Sunday, March 2, 2014 (Travel to Estrella Mountain Regional Park, Goodyear, AZ)

The sky was blue...the sun was shining...a great start to the day! We were all packed up and ready to hit the road shortly after 9:00. While we were packing up, both Bob and Sue came down to say goodbye...see you at the ATV/BC functions this summer!

We were just doing the final checks before leaving when Earl, Allison, Eric, Janet, Art, Jan and Fred all came over...and after big hugs and handshakes...we headed off. Goodbye everyone...we really enjoyed our time at La Posa South, thanks for sharing your winter with us!

We stopped at the sani-dump and then pulled over on our way out to say goodbye to Rob and Joyce. It was a pleasure seeing you both again...safe travels! And then we said goodbye to La Posa South LTVA...it was just before 10:00 as we pulled onto highway 95 and headed the short distance north to the I-10 east.


This very cute fifth-wheel was at a rest area along the way...



Those columns of steam are from the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station near Wintersburg, AZ....

With the recent rain, the desert is really starting to bloom...lots of colour along the sides of the highway...

Beautiful bougainvilleas in bloom as we left the I-10 at Estrella Parkway in Goodyear and headed south...


I guess there was a big NASCAR race happening this weekend at the Phoenix International Raceway, so there were cones set out on the road making an extra lane to help with traffic. There wasn't an awful lot of traffic when we came along however, the lanes were pretty narrow. We were in the centre lane because we had to turn left and just before the turn, a cone had gotten moved and was in the way. Steve had to get out of the truck to move it.

This Tre Rios Golf Course on the corner of Estrella Parkway and Vineyard where we turned  left to go to Estrella Mountain Regional Park...



While getting set up, 3 formations of 50 or so planes flew over. Steve could only fit 2 of the 3 formations into the photo...

As it turned out, our site ended up being right on the golf course...

What happened to all the sunshine?!

It was after 3:00 by the time we were all set up...mainly because I decided to give the trailer a good vacuuming. It's been a long time since we have had full hook-ups, including sewer (bonus, since we thought we would only have water and power).

After we were all set up, Steve took the phone to call Ken and noticed a missed call...sure enough, it had been Ken. I guess I didn't hear the phone while I had the vacuum going. Ken is a childhood friend of Steve's...they have known each other for years and have always stayed in touch. The last time we saw Ken and his wife, Charlene was just after we had retired and were heading east across Canada...that would be late July, 2010. They arrived from Cochrane, Alberta two days ago and are staying with Ken's dad, Bob and his wife, Donna in a house that they had rented in Goodyear for the winter (the house is actually owned by a neighbour and friend of Ken and Charlene's).

We were invited over for dinner at their place, so shortly after 4:00 we punched in the address into Serena, and along with directions from Ken, we found the house with no problems. It was relatively close...only about a 10 to 15 minute drive further along Estrella Parkway in an area of new homes.

Charlene and I...
Steve and Ken...
Bob and Donna...


The house is really nice, with a huge kitchen...

Dinner time...Bob cutting up the ribs...

We had a lovely dinner and then sat chatting until close to 9:00...time to call it a night! Although our stay at Goodyear is two-fold...we have an appointment to take the truck into Phoenix for servicing...we are especially looking forward to spending time with Ken and Charlene!




2 comments:

  1. The plane formations you saw were from the NASCAR race. It's the biggest flyover I have ever seen.

    JC

    ReplyDelete