Lake Havasu - Part 3 - London Bridge & gettting The Palms weighed

For our final day on Sunday, my friend brought a couple of kayaks with him so we could put them in the canal.  I was really looking forward to that - I've never gone kayaking before - but the weather turned bad, really windy and cold, so that was off the table.

We went out for a nice breakfast in town then went down to the canal so I could get a couple photos of the water birds, and take some pictures of the London Bridge.

There's a nice little park where you can walk around, sit on the grass, tables, etc.  I liked this flag display:

Also this lighthouse - I'm assuming it's for show only...

These were taken driving across London Bridge - proof that I've been there, done that!

Then we drove off the bridge and parked in a lot so we could walk down and get some good shots of the bridge itself.  It was really pretty from this angle.

When we got back to camp, he packed up and headed back home, and I packed up and moved closer in to have fellow RVers nearby.

And as I said in the first Lake Havasu post, I liked the area so much, Katie and I stayed for the 14 days we were allowed.

While we were checking out Lake Havasu City, we went to the Sunday Swap Meet in town, and one of the vendors was the company that weighed The Palms shortly after I was on the road.  I've been wanting to have her re-weighed - for a full-timer it's recommended to weigh them every five years to make sure we're not carrying too many pounds for the motor home's specs.  I was happy to see the owner of Weigh To Go, LLC there, and it turns out he and his wife live in Lake Havasu City, so that was perfect!  I got their card and called later in the week to schedule an appointment.

We met in town and The Palms was weighed - all four wheels were weighed at the same time - and the results were pretty much what we were five years ago.  Slightly heavier, but still well underweight which was a relief.  So we're good to go for another five years.  These are the printouts I received that show what the specs are, and what the actual weight is:

And a final gorgeous sunset from Lake Havasu, AZ:

I'll bet Katie and I will be camping in that same BLM campground again in the coming years.

From me and Katie, have a great Sunday, everyone! 😊

Lake Havasu - Part 2 - Bluegrass on the Beach

First thing Saturday morning, we had coffee and burritos cooked outside on a Coleman camp stove - fried egg, bacon, cheese and sweet pepper all rolled into a warm burrito.  OMG, they were SO GOOD!

Then we secured our rigs and drove into town for some sightseeing.  He knew the area well and we checked out different areas of Lake Havasu City, then we went over to listen to the music.

This was the 15th Annual Bluegrass on the Beach Musical Festival.  It lasted three days, but we only bought tickets for Saturday.  We walked around checking out the vendor booths, bought drinks and food, walked down to the lake which was right there next to the grassy area, and then settled down on the grass in our chairs to enjoy the music.

I got photos of some of the groups.

Wayne Taylor and Appaloosa:

The Larry Stephenson Band
 - 2015 SPBGMA "Album of the Year"

Danny Paisley & the Southern Grass
 - Danny Paisley 2016 IBMA "Male Vocalist" of the Year" 

We stayed a while, then drove back to camp to check on Katie and relax.  Then we headed back in time for the last group - the U.S. Navy Bluegrass Band "Country Current."  Military bands are ALWAYS the best!  And these guys didn't disappoint.

U.S. Navy Bluegrass Band "Country Current"

From the information on the brochure, "Country Current performs regularly for the president, vice-president, the secretary of the Navy, the chief of naval operations, the chairman and vice-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the master chief petty officer of the Navy and numerous other dignitaries.  They also perform for communities both locally and nationally, veterans, elementary schools and in support of our active-duty Sailors."

They were fabulous!  What a treat!

While the Navy band was performing, a flock of blackbirds flew up into the tree right next to the stage and perched for a while, enjoying the ambiance.

As were all the people sitting on the grass:

Unfortunately, before the Navy band came to the stage, the weather started getting cold and windy.  Most people weren't dressed with jackets, but very few people left until they were done.  We stayed till the end, too.  They were just too good to walk out on.  We really enjoyed all the performances, and the Navy band was a great ending to the afternoon!

I'll show you some photos of the London Bridge next time.

From me and Katie, have a great Wednesday!  😎🎻🎼

Lake Havasu - Part 1 - Our Camp

Okay, we're back, finally!  I have lots to post about and tons of photos.  When Katie and I left Quartzsite, we headed to Lake Havasu to meet up with a friend and camp for the weekend while the Annual Bluegrass Festival was going on. They call it Bluegrass on the Beach.  😎

We ended up getting there on a Thursday and staying for two weeks.  I've never been to Lake Havasu before and really liked the area.  It's right on a beautiful lake, and I got to see the London Bridge and listen to great music.  There's good shopping in Lake Havasu City, and I was able to have The Palms re-weighed again by the same company who weighed her five years ago.  (We're still underweight by quite a bit, and well distributed.  So that was nice to know!)

I have a lot of photos from Lake Havasu, so I'll split them up in two or three posts and go light on the text.

This was our first campsite.  I snagged one with enough room for two rigs, and when my friend left on Sunday, I moved closer to where most of the RVs were set up.  This was perfect, though, flowers all around, craggy hills in every direction, and even a good tree!  We also had two good stone fire pits already set up for our campfires.  Level and lots of room.  Perfect!

It was cold in the mornings, so Katie had her pink bomber jacket on:

Wild flowers in the kitchen:

You can see why they called this Craggy Wash - but a better name would have been Craggy Hills.

When the sun was setting that first day, everything lit up around us.  It was beautiful.

Then the sun was setting and we had a beautiful sunset:

Full moon rising over our campsite:

It was so beautiful and peaceful at our site.

That's about it for our camp - I'll post more in a day or so with photos of the Bluegrass festival musicians that we saw and The London Bridge pictures.

From me and Katie, have a great Monday, everyone!😎💓😎

Leaving Quartzsite, a review, and meet-up with an old friend

In a month, April 1, it will be six years since I bought The Palms, so the insurance and license renewals are due.   I went on-line to pay for both, and even though I thought I had a pass this year on the smog certificate, I was wrong.  I need to smog The Palms.  I'm a California resident, and along with the annual vehicle registration that's required, every other year we have to send in a clean smog certificate.  The vehicle must be smogged at a certified facility in California.  And I have to be in California to do that.  Bummer, when I'm in Arizona!

Luckily, I found a great little place in Blythe that's only a half hour or so from Quartzsite, so yesterday I headed over there in the morning.  They had great reviews on-line.

When I got there I met the owners, Sergio and Esperanza, a husband and wife team. Sergio directed me into the office to talk to Esperanza who explained everything to me, the cost, what happens if the truck didn't pass the emissions test, etc.  Then I got Katie out of The Palms and we went into the office to wait.

It took 20 minutes or so, and during that time I chatted with Esperanza who was very friendly.  Then it was done - for another two years.  The Palms passed.  Whew.  I always think it will go well, but you never know.

By the way, it cost me $120 - across the street is a Ford dealership, where the price is $200. Same testing equipment, they both send the info the California DMV electronically, they do exactly the same thing.  EZ Lube is an older garage and not as fancy as a dealership, but the people were friendly, knew what they were doing, the service was great, and the job was done.  (Cars are cheaper; a different machine is used for RVs and I think everyone charges more for our rigs.)

I would highly recommend them if you're from California and need to have your vehicle smogged while in Quartzsite.  I doubt there's a closer shop to get it completed.

EZ Lube

345 E Hobsonway

Blythe, CA  92225

Shop:  (760) 921-2918

Cell:    (760-799-8967

 

Esparanza said they might be moving their shop this year, so if you want to make an appointment and the shop phone isn't working, use the cell number.  The new shop will also be in Blythe, CA, but double check the address.

A couple of weeks ago I met up with an old friend, Carolyn, with whom I used to work - and haven't seen for 34 years!  She and her husband, Fred, were on their way home from a convention and traveling through Quartzsite, so she messaged me and asked if I'd like to meet for a late lunch.

It's amazing how the years fall away and it feels just like it used to in the "old days."  

We had a great lunch at Taco Mio in town and talked for three hours.  The only reason we parted is because they still had a ways to go before they got home, and the sun was starting to go down.

I sure had a wonderful time.  The lunch was great, and the conversation even better.  We could have talked for hours and hours more.  It was so nice to see Carolyn again after all this time and to meet Fred.  And thanks for treating me to lunch, guys!  😀

Below is another photo of the view out my window.  Every time I look outside, I can't believe the green terrain.  Normally all that green would be brown desert, or brown/black rocks covering the desert floor.  This has been the wettest season I've seen in the six years I've been coming to Quartzsite for the winter.  Kind of cold and windy, too, this year.  Every year is different. 

Every year is great!

And a final sunset - I don't have any more photos, and I'm leaving the area tomorrow.  Perfect timing!

The next post will be written in a new location, somewhere I've never been, so I'm really looking forward the next couple of weeks.  New location, new people, new experiences.  Should be fun!

From me and Katie, have a great Wednesday, everyone!  ❤😎❤

Moved again today, but not far...birthday lunch, and generator maintenance

Kim came back to Quartzsite to get some things done on her Roadtrek, and since she is camped on Plomosa Road, I moved up there for a few days to visit.  This is such a quiet, peaceful camping area now that all the groups are gone. 

All the recent rains have really greened up the desert - there's even a field of grass growing right outside The Palms. 

Below is the view out the window over the couch - field of green, desert, and mountains.

I saw my first flowers today, too - this tiny purple flower was by itself, but there are hundreds of them not quite blooming yet that will be really pretty once they're all in bloom.

I met Gaelyn at the 2017 Bloggerfest a few weeks ago, and today I got to know her better.  She's camped here at Plomosa Road, too - we all took a walk in the afternoon, then sat outside and chatted.  Gaelyn is a summer seasonal Park Ranger and gave us lots of information about the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, a future destination for Kim.  She also has LOT of knowledge about rocks, which made our walk on this rocky part of the desert really interesting.  So much fun to meet up with old friends, and meet new friends!  Thanks for a great afternoon, ladies!  😎

Kim and I went to town on Friday while she was having LED lights installed in her rig, and we walked over to Taco Mio for her Birthday Lunch.  Geez, I love their enchiladas - we had a great time.

My generator has been running great, but it was time for the annual maintenance, so I brought The Palms into Bob's Generator to check it out, change the oil and fix an oil leak.  He's such a pro, he always seems to find problems easily.  I guess the valve cover wasn't completely sealed, or one of the screws wasn't tight enough, and oil was leaking from the lower right corner.  So he took it off, checked it out, cleaned it up, and re-sealed it.  So far, so good, it's not leaking any more.  It's so nice to have local vendors I can take The Palms to when she needs maintenance or repairs.  Especially when they are good and priced fairly.  :)

Phil, Bob's assistant, changed the oil for me. I should probably be doing that myself, but it's SO much easier to take it to Bob.

So now the generator is all set for another year.  I've been going to Bob for six years now - and still highly recommend him.  His shop is the big open yellow building on Main Street, near Highway 95.

Bob's Generator
Bob Dummer
(623) 224-7655

That's about it for now - this should be a quiet week just doing chores and laundry, etc., and visiting with friends.  On Thursday I'm heading out of town for four days, then back to Quartzsite.

From me and Katie, thanks for stopping by!  😊🌮🎂