Allspice Westward

 2/28- Verde River RV Park, Camp Verde AZ    We had a plan today that quickly went awry. We planned to head over to Sedona to try to experience one of the vortex’s that are reputed to be in this area. Well so did half the country as we tried 3 or 4 different parking areas of which none had any spots available. So we just motored down the road until we passed by and then turned around and drove back out.     It wasn’t a bad experience as the views were impressive. The red rocks and the towering mesa’s were gorgeous. There are supposed to be 4 vortexes in the area which carry high spiritual energy. We got near the Bell Rock one and about the only thing I felt was a strong desire to get the hell out of there. By the time we were heading out there was a constant stream of traffic heading in. This was way too many people.     So on to the next part of the plan which was to visit Montezuma Castle. Here again we had to drive through the parking lot ...

 2/27- Prescott Valley AZ    We headed out this morning on a long road. It went for what seemed like hours before finally heading up the long hill and into our new campsite. Actually we went about a 1/4 mile. Due to a scheduling error on my part I had reserved our next stop for Saturday night leaving us without a place to go tonight. When I went and talked to the campground people they had a site but not the one we were in so we had to move across the campground. Of course by the time I got this figured out the new place had said they could change the reservation arrgh!!     Anyway it turned into a good deal as this campground has these trails so we could take a hike. It was a spectacular hike in fact. We walked amongst all these granite boulders and there were great views from these wide ledges running along the lake. Basically we circumnavigated the lake which was about a 5 mile hike. The first 2 1/2 miles were climbing over all these boulders the rest was jus...

 2/26- Point Of Rocks RV park, Prescott Valley AZ    See I snuck a Q in there      The temp was rising even as we ate breakfast so we decided to hightail it out of there. We quickly got out of California and now I can afford to buy some fuel. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to push the van over the line into Arizona where diesel is almost $2 cheaper.     We ended up pulling into Quartzite to get fuel and also because we wanted to check this area out. This is RV central. The area is surrounded by BLM land and these ares are filled with campers. Because you can stay for free it attracts an interesting crowd. A big rally for Winnebagos was held here in January and apparently there were several hundred attendees.      As we left the interstate and headed north we steadily rose in elevation. The land around Quartzite was pretty barren and as we went north it continued. We were seeing saguaros now up the sides of the hills. This road we...

 2/25- McIntyre RV Park, Blythe,CA    The road out this morning dropped from desert with plenty of vegetation to virtually no vegetation. One side of the road was a California State Park. This is an OHV park which means you can drive just about anything anywhere. This is where people can use the 4 wheel drive vehicles you see advertised on tv to their hearts content. There is really nothing to hurt out here except maybe a few creosote bushes and rocks.     We did notice in the (not that far) distance that they were shooting off missles at one of the naval gunnery ranges. You could watch the missle go up and do a big loop before crashing to earth.      It was amazing to me to see the amount and variety of all the different crops being grown here. On one side of the road nothing will grow except rocks and yet on the other side with some water all kinds of crops grow. As we went around the bottom of the Salton Sea there were lush fields of lettuce an...

 2/24- Anza Borrego Desert, CA    We had turned off the furnace last night thinking it would be warm enough. Well it was 50 inside the rv this morning. So we just stayed under the covers until the sun crept over the mountains and within minutes it was 70 degrees. It always amazes me the temperature swing between ight and day on the desert. It was almost 90 degrees in the afternoon but less than 8 hours later it was 50 out only to go right back up to 90 again.     We drove about 30 miles to another dispersed camping spot. We turned off and drove a half mile down this dirt road and pulled off into a nice spot in the middle of the desert. It sits on the edge of this butte overlooking the town of Borrego Springs. Behind us there is a large wash about a half mile to the top of the next butte.     We decided to take a walk in the morning as by afternoon it was quite hot. There are all kinds of plants blooming and some are so tiny you hardly even kn...

 2/23- Blair Valley , Anza Borrego State Park     It was another bright sunshiny morning and it was exceptional in that the furnace only came on once last night. At least I only heard it come on once as the low temp was 57. We headed out right away but we only went about 20 miles until we got to Blair Valley.     This is a dispersed camping area which means you can camp for free as long as you don’t block a road. The road was pretty rough getting in but once there we picked a nice campsite in a little hollow. There was creosote bushes and actual green grass on the edges. It was surrounded by large hills of boulders and the valley was a flat plain with what could be mistaken for grass. The plain extended about 5 miles away and could have posed as a meadow.     We took a bit of a walk as there was supposed to be an historical marker somewhere. We eventually found it but it wasn’t easy as it blended in with all the rocks. It was commemorating th...

  2/22- Agua Caliente County Park, Anza     Borrego, Julian CA       Siri got off to a great start this morning though we didn’t trust her enough to let her do the job. Her directions didn’t make sense at first and we reset her several times. We finally succumbed to her pleas and used the route she picked. We would have turned and taken Rt 10, a big highway but she had us go on this back road. This road wound for 20 miles down this long canyon.       It was a spectacular ride twisting and turning and having new incredible rock formations popping up around every corner. Apparently this is all public land as we saw lots of folks camped out along the way. As nice as it be to camp there I would never do it in the rain as that is all in a wash.        Anyway we turned the last corner and there was the Salton Sea. This lake is 200 feet below sea level and is so briny that nothing lives in it. As we skirted the top of it we ...

 2/21- BLM campground, south entrance Joshua Tree NP    This morning started out cold as the snowman I made yesterday still lived. We got our act together a bit earlier than usual on this bright sunny day. All the windmills that were next door were cranking out the electrons. We dove down from 4000 feet to around 1000 feet or so and the snow slowly disappeared.     We were now in the desert. The road just went flat and straight for miles. We passed by acres of solar panels and they were even adding on to the pile.     Once we got far enough east we turned south and began to climb again. We passed over 4000 feet again and then slowly wound our way down to the town of Twenty Nine Palms. I certainly didn’t count them but I’m sure there were more than that. Again for the second year in a row we struggled to find the entrance road finally having to ask someone.     We drove into Joshua Tree not so much to see anything as we had been...

 2/20- Mountain Valley RV Park, Tehachapi CA   It dawned a nice sunny if somewhat chilly morning. I took a short walk to gobble down some more of the tangerines. We got off to a slow start trying to find the Walmart in Merced. It’s tough when we have Siri on two different phones each trying to get you to go her way.      Route 99 through this part of California is not the road that the chamber of commerce wants tourists driving on. It’s kind of like the back alley of California. We went by lots of industrial areas including super large dairy farms. It’s just there are shopping centers lining the road on one side and grain silos and packing plants on the other. Needless to say it was not particularly scenic. We did drive by acres and acres of flowering trees. Mostly they were almonds but lots of cherry and raisins along with other fruit. All I can say is those must be some awfully busy bees to have to pollinate that many flowers. Then they have to do some regular...

 2/19- Merced Elks Lodge RV Park, Merced CA   We heard from Alayne’s sister in Paradise this morning and they had about 6” of snow there. It was still raining when we left but it soon turned to all snow. The road were fine but visability was limited. It snowed pretty hard on us until we got almost to Maryville where it lightened up. Looking up in the hills and the buttes were all covered in snow.     Nearing Sacramento the sun even came out. I have never seen this area look so green. Usually it is baked brown when I pass through here. Still the grass on the side of the road could only be described as spring green it was such a vibrant color. There was plenty of water flooding a lot of the fields which was mostly ok as there were many rice paddies. We passed acre upon acre of almond trees in full bloom. It is a little concerning because if the wind and snow knock the flowers off there will be no almonds.      After Sacramento the wind really picke...

 2/18-Chico CA    Well today we did nothing. I mean we just hung around the house and read or napped. We did manage to drag ourselves outside for a walk while the sun happened to pop out. There just wasn’t really anything we could do as it was chilly and we were just waiting to leave.     We went over to the Inn for Wine Down Wednesday. We were meeting up with everyone to say goodbye. We did finish up another puzzle and had a bit of party in Betty’s room. Apparently they were celebrating Chinese New Year today so Happy New Year!!    There was snow up on the butte today and possibly more tonight. Hopefully it stays up there as we head out tomorrow. 

 2/17- Chico CA    We moved today but only down the street. We are now camped in front of Alayne’s sisters house. We will sleep inside tonight and leave the rv to its own devices. It was cold and blustery today and there was a hail storm just up the road so we opted for inside seating.    We headed over to the Inn where they were having a Mardi Gras party. There was a jazz band playing in the dining hall and we all had jambalaya for lunch. There were masks and beads all around.      After dinner we all went out to the movies to see Wuthering Heights. They told me it was supposed to be really racy so I decided to attend as well. You’ll have to see it if you want to know how racy.     More cold and rain coming tomorrow. At least today there were spurts of sunshine. It sounds like tomorrow and Friday are going to be the coldest days and then it warms up again. I will heading south as fast as I can pedal by then. 

 2/16- Chico CA   A drove down to Sacramento today to pick up the pair of A’s who were returning from the frozen north. The weather here wasn’t much better as it barely made it into the 50’s.     I just chilled here and did some chores between raindrops that needed to be done before we could leave. Chilled would be a good way to describe it as it was not a pleasant day outside.     It looks like we are on the move tomorrow at least for a bit. I’m hoping this storm mosey’s its way north while we are scrambling to get south. The forecast calls for possible snow down to 750 feet. We are a ways below that but it’s not far away as the foothills go up pretty quick. 

 2/15- Chico CA   Give this place a little rain and wow spring has sprung. The grass is blowing out of the ground and is the very definition of GREEN. I don’t think I’ve ever been here when the grass was this green. Whole orchards of walnut and almond trees are blooming. The cherry trees and even the magnolias are wafting an aroma that out does car exhaust. It’s pretty amazing to see all this happen in the span of several days.     I did get out for a short bike ride before the rain came down. I went by orchards where all the trees are showing their spring coats. It was a short ride as the rain threatened and I wanted to get stuff done outside at the rv.     The rain is coming down hard now and I have to shout to hear myself. There are all kinds of winter storm warnings for the higher elevations so I think we’ll hang down here. More rain is called for tomorrow so it will be an inside day I fear.  

 2/14- Chico CA   Happy Valentines Day a truly Hallmark holiday. In the true spirit of the day we decided to give blood today. There is no Red Cross around here so we had made an appointment with the local agency that handles such things. It felt better than buying flowers.      After we got back from that the orders were no strenuous activity so we decided a nap was in order. The first nap was so strenuous that it required a second nap.      After struggling to right ourselves we went on our yearly pilgrimage to Sierra Nevada brewery. It is not a trip to Chico until we visit Sierra Nevada. Johnny and Craig joined us for dinner. There were tons of couples out for their Valentines dates and a number of the outfits were uh, interesting(?).      The weather tonight takes a hard turn to the north. Rain is expected tomorrow and Monday with an inch to 2” possible. The temps are also going to dive so it looks like we are in for a bit of wi...

 2/13- Chico CA    It was another lazy day at the campground. We hung around all morning putzing with little stuff. After lunch I dropped Alayne off at grandmas and went grocery shopping. We haven’t eaten at home a whole lot but we were starting to run low on some essentials like chips and crackers.     Anyway this involved a bit of driving around town. It’s not that we haven’t driven here but after a while it just gets tedious. There seems to always be traffic everywhere you go. Gas is literally $5 a gallon but it doesn’t seem to make much difference. Maybe I’m just getting old but the drivers show you no quarter either. Pulling onto the highway the other day a car pulled up to the bumpers of the car in front of him so I couldn’t get into the lane. That wasn’t so bad but the car behind him did the same thing. I guess they were in a bigger hurry. Even today in the grocery store a woman almost crashed into my cart trying to get between me and the counter. Th...

 2/12- Chico CA    We went for a nice hike this morning on an old road. This is a nicely paved section of a bike and walking path that ascends a ridge. It is a steady 2-3 mile climb along what was an old wagon road that headed up the butte. It is pro ported you can still see the ruts from wagons on the side of the trail. There are ruts there but are they 100 years old? Anyway once you get near the top you are afforded a grand view of Chico and the valley. The Coastal mountain ranges were wearing their cloud caps against the bright blue sky. The walk down we had the view in our face the whole way.     We checked in with the Bettster but we were just getting in her way so she said see you later.      Later we went down to Chico State and watched the boys and girls basketball games. The girls are having a good season and their game was over before halftime. I think they won by 45 points. The boys were not having a good season but were playing the onl...

 2/11- Chico CA    I have always loved the sound of rain on the roof. In the rv you can hear it pretty plainly. It rained last night so hard you couldn’t have talked inside. We even woke up to a patter of rain in the roof. We hung in bed as long as we could as there wasn’t much else to do.     We headed over to grandmas to help her out with her puzzle and what do we see, they are having baby animals at the Inn. The baby in question here was a two week old Painted Desert sheep. These are sheep that do not grow wool and thus do not need to be clipped. They are used mostly for meat and grass control. This little cutie was apparently rejected by her mom and was being bottle fed.     I have a cute story for you along these lines. Kalyn had a lamb that was a runt and rejected by the mother. What she normally does is waits and sees if it is alive the next morning and then she might take some steps. She didn’t give this guy much chance but neverthele...

 2/10- Chico CA   See I actually do know what day of the week it is. Spoiler alert, I had to look it up.     It was a fairly nice day until early afternoon when it started raining. We tried to get outside in the morning knowing that would be the case. We did a few chores and Alayne brought Betty to her doctors appointment 2 hours late. She had been told the wrong time and so at least she got her mom out of the room and took her for a car ride.      Once it started raining we just hunkered down and read and napped. Our life here has not been terribly exciting and I’m hoping I’m not boring my 3 readers to tears. We should be on the road again in about a week so please bear with me. I will try to find something interesting to write about. Hang in there !

 2/9- Chico CA   My daughter who runs a farm called me the other day to gripe about her partner. Apparently he had cut his foot and then thought he could take the whole next week off. Kalyn said the we raised her to just suck it up and go back to work. We’ll get back to this in a minute.      I had been feeling rather poorly the last couple of days and so we punched a list of symptoms into Dr Google and she came out with UTI. Never having had a UTI it took me by surprise but all the symptoms fit. So off in the morning to the immediate care facility. I figured Monday morning we got there 8:15 how busy could it be? Well the line was out of the doors and every chair in the place was filled with hacking and coughing people. If I wasn’t sick I probably would be by the time I left. I do have to give them credit though as I was out of there by 11:15. All tests were negative. She even tested me for 2 types of flu and Covid. Again everything was negative. I guess I will ...

 2/8- Chico CA    The Patriots lost and I’m too depressed to write tonight. Not really but I am not feeling well so off to bed for me. 

 2/7- Chico CA    We headed over today to spend some time with Alayne’s mom. I hadn’t been over there much and so I thought I’d hang with her for a bit. We did attend a piano concert of sorts. The guy was a music history teacher and so he gave backgrounds on all the songs he played. It was interesting and he was a pretty good piano player. Betty is doing fine and just cruising right along.     Another reason for hanging with grandma today was to rest. I have been on the go since we got here. I walked about 4 miles playing eighteen holes of golf one day. The next I walked about 4 miles dragging my broken bike and then the next day another eighteen holes of golf. To top it off we did a 5 mile bike ride yesterday. I needed a day off to recover.     We have been here a week now and it looks like the weather is turning on us for the next week. We have another week or so to go before we can head south again. 

 2/6- Chico CA   We got some chores done around the camper this morning. It felt good to just hang out for a few. The weather warmed up nicely as we dumped the tanks and cleaned the cab.    I finally got the solar panel online and it was pumping out the juice quite nicely. It’s not that we need it as we are plugged in but it’s nice to know it works for when we do need it.      I got my bike back together and working so Craig and I took a ride over to watch Chico State baseball and softball. These are some of the first games of the season but it’s still February. It was nice watching baseball in February. We finally had to give up and head back home as the sun was so intense that I was getting fried.      We took a trip up the Skyway tonight to head into Paradise. We met up with a crew at Nic’s which is a nice wine bar in downtown Paradise. It was a good time as this crew is a regular Friday night occurrence and we have met all of them se...

 2/5- Chico CA    Another (yawn) beautiful day dawned and we headed out to the local links. This was a group of guys that my brother in law had played softball with some 20 years ago. I thought it was amazing that a group of guys could still get together after all that time. Apparently they do all kinds of things like charity work and such but still manage to play golf every couple of weeks. I was glad to have been part of the fun today.     By the way I improved my golf game immensely today. I came home with five more balls than I left with, a new personal best!    This morning we were chatting with our new neighbor who lives in Seattle and it turns out that he had sailed on the Mystic Whaler years ago and knew Pat and John. It just goes to show the reach that boat had as we meet people from all over that walked on that deck.     To finish the day off we went to a nice Mexican restaurant with Craig. Tomorrow it sounds like the weat...

 2/4- Chico CA    Today’s episode has us finally getting the bike off the rack. Alayne drove her sisters down to Sacramento and while she did that I thought it would be a good idea to explore a little on the bike. It was a little chilly at first but I wanted to explore this bike trail that runs along the interstate. They have built a big pedestrian bridge further south in town and I thought I would try to get there.      It was easy at first as there were signs pointing the way and the path was just straight along the freeway. Once I ran into one of the bigger avenues I struggled to find where it went. I rode down several dead ends before finally finding it on one of the major streets. It was a nice bike path and off the highway but you had to stop every hundred yards or so for a cross street.      I eventually found a good side street and it brought me to a park I recognized. In the park I picked up the bike path again and decided to start h...

 2/3- Chico CA    Another nice sunny day. The temps get into the upper 70’s during the day but once the sun goes down they drop into the lower 40’s. We still have to leave the furnace on but it will only come on about 2 or 3 in the morning as it finally cools off.     I took a walk up the street to visit the hardware store and Harbor Freight. I bought a two foot long breaker bar so I hopefully will be able to get the lug nuts off if I have to. I then tried to hook up the solar panels which I thought I had finished in Vermont. Turns out I put the wrong size fuse holder in or I bought the wrong size fuses. Anyway I had all these electrical connections I could use but no tool to make them. Back to Harbor freight. It was good to find this out here where I can actually buy things as opposed to out on the desert.       We spent much of today walking and I have to say this is not a pedestrian friendly place. In Vermont if you look like you migh...

 2/2- Chico CA    Happy Ground Hog Day!! If the fellow was anywhere near the east coast I doubt he came out at all. This marks the half way point of winter. We are now half way between the solstice and the equinox.     It was a beautiful day today with the temps reaching the mid 70’s so we decided golf was the pick of the day. Craig and I and a couple of friends played eighteen holes at the Chico Country club. As I only seem to play golf when I am here I think I did pretty well. No I did not keep score but I find golf is a game where you hit just enough good shots that you want to keep playing.     After that we just went out for some beers and decided we’d had enough of this day. 

 2/1- Chico CA   Not much happened today as we spent the morning cleaning and reorganizing the rv. We were taking stock to see what we had with us and to remember what was buried in the bottom of some cabinet.     The flat tire incident has got me thinking. I need to reevaluate the tools and means to repair things on the rv. It was pretty easy to just call someone and they show up and fix everything. I searched online for how other people were handling getting the nuts off. Most were just calling roadside assistance. That would work fine where we were but not so much 100 miles out in the desert. So I have been trying to figure out which tools would work and which were worthless.     After lunch we headed out for a hike in the park with Alayne’s sister. This is the first time I have been here when the grass was actually green. In another month it will all be baked brown.     After an extended nap session we headed over to have dinner...