After a happy Christmas with the family, we drove back to Denver with Denver Daughter. After a few days visit, and as soon as the weather allowed, we hopped in the van and headed south. Our main destination is Arizona (read: sunshine, warmth, and spectacular desert sunsets).
An hour into the drive we discovered that our toilet wasn’t working. Bummer. We checked the fuse and it was burnt. We inserted a new one and as soon as we tried to flush, the fuse blew again. It was too cold to deal with it so we just continued and hoped we will be able to fix the toilet once we get somewhere warmer. It was very cold in New Mexico, so we will probably won’t be able to look at it for a couple of days. I guess we will have to go to RV parks where we can use their washrooms.
The first day we made it to the outskirts of Albuquerque and stayed at the Coronado RV Park. We stayed here on our previous trip to Arizona on an even colder night, but no one read our posts then. You can read it here.
Back to our first night on the road. We slept well and woke up while it was still dark outside. The clock said it was 6:30am, but soon after we had our second cup of coffee, we realized to our horror, that it was 3:30 am. The clock that was not adjusted for the 2 hours time zone difference and the one hour daylight saving time change. Really? All we could do is leave really early and beat the Albuquerque rush hour.
We left as the moon was setting over the city.
And we witnessed the sun rise on the road.
We stopped at Rockhounding State Park
and went for a hike and to hound some rocks. This Park is a bit different as it encourages you to go off the trails and remove rocks from the premisses, but we did not complain.
We took the mile and a bit Thunderegg Trail,
The fairly easy trail circles the park
with a bit of a climb half way up the mountain.
There isn’t. lot of flora in the winter, but the cacti were fruiting.
We enjoyed the views, found a few nice pieces of jasper and continued on.
Our next stop was another RV Park and we had a good long night sleep that was much needed.
But before that we had a spectacular sunset.
The next morning we were well into Arizona and found warmer weather and beautiful landscapes.
We decided to explore the area of Saddle Mountain, an area known for fire agates. We took the back roads past Palo Verde, the largest nuclear power generator in the US. Unfortunately, I failed to take a good picture.
The Gila River is channelised in some areas and utilized for irrigation for agriculture in the area. We stopped at this cool bridge
and dam
The pelicans were cool too.
After a few attempts on sketchy dirt roads that led into unpassable dry rivers, we found a good road and a fantastic BLM (Bureau of Land Management) campsite by Saddle Mountain.
It was much warmer, so we decided to stay and tackle the toilet.
Tony was able to fix it rather quickly, while I looked for cool rocks.
You can probably tell by now which one of us is more useful. Oh, look! Mountains!
We managed to spill a bottle of water on the bed so we had to spread sheets and blankets all over the desert. Luckily everything dried up before we went to bed.
We will leave you with another spectacular sunset in a spectacular area of the Sonoran Desert.
I really love deserts. (even if my spell checker wants then to be made out of flummery or something sweet). I think I could handle Arizona.
Nice to see you’re back e plowing the Southwest again! We sold our Mr Bond one year ago and are now living in Tucson; we love it here.
If you’re still in the west of Phoenix area, check out the Painted Rock Petroglyph BLM campground area; beautiful! And if you can, go due south to visit Ajo. And if you come down our way, look us up.
Redbirdrv18@gmail.com
https://www.blm.gov/visit/painted-rock-petroglyph-campground
We drove through Tucson yesterday and thought it would be a nice place to live. I miss your excellent blog, but glad you found a nice place to settle! It will be nice to hang out if we are going back the same way!
Johanne, you sent this to me, an old bloke in Australia. So you might want to go back to Margie and send it again.
I am sure you could handle arizona. I am considering playing the darkness navigation game, but I need to find a whistle.
You can play without a whistle. Just designate a time eg 5 mins and then have the person on the vehicle sound the horn. But do give it a try.
Ah Arizona. I lived there 3 times in my life for a total of 22 years. You will love the state – there is so much to see. I loved your photo. Brought back so many memories for me.
It is such a beautiful place, I love every minute of it!
how beautiful, glad you decided to head to az and share it with us –
Glad to have you along, Beth! We waved when we drove through Michigan 🙂
Happy ‘Warm’ trails! Homedepot bucket, a snap on seat with some coco husk mix will save the day.
Thank for the tip 🙂
Happy trails. Allan
Thanks, Allan!
Have you planned to visit Saint Anthony’s Eastern Orthodox Monastery? I’m certain your sainy Anthony will appreciate the fine work there. “Modest dress code. But there is a tickle trunk so you can dress up, or down 😉
Oh, this looks really cool, I just checked their website. We will try and check it out if we go back that way! I hope all is well in paradise!
Nice photos.
Bummer about the toilet on the fritz, and there’s no cornfields along the road.
All fixed now and thank goodness for rest stops. I did see some cotton fields along the way though…
Don’t want to go squatting in cactus fields!
Hahaha!
Hey but you are useful enough to spread sheets in a desert. Looks like a great trip.
True! I rearranged them on different bushes several times, but mostly checked under the bushes for cool rocks 🙂
Arizona is a place I’d love to explore more of one day. The desert views you shared are lovely. And I chuckled at the time change. That happened to me in LA a few summers ago. But hey, you got to experience a glorious sunrise and sunset that day – so what a gift it ended up being. How cute you got to see pelicans too!
I hope you get to go. I am a desert rat at heart, and a desert that has cool rocks is like a dream!
We visited the Grand Canyon briefly and it was stunning (and cold) during a weekend trip to Vegas to watch Britney Spears in concert. 😆 Id love to do a longer exploration of the Arizona desert one day.
Welcome to Az! We have been here since November. Rainiest Christmas thru to yesterday in years. Hope you brought that storied sunshine with you.
It looks like it’s all sunshine and warmer temps for a good stretch! Any good places to visit that you can recommend?
Stunning sunrises and sunsets. Especially the sunset as you settled down for your second night. All those reds! Hopefully you won’t have to deal with any more setbacks 🤞
It is so beautiful here, and slightly warmer than Ontario 🙂 We did learn by now that these setbacks are just part of the gig. We just need to have a Plan B in our back pocket.
You and some of the Springers may have crossed paths in some of your travels. I have a brother who lives in Aurora (just outside of Denver). By some miracle (our son had temperatures of -32 the day they left from Montana and we had to deal with freezing rains on our drive), we were able to spend Christmas in Portland. Semis overturned and other vehicles scattered all over the roadway. On the 27th, my son and his fiancee flew to New Mexico and enjoyed five days there while we went home. On the 28th, he interviewed for a new job in South Dakota (by ZOOM, obviously). Boom! He gets the job and they want him out there in a week. They finish their vacation because he knows they suddenly won’t see each other much in the next month. They flew home right after the 1st, he spent a couple of days closing things up on his last job, and flew to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. His first day on the new job was yesterday. His fiancee is back in Montana getting things packed. He’ll go back on the 1st of Feb. and they’ll drive a U-Haul out and move themselves then. Whew! It’s been a whirlwind.
Wow! Crazy whirlwind! We did see those overturned semis on our way. Scary. Congratulations to your son on the new job!
Aw those pelicans. I’d absolutely LOVE to visit Arizona one day, being a Cardinals fan I’d like to catch a game in the city and then explore the state’s many national parks. The sunsets and red hues of the national parks look glorious – hopefully one day I’ll make it 🙂
Sounds like you have a few reasons to come down here! In hope you make it.
I visited Arizona in 2021 for a road trip, and it’s true that the southwestern US state is mystical in its desert landscapes and fiery sunsets behind its mahogany rocks. Having a blown toilet is definitely an inconvenience (I wouldn’t know what to do!), but it’s great you got it fixed in the end. Time zones and time changes can really mess with your perception of time, but at least you woke up early and had a head start on your journey over! Hope the rest of the Arizona trip was a lovely one!
We are still here and enjoying the desert immensely! Hopefully, no more mishaps!
Arizona does have the prettiest skies. We always loved boondocking in the desert. Unfortunately, now that we’re in a stationary house/subdivision, I don’t have the open desert vistas that I love but still get to enjoy the perks of a desert winter. Enjoy your time in the southwest.
Thank you! Well, I guess there is time for everything. Glad to hear that you get to go in winter, it’s the best time!
Beautiful sunsets! Maggie
Thank you, Maggie!
Sonoran Desert sunsets in person probably would agree with me just fine!
I tend to agree with this statement!
Love your title. Substitute “ARIZONA HERE WE COME” for “CALIFORNIA HERE I COME” and it fits perfectly without needing to change a note of the song!
Haha, and California will be next actually 🙂
So glad you got your toilet fixed. I just planned a trip to Arizona for the end of February and your post has me wanting time to fly by! Love, love, love the fire agate!
I hope time flies for you!
Thank you!
Hope this isn’t a repeat but I got an error when I submitted my comment….
Saddle Mountain is beautiful. Always surprised to hear about a place in Arizona we haven’t been to. Enjoy your stay in AZ and all those beautiful sunsets you are going to see!
it came through just once! Yes, Saddle Mountain is a beautiful place and camping here is wonderful. Not too crowded, quiet (with occasinal gunfire from target shooters), ad killer sunsets!
Sounds like a bit of a rough start for your trip to Arizona with some van issues. At least you were able to keep driving though and the scenes along the way are lovely, especially those spectacular desert sunsets.
It was just a hiccup and all is well now! We tend to expect things to go wrong, so it’s nice when we can deal with the issue quickly, or even berter, if nothng goes wrong lol.
So glad for you that the toilet was fixed so easily – without having to go to a CITY to look for parts! My guess is that you are useful for other things, though – we all have different skill sets, after all. I loved your BLM campsite, too – and the drying “racks”!
Yeah, I’m really good at looking for rocks 🙂 It was a fantastic site and we will probably go back again!
Have you encountered any snakes in the desert? The view at the campground looks beautiful.
As far as I know they hibernate in the winter, so no need to worry about snakes now. the same goes for insects and scorpions, which makes this a very pleasant stay!
So the best time to go down there is in the winter.
Definitely! It gets too hot in the summer too!
I find winter is a special time for deserts unlike any other seasaon
It sure is!
OMG. How gorgeous! Your photos are always spectacular and your choices of what to film need more than a passing glance. Enjoy, enjoy. Fondest, Muriel
Thanks, Muriel! You always brighten my day with your kind comments!
Fantastic vistas! We have yet Arizona on our list, but I’ll see it through your eyes for now😊
Enjoy your road trip, safe travels!!
Thank you and I hope you get to go!
I’ve had a few funny stories because of time changes… 😄 The cactus fruit is unusual to see!
Oh, do tell!
We were driving to Mexico on New Year’s Eve, picked up my cousin, who lived in Las Vegas. (Puerto Penasco, a beach town, is 4 hrs south of Phoenix.) Got totally confused with the Ariz. time change. In a restaurant in Mex. we thought it was around 11, when everyone started counting down. We almost missed the New Year! I remember also waiting for the tram in the dark (too early) when I taught in Prague, didn’t set my clock right after a trip. 😊
Yikes. We almost missed a ferry. Got on just as they were closing and we thought we were an hour early.
Arizona is truly amazing. I spent 6 weeks there during the 2020 pandemic and went on a different hike or park adventure almost every day!