January 27 – 29, 2009 – Yuma and Family

We left Quartzsite in the morning and traveled US-95 to Yuma. First the stats:

Miles Traveled: 99 Miles
Routes Traveled:
AZ: US-95, 3E Street, County Route 17

The closer we got to Yuma, the more greenery and water we saw. The Yuma area is the lettuce capital of the world and they also have 3 cycles of crops (different) per year due to the warm weather and the proximity of the Colorado River (for irrigation).

We went to the KOFA Escapees Co-op and they only had boon docking sites. They could not tell us when a full hookup site would become available so we only booked one night. We then spent the afternoon calling different parks for a place to stay for a week and we got one at the Arizona Sands.

Our son-in-law, Mike, parents (Sandy and Raul) are here for the winter. We got together and spent the late afternoon and evening together. We have not seen them since June 2007 and it was great to get caught up with each other. It is always good seeing family.

On the street where they live, there is a lemon tree, lime tree, and orange tree. I will get pictures later.

On the 28th (Wednesday) we checked out the Escapee Park before we left. It is a really nice place and has a lot of park models on the sites. There is a waiting list, mostly for empty sites. There are 5 sites available but they have park models on them. We have decided that in the upcoming winters to spend more time here and then decide if that is an option for us. (They also have some great classes here - :-))

We left that park and set up in Arizona Sands. It is wonderful to have full hookups after over 2 weeks without them. When we boon dock the scenery is incredible. But most of the time with full hookups, we are in a park. I think for us, it is a balance since we have not found both – scenery and full hookups.

When we were camping in Quartzsite, our Direct TV satellite fell over (actually the wind blew it over) and we were unable to get the satellite again. So we spent over 3 hours trying everything to get the satellite and finally called Direct TV. A technician will be here on Thursday morning.

The rest of Wednesday, we got caught up on some items around the motorhome and just kicked back.

On the 29th (Thursday), Dean from Direct View came over and checked out our system. It turns out that the reflector was bent so we could not receive satellite signal. So we went into town and picked up another one and we are back in business.

Sandy and Raul picked us up late morning and we all went to the Yuma Arizona Marketplace. We were told in Quartzsite to check this out since it was supposed to be like the old Q. Well this place was HUGE! – Rows and rows of vendors selling just about everything. We only did a few of the rows, had lunch and headed out. I think it would take a few days just to see it all.

From there, we took a ride to the foothills and checked out some of the area – Very nice. And then back to Sandy and Raul’s where they treated us to dinner (THANK YOU SO MUCH) and chatting. It is always good to meet up with old friends/family and share stories and laughs!!

Some pictures for you:

Andy’s new look:
(Just love the hats – everyone is wearing them!!)

Andy and Raul off for a ride:

Sandy and I in the kitchen:

The orange tree:

The lemon tree:

The weather here continues to be beautiful - sunshine, warmth, beautiful sunrises, sunsets, and stars - :-)

Until tomorrow!