Our time to leave had arrived. At least I am feeling up to 95% my norm, Marcia is still in the 70 percentile. At least she had a fairly good night’s sleep. We left the park before 10 am, and headed into Fountain Hills where I had talked to the folks at the Jiffy Lube there about changing our oil. Yes, we did fit in, although watching their tech drive it in when I would rather drive it in myself was a bit terrifying. For $49, that’s not bad for a motorhome.
By 3 pm we are pulling into the city of Benson, Arizona, about 50 miles south-east of Tucson. When the Southern Pacific Railroad came through in 1880, the town was established as a railroad terminal to serve the area. The town was named after a friend of the Railroad President Charles Crocker, his name was William B. Benson, and he was a judge. Today it is a gateway to Kartchner Caverns State Park….but we don’t have time to explore the area, we are here to sleep and move on.
We picked Pato Blanco Lakes RV Park because they are a Passport America park which does not block out the winter months like many other RV parks in Arizona do.
Above is the look of the “lakes”. They are stocked with fish, and they do allow catch and release fishing. I was also told about "Bingo" tonight in the club house.
Above is a typical view of the park…yep, as you guessed, everyone squeezed together, gravel pads which are not level, and about 40% of their sites are for permanent park model trailers. I did not bother to research it, but I am sure that many of the people in Benson right now are Snowbirds, and parks like this thrive on the Snowbirds. I did notice that there are many RV parks in and around Benson.
At least the park is not very busy right now, probably less than half full for RV’s that are not permanently here. They also store RV’s for those who come down for just a few months a year. But for $24 (Passport America price) a night, it isn’t too bad for a quick sleep…but the quiet nights at McDowell are going to be hard missed, that’s for sure.
Can’t you just hear them?
Bubba: “No grass to the right, no grass to the left”
Skruffy: “No grass back here either!”
Both: We’re Screwed!!!!
Tony always drives our motorhome into the quicky lube places. If he can't do the driving they don't get the job. :-D
ReplyDeleteDid they charge you extra because it's a motorhome? Jiiffy Lube seems to be doing that now. It's the only one as far as I know and there's no good reason for it. A chassis mount gasser is no different than a van or a truck.
Since the motorhome is new to us and this is the first oil change we have paid for, I am not sure if they charged us more or not. However, our little HHR has cost us $35 for oil changes due to the oil filter it uses. I don't necessarily like Jiffy Lube, but finding a place we can fit into has been difficult...and I don't want to go to Walmart for oil changes unless I just can't find anyone else to do it.
DeleteIt is a bit of a problem finding oil change places that have high enough door openings.We've had good luck with Pennzoil shops plus we use synthetic so we can go a little longer between changes.
DeleteI'm glad to hear you are both feeling improved and I pray you'll both fully recover. Enjoy your time in Arizona!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear you are feeling better. I'd love to stay in a park that had bingo. Being about 95% State or National Parks that doesn't happen.
ReplyDelete