Relaxing Day at Lake Pleasant Arizona

 

Today was such a relaxing, warm, comfortable day at Lake Pleasant.  The sun was out a good portion of the day, hidden behind high clouds for some of the day.  The lake had a few boats on it...not that we heard any of the boats from where we are camping...but we can see them now and then.  Today's high was around 85 degrees, the low will be in the low 50's.  WOW, what a wonderful place to be as we go from November to December.

The Lake offers lots of recreation opportunities...fishing, rowing, sailing, general motoring around.

The lake covers 7,500 acres, while the park covers over 23,000 acres which includes the lake, desert lands, and recreational activities outside of the lake such as dirt bikes, general off road vehicles, and a dirt racetrack and large glider airport.

There are two campgrounds at Lake Pleasant...one with electricity and water, the other being primitive with no services (although both can use the dump station). Just outside the park there are many areas where one can boondock...but most are used by those with off road vehicles.

The Roadrunner Campground in which we are staying is divided in half by the Park's Road.

In this view below, you can see a cell tower...which is probably why we have 4-5 bars of 4G with our Verizon Aircard...not sure if they have 5G on this tower, but I would not doubt it.

The Roadrunner Campground has three or four bathrooms, each with two locking single shower rooms for males and for females, one handicapped for each.  The showers are free, but when you push the on button, the water flows for 10-15 seconds...but you can keep pushing the button as much as you need.  To me the water is hot, to others they might think it is cold...there is no way to control the temperature.  Last time, as well as this time, I found the bathing area to be very clean.

The campsites easily fit Class A Motorhomes, with room for a vehicle.  Yes, there are a 'few' smaller sites, but around 90% of the sites fit large motorhomes...and most of those will fit a tow car too.

It is now close to 9 pm, it is very quiet, and the outside temps are at 70 degrees.  We have been here in the late spring/early summer...we have been here before and after Christmas.  I like the December visit...the temps are just perfect, and the park, mid-week, is not crowded at all.  We have also been here, with reservations, for a weekend too...now that get just down right busy.

We head out in the morning, set on getting to Tucson for a night of boondocking.  It will be nice to not feel like we have to get up and go at the first sign of light since it will be less than 200 miles of travel with a stop at a Flying J for Gas and Propane.

Three Hour Cracker Barrel Visit, then off to Benson

 

We got up at 7 am, got everything ready, and we were at Cracker Barrel at 8:45 am to meet our friend Laurie.  Laurie's mom and Marcia were very, very good friends for nearly 50 years...so Marcia and Laurie have known each other for just about 50 years now too.  We spent 90+ minutes inside Cracker Barrel, then we moved into the Motorhome.  At 11:30, we had to get on the road so we could get to Benson by 3 pm...we made it at 3:05.  It will be 27 degrees tonight, and is already at down to 42 degrees at 6 pm.  BURRRRRRrrrrrrrr....

As we left the park we saw some of the many Wild Burros that are in and around Lake Pleasant.  This is the first time we have seen them, and with no one behind us except a Park Ranger, we were able to enjoy a short view of the Burros.  Cute little things.

 

While we were at the dump station so that I could clear our tanks, Marcia got a picture of this Cactus Wren on top of a Saguaro.  We love Lake Pleasant, and we are so happy we were able to get in without a reservation this time.  For $32 per night, there isn't a better deal in Phoenix for a quality place to plug in your motorhome.

Yesterday when we traveled to Phoenix from Barstow, the snow on the mountains and hills along the Mojave Desert made the trip just that much easier to take.  The white gave such character to the normally brown, dull mountains.

 

 It was a joy to finally leave California by crossing over the Colorado River into Arizona...

It had been 4 months since we were in Oregon...and much too much has happened since then.  Dad, after 91 years, is now with our Lord and Savior...and Skruffy, after 10 years and 2 months of being my best little buddy, and Marcia's best little buddy for nearly 9 years, is sitting on dad's lap, barking directions to anyone and everyone within hearing distance (which is a huge area with her loud mouth...which I still don't know where she got that loud mouth from...)  Both are gone, but not forgotten, and we look forward to the day that we have a huge reunion in the hereafter.  

I figure two more COLD nights, then we will be past San Antonio, and into warmer night air.

Laurie, Laurie, Laurie

At Roadrunner Campground, Lake Pleasant, Phoenix AZ

This is WHY we came to Phoenix…no, not the dog, but Laurie.  Marcia has known Laurie since she was an early teenager.  Her mom Joyce, a good friend of Marcia’s, passed away a few years ago, but we still love coming through Phoenix to see Laurie.  This time, we got to meet her “Best Bud”, Gary..no, not the dog, her good friend who works for the Post Office.  Recently retired from Home Depot, Laurie is enjoying retired life.  She is an avid follower of our blog, and says, “You get a bit wordy now and then Dave”.  Well, my intention was to just post pictures after this point, but with what happened today, I just can’t end without some words…probably many words.

At 1:00 pm we left the motorhome to go to Laurie’s house.  As we got close to the park gate (entrance/exit) there is a long line of cars, much like you see above.  There is a helicopter flying over just past the entrance.  A lady is going from car to car saying that they have closed the park due to a lost diver in the lake….but Marcia and I did not buy that.  I called the park’s number, but being a Sunday, all I can get is the reservation person…who did not know anything.  We of course called Laurie to tell her we would be late, and we waited.  Suddenly a police car comes shooting by, headed for the entrance gate…followed by two more about a minute later.  Hmmmm, how did they get into the park, they came from the campground area?  There must be another entrance/exit which is normally closed off.  Another ten minutes and they start to turn everyone around, and finally, around 2, we are out of the park using a back entrance/exit.  Called Laurie and decided to meet at the restaurant we were going to, and we pulled in there before 3.  Found this article from ABC15 which explains it all.  About 5:30 we depart the restaurant, and as we get close to our exit there is an Interstate Information sign which says the road we need to get back to the park is closed at marker 19.  Hmmmm…how are we going to feed the dogs if they don’t let us back into the park?  Fortunately for us, the suicidal man with a gun gave up, they opened the road just after 6, so by the time we got to the Lake’s entrance road, it was all cleared up.

  

With that ordeal over (the getting back into the park, not the dinner with Laurie which was a pleasure….as was the dinner last night with Laurie and Gary), I saw what looked to be a promising sunset…so I went out to capture some pics.

I quickly took the car from the campground, to a couple of day-use areas before the campground, and then up to the Discovery Center area just past the campground.  Such a pretty sunset…what a way to end our trip to Phoenix.

See you on our way back to Florida Laurie…we sure do love you.  Very glad to finally meet Gary, what a nice guy!

Note: We have changed our plans and have decided NOT to go to Yuma for glasses in Mexico.  Monday we head to Prescott to visit Roger, who started at the Library the same day I did back in January 1991.  Today, Roger is the Director of the Prescott Public Library.  From there, we will make our way up to Sacramento, planning to be there on Thursday, Friday at the latest.

Emergency Engine Derate – 5 MPH Max

At Roadrunner Campground, Lake Pleasant, Phoenix AZ

No, not us…it was the semi-truck right around Laguna Pueblo New Mexico.  We started our day at 6 am, leaving the Enchanted Trails RV Park by 6:30, full of gas and coffee from the nearby Love’s and on the road again by 6:45.  About 35 miles down the highway, I suddenly come upon a Semi-Trailer going 5 mph, lights flashing, in the right lane.  Now in this particular area, due to the hills being illuminated by the morning sun, it was a bit hard to notice the truck going so slow, and hard to see its flashing lights.  With a few cars and semis coming up behind me in the left lane, I had to put on my brakes, I hit my emergency blinkers, and when safe, made it around the 5 mph truck.  A “Dangerous Situation” Marcia and I said as we went by…he had at least another mile and a half to the nearest exit, and there is NOTHING at that exit.  I had my eyes set on a rest area near the Sky City Casino about 15 miles from where this truck was going so slow, it was time feed the dogs.  That rest area was closed, but the casino had parking.

We were there for perhaps 15-20 minutes, and got back on the Interstate.  Within 5 minutes we see a police car headed east, lights and sirens going.  Hmm, wonder what that is?  Another few minutes and we see another headed east with lights and sirens….gee, I wonder?  I look on Google Maps, traffic mode, and sure enough there is a red line in that area where we passed the truck.  About 5 minutes later two more police, lights and sirens…one a unmarked car, go by east bound.  An hour later we do a google search on “New Mexico” “I-40” “crash” limiting the search to the past hour…and news station KRQE has a small alert about I-40 being shut down with the following map…

Follow up articles don’t include much, there is no mention of a semi going slow or even being involved in the wreck.  But my theory is that the semi had a DEF failure, which puts the engine into Derate Mode, giving the driver just enough energy to get the big-rig off to the side of the road or to the nearest exit.  Since the truck surprised me, I am sure it surprised other, less cautious drivers.  Someone either hit it, or lost control trying not to hit it, causing a wreck which shut I-40 down westbound for about 6 hours.  I wish I could say that was the only crazy thing about Friday’s drive…but nope.  As we came to a construction zone, they shut the left lane down.  I look in my mirror and see a car way back there, coming on fast.  NO WAY, he is not trying to pass me before this merger is he…but he does not slow down.  The left lane is already collapsing to the right lane, and he is still coming.  I don’t change speed and goes shooting by at 75 mph in what is now a 55 mph zone with just inches to spare…just to slam on his breaks since the truck in front of me is less than a tenth of a mile in front of me.  Of course, he did get to hear the sound of my horn.  Funny thing, after the freeway went back to two westbound lanes, he did not go above the speed limit.  I think his wife was a bit irritated with him for putting them, and us, in danger.  I think I heard her yelling all the way back from my safe driving distance…

We made it to Lake Pleasant by 2:30 (gained an hour due to Arizona not, in campsite by 3.  This is our second time here, and being a weekend, it is FULL.  Three nights with reservation cost $104.00, but that is much less than an RV park in Phoenix, and those RV parks don’t get these views.

  

Lake Pleasant reservoir is part of the CAP (Central Arizona Project) to provide water to Phoenix.  Most the water in Lake Pleasant comes from the Colorado River, being diverted near Lake Havasu into an aqueduct that runs towards Phoenix, and the Waddell Canal diverts some of that water to Lake Pleasant where it is stored until it is needed, usually in the summer months.  This year, the lake is very full.

  

The views from the campground include numerous desert views too…

Along with a sunset view from my easy chair just outside the window.  

Lake Pleasant, Phoenix Arizona

Roadrunner Campground, Lake Pleasant near Phoenix Arizona

We had reservations for two days at the Roadrunner Campground at Lake Pleasant Regional Park, one of the Maricopa County parks in the Phoenix area.  Previously we had stayed at Cave Creek Regional Park and McDowell Mountain Regional Park.  I like all three parks, and all three have a different feel, and a different view.  Lake Pleasant and Cave Creek are closer to where Laurie, and her mother when she was living, than the other parks.  All of the Maricopa County Parks take reservations, and cost $30 for electric and water…although this looks like it is going up to $32 in the spring/summer of 2018.

This is the lake view we get from our camping site.  Since it is nearly New Years, the campground is nearly full.  It was the only campground within the County Parks System that I could get in for two days.  At Lake Pleasant there are two campgrounds, Roadrunner and Desert Tortoise Campgrounds…the latter of which has Semi-Developed (no electric or water) and Primitive Camping (just a fire ring) at $20 and $12 each, but I think the Primitive is for tents.

A number of folks have Christmas lights going on, including these two sites across from us.  One even played a movie outside in a large canopy tent, but thank goodness the movie ended fairly early.

And with the darkness (outside of Christmas lights), it was a good time to get a picture of the moon.

Laurie gave Marcia this nice picture of her and her mother Joyce, who passed away earlier this year while we were in Indiana and Michigan area…that changed our entire summer plans, and that was good with us.  Marcia and Joyce were friends for over 40 years.  We had a nice visit with Laurie on Thursday when we met at Cracker Barrel, and today when she came to the motorhome for awhile, and then we went to Logan’s Roadhouse for dinner.  It has been a challenge being the Executor of her mother and father’s trust, but she has done a great job handling it, has already sold her mother’s house, and things are starting to calm down in her life. 

As a follow up to last night’s post, I did call AAA to let them know about this scammer in Kingman City.  The hardest part was trying to decide which phone number to call, so I called the Internet Hoax Report line…and they transferred me to the proper person, who took down my report and thanked me for calling.  He said, “If he is not a true representative of AAA, our legal team will be getting in touch with him…if he is, my boss will be getting in touch with him.”  I assured him that I did not think he was a legitimate AAA representative, and that I did not expect to hear back at all…I just thought they should know.  He again thanked me.