Winter in the Desert, Summer in the Mtns: Tortilla Campground

1/14/12

Tortilla Campground

I am sitting in a Burger King in Apache Junction so determined to post something before I make the trek back through the mtns to our campsite. We have been at Tortilla campground in the Tonto National Forest for the past week. There is no cell phone coverage there, nor an internet signal.
Such a wonderful place! I saw my first desert lake, Canyon Lake, last Monday. All so different from what we are accustomed to back east. The campground has about 70 sites, all with water and sewer hookups. The bathrooms have running water but no showers. I was expecting pit toilets for the grand price of 3 dollars a day!

We have hiked and cooked and visited with many nice people. On my first hike I had an encounter with the cholla cactus. Very unpleasant as they have little barbs at the end of the spines.
While climbing the big mountain that overlooks camp, I thought that I might die. The last part was done one all fours. But at the top, there was a moment that I did not feel 62....more like the 22 year old that still lurks inside of me.

We are still learning about survival in the desert without electricity. In the back of the truck is our new solar panel system that we have just purchased. We have learned that we don't need to run the heater all night. That the comforter and an extra blanket keep us quite snug at night.

Wednesday night we learned that 3 showers without dumping and a leaking water faucet equals a flooded bathroom at 4 AM. Crisis resolved with advice from fellow campers and a camphost that was willing to double as a plumber.