Parker, Arizona

Our next stop was chosen for its being the right number of hours drive in the right direction (east). When searching for a campground in an area unknown to us, one clue that an area might be of interest is the density of available campgrounds. Another is the presence of a state park. I found both of these to be true of a stretch of the Colorado River near Lake Havasu City, Arizona.

The drive over was on endless stretches of dead-straight roads through uninhabited desert scrub, surrounded with bare young mountains looking as if they'd sprung up overnight. We knew that the state park that we had in mind had a "first come first served" policy, so I called when we got close and found them full. Thankfully, another, smaller state park, had a site open. We headed for it. As we approached the river we became aware that the roads were crawling with RVs. Competition! My anxiety mounted as I fell into line, driving up the valley north from Parker. I needn't have worried: the river is lined with RV parks! One after another presented itself as we drove on, some crowded and dingy, some fancy with marinas and championship golf courses. One by one my competition turned off the road, and we pulled into to River Island State Park to find a space waiting for us.

The Colorado River runs fast and deep after it is released from the Parker Dam which forms Lake Havasu to our north. Its color and clarity were stunning, reminding me of the coastal waters of Maine and Nova Scotia. Even though it was 90 degrees out, the water was too cold for me to swim in, but Toby and Kinsey took to it repeatedly:


The campground itself is new, with big spaces diagonally arranged, all sandwiched between canyon walls. A trail to the top offers great views of the river, the mountains, and the campground:



We took our kayaks up just above Parker Dam. This dam boasts of being the deepest dam in the world - 320 feet. 285 of those feet are below the riverbed, so we'll have to take them at their word. Here are the 65 feet that are visible:


And here we are paddling in Lake Havasu, enjoying the wonderfully warm air and cool, calm waters:

One Year Later

It's hard to believe that one year ago today Nancy and I, along with Kinsey and Toby, pulled out of our driveway and began this amazing North American tour. We've covered a lot of ground, from Cape Breton to Florida, Chicago to New Orleans, and are now exploring the southwest states. There's so much more to see! The trip feels as fresh and exciting as it did 365 days ago! The packing and driving is all very routine now, so picking up and moving every few days is no longer stressful, and we can focus now more than ever on the journey and the fabulous diversity of destinations.

Why isn't everyone doing this??? We're sure glad that we are!


On the Colorado River, Parker, Arizona.

Joshua Tree

It was only a two hour drive from Anaheim to the campground at Joshua Tree National Park, but the two places could hardly be more different. We started out driving in eight-lanes of bumper-to-bumper traffic, but climbed up and out into the country, passing along the way a wind farm that filled a valley and all of its ridges. There must have been thousands of wind turbines.


We arrived at the Black Rock campground at 4000 feet and nestled in a grove of Joshua Trees. The campground is in rough shape - mainly in the sense that its roads are in extremely poor repair, and virtually none of the sites are anywhere near level. But, we squeezed our bulk around and into our site, and had enough leveling blocks to accommodate the slope. Although not far from the town of Yucca Valley, we felt removed from town and surrounded by nature.


This, like most national park campgrounds, has no electrical or water hookups, so we had to economize. With two batteries, topped off with the generator each day, we had no problem living "off the grid". The weather was perfect - warm enough so not need to run the furnace; cool enough so that the air conditioner wasn't necessary.

We drove into the park proper for an afternoon of hiking and sightseeing. I expected to see lots of joshua trees, and was not disappointed, but did not expect such an amazing landscape of rock and boulders. The park is a big destination for rock climbers, and everywhere we went we saw them scaling the fastastic formations. It was at times like being on another planet, and it was indeed a beautiful place.




These guys are scurrying around everywhere, but this one was particularly tame. Would you believe he tried to sell me car insurance?


Great trails right from the campground, too, with lots of bird species, jack rabbits and coyotes. Here is Nancy at the top of a nearby peak:


Gorgeous landscapes, perfect temperatures, and nothing caps off a good log entry like a spectacular sunset!

Orange County

Two hours north of San Diego, our next camp was in Anaheim, California. We don't normally like to make camp in the thick of things like this, but to be within a reasonable drive of the people and places that we came to see, this was a good location. Canyon RV Park is actually pretty nice, stretched out along the Santa Ana River, just across from a wilderness area. Unfortunately, the park's other boundary is the insanely congested freeway 91, so road noise was ever present no matter what time of day.

25 years ago a 16-year-old exchange student came from Brazil to spend a half-year in Freeport, Maine, and stayed in our house with my parents and sister. I was away, a freshman at Clarkson, but my school year ended earlier than that of the local high school, so when I came home for the summer, I too got to know Michele. We all loved her and remember her visit fondly. Only my mother has been diligent in maintaining communication, and thanks to her we re-united after all these years, here in southern California.

Michele's husband, Carlos, shares my love for mountain biking, and our visit began when he picked me up first thing in the morning to go to ride some of his favorite local trails. We had a great ride at Santiago Oaks park, climbing and descending sweet, fast single track trails in the hills overlooking all of Orange County.


One moment our legs and lungs would be burning from a steep climb up switchbacks...


...and the next our minds and hearts racing as fast as our bikes as we rocketed down hard packed turns or sat on our rear wheels on steep, loose gravity infested descents. It was awesome!

After the ride, Nancy and I went over to Michele and Carlos' home, where they served an amazing meal. It was so nice to see Michele after all these years. We ate outdoors in the perfect SoCal weather, and leisurely enjoyed the cedar-plank grilled salmon, all of the lovely salads, and washed it down with fine white wine. So nice!


Afterwards we walked off a few calories taking the dogs out on the paths assessible right from their door.


After the walk it Michele and Carlos' two beautiful daughters, Naomi and Mia, came home from school and charmed us with their sweet personalities. Naomi (6), quiet and serious, and Mia (3) outgoing, gregarious and impish!


We enjoyed another meal all together, then said our goodbyes.

And what visit to La-la-land would be complete without a dose of Mickey Mouse?


We spent most of the next day at Disneyland and California Adventure parks, strolling around the fantastic creations of Toontown, Frontierland and Fantasyland, and along the midway at Paradise Pier. We went on a lot of rides, particularly enjoying Indiana Jones Adventure and Soarin' California.

Our third and final day we got to see Michele again, when she joined us for lunch here at Casa-de-Whale. I baked a loaf of bread, just like Mom use to make, and of which Michele had fond memories. Michele brought boxes full of decadent deserts almost too beautiful to eat (almost!).

Then we braved Friday afternoon traffic and went down to Huntington Beach, where Carlos had seen a dog-friendly beach. We found it, and Toby enjoyed a romp in the Pacific ocean...


...and many romps with a host of other dogs. He left the beach happy, wet, sandy, and tired. (How tired? DOG tired!)


We capped off our stay with dinner at our favorite sushi restaurant: Kitiyama. This might just be the best Japanese restaurant, not just in Newport Beach, not just in Orange County, not just in California, not even just in the U.S.A, but I dare say in all of the entire world!!! Master sushi chef, Mr. Yamasaki, served up the freshest, tastiest, most creative sushi creations that I have ever had the joy to eat. Amazing.

San Diego

After leaving the Tucson area, we made an easy drive west, skirting the Mexican border. We got to Yuma, Arizona, and were immediately glad that we didn't chose a park there: it was one after another of sprawling RV parking lots, veritable seas of RVs, teeming with snowbirds. Not at all what we want for our camping experience. Just over the border, in Winterhaven, California, we drove back out of "civilization" and into desert once more. 7 miles north of the highway, and 1.5 miles down a washboard dirt road, we arrived at Gold Rock Ranch RV, all by itself in the middle of vast expanses of federal recreational land. It wasn't our favorite campground, but we had a decent couple of days there nevertheless.


I donned my protective gear and rode out in search of jumps and drops:


From there we continued westward, through pure sand dunes, the playground of quad ATV's (you can see on in the photo, to give you a sense of scale)...


...and then put Gigantor through its paces climbing back up to 4000 feet and back down the far side, all at about 6% grade. The exhaust brake did a good job controlling our speed as we cruised down the mountain towards San Diego. We made camp at Lake Jennings Regional Park, in Lakeside, California. The sites are all on top of one of the many hills in the area, so there are lots of great views. And the climate is so refreshingly different on the west side of the mountains - all lush and green. The air, while cooler, has some moisture in it, and the heady fragrance of grass, spring blooms, and the Pacific ocean. It feels wonderful just to breath here!


We took a day trip into the city of San Diego, and enjoyed wandering around Balboa Park. They have a fantastic desert garden, where we saw an amazing variety of cacti and other desert plants:



The park is huge and lovely, with lots of gardens, walkways, museums, theaters, etc..


Here are some fantastic Tolkienesque tree roots cascading over a retaining wall:


Then we went over to the Gaslight district and explored that area for a while, before sitting down for some nice spicy Indian food for dinner:


Lastly we went to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, 1800 acres large, about half of which is habitat for African animals. (The other half preserves endangered California scrub habitat, all but destroyed by developers). Some of the animals are confined to traditional enclosures, but many species co-mingle in one enormous, seemingly fenceless area, giving the animals a much more natural lifestyle, and the spectators a viewing experience somewhat more like actual wild sightings. Having been lucky enough to visit South Africa, it was fun to see some of the same beasts we'd seen at Kruger Park. It was also great to see some species that we'd searched for and never seen while there, like the white rhinoceros, and meerkat:


Many of the animals have given birth to their young, like these elephants:


Here are a couple rhinos:


And the lions. The male, who sleeps some 20 hours a day, got up and paced around, roared a bunch, and marked his territory.


We're not normally inclined to like Zoos, mostly because many of the animals are clearly discontent with their captivity. There is some of that at this park, too, but much more is appropriately sized enclosures and habitats. Testament to this are happier animals which breed and raise their families in this environment. This zoo is particularly successful in breeding rhinocerous, and played a part in the rescue of these species from near extinction. So, we're glad we went, and happy that most of the inmates there are living happy lives of their own. Kruger Park, in South Africa, is a National Park, approximately 220 x 40 miles, making it significantly larger than our home state of Connecticut. All of their animals are free range, and the circle of life plays out in all of its gory glory. Park rangers do not interfere with the natural order of things. No feeding. No saving the of the weak. No enclosures, no guarantees of sightings. But an appropriately high density of animal life, and an effective word-of-mouth system of where animals were last seen, makes spotting most species likely. No zoo will ever match that experience, but San Diego has done admirably well given the contraints of our society.

Speaking of wild places, we're off to L.A....

Arizona

The second half of my stay in southern Arizona was WAY better than the first half, and here is an extra-long post to prove it! Most significantly, our great friends the Lawrences flew out to visit during their April school vacation. Gene, Theonne, Austin and Athena flew into Tucson late Wednesday night, picked up a car, and drove to a hotel 9 miles north of me, in Benson. They came to camp the next morning full of the excitement that comes of vacationing in a new place. The warm Arizona sun warmed their skin which had been previously bundled up against this year's severe New England winter. The first thing we did was to go for a hike on the park trail, where everyone familiarized themselves with all of the prickly plants that make up this desert landscape.


Next, we drove down to Sierra Vista to a bike shop that I had identified as one which rents out high-end mountain bikes: Sun 'n' Spokes Thanks to "Comino" for showing me all of the great bikes available for rent, and for an awesome free cleaning and tuneup while replacing my worn-out bottom bracket and derailleur cable!

We got everyone set up with a bike, including a brand new, never-been-used, Giant Cypher women's-specific trail bike for Athena - awesome!

Here is a Gigantor-full of bikes:

We did a family ride at the site of the ghost town Charleston. Here we rode among ruins of a once thriving silver-mining town, and up into the hills above. Thenonne and Athena were terrific sports following us boys up scrabbly single track into the hills!


Especially cool to see were the ancient native-American petroglyphs:


The next morning Gene, Austin and I went for another ride down in Sierra Vista, this time at Brown Canyon, where we gave our full-suspension bikes a real workout. After the two-mile-long dirt-road climb from 5000' to 5600' we thoroughly enjoyed the rewarding single track descent, covering most of the remaining 3 miles of trail.


After dropping off the bikes we did some shopping (Austin had to have a real cowboy hat!) and then went over to Fort Huachuca (wah-chooka). This is listed as an historic site, which sounded touristy, but it didn't feel so touristy as we all handed over ID and answered the guard's questions at the gate! Once inside we drove through the massive base until finally finding their museum, which was very good, but closed at 4:00. At about 4:15 we made for the exit, but it seemed like the place was all locked up! Just an illusion - not locked - we made our escape!

That night I retrieved Nancy from the airport. She was happy to get back to the adventure, especially since the Lawrence's were here, and also as she'd been separated from Kinsey during the horror of her medicine overdose. Toby also celebrated his 10th birthday that day, and was happy as a puppy to receive a new toy:


I took the crew out to Texas Canyon to explore the fantastic rock formations there. Everyone had a great time climbing around and taking photos.




In the afternoon, we headed on down to the wild, wild west town of Tombstone. "The Town Too Tough to Die" used to be a thriving mining town until the miners broke into the water table and got flooded out. After a couple of restarts, failed pumps, and fires, mining shut down for good. The town was poised to become another Arizona ghost town, but rallied instead to create a tourist destination. The famous gunfight at the OK coral provides much of the fodder for the tourist trade. For a scarcely justifiable fee, you can watch a re-enactment of this gunfight:


Then we wandered around the dusty streets, stopping to enjoy the humor of Toughnut street:


Overnight, Arizona got itself a serving of New England winter weather. We awoke to freezing temperatures and an inch of snow on the ground! W.T.F.?


So...we went underground. Kartchner Caverns State Park features: surprise! Caverns! We followed our animated Jane Lynch lookalike tourguide down into the steamy depths of the mountain, and marveled at the formations and colors of the limestone labyrinth. Here are some that look like bacon. Mmmmmmmmm, bacon...


Thankfully, the next day the weather returned to normal, and we drove out to Saguaro National Park to admire the towering cacti that give the park its name:


It was a nice ending to a great visit with Gene, Theonne, Austin and Athena, who dashed off to catch their plane back to Connecticut.

I was two weeks in Benson, Arizona, the longest stop of our trip besides our own house. Biking, hiking, dogs near death, wheel bearings, and the Lawrences made it a busy and very memorable location.