Catching up, friends and a new state....CALIFORNIA

Since my last post we have moved on to River Island SP and now in Twenty-nine Palms, CA so I'm catching up on what we've done and where we've been. But first I need to post about our final get together with our son Chris before we left Gold Canyon.

Chris invited us to have breakfast with him the morning before we left. He wanted to eat at a place called The Perch. By afternoon and evening it's a great little pub and brewery but they also have breakfast too. We met Chris and his girlfriend Amber at his house and he drove us to Chandler, AZ where  the Perch is located. IT used to be a bird sanctuary/rescue facility but now a restaurant.

 It was great getting to spend one last time with our son before moving on until next fall/winter. We all had very good food but the waitress was a little inattentive. The surroundings made up for the poor service. We sat outdoors which gave us some nice atmosphere. They have an upstairs deck area that's open in the evenings.

After we said our goodbyes we went back home and got ready to travel. The next morning we closed everything up, hitched up and said goodbye to neighbors at the RV park. It was a smooth move to River Island SP just north of Parker, AZ. This is a wonderful park with friendly park rangers and nicely spaced sites.

The park was pretty full with tenters and folks there for the weekend. The park has a beach on the Colorado River, if you can call it a beach. It's a little deceiving.

There's a big drop off at the edge of the water so not much space to sit out and get sun. They also have a boat launch. All weekend there were big cigar boats blasting up and down the river in front of the park.

We took a hike up a trail next to the park to get an over view of where we were at and the river in front.

That's us in the middle

The first night we were at the park I had some trouble getting the satellite zeroed in to the TV so I took a walk around the park to see what direction others were pointing. It crossed the road and the neighbor came to greet me. Seems he had some trouble too when they got there. We discussed the elevation and azimuth and I finally got it figured out. Glenda wondered where I was and came over to our neighbors site too. Bob and Momee were leaving the next day for Havasu City but invited us to dinner with them. So we said yes. They're a wonderful couple and full of life. So glad we got to know them. That's what the nomad lifestyle is all about.

After the weekend a lot of folks left and the park settled down some. We were waiting for our friends Faye and Dave Malouf to arrive Monday for the next few days. We had plans to see Lake Havasu City, London Bridge, some boating and canoeing/kayaking. They arrived and we had them over for dinner after they got set up.

The next day we headed to Lake Havasu and the London Bridge. You can read about the history and how the bridge got to AZ. Here are a few photos.

Glenda and Faye wanted to have their picture taken under the palm trees so we obliged.

I also got a great shot of Faye and Dave

After our tour of the bridge we decided to get some lunch. We drove across the bridge to the Barley Brothers Brewpub. Dave and I sampled several brews and I enjoyed the stout the best.

 

Each evening we played Spades, guys against the girls. Well each evening the girls won big over the guys. They loved it and we didn't. But that's cards. However on the last night together the guys did finally win and redeemed some honor.

The next day we decided to rent a pontoon boat and take a ride up the Colorado River to the Parker Dam. There was little traffic on the water during the week so it was a good time to go. The Blue Water Casino has a little marina where you can rent boats. We shared the cost and got aboard and headed up stream.

We saw other RV parks right on the river across in California. Yes the other side of the river is California. There were many homes along the river both manufactured types and stick and brick.

It was a perfect day for boating. Dave even had to jump in to day he had been in the Colorado River.

The next day we planned to kayak/canoe on the Bill Williams River north of our park and just up from the Parker Dam. They have a nice little launch area for non motorized boats. WE headed around the reeds and up the river. It was very calm and peaceful there with nice landscape and wildlife.

As we headed back in the wind had picked up and there were some choppy waters getting into the launch area. Glad we went back when we did. The weather was changing with some showers in the forecast. Actually the cloudy skies were a welcome relief from the sun we had the last few days.

Faye and Dave had us over for a fantastic pulled pork dinner that Dave had brined and smoked in his smoker for the last couple of days. What a treat. Can't thank them enough for their hospitality and friendship.

The next day it was time to move on for both of us. Faye and Dave will be finishing their commitment at the Spur Cross Nature Area near Cave Creek and we were headed to Twenty-nine Palms, CA.

We parted way the next morning with some tears and hugs and see you soon. Unfortunately we won't be seeing them next winter since they will be going to TX instead of AZ. I know we'll be seeing them down the road at some point and what a reunion that will be. Looking forward to it.

A couple more pics of my buddy Dave. I love his zest for life and positive attitude.

So that brings us to Twenty-nine Palms, CA. A NEW STATE FOR US. That is in our RV'ing lifestyle. We're at the Twenty-nine Palms RV Resort near Joshua Tree NP. Not my type of resort but a nice place to stop and explore S. California. We'll do some hiking and traveling to the coast later this month and visit a friend and family. More to come with that. I'll post more as things happen. Thanks for following along.

Here's a taste of what we saw on a quick auto hike (in a car) through Joshua Tree NP yesterday.

Can't wait to explore the trails there.