Friday, May 25, 2018

Friending Our Way Back to SoCal

May 17-21, 2018
Surprise - Quartzsite, Arizona - Banning, California

An easy 71 miles west on Interstate 10 takes us to one of our favorite parks - White Tank Regional Park, near Surprise, Arizona. While the blooming Saquaros are beautiful, the terrain is very, very dry. And very hot!

Dryer than we've ever seen here.

We wondered if crested saquaros bloomed so went looking for the one we know is near #2 parking area.

The crested is looking pretty sad, and yes there are blooms, which are also looking a bit sad. Now we know!
We're only here for three nights and have a handful of high school friends to visit. They are all only available the day we arrive. Since we're always set up in the early afternoon, meeting for dinner at 6:30 works well.

Carlos O'Brien's has good food and margaritas, and we all enjoy getting caught up since the reunion in April. After dinner we head to Kristy's house to see a video she's working on. We promise not to spill the beans on the project, and very much enjoy what she has so far.

Bill, Jodee, Kristy, Patty, Cyndee and Rocky - friends forever!
Friday I never get out of my pjs, hanging out for a wonderful lazy day with beautiful desert views all around. 

We head into town for a few errands on Saturday, including getting Tessa a much needed bath. The self-serve bathing stations in more and more places are such a nice option. It's definitely hot and we're looking forward to moving on in the morning.

Yes, it's a dry heat. Yes, it's still hot.
Sunday we travel a familiar 120 miles to Quartzsite, Arizona. It isn't any cooler, and most of the RV parks are closed for the season. Holiday Palms is a year-round park with several pull-through sites along the main street. Clean and level, all utilities and WiFi work well. We're happy with the location until another overnighter arrives and they put them right next to us. Eight open sites, but on top of each other is the best choice?? I hate it when parks do this.

The reason we stopped here is for another meet up with high school pals. Mike and Bill were classmates, as were Rita and I. We always have such a good time with them!!

Mike, Bill and Rita. I don't just love her because she's shorter than me :-)))
The wind is coming up on Monday morning so we get a fairly early start. En route we make a quick stop at Desert Center where Kevin and Bridgette have rented a home. They meet us in their desert buggy for hellos and hugs. 

Kevin and Bill have been best friends for 50 years.
The head winds really pick up and we use a quarter tank (25 gallons) from the California border where we fill up to Banning where we stop for the night. I'm doing 45 mph over Whitewater Pass and very glad the gusts aren't hitting us from the side. It's tiring but not frightening. 

Clouds greet us when we leave the Coachella Valley, and the temps drop significantly. After triple digit temps, we're thrilled to find 65 degrees at the Stage Coach KOA! This is a small and pretty park with large trees and views of the foothills below the San Joaquin Mountains. $45 is steep for the location, but we find most KOA's are. 

Yep, we're meeting more high school friends here too! Several live in close proximity and they all get together on a regular basis. We're happy they can "come out and play" on the night we're in town.

Bill, Marc and Victoria, Eric and Stacy, and Shirlene and Tommy. Love them all!
We're very blessed to have so many wonderful friends in our lives - and the opportunity to see them often. 

Now we're on to Valencia for the very best visits of all - grands and kiddos!! 


14 comments:

  1. I've said this before--it's amazing you have such close contacts/friends from your high school days. Safe travels and hope you find lots of cooler weather!

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    1. It's so crazy! We've now visited 90 high school friends outside the annual reunion since we've been on the road. California and Arizona have the most by far. We're still loving the cooler temps with a beach visit in the near future!!

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  2. What a great time visiting so many friends. It’s so cool how you all stay in contact and have so many visits. Your header photo is gorgeous. Was that taken at White Tank or have I missed a post? Enjoy your time with the grandbabies and kiddos...ahhhhhh the beach sounds heavenly!

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    1. The header is from Lost Dutchman - it was the previous post :-) Definitely looking forward to some ocean time!

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  3. You've visited 90 high school friends since you've been on the road? That's incredible! You all look like you have such a great time together. Glad you made it out of those horrendous triple-digit temps. Even the cacti don't look happy. Have fun with the family and those darling grandkids!

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    1. We never imagined we'd see so many of them, Facebook has helped with that. We're having a great time in SoCal :-)))

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  4. So sorry to hear about the heat and the stressed saguaros. Though I’m getting sick of rain, I think I prefer 68 and raining as it was late this afternoon to hot and sunny. LOL at getting caught up since the reunion in April. All of a month?? Must be a busy group.
    I share your glee at finding someone shorter than you. Wonder which of us is shorter? Hope we’ll find out one day if I ever get west or you east. We’ve never done KOA’s, too steep for me. But glad the temps drop so much for you. That’s an amazing number of days meeting so many friends. What fun for you all.

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    1. After decades of not seeing them, then seeing high school peeps once a year, it is weird to "catch up" after only a month! We will definitely get the chance to see who's shorter one of these days. I look forward to it :-)

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  5. You guys are amazing. I don't think I even knew 90 people in high school!

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    1. Most people we know outside of high school say the same thing. I think it's because it was such a small town and we knew older and younger siblings that makes the number so large.

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  6. I too wondered if the crested saguaros bloomed. Very cool. And hopefully you are too in Southern California. Except for all the wonderful visiting I'd have booked across AZ to get out of the heat.

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    1. :-))))) we are both blooming and very cool in SoCal!!

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  7. We've used several KOAs out east (out of need) and we've noticed the same, Jodee. Problem is, it seems to create an atmosphere where other parks feel they can do the same.

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  8. It's good to have a friend in every town as you move about:) Boy, the temps were hot, but...you got to see the desert full of blooming saguaro!! I can't begin to imagine how beautiful a desert full would look like. I only get to see individual ones in peoples yards and at Canyon Trails but I am thankful to finally to see a real saguaro bloom! Can't wait for the grandchildren blog!! Enjoy!

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