More Lake Roosevelt and good news!

Our week at Lake Roosevelt  passes uneventfully.  Our time is more precious with the thought that it may be our last week in the desert.  There’s a path along the bluff above the lake.  We walk it each morning for exercise and entertainment.


Unidentified hawk….possible red tail?

The campground from a small hill…red truck..bottom right.
Four Peaks Wilderness Area is to the west of us….seems strange as the peaks have always been east of where we previously camped.

Although the lake level is down, its beauty still overwhelms us.


The campground allows the winter visitors to stay for months.  This makes for some interesting neighbors.
This Canadian has the right idea for simple camping.  Notice the smoke vent in the middle of the tent!  A good neighbor…very polite.

Found an old graveyard where workers who died while constructing the dam are buried.  The Theodore Roosevelt Dam was completed in 1911.


T Roosevelt Dam

Roosevelt Bridge…built 1992.

At the end of the week, on a mission, we leave this peaceful camp.  It is time to WASH CLOTHES!  This is capitalized due to importance…we have not washed since January 18th…4 weeks ago!.........(Later I realized that I am lying! Completely forgot about using a RV park laundry in Yuma...not a senior moment....a senior two days...so sorry!)

Deciding that we are not able to drive 90 miles, wash for two hours and then drive through traffic to Phoenix in one day, we move closer to civilization…back to the parking lot at Phon D Sutton Rec Area.  This way we will only need to drive 18 miles to the laundry.  The parking lot is full of a singles group and we move to the next lot.  From this position we are able to see the fountain at Fountain Hills shoot up at 6 PM and a bald eagle circling the Salt River looking for dinner!

Choosing to wash at the Superstition Laundry is a wise decision.  With the help of an assistant we are able to get everything in one 50 lb. washer! ($5.50) Twenty four minutes to wash and 30 minutes to dry and we are done!!
(Note: we did not go around dirty and stinking…)

This past weekend is spent back at the relatives and we are now, happily, back at Lost Dutchman State Park, near Apache Junction.
And, thanks to my friends and relatives, our house has been cleared of foul odors and brown liquids.  No need to go back home early!  Hooray!

But the countdown has begun….must hit the road going east in two weeks or less.

“Q”, a desert lake, & another problem

 

We land at Hidden Beaches in Blythe, CA to deal with the house issues.  (See former post.)  It is on the Colorado River and sounds like a beautiful park.  But not so with the full hookups.  We are stuck in a slum, looking at a storage shed and our neighbor’s refrigerator.  To be fair, the water sites are immaculate…we did not inquire on their cost. This is a PA park which is $16 with the discount.

Colorado River

We arrive at Dome Rock on Monday, 5 days before the huge fiberglass rally that happens the first weekend in February.  Parking in the back close to John and BJ, we think we have a good spot.   The next day Jerry and Wanda appear and then Glenda and Jeff .  It is bloggers row!

I take few photos…can’t seem to get excited about taking pictures of trailers that look identical.  The time is spent visiting and eating. 

John, BJ and Turk.

The weather is turning hot!  It gets up to 89 inside our trailer and more Casitas keep arriving.  We are beginning to feel like a sandwich.

On Saturday morning, no longer having fun, we head east to Scottsdale for another short visit with family.

Trying something new, we make reservations at Westworld of Scottsdale.  It is just for one night and much easier to park than the daughter’s back yard.

Our site is in a parking lot facing the polo field.

This large tent is the home of the famous Barrett-Jackson collector car auction.  West World is huge!  We walk 3 miles trying to see everything.

I know there are some cooler temperatures somewhere.  We head up into the Tonto National Forest to a campground on Lake Roosevelt. 

Beauty is found everywhere.

And it is cooler!  A lovely breeze caresses us as we walk in the morning sun. 

I am walking frequently, on a mission to lose some weight after seeing some disturbing photos of myself.  Manage to complete 6 miles (according to the phone) the first full day.

Life is good…much like life right before we had the home crisis 7 days ago.  And, again, another issue…much like the first one!  This time a clog in the plumbing has resulted in an overflow and a very bad smell! 

Thanks to a good friend who met the septic company and then met the plumbers, the crisis is resolved.  Not sure at this writing if we must head back home early to take care of the aftermath.  Don’t want to leave…each day here in the winter feels like a golden gift!

Will know something in a few days.

For Better or Worse at Lost Dutchman SP

The better part is now!  We are at the Lost Dutchman State Park near Apache Junction, AZ.  The worse part started one week ago tonight when a severe sore throat and fever awakened me from a sound sleep.  I could tell that whatever crud had hit me,  it had hit hard.

We were finishing a 5 day stretch of visiting with David’s family, celebrating his grand daughter’s marriage and slightly drowning in the hordes of friends and relatives that were coming through his daughter’s home in Scottsdale.  But it was time to go and I should be well!

Somehow we managed, mostly David managed, to get us out of there and relocate an hour to the east at the state park.  The plan was to spend time hiking in the majestic Superstition Mountains, do a little biking, then tend to the domestic chores of washing clothes and grocery buying.

Superstition Mountains.

All the tasks were completed, but slowly, with lots of naps in between.  Tuesday was wash day and sleep.  Wednesday was groceries and sleep. By Thursday I was on the phone to the doc at home pleading for something, anything and…bless his heart… he prescribed some magic antibiotic that started working within 24 hours.  I’ll skip the illness details…but it was not a normal sinus infection!

Our plans of staying here for 4 days changed to 7 days.  We moved to the overflow loop as our site had other campers arriving.

I was able to catch a few sunsets.

 

 

There’s a few more…..but thought this is enough!

One day we drove east on Highway 88, into the Tonto National Forest where we camped for almost 3 weeks several years ago.  Sadly, our favorite campground in the forest, Tortilla, has been closed for several years.  We hear that budget cuts are responsible.  The drive to Tortilla Flat is breathtaking with the road snaking up and down through the mountains.

Canyon Lake is two miles before one finds Tortilla Flat.

 

This monstrous rock hangs over the town? (4 stores) of Tortilla Flat.  It has a name but can’t remember it…something about a shoe heel.  What I do remember is climbing it!  Not from the side pictured but from a gentler angle.

 

While hubby weaved our way back through the mountains, I hung out the window trying to capture the essence of Tonto.

By yesterday I was able to join a ranger led hike from the campground.  Loved hearing about the flora and a little of the area’s history. 

The native Americans told a tale of a great flood where bad people drowned and good people followed their wise men’s advice and climbed to the top of Superstition Mtn. Some bad people got turned to stone as they tried escape the flood.  They are said to be statues on the way to the top.  The early settlers heard this story and named the range, Superstition Mountains.

Mistletoe in a Palo Verde.

We have loved our time here and plan to come back before we head east.  I still need to hike at least part of the Siphon Draw Trail!

Tomorrow we head west, back to Quartzsite and the rally at Dome Rock.  Hope everyone comes along! 

 

the rally at Dome Rock. siphon draw flat iron basin

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.

Canyon Lake

Tortilla Campground with Canyon Lake in background

Find Apache Junction, due east from Phoenix, and follow highway 88 up past Canyon Lake to Tortilla Flats to locate Tortilla Campground.