Joani & David's Travels: January 2019

Monday, January 28, 2019, Move to Tehachapi, CA

Today we drove another 191.8 miles (91,636.1 total) towards the Pacific Ocean and our month in Pismo Beach, CA. I cannot tell you how happy I was to find people familiar with an alternate route to Pismo that did not include driving through Los Angeles. Instead, we drove north on I-15 over the Cajon Pass, north on highway 395 and finally west on highway 58 to Tehachapi. The roads were so much nicer than what I remembered of I-210.

The snow-capped peak on our left was Mt San Antonio, better known as Mt Baldy.

I slowed it down as we climbed up from the Los Angeles basin and as a result the engine temperature never reached more than 195 degrees. On the steepest grades, we were in third gear and about 40 mph putting the engine at about 2,200 rpm. I just have to remember I'm retired and I don't have to be in a hurry.

Obviously, this alternative to traveling through LA was well known to truckers. Highway 395 had some rippled stretches that added some excitement to the drive but the pavement was smooth making it pleasant. Only15-20 miles of our route needed fresh payment.

Just before we reached Tehachapi we encountered the Alta Wind Energy Center wind farm. This encompassed a number of different developments and I never could get an actual count of wind generators but I think it is safe to say there were thousands.

Trains had an even rougher climb than we did despite all of the curves trying to level out the tracks. We saw some trains that had to be more than a mile long with half a dozen locomotive engines - of course, they were pulling millions of pounds of cargo so that was no surprise. Can you see the train stretched across the picture below?

The Mountain Valley RV Park in Tehachapi abutted the Mountain Valley Airport. We were cautioned not to walk out on the runway.

Within a few minutes of getting settled in, I heard an airplane and viewed my first of many glider take-offs and landings. The Skylark North Glider School seemed pretty busy during our stay.

We may wish later that we had taken the opportunity to experience a glider flight but we just could not justify the cost for what amounted to a 15-minute "thrill ride."

Wednesday, January 23 through Sunday, January 27, 2019, Jojoba Hills SKP Park

Jojoba Hills was a beautiful park with spectacular views of the valley below. From the highway in the valley, you would hardly believe there was such a large park hidden in the rocky hills above. Unlike most other Escapee parks this was a resort park with nearly 300 sites and all of the amenities you could expect. One of the volunteers, Bill, gave us a two-hour tour of the extensive facilities. There were two spas and a beautiful lap pool surrounded by a large party deck.

The chairs are facing a breathtaking view of the rolling hills.

Poolside there was a large community gathering hall with a huge kitchen, card rooms, exercise rooms, showers and sauna, a billiards room and a very nice library. Elsewhere around the grounds there was a well equipped woodworking shop, welding shop and garage (for working on RVs or ATVs or golf carts or whatever), an air gun range, a track for R/C cars, a strip for R/C airplanes and drones, miniature golf, horseshoe pits, four pickleball courts and a golf driving range. A pottery studio and art classroom were recent additions. Bill informed us that a lapidary studio was in the future plans.

I'm sure I have forgotten something, but Bill made it clear, if they did not have something and you had an interest, you could probably get support for adding it to their activities list.

The site below belonged to one of the founders of the park. In 1989 he planted a small pine tree that sat on his kitchen table that year as a Christmas decoration. His care and watering resulted in one of the largest trees in the park and certainly the largest tree overlooking Pond #2 (maybe they could name their ponds something better than Ponds 1 through 6).

It was probably just the time of day but I was struck by the beautiful silence in the park - nothing but a few birds and a light breeze.

Our friends, Della and Barry, were staying very close by across the highway at another park. They introduced us to their friends staying in Jojoba Hills, Gracian and Bruce, and we were all able to attend the dinner and dance held on the last Friday of each month. It set us back $5 each and we filled up on some truly fabulous food before listening to some tunes from the 50s and 60s played live by a talented local band.

Can you believe it, table 11 was called first to hit the food line!

David put his dishwashing skills to good use.

One day we met our friends, Bob and Dorothy, who live in Murietta (about 20 miles away). They lived in Hendersonville, TN, many years ago and were good friends with my parents. It was great to spend the afternoon catching up on everything since we last saw them. They showed us around the adjacent city of Temecula and we visited a small museum filled with the local history.

The model of Temecula below showed us the town in the late 1800s. As we drove around old town, Bob pointed out many of the same building still standing today.

Lucky for me the horse below was not easily spooked and he let me saddle up with no objections. Probably the only time I will ever "ride" a horse.

We thoroughly enjoyed our far too brief stay at Jojoba Hills and were very happy to have the chance to explore this beautiful park and the surrounding area. Unfortunately, the park did not strike us at this time as the place to settle or even visit annually so we chose not to sign up for membership yet - but maybe, someday!

Wednesday, January 23, 2019, Move to Jojoba Hills SKP Park

Thanks to the time zone change we had an extra hour of sleep before a quick breakfast and then we were back on the road. Our second day of driving took us another 123.3 miles (91,444.3 total) to the Jojoba Hills Escapee Park in Aguanga, California. Through the San Gorgonio Pass the wind turbine farm left me with mixed feelings. More than 4,000 units certainly spoiled the beauty of the valley and I'm pretty sure they were no friend to the birds in the area but the lure of "free" energy had its grip on Californians.

Joani caught a nice alignment of the moon over Mt San Jacinto. I think it turned out rather well considering it was taken through the windshield while we were traveling along the freeway.

The drive was completely uneventful until the last few miles of Highway 79 south of Temecula, CA. It changed from six lanes of beautifully smooth, straight highway to a narrow, rough, two-lane country road in the space of a few hundred yards. The curves and hills dropped our average speed to around 40 mph for the last 10 miles. The uneven pavement had our coach pitching side to side and the swells made it feel like a carnival fun ride. I guess we have been on worse and it wasn't long so I would have to say it was a good day driving overall.

Jojoba Hills did not have any open sites so we decided to boondock for at least a few days while we look over the facilities and the area.

We had planned on boondocking so our holding tanks were empty and our fresh water tank was full. That could support a week or more and nice shower and laundry facilities made an even longer stay possible but the park had a seven-day limit in the dry camp area.

Gazania, Treasure Flower 'Daybreak Red Stripe'

We were told later there were beekeepers a short distance away which explained why we heard and saw so many honey bees around the park. I don't remember them ever bothering us in the least but we could often hear a low and constant buzzing coming from certain flowering trees and bushes.

We took Sam and headed up the steep hill from the office to have a look at the permanent lots and amenities. The views were gorgeous and it was a beautiful day for a walk. We were certainly happy we made the effort to visit this SKP park.

The Pepper trees surrounding our coach were humming with bees. It made me wonder what Pepper tree honey might taste like.

What an amazing view looking south from the hilltop.

Tuesday, January 22, 2019, Overnighting at the Spotlight 29 Casino, Indio, CA

It was time to finally head into California. I suppose I was reluctant in part because our last drive on California's highways did not leave a great impression. In fact, it was quite the opposite - with rude drivers and potholes that could swallow a person whole, I thought about never returning. I was also not looking forward to the exorbitant fuel prices that Californians take as a given.

Recent rains covered the desert with a blanket of green.

Our reservations at Pismo Beach were nearing and we needed to head west. Barry and Della told us about the best place for diesel (the Chevron at 18221 Tom Wells Rd, Ehrenberg, AZ - diesel for $2.65 cash price). We were able to fill up a few miles from the California border for nearly a dollar per gallon less than the Golden State average. That was a nice start to the day.

We're pretty sure that's a snow-capped Mt San Jacinto in the distance.

I noticed that California seemed to name every ditch we passed - I don't remember that in other states. If there was a bridge or culvert then there was a sign to let you know what wash or ditch you just crossed. Below we were crossing Tarantula Ditch. I tried to remember the names of some of the others but without noting them at the time they were simply lost to me when I started blogging (is that a part of getting old?).

Spotlight 29 Casino in Indio, CA, was very nearly the halfway point between Quartzsite, AZ, and Aguanga, CA (Jojoba Hills SKP Park), it was easily accessible and it had a nice dinner buffet. That was enough for me to call it a day after 117 miles (91,321.0 total).

The casino had a huge expanse of pavement that was ideal for overnighting. A lot of folks were familiar with the stop. Joani counted more than 30 RVs on Sam's last walk of the day (and a lot more arrived after dark). In a separate area, there were probably 20 or 30 big rig trucks stopped for the night as well. I have no idea how many gamblers parked overnight and with no free-play, all we did was stuff ourselves at the buffet. The food was good and the prime rib was excellent. We will certainly keep this place in mind if we need to overnight in this area again.

There were as many or more RVs behind me as in the picture. With the high number of RVs and the casino police patrolling the lot, this stop felt very secure.

Wednesday, January 16 through Monday, January 21, 2019, Quartzsite Experience

Our original plan did not include Quartzsite, but our schedule was open and it was on the way to California, so why not? Joani had secured reservations for three days and then we planned on boondocking in the desert if we chose to stay longer. Joani's newfound interest in minerals kept us busy combing through the rock shops. Gem World was, by far, our favorite due to variety and prices. I think we visited them at least four times and each time it was more difficult to keep our spending under control.

The bird below was with one of the Gem World rockhounds. Joani included this picture because she was wowed with the birds training.

The woman brought the bird outside and said, "Ok, go!" and it did! She put it on her shoulder and then held out its twin and, you guessed it, it also peed on command. I was very impressed.

What a collection of Ammonites Gem World had! Madagascar must have been swimming in these guys millions of years ago!

This week the Gem and Mineral show was in town. They set up at the Quartzsite Improvement Association (QIA) PowWow facility on Ironwood Street. There were hundreds of vendors covering more area than I was willing to explore in a single day. We actually broke it up into three trips to keep from overdoing it on any one day. Prices were not so great except for one guy getting out of the business and even then Joani only bought a few interesting slabs.

Gem World had chunks of this at $2 dollars a pound and I still passed.

Who knew there were so many varied and colorful minerals. I got a nice specimen of Vanadinite (below) for just $4 at Gem World.

Gem World sold us this saying it was Aragonite instead of Vanadinite. David doesn't really care what it is, it just looked cool.

We met Barry and Della (friends from Val Vista Villages) at Silly Al's for pizza one day. Meat lovers special - Yum! They were boondocking at LaPosa, South with somewhere between 30 and 50 other Monaco owners. We visited their site and it was impressive with all of those coaches parked in a giant circle facing each other. They had a huge fire pit in the center for their evening gatherings. We understand they had quite a nice time with their group and while I was a little envious they did not have a hot tub for soaking.

One night as we were taking a relaxing dip in the spa we met a very nice couple from Michigan, Brad and Denise, who were fairly new to full time living. Hopefully, we were able to help them with a few of their questions about residency in SD and maybe we will see them again down the road.

Joani kept checking with the park about any cancellations and we were lucky enough to get another four days. That meant four days with full hook-ups instead of boondocking in the desert - really a no-brainer decision given the nightly low temperatures. The extra time allowed us to visit the "Big Tent" for the Quartzsite RV Show when it opened on Saturday. We were able to walk to the tent from our campsite - it was less than a one half mile trek through the wash next to our park.

On Sunday we joined our friends Tracy and Bob (who we met at the FMCA rally in Gillette last August) at the RV show. I found a few things I really did need to get (a replacement TPMS sensor and tow bar stabilizers) and managed to just say "No" to a lot of other things that we really could live without. Joani even managed to get me a protective cap for our 50 amp power cord so I no longer have to worry about damaging it when it drags along the ground.

One of the vendors at the Gem and Mineral show told us about the Desert Gardens International Rock, Gem and Mineral show (a semi-permanent encampment on the other side of town). Of course, we had to give it at least a cursory check. There seemed to be a lot more raw samples and equipment there so it was different enough we were happy to have spent some time there.

I think this was our third time in Quartzsite and we still found plenty to hold our interest. If nothing else, I'm sure we will return just to visit Gem World again.

Tuesday, January 15, 2019, Move to Quartzite, AZ

Today's move from North Ranch in Congress, AZ, to Holiday Palms in Quartzsite, AZ, was an easy-peezy 95.9 miles (91,204.0 total). There was very little traffic, no grueling hills and every corner was a nice wide turn. All that positive leads me to the negatives - it rained on us the entire trip making our car an absolute mess and a truck threw a rock at our windshield making another little chip. GRRRR! At least this one is small enough to be easily filled.

Somehow we were checked into site B16 near the front of the park (away from the freeway noise) which will make it much more convenient to take advantage of the spa and hot showers.