Tuesday, February 3
See this big cloud hovering over the desert?
A bunch of problems roll into our camp off Ogilby Road west of Yuma. Like the cloud above, problems hover above and cannot be ignored. Nothing to fuss about, but looming over us nevertheless.
I’m getting ahead of myself.
Bridget and I take off in the Perfect Tow Vehicle for a leisurely drive across the desert. It’s a sunny, bright day and I’m curious to see the west side of the Colorado River, since we’re camped on this side.
We pass the Cargo Muchacho Mountains on the east. To the west, the sands of Algodones Dunes create a horizon of pale coral waves. Route 534 takes us between the major Chocolate Mountains and the lesser Chocolate Mountains.
At the intersection with Route 78, I turn right and head toward Blythe.
The landscape is drab and desolate. The road crosses several large washes which has us rolling way up and way down, again and again, as if we’re on a ship tossed by a stormy sea. Just the opposite — It’s a peaceful drive.
I stop for Bridget to have a walk-around. I check my California Benchmark atlas and see there’s a campground on the Colorado called Mitchell’s Camp. We’ll go check that out.
I start up the PTV and Bridget curls up in her doggie bed for a snooze.
Mitchell’s Camp turns out to be a trailer park. A fella’ tells me it used to be a campground but recently “we closed it to the public. You know how it is, a few people ruin it for everybody. Now you have to know someone to get in here.”
Apparently it was a privately-owned campground before. I turn the PTV around and return to Route 78. Further on I see a sign for river access.
The dirt road takes us to Oxbow Recreation Area.
A camper is tucked in the tall grass at the edge of a lagoon of Oxbow Lake.
The campground is small and has an overall look of having seen better days. I stop at the BLM’s fee station out of curiosity — $15 regular/$7.50 with senior discount pass.
Hmm. . . only three campers here plus a camp host.
Bridget wakes up and yaps to be let out.
“Okay, okay. . . Let me put you in your suit first.”
We walk over to the trees and picnic tables (above photo). These are the campsites. The Colorado flows by the sites, below a steep bank.
Across the bridge is Cibola National Wildlife Refuge.
We can look at that another time. I can’t see us camping here at Oxbow Campground. It’s a long drive from Interstate 8 and we wouldn’t come here from Interstate 10. I’m sure there are better places on the other side of the river, some without a fee.
I walk Bridget around the campground taking photos.
When she’s had sufficient exercise, I toss her into the PTV. I eat a sandwich, sharing bites with her, and then we head back to camp.
I park the PTV and remember to plug in the Best Little Trailer’s cord into the rear bumper for the house battery.
First thing I do inside the BLT is open the refrigerator for a cold bottle of water.
That’s when I discover the refrigerator isn’t working. Darn! I open up the outside compartment and with a long brush I proceed to clean out the dust. Even so, the pilot refuses to light.
Isn’t this great timing! I have a freezer full of chicken for Bridget and a fridge crammed with groceries for me. Well, I’m not going to do the ice-in-a-cooler routine.
I take out about half the chicken, cover the pieces with water in a big pot, and set it all to boil. Once the cooked chicken cools a bit, I put it in the refrigerator. I shut the door quickly so the chicken will be okay for Bridget’s breakfast. Unless a miracle happens, the rest will go to waste.
Wednesday, February 4
I check the fridge in the morning and to my surprise the chicken I left in the freezer is frozen solid. Yet the main part of the refrigerator isn’t very cold. I check the compartment and it doesn’t look like the pilot is on, but maybe it is. It is hard to tell. This is very weird. Could the fridge be working again and it’s needing a long time to cool down? I’ll give it a day and see what happens.
Besides, I have other problems to sort out . . . .
Stuff happens in every life. Eventually all will smooth over with time.
rvsue
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