We pulled out of The Lakes RV Resort at 8:40 a.m. (which was actually 9:40 because daylight saving time had just ended...however, we would later loose that hour as we crossed into Arizona).
We ran into some fog...
We had a bit of a startle as about 8 Hells Angels roared between us and the car beside us at high speed weaving in and out between vehicles.
At Bakersfield, we took highway 58 east. This was our first time taking highway 99, that basically runs parallel with the I-5...it will also be our last. As much as I am not fond of I-5, it is much nicer than hwy 99!
Finally we are getting into some scenery...
Looks like rain ahead...
We stopped in Tehachapi and fueled up...$3.84/gallon, not bad for California...
You know your above 4000' when the Joshua trees appear...
At Barstow, we connected with I-40 east.
Our plan was to just overnight at a truck stop Steve had picked using the "AllStays" app. Apparently it had parking for 100 trucks and was about 30 miles west of Needles, California. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a dud. It wasn't one of the major truck stops like Pilot, Loves or TA and they wanted $10 to park in their gravel lot. Their diesel was $5.49/gallon (good thing we didn't need any yet!). There was one truck in their lot. We don't normally drive in the dark but now we are. The next plan was another small truck stop right in Needles...it didn't work out either. So we continued onto the junction of hwy 95 (that goes south to Lake Havasu) to a big Pilot truck stop. After 9 1/2 hours, Steve was totally spent!
We were up bright and early Monday morning and after grabbing a coffee at the Pilot store, we were on the road...it was 6:40 a.m.
Some interesting sights as we continue east on I-40...
About 50 miles before Flagstaff, we headed south on highway 89 towards Prescott.
This was on a 'round-about' just south of Chino Valley. The statues remind me of those at Borrego Springs, CA...
We took the highway that bi-passes the city of Prescott, over to highway 169 to I-17.
And this is what greeted us on the on-ramp to I-17...the traffic was backed up due to road work. It wasn't all that bad and it didn't take too long to get through...
Down, down, down we go into the Verde Valley....
That's the town of Jerome in the distance up on the hillside on the left...with Cottonwood below...
Verde River...
We arrived at Dead Horse Ranch State Park at noon. After checking in at the gatehouse, we found our way to our site (#62)...a good sized level pad, with electric (50 amp) and water ($25/night). We had unhitched and were just finishing a quick lunch when Ruth and Dale (NWescapee) popped over to greet us. We first met them at the 2012 RV-Dreams Rally in Oregon and had connected with them again last year in Quartzsite.
Set up took a little longer than usual because I decided to give the trailer a quick vacuuming. While we were busy at it, we saw Red and Pam (el Rojo and Pam) pull in (Ruth and Dale are two sites down from us and Red and Pam in the site beside them). After they were all set up, they stopped by to say hi. We last saw Red and Pam back home at Fort Langley in early September when they were on their way back down from Alaska.
We're all here to visit with Jesse and Sherry (WestWardHo)...another couple we had met at the 2012 RV-Dreams Rally. Unfortunately, their full-time RVing had to come to an end due to health reasons, so they are now living back in Cottonwood.
It was about 2:00 when we headed into Cottonwood to get propane and to pick up a few things at Walmart. After those chores were done, we popped over to say hi to Sherry and Jesse. We enjoyed a drink with them and then we all headed over to the campground for happy hour with the group.
From left to right...Pam, Red, Jesse, Sherry, Steve, Dale and Ruth..
We were up bright and early Monday morning and after grabbing a coffee at the Pilot store, we were on the road...it was 6:40 a.m.
Some interesting sights as we continue east on I-40...
About 50 miles before Flagstaff, we headed south on highway 89 towards Prescott.This was on a 'round-about' just south of Chino Valley. The statues remind me of those at Borrego Springs, CA...We took the highway that bi-passes the city of Prescott, over to highway 169 to I-17.And this is what greeted us on the on-ramp to I-17...the traffic was backed up due to road work. It wasn't all that bad and it didn't take too long to get through...
That's the town of Jerome in the distance up on the hillside on the left...with Cottonwood below...
We arrived at Dead Horse Ranch State Park at noon. After checking in at the gatehouse, we found our way to our site (#62)...a good sized level pad, with electric (50 amp) and water ($25/night). We had unhitched and were just finishing a quick lunch when Ruth and Dale (NWescapee) popped over to greet us. We first met them at the 2012 RV-Dreams Rally in Oregon and had connected with them again last year in Quartzsite.Set up took a little longer than usual because I decided to give the trailer a quick vacuuming. While we were busy at it, we saw Red and Pam (el Rojo and Pam) pull in (Ruth and Dale are two sites down from us and Red and Pam in the site beside them). After they were all set up, they stopped by to say hi. We last saw Red and Pam back home at Fort Langley in early September when they were on their way back down from Alaska.
We're all here to visit with Jesse and Sherry (WestWardHo)...another couple we had met at the 2012 RV-Dreams Rally. Unfortunately, their full-time RVing had to come to an end due to health reasons, so they are now living back in Cottonwood.
It was about 2:00 when we headed into Cottonwood to get propane and to pick up a few things at Walmart. After those chores were done, we popped over to say hi to Sherry and Jesse. We enjoyed a drink with them and then we all headed over to the campground for happy hour with the group.
From left to right...Pam, Red, Jesse, Sherry, Steve, Dale and Ruth..
We're looking forward to spending the next few days with our RV-Dreams friends...a mini RV-Dreamers gathering!
nice recap of your long long journey!
ReplyDeleteneed to ask though, Does Tucker have competition?..looks like a golden retriever attended happy hour?
Haha...yes, that's Dominic, a lovely old fellow belonging to Pam and Red.
DeleteWOW, that was a long trip. Can't imagine driving into the night. We hate when we have to drive past 3pm;o)) Enjoy your time with friends...one of the nicest parts of this wonderful lifestyle:o))) Say HI to Jesse and Sherry for us!!!
ReplyDeleteWill do!! :)
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