Our 9 month adventure will be quite dynamic this year. Why you ask? We plan to chase our new granddaughter, Collins! Right now she is in Toronto with her parents, but not sure that is where they will be in a few months. Kevin and I are dog setting Grandpa (their dog) so they have one less being to manage during any transition. Where we return him is unknown as we depart our home in Cary, NC.
The 101 south was blocked due to area fires so debates as to which mountain pass to select to get into the LA/Riverside basin from the north. The grapevine was steeper, longer, windier with very heavy traffic. The other pass out of Palmdale was a bit out of the way but would use the I15 to traverse the mountain pass. Since it was a weekday the shorter distance was selected. The winds were very strong blowing tumbleweeds and debris everywhere. Kevin fought to stay in line while dodging slow moving vehicles struggling to make the grade. The Smitanic did well on the grade and thankfully traffic was light (for LA). The last descent into Hemet off I10 was a familiar relief. This marks the 5 year out of the last 6 at Golden Village Palm RV Resort just across the street from Theresa’s moms home in the Hemet West retirement community. The Smitanic settled in to the same site as the previous year saying hi to the Canadian neighbors Ken and Charlotte.
A quick set up was done and then it was off to Theresa’s moms house to greet her 97 year old mom and 2 of her 4 siblings! Welcome to the west coast winter Home!
The plan is to stay until mid-March, then head back east for a short stay in Florida, then finally return to NC in April.
In all, the timing of the year (late-September) was good to get south and west as the weather patterns shifted into winter mode soon after each stay. The subtheme of Route 66 allowed for some interesting sites as well as some bucket list hits!
Here was the route from Toronto to Hemet. 3942 miles, 51 nights at 21 locations.
The Tobin James Cellars just outside Paso Robles was another Harvest Hosts location and would allow a 2 night stay in their adjacent parking lot as long as your RV was out of the way of the UPS truck staging area that was quite busy throughout the day.
The two wine enthusiast headed to the tasting room to soon spend much more on Wine purchases than any campsite fee would have been for the multiple nights stay. The plan was to meet up with old friends from San Diego, Jim & Nicki Parker who live in Paso and visit the unique boutique vineyards and partake in the abundant wine tastings. Jim helps out at the Bella Luna winery.
On the second days stay the team met him and the owner and got a quick tour of the wine making process.
The next day Kevin and Theresa checked out 2 other Harvest host wineries in Paso to discover that they were not going to work for the size of the Smitanic RV. One the rig could not get in due to low tree branches on the roads to the winery and the other entry was ok but could not figure out how to get out as backing up all the way out was not viable. Alas a reservation at Cava Robles RV Park was made. It was moderately priced but was new with nice large sites.
Theresa looked up Pickleball locations in the area in hopes to introduce Nicki and Jim to the sport! There was a very active group that played at a local community center nearby. However rain and other events did not allow anything but a short visit to get some initial info on the group. Maybe next time.
The next day’s treat was dinner at Allegretto Vineyard Resort with some of Jim’s younger relatives who were visiting the area. This was a very posh hotel with a European Venetian feel, with massive statues and artwork lining every hallway! The meal, wine and company were delightful!
Next on the schedule was a Wine festival of local boutique winemakers. There were 100 or more filling table after table to display and share their vintages. One memorable one was ‘On your left’ winery and had varietals with names like paceline, twowheeler, and Cycologyst…. much tasting and comparing filled the evening. Final hugs were exchanged amongst the forever friends.
What a great visit, always too short. Exhausted, it was a very early night in anticipation of an early final journey into Hemet.
Another harvest hosts overnight stay along the I40 corridor was selected. Peggy Sues Dinner-saur Garden was in the middle of nowhere but had a large flat parking lot as well as a 50’s themed dinner/gift shop with a garden oasis lined with yes dinosaurs!
A well camouflaged Marine Corps base was adjacent to it and spanned for miles with low profile housing as well as massive equipment storage buildings.
The Smitanic claimed a shaded spot away from dinner. The lot would only be shared with 4RVs and 6 semi-trucks for the night.
An early supper of massive portions was ordered and only partially consumed in the dinner followed by a walk thru the Dinasaur themed garden.
The night was dark and quiet. Without warning a 6am revelry sounded from the near base awoke all. For that minute one felt connected to those who have chosen to serve. A silent thank you was given to each and every one of them.
With that wake up call it was an early start to the day’s destination of Paso Robles, CA, the penultimate stop before descending into the Hemet valley for a long winters stay.
Lake Havasu was just 180 miles mostly south from the Grand Canyon. A waterfront site (water & electric) at the Crazy Horse RV Park was reserved for the next 4 nights!
The temps were in the 70s as the lake came into view when the Smitanic reached the crest of the desert hills revealing the entire valley.
The park was on a small island over the London Bridge in the heart of the town. It had a very tropical feel, complete with lots of sand and palm trees. Set up was easy in the large pull thru site with a concrete pad. Beverages were poured as the travelers were amazed by the grandeur of a colorful sunset.
The next morning a bit of Pickleball practice was in order on the single lightly used court near the pool. Later, Kevin met lady in jacuzzi that just got off a 5.5 mo on AT solo. Back at the site several neighbors were from Minnesota and were snow birds who have been wintering at the park for years. RVers are a very interesting breed and always have surprising stories and past lives.
Temp continued to be pleasant allowing for windows to be open all night & the selected attire for the day was shorts and sleeveless tops.
There were quite a few Island-like restaurants & tiki bars lining the various marinas around the island. Lunch was enjoyed while gazing at the pricey selection of floating vessels. One can dream!
The next day a boat was rented for the day. First was a tour north thru mini Grand Canyon to i40 then back to explore some of the coves on the south end of the lake.
Coves were everywhere. Some were very private while others were like cannons where it was told that the brave would jump off rock ledges into the water! None of that was observed on this lightly traveled weekday outing, but one could imagine it happening on a warm holiday weekend!
Kevin & Theresa agreed a return stay is a must to explore biking, hiking and paddle boarding in the relaxing lifestyle & perfect temps.
The day’s short drive to the Grand Canyon would include a stop to check out the Meteor Crater just south of Winslow, AZ (such a fine sight to see!). The visitor center had RV parking so this would be a 30 min stop on the way. The admission was not discounted for a senior pass as this was a privately owned business. Darn! The building had very nice museum displays and an outdoor observation deck. From this vantage point, Theresa held on tight to her phone so the extreme wind would not dislodge it from her hand.
The crater was as deep as the Trans America building in SF and
the view from the top displayed the snow capped mountains towards Flagstaff. A very brief stroll thru some of the displays revealed future meteors and projected dates when they will be close to earth. Seems there will be plenty of time to hit lots of bucket list items before any pending Apocalypse!
Back to the RV and on north to the Grand Canyon!
The entry into the Grand Canyon was free with Theresa’s senior pass! However the trailer village campground was privately operated and did not give any discount except Good Sams.
The traffic on the park roads frequently slowed to let a herd of elk pass. The native creatures did not seem very upset or agitated with all the humans coming invading their space . Very cool!
The site was a nice pull thru with full hook up including cable TV. However the camp host warned “don’t leave your sewer out overnight cause the crows will poke holes in it”. The nightly temps were predicted to be well below freezing so the fresh water line had to be stored at night as well.
After a quick set up of camp, it was a 1.5 mile walk to the visitor center to get a plan for the next 2 days and a first brief look at the ditch.
Words nor pictures can adequately depict the grander of this worldly wonder! Every overlook offered another amazing view of the color spectrum from the sky to the valley below.
The two day recommended plan was a bike ride on the Hermit Road Ridge trail and then a hike into the canyon down a section of the Kaibab trail.
The bikes were unloaded from the Jeep’s roof rack and prepared for the mornings ride. Kevin’s bike tires were still in a questionable state, but he was willing to stretch the limits for the completely paved ride. And if it failed there were busses with bike racks that traversed the route every 15 min. All good.
In the AM, before starting the route the bikers planed a stop at the nearby lodge to tryout the Free WiFi in the lobby. There was little if no service from ATT nor WiFi in the campground, completely off grid. It only took a few min before the power users became frustrated with the slow network and were ready to get on with the day’s adventures. The 10 mile route to the Hermit trail started with a gentle downhill bike route to the base of a busses only road. Bikers had to share the road and are required to pull off the road and dismount when a bus is passing. The first few miles was a 6% uphill that sent the heart rate climbing as well.
The first observation point was a welcome stop to pull the lungs back into the chest! The views were just amazing! The road followed the rim trail on undulating hills with observation turnouts every mile or less. Endless photo ops at each turn made all the climbing worth the effort! 2 miles from the Hermit trail head, cyclist could join the hikers in the paved rim trail that rose and descended on the edge of the canyon. This was the real definition of a Scenic Route! It was hard to take your eyes off the view to keep on path and keep a watch for passing busses. A final descent led into the trail head for another photo op and score some unique items at the gift shop. The return journey was a bit faster despite the anticipated uphill sections stopping only for recovery and bus passing. A passing thunderstorm taunted the riders with a few drops of moisture and rumbles as they made there way back. The reward at the end was a late lunch and adult beverage at the lodge bar.
A quick trip to the market for supplies warranted the deployment of the side pouches on the bike bag for the less than 1 mile trek back to the RV.
After the successful first day’s journey the bikes were once again mounted on the Jeep and preparations for the next day’s hike became the focus of the evening.
Requirements for the day included: water, snacks, sunscreen, hiking sticks, boots, sun shirts, maps, sunglasses, camera, ....
Several well planned bus routes transport sightseers and hikers to the various trailheads visitor centers and campgrounds throughout the park. It made it convenient to hop on a bus rather than drive to a destination and find parking. A 10 min bus ride with a short transfer stop at the visitor center landed the hikers at the day’s trail head. The Kaibab trail immediately descended into a series of step lined switchbacks. Kevin paused at each turn to be capture the unique view that was presented. Theresa did not mind as it gave her shaking knees a rest from the never ending stair steps. The descent into the massive canyon gave a personal hands on experience of the canyons changes in color and climate as one descends. At the 1.5 mile trail stop, the prepared snacks were consumed while resting on a large boulder.
The journey down to this spot took a hour and a half. Estimates are that the jouney back up is 2 to 3 times longer. The time of day suggested we would not get back to the trail head until 3 or 4 pm. Legs already weekend from the prior day’s bike ride also sent a clear message to make this the turn around point rather than continue for another 1.5 of similar terrain to the next trail mark. Wisdom prevailed! The assent began slow and steady with frequent pauses to let the heart rate come back down a bit, let faster hikers pass and keep the hydration up. A mule train hauling supplies from the canyon base quickly overtook the slow moving seniors with just .5 miles left on the trail. Theresa jokingly requested a rope so she could hitch on the back of the mule train to assist with her climb. Finally reaching the top, the legs were immediately relieved to rest on a rock while waiting for the shuttle bus. Pleased with the accomplishments of the 2 days, T-shirt’s commemorating the adventures were purchased and then it was back to the RV for clean up and dinner!
Wow, what a great 2 days of exploration and witnessing the grandeur of earth’s natural wonders! The bucket list is now one more item shy.
A quick set up was done and then it was off to Theresa’s moms house to greet her 97 year old mom and 2 of her 4 siblings! Welcome to the west coast winter Home!
