Friends, Food And Succulents

After departing our amazing spot in the desert, we headed west again.  Our next stop in Chula Vista, CA had us once again staying at Sweetwater Summit Regional Park.  This time I reserved an end spot, #75.  I highly recommend this campground if you're in the area. 

This time we planned a day off to visit the coast.  We went to Coronado Island because they have a dog beach.  Saturday afternoon probably wasn't the best time to go as it was quite crowded.  We did manage to find a parking spot for our beast of a truck.  Once on the sand, Rufus did his usual zoomies :-)  We didn't stay at the beach long because of the crowds but we all enjoyed the sand.  After lunch we ventured toward town, bought a souvenir t-shirt, and strolled the beachfront sidewalk past the Coronado Hotel.  The property is gorgeous!  Well out of our price range, but they do allow dogs in the rooms.

it really is this spectacular!

When Ron and I stayed in Sacramento late last year we met Kevin, Pam and their son Chase.  They're from Kentucky and had just bought their Montana 5th wheel a few weeks prior to towing it to California so Pam could work at a local hospital.  We all hit it off immediately.  Chase was along for the ride before his enlistment with the Marines.  We parted ways just before Christmas.  After getting Chase all set up at Parris Island they once again headed back to California.  This time Pam's assignment took them to Salinas.  We decided a visit was in order.  After finding out where they were staying, we booked a couple of days at another of our favorite parks, Betabel RV Park in San Juan Batista.

Kevin was chef on our arrival night.  Their outside living room was so inviting.  A glass of wine for Pam and me, beer for Ron and Kevin, and a delicious dinner for all.  We got all caught up and shared some interesting stories.  

Chef Kevin hard at work

grilled scallops, jumbo shrimp, fried rice and veggies :-)

Ron has recently renewed his interest in plants, particularly succulents, as they're easy to maintain.  He found a unique store that specializes in succulents and it happened to be within a 30 minute drive from the campground.  The four of us drove over the following day to check it out.  We agreed, it was a fantastic find!

so many to choose from!

"please don't touch"...   yep...

they picked an arrangement for their home on wheels

various decorative rocks sold per pound

Ron, Rene, Pam, Kevin

cute older VW Bug out front

half the fun is arranging them :-)

ta-da!

Ron picked out five different succulents, a nice clay pot, some dirt mix and a bit of colored rocks.  It turned out great and it's a perfect reminder of our time with Kevin and Pam.  But before we say our see-ya-laters, it was my time to cook dinner.  Pork chops with gravy, rice pilaf and veggies along with an adult beverage of choice was followed by a fun dice game and plenty more stories.  Pam's next assignment will be near Boston in June.  We may just have to visit them again on our way up to New York :-)

Cheers!

    

Desert Boondocking

After leaving the FHU spot in Mesa, AZ, we wanted to try desert boondocking.  We had four days to spend in the desert before returning to civilization.  I decided to see what I could find on Campendium.  I had heard about places outside of Yuma, AZ.  Based on reviews and other bloggers I decided to give American Girl Mine (AGM) Road a try.  It's just a bit up Ogilby Road north of I-8.

Before driving to our boondocking spot, we stopped at the rest area one exit west of Ogilby Road to fill up our fresh water tank.  The rest stop is in the center median so it's easy to drive in the opposite direction when leaving.  The water fill station is free but it does take awhile as it was only registering two gallons/minute on our water meter.  Thankfully there wasn't a line.  We got about 50-60 gallons and we were on our way.

It's a bit scary driving off the asphalt on purpose for the first time!  AGM road is clearly marked so that was easy.  It's hard packed dirt and plowed every so often for a smooth finish.  We drove about a mile or two up the road before deciding to take an off-shoot road to an empty looking area. 

We found the perfect spot!

 

We've got this all to ourselves!  It was so quiet!!  Our nearest neighbor was about 500 yards away.  The first night we decided to leave our bedroom window shade up.  The morning sunrise was right outside :-)

We only did that the one day though as we couldn't go back to sleep after the sun woke us up... LOL

The nearby two hills were quite close.  One afternoon Ron took the e-bike for a spin and he rode out to the hillside.  He came back with some nice photos and rock samples he believes may have gold in them.  Who knows if it's real gold or fool's gold, but he had a great adventure.

On our third day we drove into Yuma for a bit.  I wanted to check out the Chevron station just one exit east of Ogilby Road because they have a dump station.  It's plenty big for us :-)  The cost is $15 and includes dump and fresh water.  We won't need water since we'll be going to another RV park after our boondocking time.  While in town, we got a sandwich for lunch and then headed over to a riverside park so Rufus could have some fun too.  The grass was much appreciated for him after walking on the desert sand and rock for a couple of days.

Back at camp we built a fire ring, collected dried kindling and had a fire that evening.  No photos but we sure enjoyed ourselves :-)

Most of our time at AGM road was spent relaxing.  But I also decided to take the e-bike out for a spin one afternoon.  My ride was much shorter than Ron's but I know it's going to be a blast! 

If Rufus had thumbs he'd give desert boondocking two thumbs up.  He enjoyed his desert time too!

I've heard so much about the amazing sunsets.  I'll admit they were nice, but I like it better when there are a few clouds.  There's just something about pink and orange hued clouds...

We sure enjoyed our four wonderful desert boondocking days!  Both Ron and I are looking forward to many more boondocking adventures!!