Thursday, November 22, 2018

Breaker 19, You still have a Copy


Where Are We Today 

Info about Alamo Lake Dam
Carrying on from my last post, we arrived at Alamo Lake State Park and got settled in on lot B-17 with Rob and Pat on B18. We are only here for two nights, but will enjoy the time here.

Three buddies checking out the scenery
 On Friday the 16th, we took Rob and Pat up to the Alamo Lake Dam to take in the view. Leaving there, we headed  out to the Wayside Oasis. It is a trailer park out in the middle of nowhere, with a bar/restaurant and generators for power. It was late morning, so we sat at the bar and order some coffee, sat back, took in the ambiance and chatted with the waitress about the place.

Wayside Oasis

Inside the Cafe/Bar at the Wayside Oasis
We left the next day, to our next destination, Ridgeview RV Resort, in Bullhead City, Arizona. Instead of heading to Hwy 95, we back tracked to Hwy 71 to Hwy 93 to I-40 and finally Hwy 68 into Bullhead City.


Joshua Tree Forest
 The best part of this trek, was Hwy 93, again with ups and downs and gentle curves  , but you drive through the Joshua Tree Forest, absolutely amazing. One thing though, make sure you have a full tank of fuel, as there is only one place to get fuel on this 110 mile stretch of road.

Arriving at Ridgeview RV Resort
Arriving early afternoon, we checked in, got our choice of sites, eight and nine, backed in up against a hill with a view down the road, looking across the Colorado River into Laughlin Nevada, at all the casinos.

Our buddies leading the way
When Pat went to open up the bedroom slide, she got it part way out and the bottom cable broke, the first cable, the top one, broke when we were in Memphis. We have been trying to nurse it along until we got to a more populated area. The bottom one had been replaced a little over a year ago.

This is what they are suppose to look like

Here is a broken one
Rob came over and between the two of us we exposed where the pulleys are and managed to get the slide all the way out. After determining what we needed to try and attempt the repair ourselves, we headed for Home Depot in the morning and purchased some cable, clamps and eye bolts.
Working on the mechanism

After about five hours we had it back together, moving in and out. Not an easy job, the cables being next to the head of the bed right next to the closet.
New eye bolts and one new cable and clamps

one  side of the slide mechanism, two cables pull the slide in and two cables pull the slide out

 Also making sure the slide was square in the opening and the cables had enough tension on them.

the drive motor and transmission for chains

A big thank you to Rob for his insight, thoughts, ideas and time, as this is not a one person job.
On a lighter side, Rob and I, each purchased an inexpensive CB radio to communicate while driving from destination to destination. We took part of Tuesday to install them in our trucks.
CB installed
While that should bring you up to speed from my side of things, be sure to keep following Pat's blog,here here, to see what we're up to.
Until the next time, take care and be safe, comment if you like.   

Sunday, November 18, 2018

My Version

Today We Are At
Ridgeview RV Park
Bullhead City Arizona
I can't keep calling my posts of late as "Catch Up" , so before I finish this one, a new title has to come to mind.

Pat &Rob taking in the view
 After Tijeras, New Mexico, we were onto Page Springs RV Park near Page Springs Arizona. Here we spent four nights down in a valley with no cell or internet service, no worries. Each day as we went on our daily excursions, we could get  service and catch up to the world, while at least with family back home. There were two places that were on the to do list, Sedona and Jerome. We went to Sedona to catch some views, finding a parking spot up Airport Road, we snapped pictures and walked down the trail to another hill where we could take some beautiful shots.
Beautiful Red Rock of Sedona

Hiking down the trail
 The second excursion was to the town of Jerome, a onetime ghost town, 1800 feet up the mountain from Cottonwood , on Hwy 89A, a two lane narrow road. Well worth the drive to take in this scenic and historical town.

Scenic view from Jerome

The four buddies in Jerome

I liked the name of this Inn, in Jerome

We made one more trip to Sedona to take some sunset pictures and then out to eat at Carls Jr, one of our favorites.

Sunset at the Sedona Airport
 We moved on with our next destination being Alamo Lake State Park. We have been here before, but always like coming back to this beautiful park, with the scenic view of the lake, dam and of course the burros.

Almost gone
To get there, we took Hwy 89A to Cottonwood, them Hwy 260 to I-17 to Hwy 169 to Hwy 60 into Prescott Az. From here we took Hwy 89 to 71 and then 60 to Alamo Lake Rd.

Just leaving Prescott

Clemson taking in the views
 The interesting part of this journey, was the trek on Hwy 89. We didn't know what this road would be like, straight, two or four lane, up and down or winding back and forth. I can now tell you that it wasn't straight or four lane, but what a drive. I was in my glory driving this road of twenty to thirty-five mph  twists, turns, ups and downs with top speeds of forty- five mph.

Hairpin turns

Twist and turns
There is another aspect to this drive that is just as important, that is, this is where we started to see the Arizona that we have come to love. You have to be able to see the magnificent beauty and ruggedness of the desert, it's vegetation  and colour. It was on this stretch of the journey that we saw our first "King of the Desert", the mighty saguaro cactus, stag horns, teddy bear, prickly pear and beaver tail to name a few. Then there is the colour, the mountains share their hues of brown, Terra cotta and beige to sand colours. The desert floor of black and grey rock and dirt with a vegetation of greens and browns. I don't know how to describe it any different and the pictures just don't relay what we see.


King of the Desert, the Mighty Saguaro
I hope that you get the chance to come to Arizona and see and fall in love with this beautiful state. A special shout out to " The Bayfield Bunch", Al, Kelly and Phebes, who used to have a home in this area and love it as much as we do, this is where we first met them.
I think this is a good place to end this post, to be sure there is more to come. So until the next time, take care and stay safe.
Beauty

Friday, November 9, 2018

Laptop Fixed

Where Are We Today 
Hidden Valley RV Park
Tijeras New Mexico

Before we left Rock Glen RV Park and crossed the border into the U.S., my laptop decided to quit working. The problem was the WiFi card acting up. To fix the problem, either install a new WiFi card or a dongle that plugs into a USB port, I went with the dongle.

USB Dongle WiFi Stick
 For days I have not been able to write anything on my blog, so here is a brief catch up. Our first day took us to Wapakoneta, Ohio to Arrow Lakes RV Park. Of course, I-75 in Michigan is as rough as can be, but crossing the state line into Ohio was like going from night to day.
Entrance to Corvette Museum

Our second day took us to Bowling Green, Kentucky, where we made a quick stop at a Camping World, before finding a Wal-Mart to stay at for the night. The next morning we visited the Corvette Museum before heading down the road to Nashville, Tennessee, where we stayed in the Nissan Stadium parking lot for one night, before we were told that we couldn't stay there any longer.

Love this colour, vehicle set for delivery to it's new owner

 We had hope to do some sightseeing here, but having to move on, we will find a park on the way home and do it then.
Moving on down the road, our next stop was the Graceland RV Park. Taking in a tour of Sun Studios, a dinner out on Beale Street and of course Graceland and Elvis's mansion.

Elvis's Mansion
The last time I was here, was the week before Elvis died, spent the entire night sitting just inside the gates with about 30 other fans with the hopes of seeing him. We didn't.

Graceland across the street


Front of Elvis's mansion
This was a great experience and time, would do it again.
Our next night was spent at the Cherokee Casino in Roland Ok., with free full hook ups. Then on to the Lucky Star Casino for two nights, again with free full hook ups. Of course, they hope you come in and play or at least eat in the restaurant.

Elvis's Grave Site
Carrying on to Amarillo Tx, where we stayed at the Amarillo Travel and Info Welcome center, at 9700 I-40, take exit 76, for the night. There is parking for RV's and a separate area for transports.
Finally to wrap up this post, we are at Hidden Valley RV Park at Tijeras NM. Here for three nights, taking a breather, getting my laptop fixed and a little sightseeing before we move on.
We have travelled on decent roadways with a bit of a rough spot on Hwy 71, but all in all, good roads.
Thanks for following along, comments are always welcome and until the next time, take care and be safe.