A Hug-filled Escape to Quartzsite

Escapees estimates approximately 400 attendees at their first Quartzsite happy hour!

      We joined the Escapees RV Club the first year we became full-timers, and we are so glad we did! We have learned so much and met so many kindred spirits who always greet us with a hug.  Today we  took a gorgeous drive about 75 miles north on Arizona Highway 95 past the vegetable fields and the Yuma Proving Grounds to attend one of two Escapee Happy Hours in Quartzsite.  

Yuma County grows 90% of the winter vegetables consumed by the U.S. and Canada

Yuma Proving Grounds is a large Army installation about 30 miles north of Yuma.

      Apparently, we didn't look suspicious and quickly passed through the Border Security check point in the northbound lane.

Thankfully, there was not a long line at the Border Security check point.

Quartzsite, located on I-10 in the Sonoran Desert, is the RV Boondocking Capital of the World. 

      Hugs were abundant, and there was music, great food, great conversation and numerous reunions with friends we have made over the years.  There will be a second get-together tomorrow, but Valerie has a dental appointment in Algodones, Mexico, so we won't be able to attend.

Former RV School owners, Dennis and Carol Hill, pose for the camera.  Check out their travel blog http://rvdrivingschool.blogspot.com

      We anticipate that we'll have more time to socialize with Escapee friends next week during the RV School's annual Quartzsite gathering.  Preparations are well under way, and we are looking very forward to lots of hugs and campfire stories out under the stars in the Arizona desert.

Village People impersonators -- or wannabees, are having a GREAT time!

Check out Escapees.com and their special membership deals!  

Day Tripping South of the Border

Some of the more interesting pinatas displayed outside a Mexican merchant

   The last time we crossed the border into Mexico was the winter of 2008 while visiting the Rio Grande Valley.  At the recommendation of Valerie's sister we visited a dental clinic and had our teeth cleaned and some dental work done at a fraction of the cost of dental care in the States.

Driving West from Yuma on I-8 en route to Los Algodones, Mexico

   Many of our friends in the Phoenix area and other full time RVers have given us the names of dentists from whom they have received good care in the small town of Los Algodones, Mexico, just south and west of Yuma.  And Valerie was eager to get an appointment due a recently broken crown.  

Dr. Eva Urena's office at 4th Street and B Avenue in Los Algodones, Mexico

   The frustration became selecting one of numerous dentists to which we had been referred.   Valerie spent time doing extensive research on the internet and decided upon Dr. Eva Urena based upon another full time RVer's research and personal experience and then wavered back to a friend's recommendation.  

One of several colorful courtyards in Los Algodones

   As fate would have it the phone number for the friend's recommendation was not working (actually it was later learned to be the incorrect number) and she had difficulty finding his listing among the hundreds of practicing dentists from which to choose.  Dr. Urena had a website and her qualifications were readily available with internet searches, so we made an appointment for Friday morning.

A good place to warm up inside Paraiso Restaurant 

   The next issue of confusion was the time zone.  We had 9 a.m. appointments, but was that Yuma's Mountain Time or Pacific Time, which we would enter as we crossed the border into California before dropping south to cross the border?  Dr. Urena's office had emailed us excellent directions in preparation for our visit, along with payment options and was quick to respond to our question that all appointments are based upon 'Arizona' time although they are physically located in Pacific.

Not sure why there was money attached to the ceiling

   It's approximately a 30 minute drive from where we are staying at The Palms in Yuma to the International Border Crossing at Andrade, California.  From Interstate 8 we dropped south at exit #166 on State Route 186 approximately 2 miles and parked the car in the Quechan Indian Tribe's large parking lot for $6 for the day.  We walked across the border into Los Algodones and four blocks to the dentist's offices, bombarded by requests to see different dental or optical clinics and to purchase merchandise from sidewalk vendors.

Valerie's scrambled eggs served with bacon, refried beans, salad and tortillas

   We arrived early, filled out brief paperwork, and were put right at ease.  Another couple in the waiting area had also read favorable reviews and driven over 140 miles from the California side.  We paid $35 each for cleanings, and Valerie made a return appointment for two crowns that need replacing.  We found the office clean, the staff professional, cordial and fluent in English, and we did not feel pressured into procedures or added expenses we did not need.  

The Purple Pharmacy operates on both sides of this intersection

   Our next stop was at the Purple Pharmacy and Liquor Store to check prices for medications, and George was looking for a good deal on Kahlua and vodka.  We were advised that regulations had recently changed and that we could not buy alcohol before 11 a.m.  It was a crisp, cold morning and although we had not intended to eat there, we asked for a restaurant recommendation to get in out of the cold until we could purchase all that we wanted.

Can't beat these prices!

   Valerie ordered breakfast and George ordered lunch at Paraiso.  The bill came to $13 which we paid and returned to the pharmacy.  We bought one of Valerie's prescriptions, for which she has been paying $275 for 60, which was $6 for 100.  George's Kahlua was $8.99 for the 980 ml bottle.  

   The line for customs to return to the US was not long, thankfully, as the wind was still quite chilly despite the abundant sunshine.  We split up the alcohol so that we each had under one liter exempt from taxes and had our passports in hand.  There were strict rules, i.e. no photography, no entering the building until told, and George was told to keep moving rather than wait for Valerie.

Los Algodones, Mexico - Home to over 350 practicing dentists

   Overall it was a good experience.  There were a couple of armed guards not real apparent on the Mexican side.  We will return next week to have Valerie's dental work completed with another visit to the pharmacy and liquor store.  Hopefully, the day will be a little warmer.

Farewell to 2014

Happy New Year 2014!

   We rang in 2014 with friends and fellow campers at Meridian RV Resort in Apache Junction, Arizona.  Although we took great pride in having bought our 'last RV first,' we found the RV with the floor plan of our dreams, a 2007 Monaco Camelot, at a nearby dealer.  We spent a good bit of time admiring it on the lot, but were unable to come to mutually agreeable terms.

Annual RV School Quartzsite gathering in the desert is always a great time!

   Late January took us to our annual Quartzsite, Arizona gathering on BLM land in the desert.  What a great time we had with many of the RV Driving School's instructors, former students and friends of the school!

Part of the Congress Boot Camp Team

   From Quartzsite, we took the familiar drive up to the annual Escapees' Boot Camp in Congress, Arizona in early February.  We always enjoy these events, sharing information with new RVers and spending time with the staff.

George with J.D. Jenkins, our Las Vegas instructor

   Our next stop was Las Vegas, where we spent two weeks just catching up on business and meeting up with  instructor, J.D. Jenkins, and some long time friends.   And we couldn't miss the opportunity to fly out to Michigan to celebrate George's brother and sister-in-law's 50th wedding anniversary.

Congratulations on 50 years together, Jack and Helene!

   The weather was still cool, but we took I-40 stopping in Winslow, Arizona with a quick sightseeing trip to the Meteor Crater, which we had driven past on numerous occasions.  We made an overnight stop at the Walmart in Edgewood, NM and then stopped for a couple of days in Amarillo, Texas to catch up laundry, followed by a brief stop in Oklahoma City, and two more Walmart overnights in Van Buren and Forest City, Arkansas.

Meteor Crater near Winslow, Arizona

   We stopped just east of Memphis in West Memphis, Arkansas and parked along the Mighty Mississippi River at Tom Sawyer's RV Park for several days, followed by more Walmart nights at Alexander City, Alabama and Jacksonville, Florida.  Early March we settled for a month to conduct business and visit family at the Water's Edge RV Park, In Okeechobee, Florida, with a trip to Orlando for the Winnie Gators' Rally.

Many hours spent relaxing under the Tiki Hut in Water's Edge RV Park, Okeechobee, Florida

Dog parade judging at the Winnie Gators Rally in Orlando, Florida

   Early April we headed north through Jacksonville to Ashland, Virginia and Cherry Hill RV Park, just outside Washington, D.C. in Maryland.  We did a good bit of sightseeing on our way to meet with Harrisburg, Pennsylvania instructor, Ray Casselberry, and his wife, Barb.

No better time to visit D.C. than when the cherry trees are in bloom

   While in Harrisburg, we took a day trip out to nearby Hershey and stopped in Shanksville, Pennsylvania to see the Flight 93 Memorial, before heading out to Goshen, Indiana for another Escapees Boot Camp and the yearly rally, Escapade, in early May.

The site where United Flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania September 11, 2001

Dinner with several RV School instructors and spouses at Das Essenhaus in Middlebury, Indiana

   Our next stop was Kansas City to meet with instructor, Matt Genasci, and his wife, Dee.  We stayed at Lake Jacomo Campground for two weeks then moved to Worlds of Fun Village north of Kansas City to attend Valerie's family reunion in nearby Odessa.  In the meantime, George had re-established negotiations with Auto Boss RV in Phoenix, which accepted the offer we had extended in January.  George hopped on a plane and flew to Phoenix to finalize the deal, and we were soon on our way south in the heat of the summer.

Family reunion in Odessa Missouri 

   We left Monday, June 16, stopping at Walmart in Pratt, Kansas.  Tuesday we stopped in Tucumcari, New Mexico at Mountain View RV Park.   Wednesday we stopped in Flagstaff at the Twin Arrows Casino and made our way to Phoenix on Thursday afternoon to pick up our new-to-us coach.  We spent the first night in the Camelot at the dealership and moved the next day to nearby Viewpoint RV and Golf Resort where we parked the rigs side-by-side for several days.  It was HOT -- nearly 106 every day, and we, (especially the dogs), were quite anxious to get back on the road north.

Happy in our new home -- the Camelot

Troy and Betty Hanson

   Following stops in Camp Verde, Arizona, Ancoma, New Mexico, and Pueblo, Colorado, we arrived in Colorado Springs to meet with instructor Troy Hanson and his wife, Betty.  We then moved north to Boulder and Longmont with the hope to meet with instructor Asher Haun and his wife.  Valerie's daughter, Lindsay, lives and works in the area and was helpful in keeping us delightfully entertained.  

   Lindsay accompanied us to the Twin Cities, where she has a second office, from Longmont.  George has been recruiting an instructor in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area with the hope of offering lessons here.  He met with a couple of people while were at Mystic Lake Casino for visits with his son and two daughters.  

   It was about this time issues with the motor home began to snowball, and combined with family responsibilities and travels, Valerie fell behind on our blog.   It looks like now is the right time to let it go and resolve to do better in 2015.

George's family gathered in the Twin Cities

   August we headed south to Des Moines.  We enjoyed a day at the Iowa State Fair as well as some of the local tourist attractions -- Bridges of Madison County and John Wayne's birth place in nearby Marion.

Iowa State Fair

   We spent another two weeks in Kansas City, followed by a week in Columbia, Missouri and then headed for Ann Arbor, Michigan.  We met up with George's twin nephews, Jim and John, and caravanned down to the RV-Dreams Rally in Goshen, Indiana.  It was our first educational rally with Howard and Linda Payne, and we were impressed with the quality of the seminars and the social event planning behind the scenes.  We look forward to participating the their fall rally in Sevierville, Tennessee.

   After a return to Michigan to take care of some business, Anderson, Indiana seemed like a good stop-over so Valerie could fly back to Kansas City.  We stayed at Timberline Valley RV Park.  It was a bit of a challenge getting the Monaco parked there, but a nice park, nevertheless.  

   The time for our long awaited service appointment arrived, and we had a long list of items which needed to be addressed at Allied Recreation Group facility in Decatur, Indiana.  With the weekend and the wait for parts we spent a rainy week with early morning appointments getting repairs done on the Monaco.

Great times at the RV-Dreams Educational Rally in Goshen, Indiana

   We left Decatur mid-October and headed south as it began to get colder.  We spent two weeks back at Tom Sawyer's RV Park in West Memphis, with the hope to catch up on business between rallies.  We found time to do some sightseeing after we were joined by George's nephew, Jim and his wife, Terry.

The guys at Brewer's Auto Body Shop in Memphis re-attaching the door which broke off our engine compartment

  After a Walmart night at Sikeston, Missouri and Bryant, Arkansas, we stopped at M & G Engineering in Athens, Texas to get the air braking system connected onto the Subaru.  George really enjoyed learning more about the company and it's founder, Leon Meadows.

Dinner with instructors Greg Pyke and wife, Rosemary, and Glyn Carson and wife, Diane

   Livingston, Texas and Escapees' headquarters was our next stop for the annual Boot Camp, which again became two Boot Camps on consecutive weekends.   We especially enjoyed time with instructors Glyn Carson and his wife Diane, and Greg Pyke and his wife, Rosemary.  Boot Camp director, Mark Nemeth and former RV School owner, Dennis Hill and his wife Carol hosted delicious dinners for the staff.  Thanks, guys!

Thanksgiving dinner with Lynne and Carl Bynum

   From Livingston with stops in Kerrville, Fort Stockton, and Anthony, in Texas, and Benson, Arizona, we arrived in Mesa, returning to Viewpoint RV Park for a week for some doctor visits and other business.  We enjoyed a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner as guests of friends, Lynne and Carl Bynum in Tempe.  

   We had decided to try a different location this winter and moved south again to Yuma.  Valerie flew to Kansas City for a pre-Christmas visit with her son and his family and George flew to Minneapolis to spend Christmas with his family and for a doctor visit in preparation of cataract surgery.   We quietly rang in 2015 at The Palms RV Resort.

George and family in the Twin Cities

   It's hard to believe we've been on the road for so many years.  There is much we still hope to accomplish -- many more roads to travel and much more country to see.  We value our families, friends and acquaintances who cheer us along on our journey.  Safe travels and wishes for health, prosperity and happiness to all of you!

Enjoying gorgeous sunsets at The Palms in Yuma