Catching up.....Desert beginning to Bloom, Boondocking Rally and Revisitng London Bridge

After the visit from my brother we talked to some folks in the RV park about some hiking they had done and were told the desert was beginning to bloom. We had to get out and check it out our selves. We thought there would be some blooming around Picketpost Mountain near Superior but after we arrived and walked a short distance there was nothing to see. I had been to the Kelvin trailhead which is part of the Arizona Trail. The Arizona Trail runs north and south from Mexico to Utah....about 790 miles. We hoped for more wildflower sightings there. We drove through Superior and south on Route 177 about 25 miles. We found the trailhead and started our hike....we were not disappointed. We came over the first rise from the trailhead and the poppies began to pop.

Our hike started pretty slow with all the stopping and photo taking. After a while the poppies weren't as plentiful so we were able to make better time. We had a bit of an uphill climb and after a couple miles we decided to turn back and make it a day.

We stopped in Superior for some Mexican food. 

Typically we leave our winter stop by April 1 however our son, Chris and his fiancée, Kendra were getting married on April 19 so we certainly had to stay in the area for that. However before that all happened we had signed up for a Boondocking Rally with RV Dreams in Quartzsite, AZ off of Plomosa Rd. We got the motorhome ready making sure we had plenty of propane, filled the fresh water tank and made sure all the waste tanks were empty. Then it was a rather short 3 hour drive to the rally.

We got to Quartzsite a day early to get a good place to park. There were just a few other rigs there when we arrived. We chose a spot where we could have some afternoon shade. As others filtered in we formed a large wagon wheel.

The next day after all attendees were parked we all shared in a dinner with burgers and hot dogs provided by Howard and Linda Payne(RV Dreams full timers). Some provide sides for sharing.

 After dinner we all enjoyed a beautiful sunset in the desert. 

Each evening we had a communal bonfire and we started a tradition of campfire songs. One of the couples(I didn't get everyone's name...sorry)had a guitar and knew all sorts of songs that we could sing to. Everyone joined in and started new friendships.

Each day We had some type of demonstration or gathering to learn more about dry camping(boondocking) or discussions about where other attendees were going this summer. We had a great demonstration on transferring water from a water bladder to a fresh water tank. Howard had a water bladder and a transfer pump. He showed us how to use the transfer pump and hoses to get the water from the bladder to the tank. It's actually a fairly easy task. This is important to know in case you aren't as conservative on your water usage or you have a small fresh water tank and need to refill.

Water bladder in truck

The type of transfer pump used

Thank you Howard

One morning some of the women had a craft project of doing T shirt braiding. Glenda attended and was able to braid a T shirt that she got at another RV Dreams Rally we attended when we started our full time adventure.

Another day the women and some men got together and Linda and Leesa showed hoe to use an Instant Pot. The Instant Pot is a big thing now in the RV world and the dishes they made were yummy. They even made some desserts in the Instant Pot.

The next day our new friends Dennis and Cheryl lead a discussion on their plan to tour Alaska this summer. They had everything planned out and showed us some books that they used for that planning. I thing there are 3 other couples going to Alaska too. All are traveling separately.

The weather was perfect for the rally and boondocking. Nice breezes each day, plenty of sun for our solar panels to keep our batteries charged up and just overall great friendships made.

The last full day of the rally we planned to take a drive to Parker, AZ and drive about 5 miles out into the desert to Nellie's Saloon or what they call the Desert Bar. You need a high clearance vehicle since the road is pretty rough. We rode with Leesa Palmer and Linda in Leesa's Jeep. We caravanned out and everyone started with some beverages and stood in line for food. They have great burgers, fries, corn dogs and wraps. IT was pretty busy by the time we got there so we stood in line for about 45 minutes. They have a band playing so we could hear the music and it was fun talking to other folks in the line.

Dennis, Carl and Pam

Linda and Cheryl

Leesa and one of the couples I didn't get their names

Guess who

Linda was feeling some beverages and the music and started to dance

She's got moves

The gang

The next day folks started to leave and we made sure to get information from some of the folks we were able to connect with at the rally. We had a wonderful time and learned a lot about how to conserve more. I know we'll be boondocking again in the future. We actually made it a full 7 days and could have gone at least 1 or maybe 2 more days.

We had decided to spend some time after the rally in Parker, AZ at River Island SP. WE had been there before with our friends, Faye and Dave a couple years prior. We had enjoyed our time there and wanted to go back to Lake Havasu City to see the London Bridge. We had  nice relaxing time and checked out a couple RV parks in the area for possible future visits. We had lunch at the Hanger 24 brewery.

We got up one morning and hiked a short trail up to a viewing point next to the park. We had great views of the Colorado River and the park including our site.

It was nice having electricity and water again at the park and access to Wal Mart. It was a great interlude before returning to Canyon Vistas RV Resort as we waited for Chris and Kendra's wedding date to arrive. Our only reservation about being at this park is there is no internet and their WIFI is practically non existent. Oh and we didn't have our satellite TV since we got rid of Direct TV and hadn't switched to Dish yet. Rough life I know.

Upon our return to Canyon Vistas we were able to get the site right behind our site that we have had for the last 5 winters. This site face the east instead of the west. This way we could have afternoon shade and this was a good thing since the temperatures in Gold Canyon were beginning to rise into the 90's. It turned out to be a good choice even though it is next to a park model home.

Different angles of our site #308

Well as usual I've procrastinated writing this post and I know I've left our some things but I hope to get the feel for our activities from the end of March to mid April.

Next post will be dedicated to Chris and Kendra's wedding and time we spent with our grandson, Aiden, who was the ring bearer.

Thanks for following along.