Saturday, November 23
One look at the dark sky this morning and I’m writing a check for a second night here at The Scenic Road RV Park in Quartzsite, Arizona. Too cold and too drizzly for me to look for a new camp.
The crew and I stay inside the Best Little Trailer most of the day.
I look out the side window. Hmm . . . Looks like we’ve got a neighbor pulling in. A truck camper parks between our campsite and the shower house.
A few moments later, while I’m outside, a smiling lady comes up to me and says, “Hi, Sue.”
Turns out my new neighbor is Janet Carter, a reader of this blog, a long-time full-timer, and a professional writer of RV-related articles. If you’re a reader of Escapee and other RV print material, there’s a pretty good chance you read an article of Janet’s.
Janet travels with her feline co-pilot, Scamper.
Here he is peeking through the screened window.
You know how it’s said there’s a first time for everything? Well, for the first time ever someone asks ME for technical advice.
Yep, you read that right. . . RVSue, the technical consultant.
Janet and I set ourselves up inside the BLT.
I move my back table so it runs lengthwise in the aisle. This allows Janet and me to sit on the bed, along with Bridget and Spike, of course, with a tabletop in front of us to share. Janet has an iPad and I have my PC.
Well, I’ve never used an iPad or anything with a touch screen, for that matter.
Janet is building her own blog and I’m going to teach her some of the features of WordPress. When I point to something on her iPad screen, I accidentally touch it and screw things up. This happens repeatedly. What a riot! We laugh our way through my bumbling WordPress tutorial, and the afternoon passes quickly.
Sunday, November 24
For me, walking Bridget and Spike around an RV park gets old very fast. However, they enjoy meeting canine campers.
I look to the sky and see a hint of blue. Time to pack up and move on down the road . . .
Janet and I hug and say our goodbyes.
“Where will you camp?” she asks.
“I don’t know. I’m going to head toward Yuma and see if I can find something in the Kofa Wildlife Refuge.”
Highway 95 is a straight shot south to Yuma.
We pass the Long Term Visitor Areas. RVs are scattered all around. The first road that goes into the Kofa Wildlife Refuge has a sign that says, “No camping beyond this point.”
The next road going into Kofa is a wide dirt road which looks a little too muddy for me to chance it. Meanwhile the sky overhead is a clear blue with cumulus clouds. The darker clouds hang like veils over the mountains.
We keep going.
I turn right onto Imperial Dam Road and head west.
We pass the U.S. Army Proving Grounds. A sign directs us to take a left turn toward Mittry Lake. The road is washboard and damp, but I see cars coming and going so I figure we’ll be okay. The road follows alongside a canal.
The scenery lures me forward. Hey, it’s pretty here . . . I think I’m gonna’ like this.
Over the course of five miles the Perfect Tow Vehicle bravely carries us through puddles across the road. I am so glad I got those all-terrain tires!
Bridget and Spike wake up from their nap.
“We’ll be home soon, Bridget. Just a little bit further, honey.”
I’m glad we came this way. It will be a treat to camp next to water again.
Mittry Lake is surrounded by cattails, a perfect environment for birds and wildfowl.
American coots are all over the place (the birds, not old guys). I jump out of the PTV to grab this photo of a Great Egret. What a nice welcome!
A wildlife refuge is a wonderful place to camp.
The rules are more restrictive which means you don’t have to put up with a lot of stupid, human behaviors. Camping here is limited to ten days in a calendar year.
I let Bridget and Spike out and we walk the road along the lake.
I want them calmed down while I look for our camp.
We drive further and campsites appear! They’re far apart and bordered by thick reeds, brush, and cattails. Privacy!
I find a site that isn’t muddy and has an open view of the lake!
First thing I do after basic set-up is put out my camp chair and a bed for Bridget at the water’s edge.
(Spike is still sniffing the perimeter. That guy’s work is never done!).
This is the view from our door and the BLT’s side window. Our camp is on a lovely cove.
I’m starving!
I grab a bag of potatoes and sit in my camp chair to peel a few for a late lunch/early supper. I make a vegetable plate of potatoes, steamed zucchini, and corn with whole-berry cranberry sauce on the side.
The photo above is dim because the sun is low in the sky. We’ll stay a few days, so there will be plenty of time for a better photo.
That’s it for today’s post. We’re going outside. I hear coots calling!
rvsue
MY SINCERE THANKS TO EVERY RVSUE SHOPPER!
Drinkwell Zen Steel Fountain
Olympian Wave-3 3000 BTU LP Gas Catalytic Heater
Waring 1300-Watt Portable Single Burner
100 Watt Soldering Iron- Stained Glass Supplies
Jenga Classic Refresh Game
Big & Tall Hiker Belt Made in USA By Thomas Bates
MY NEW KEEN SANDALS!
