite a good deal – swimming in the river, big BBQ areas, lots of room for the dogs to run and swim.  Lucy, J and P’s labradoodle that they rescued a few weeks ago, had apparently not been swimming before.  When Sam went in the river, Lucy was right behind her, but she was quite surprised when the water surface didn’t hold her like land did.  The look on her face was priceless.  The dogs had a good swim and run, nice for them after being cooped up in the truck and trailer so long.  Lovely warm weather, too.  For dinner, we made tamales for the first time.  We have some things to learn about making masa (like not making it from a mix), but other than that, they were great.  Aunt Mary made us persimmon cookies and we finished them off in a single day. Today we are headed for Holbrook, AZ and have to pass through Flagstaff which may well have snow today.  But if the roads get really bad, we’ll just pull over and stay in the trailer.  Good to have our beds “on our back”, so to speak.  This morning is glorious sunshine.  As we head up in altitude, the temperature is dropping already.  Could be an adventure!

On the Road for three days now

-->

We left Portland at 6 on Thursday night.  That last minute packing of stuff can take so long!  But by 9 pm we were at the HiWay Haven campground in Sutherlin Oregon.    Patricia and Julius had arrived several hours earlier and were all set up.  The night was cool but not cold and Sam and I had a good walk around the campground.  It used to be a drive in movie, and the screen is all lit with the name of the campground. In the summer, they still show movies there for the campers.  There will be an Airstream rally there later this summer and it will be great fun.  It rained a lot that night and the sound of the rain on the trailer is so peaceful. 

The next morning we drove to Orland, CA where Hal’s Aunt Mary lives on a bucolic 30 acre farm that has been planted over the years in olives and pomegranates.  This year, most of the pomegranates rotted on the trees, but next year, Mary would like us all to come down and pick and squeeze them for juice, jelly and pomegranate liqueur.  Yum.  She had a big pizza and salad for us and a warm fire in the woodstove.  Our trailers had plenty of room in her driveways and as we drifted off to sleep, we heard the cattle lowing.  Who knew they actually did that?  It was heavenly. 

The next day we drove 363 miles to Bakersfield.  That’s quite a schlep in one day, especially stopping with our two dogs for potty breaks.  It is fun just to pop into the trailer to make a nice lunch and not have to wait for a server in a restaurant or drive-through for fast food.  We’ve had lots of fresh fruit on the trip, Mary got us a whole bag of fresh mandarin oranges from near her house and we’ve had wonderful fresh grapes, too.  When we travel in the trailer, I allow myself the luxury of always having fresh raspberries, blueberries and strawberries in the refrigerator.  There’s just something about waking up and having those for breakfast that makes me feel like Lady Astor!  Our stop last night was an upscale RV park in Bakersfield that had a bar and restaurant attached to it. What a great idea to feed a captive audience of tired road weary people in need of libations!  After such a long drive, we decided to treat ourselves to a dinner out with some drinks and it was so relaxing.  While the guys ordered a second round, Patricia and I went out and hooked up the water and electricity to the trailers.  This park was well kept, spotlessly clean, nicely spaced spots. 

Today we are on our say to Bullhead, Arizona.  We’re driving past incredible valleys and wide open spaces on Highway 58.  Just couldn’t be prettier.  The trailer is following along like a little duck, this truck has amazing power and we can hardly feel the trailer behind us.  Sam is sleeping on her seat behind us, always the great little traveler.  Sometimes she’ll wake up and watch out the window behind me for a while, give us both a kiss and fall back asleep.  We both sense her aging very slightly at five, but for this very busy dog, that’s a good thing.  We’re listening to books on tape, really such a good way to help the time fly by.  The weather ahead is actually quite iffy.  We are seeing signs that there is dense fog ahead, but haven’t seen it yet.  Also, we were planning on popping up to  Flagstaff on Highway 40, but snow is predicted there, so we’re not quite sure where we will go from here.  But promise to keep you posted.

So far, this has been a terrific trip.  Hal is so glad to have the clinic lab finished and just put that work behind him for now. 

Only one more day......

Only one more day before we take off for the Big Easy.  If we could only finish up with work and tasks, we would feel really ready to go!  Terri is only working tomorrow morning so she can shop, stock and pack the Airstream tomorrow at our house where Alice the Airstream will be parked at the end of our driveway overnight.  She's all clean and shiny and ready to be filled with clothes and food and worldly belongings and Sam and us for the 2500+mile trip to New Orleans.  We'll leave Thursday at noon after Terri finishes with her morning patients and stop the first night at the Sutherlin drive-in movie/RV park where we will meet up with Julius and Patricia.  We travel so well together and this trip, they have Lucy, their new Labradoodle.  She and Sam love each other, and we have a dog sitter waiting in New Orleans for those two girls when we are "doing our thing".  Will write more soon about the planned activities.  It is so wonderful that we are both still in good enough health and good enough spirits to take on a trip like this one.  Mardi Gras has been on Terri's bucket list forever, though Hal's, not so much.  Oh well, he's a good sport about the whole thing.  We'll take lots of good pictures and do campground reviews for those who might travel similar trails in the future.   Wish us luck!  If we can get through the Siskiyous on I5 without mishap given the oncoming storm, we will be joyous.