RV resorts – Page 5 – The MoHo and Other Traveling Tales

Desert Modernism in Palm Springs

I suppose that our foray to the local Wal-Mart in Palm Springs shouldn’t quality as a step into Desert Modernism, a new phrase that I just found to describe all the flat, square buildings around here. I kept saying to Mo, “This reminds me so much of my ugly, cement childhood in the suburbs of LA. Lots of flagstone, flat roofs, square facades, dull colors. The worst of Frank Lloyd Wright on steroids, surrounded by graceful palms. As we drove down Gene Autry Trail I kept wondering why everything looked this way, why it all looked like we had stepped back into the 50’s. The more we drove, the more I realized that all this squareness was actually on purpose. Even new buildings, new apartments, had that “look”. Hmmm. Later, hunting desperately for a dog-friendly hiking trail in Palm Springs I happened on the phrase: “Desert Modernism”. It’s real, and Palm Springs and the surrounding towns are very proud of it. Palm Springs has the largest concentration of mid-century modern architecture in the country. I guess that explains it. Maybe my escape from mid-century LA basin life many years ago to the rich northwest world of Craftsman and cabins ruined me for appreciating this particular style.

But back to Wal-Mart. All I can say is “Ugh”!! The store here is so huge I couldn’t find the exits and the bathrooms were horrendous. It’s sometimes really easy to catch the mixed up lists of needs at a superstore, but maybe not quite worth it. Somehow I expected better in this upscale area. The Wal-Mart we visited in Minnesota was pretty darn nice, and almost as big. We won’t go to this one again, that is for sure. After adding to our supplies at this scary place, we continued driving along HWY 111, the main route through the desert towns here in the Coachella Valley. Upscale is definitely an understatement here, and the El Paseo shopping area was not exactly the place I wanted to be in my denim shorts and Keen sandals. As we sat in traffic among the Mercedes, Jaguars, BMW’s, Mo suddenly said, “What in the world is THAT car?”. Turns out it was a Maseratti. I don’t think I saw one in real life before. We were glad we had at least washed the Tracker before coming to town. The rain held off all day but the skies were threatening, and our plan for the day was to explore the area, check things out, get our bearings.

Home at Catalina RV Park and Spa looked tremendously welcoming when we finally arrived, still frustrated with no internet connections, but at least Mo had the news and I decided to try out the swimming pool. Our park has a truly wonderful pool, large and crystal clear, with a hot spa adjacent that is probably close to 104 degrees. The night was chilly, with wild white clouds obscuring the moon and revealing it in turn, but I thought maybe the pool would be warm enough to swim, since it appeared that steam was rising from the water. Ahhh!! I was enveloped by a balmy 93 degrees of pure mineral spring water that is pumped from the parks own well at 130 degrees and cooled with fresh water to a safe level. The large swimming pool has no chemicals, and neither does the spa. All the water is naturally changed several times a day by the influx of fresh water. Unlike many hot springs, this water is full of minerals but has no sulphur, another great thing since there is no bad smell at all. I floated on my back and watched the moon and stars come and go amidst the clouds and let all the frustrations of the last couple of days slip away.

This morning we woke to more heavy clouds, and threatening rain. Reading about the Street Fair at the College of the Desert was interesting, so we took off to try out the local fairs. By the time we got there, the rain was a bit heavier, but not so much that we couldn’t walk without umbrellas. However, many of the vendors were giving up. It wasn’t such a bad thing since the fair turned out to be just a tacky as many flea markets, and our only purchase was some great lettuce for tonight’s salad and some dates. By the time we got back home the rain was coming down hard in Palm Springs, but once again it was dry where we are camped.

The park here is quite nice except for the lack of Wi-Fi connectivity. We paid the fee to supposedly connect, but the only time I have been able to actually get to the internet was before 6am this morning. After six, all came to a screeching halt. You all know how frustrating that can be! Instead, as darkness falls, Mo and I are sitting here at the Starbucks in Desert Hot Springs, listening to Christmas music and trying to catch up on all things internet. I am still searching for dog friendly hikes and Christmas lights. Tomorrow evening is a real treat, when we will meet Laurie and Odel for dinner at the Fisherman’s Market in La Quinta. The sun will come out eventually, I am sure, eventually. In the mean time, all I can say is that I am glad I am not camping in a tent.

Traveling south to Desert Hot Springs

Rain in the desert is often lovely, except when I have dreamed of blue skies and warm sun and planned a major MoHo run south to find it. We have had snow and dark skies in Klamath for several weeks now, and my week in Florida was challenged by 20 degree weather. A long trek to the Coachella Valley should be the remedy. I think the weather forecasts show a bit of a break next Thursday. Last night, however, the skies were beautiful, with soft shades of pink and rose among the gray, cream, and yellow lit clouds.

A quick run south, leaving behind the cold and snow of Rocky Point, is only possible because we decided to store the MoHo in Redding this winter. Enclosed, insulated storage isn’t cheap, and we tried for the smallest unit possible. We also decided to forego winterizing thinking that the temperatures in Redding rarely drop below freezing. The water tanks were all empty and the lines emptied out, but we didn’t do anything else before parking in mid November. It was with a bit of trepidation that we opened up the big sliding door. Everything turned out just fine, with the trickle charger keeping the battery charged up and the house batteries were still even on 12.6. We brought along a couple of gallons of water to fill the tank and everything worked just fine. Although next time when we pull into the storage spot we will have some pink stuff in the drains, at least.

See that gorgeous sun in the photo above? The trip over Mt Shasta on I-5 to Redding was gorgeous once we left the icy freezing fog behind in the Klamath Basin and Highway 97. Little did we know that was the last time we would see brilliant sunshine for a long time. I am still waiting. By the time we got to our stop over point in Lodi, the rain was coming down hard. We hoped to get to the desert with only one overnight stop, requiring 400 mile driving days. By the time we reached the Flag City RV Resort in Lodi we were worn out. We shared the driving duties, but it still is a very long haul. Flag City is really nothing more than a reasonably comfortable stopover, with perfectly level cement pull through sites, and full hookups including fast Wi-Fi and cable. I have no idea what else the park offers because we didn’t care in the least. The MoHo was stopped, and everything we needed was right inside our cozy home.

On Friday we thought our trip to the desert would be about 8 hours of driving so thought leaving at 9 would be just fine for a 5 pm arrival. We didn’t factor in the hard, driving rain, or the plan to take HWY 58 through Tehachapi rather than brave LA traffic. As dark fell on the desert we still had 90 minutes to go before reaching our camp. We took 247 south from Barstow rather than drive through Victorville and all the traffic there as well. It’s a narrow road with lots off ups and downs, but oh soooo beautiful. It looked like a lot of BLM land, open and free, and in the coming desert twilight it was all I could do to keep from begging Mo to just head out into the desert and boondock.

When we finally arrived at the Desert Pools RV Park, I remembered again why we try to never, never, never land after dark. Everything was strange, the night person didn’t have our reservation, and offered to let us stay for one night only “off the road”. Somehow I had messed up the reservation (they don’t take them) and instead I opted for the “just come in and talk to the hosts and you can stay for two days”. Dumb. Of course, the fact that the park had recently disconnected their cable service wasn’t exactly a good thing either. After a long day on the road we at least wanted Wi-Fi and TV. Otherwise I would be back boondocking in that gorgeous desert! Mo is a little bit easier about these kinds of things than I am, and I wasn’t much fun to be around that night I am sure.

In the light off day, the park was every bit as ugly as it appeared the night before. The pool was small and brown as were the three spas. We took the dog for a walk and everyone was just so dang friendly! The night host came up to us and urged us to stay, saying the park was “so much fun with a lot going on”. I guess we aren’t very social, because that actually sounded just awful to me. Although the hot cinnamon rolls in the dining room were pretty good.

Our original plan was to spend six days at the Catalina RV Park and Spa, so we called them hoping for a chance to come in a day early. Success! With great relief, we packed up and didn’t even bother to hook up to drive the half mile back to the Catalina. Through the gate and immediately we could see the difference. Even though this is a very large park, with spaces fairly close together, there are trees and shrubs between sites, and while our site is on packed sandy dirt, it isn’t so bad that we couldn’t level the rig without blocks. The cloudy, threatening skies were breaking here and there with a bit of lightness, so that helped my mood a lot as well. Thank goodness! Our plan now is to spend the day adjusting to the local area, do some driving around, and just try to catch up a bit. Wi-Fi is still an issue, but hopefully I can find a spot somewhere around to actually get on the internet.

Traveling from Fort Bragg to the Russian River

When we left Fort Bragg yesterday, it was raining hard. Our route followed Highway 1 along the coast for several miles before we turned inland at the Navarre River on Highway 128. Gasoline was just 2.99 a gallon on the south end of Fort Bragg, so we put another 75 in the MoHo and hooked up the baby car right there in the gas station. We are both amazed at how quickly we can hook up that car. The Stow Master hitch works great if we hit it every now and then with a bit of silicone. I can just slide it onto the ball without any effort at all.

I checked our route on Google Maps, on the iPhone, and with Garmin Girl, all set for the fastest, not the shortest route. I didn’t say anything about avoiding highways. All three of them sent us over 128, but not a single one gave us a clue what we were in for. The first part of the road was narrow, following the Navarre River through huge old redwood forests, damp and dark in the misty rain. After a few miles we emerged into the Anderson Valley, and official wine country. Picturesque small towns dotted the landscape every few miles and even in the rain the vineyards were beautiful in their fall colors.

Once we began ascending the mountains of the coast range however, the road got more and more narrow, and more winding even than Highway 1 was a few days ago. The last five miles before we reached 101 were probably the most harrowing so far on this trip. Mo handled it with aplomb, I wore my wristbands, and Jeremy only got sick once.

If we had known the route was this bad, we would have taken the more direct route straight south on Highway 1 along the coastline all the way to Jenner. Ah well, neither of us had been on this route before, so it was ok. Of course, Garmin Girl was still programmed for “shortest route”, so she took us along the even rougher “Westside Road” to get us into Forestville rather than going farther south on 101 and taking a major road back west. By the time we got to the campground in the dark pouring rain, Mo’s opinion of Garmin Girl was diminishing.

This trip was an opportunity for us to check out as many Camp Club USA parks as possible, and we only came this far south to try out this park. The web site looks great, but if you look at Street View on Google, it’s another story entirely. When we arrived at the River Bend RV Resort, the office was closed (it was barely 2 in the afternoon) and there were some very vague instructions about “finding a site”. We had a reservation, and had no clue where to go because the park is very tight, convoluted, and completely full of old trailers, rv’s, campers, all surrounded by old cars and trucks.

While I stood around looking helpless, the owner showed up saying, “Oh, I was just making a map for you”. He charged me the half price fee of 24 bucks a day, and then said, “Wi-Fi is free for one hour a day, otherwise there is a 6.00 charge” . What?? It didn’t say THAT on the internet. He proceeded to give me a huge spiel about the high cost of real estate in Sonoma County and how he didn’t let anyone else stay in his park for a measly 24.00, and didn’t I realize that there were 150 wineries within a fifteen minute drive and he wasn’t about to pay for free Wi-Fi for people who just abused it by downloading movies. Hmmm. It was also interesting reading the “rules”. My favorite was the one warning about going in the river intoxicated, and another one referred to no loud partying after 10PM. Interesting clientele, I think.

Our site was right on the river, a bit away from all the permanent residents, so that was a relief. I think we are the only people in the park who aren’t permanent. I decided to do some laundry, going back and forth in the rain, dealing with the dryers that quit when the power went out from all the rain, but of course the timers didn’t quit and I lost 4 bucks. Froggi Donna, another blogger, asked recently what we love and what we hate about RV’ing and last night I through that what I dislike most is the dang laundry thing.

I decided to read the “101 Things to Do Sonoma” for some ideas about the area. Unlike the Mendocino publication which was full of great information, this one had page after page of wineries and restaurants. I guess if you are in Sonoma, you are supposed to go wine tasting and then eat. Ha. Mo and I both love wine, but the wine tasting thing sometimes just seems way too expensive and pretentious for either of us. I’d rather go kayaking and buy my wine at Trader Joe’s or Costco. Maybe a nice wine tour would be a fun thing to do another time, but not this time.

We settled in after supper and listened to the hard rain, drowning out most of the heavy traffic noise from the highway nearby.

A quiet day in Fort Bragg

It rained hard all night, pounding on the MoHo roof and making me really happy that I wasn’t in a tent! Someone said that there are two kinds of slides, ones that leak and ones that will. So far, there are no signs of any leaking anywhere in the MoHo, even in the hardest rains and wind. I guess the Dynamax reputation for solid coaches is holding up for us.

I took my time cooking breakfast this morning while we watched the Sunday news shows. Mo and I both love Fareed Zakaria, he brings such a different perspective to the world view. Then Mo balances all that out with a good hit of Fox News while I retreat into the computer. Ha! Guess you can tell who is ex-military and who used to be a tree hugger! The rain let up after breakfast and we took Abby for a walk around the park. On the way we met a couple from Victoria, just out on the beginning of a five month journey through the western US. Wayne and Lynn were very conversational, and we had a great time comparing notes on campgrounds, RV’s, and destinations. It’s amazing how easy it is to talk with strangers in this RVing world, no such thing as a stranger, really.

I love my new kayak, but there were a couple of little problems with it when it finally arrived. Somehow the bubble wrap used to protect it caused the paint to discolor on the side exposed to the sunlight and it has a small area of bubble wrap design along one side. In addition, the rim around the cockpit has a small split that shouldn’t be there. I called the company as soon as I unwrapped the boat and they called me back to make sure everything is taken care of properly. Bill Swift is the owner of Swift Canoe and Kayak in Ontario, Canada, and I am so impressed with his customer service. He is building a new boat for me and paying for the shipping to my home in Oregon. My boat was a sale boat, with a few minor flaws, so he asked if I wanted to pay a bit more to get a new boat, or if I wanted to send this one back for repairs. Either way he would pay the shipping, so I decided to opt for the new boat and the chance to pick my own colors. In the mean time, he said I should use the boat I have now as much as I want to until the new one arrives some time next January. Great customer service, great product, and great company! I highly recommend them.

We spent the morning walking through the Mendocino Botanical Gardens, senior discount fee was 7.50 each, and well worth it. The gardens have several areas, with more formal perennial gardens close to the entrance, and then about a half mile of wilder gardens that lead to a great ocean bluff overlook. At this time of year, the flowers weren’t that exciting, but the plants and foliage were lovely. The trails were nice too, and we took our time enjoying them even more than the gardens.

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After our walk, we drove to the main part of town, but it didn’t seem to have much to offer, not enough to actually get out of the car to explore. Nothing caught my eye and Mo isn’t a shopper anyway. I think we got our fill of browsing back in Ferndale, anyway. At the northern edge of town is Elm Street, leading down to the hidden Glass Beach. Once the town dump, it is now covered with beautiful tiny smooth pieces of sea glass. Somewhere we read that you aren’t supposed to pick up the glass, but once at the beach, it was filled with beachcombers looking for that perfect piece of glass and filling hands and pockets with the tiny treasures. We took a few as well. My favorite is the pale light turquoise pieces. We didn’t find anything particularly fabulous, but had fun looking and enjoying the beach and the surf.

We traveled up the Noyo River to check out Liquid Fusion Kayak Company, only to find an open lot with some kayaks and a sign that said to call them if you wanted to rent one. I had hoped for an actual shop with information, so we later stopped at the dive shop along the highway. The young man there was really helpful and told us that Big River ten miles south at Mendocino was the best paddle around, with easy access and fewer people. Big River is listed in the Sea Kayaking Northern California book I bought recently, so after looking it up and reading we decided that for sure this will be tomorrow’s destination.

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It was just a napping kind of day, so instead of doing anything else we went back to camp, had a late lunch snack and I took a great nap, snuggled back in the comforters watching the trees outside the window as I fell asleep. I love the chance that we have had on this trip to actually slow down and relax. An afternoon nap is just about as decadent as I can imagine! When I woke up a bit later, it was starting to darken and we took Abby for a walk around the nearly empty park before coming back home to make supper. I’m really looking forward to getting out in the kayaks tomorrow, it should be a sunny day, and again the tides are with us perfectly.

Photos for our day at the ocean are linked here.

We are staying at a park in Fort Bragg that had many reviews: Pomo RV Park and Campground. It seems it is the best place to stay around here, since most others are merely parking lots. Some of the reviews complained about the rules and policies, but we had no problem with anything. It is a cash only park, and doesn’t honor anything but Good Sam ten percent discount, so at 40 bucks a night it’s not a cheap place to stay. The sites are huge, however, and as private as a good state park. We wonder if maybe at one time it was a state park. I haven’t seen a private RV park anywhere laid out with this kind of luxury of space. CeiPui asked for some photos of the park, so I linked a separate album here.

Our new kayaks are delivered!

I was so impatient to get on the road today, that I could barely sit still. We were supposed to meet the trucker delivering our boats at exit 33 in Medford between 11 to 12 AM, and Mo didn’t really want to get there too early and have to sit around waiting. The weather was perfect, in the high 40’s, no frost, and clear sunny skies. Our pass to Medford over Highway 140 had some remnants of snow at the summit, but the pavement was bare and dry with hardly any traffic.

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The driver was tremendously accommodating and agreed to meet us in Medford by changing his route to I-5 instead of Highway 97 through Klamath Falls. It was perfect timing for us. We arrived in Medford to find him waiting patiently at the Pilot station, having arrived at 6AM!. He delivers high end boats all over the country, and his rig was loaded up with 60 foot racing rowers and some kayaks made in China and Peru. Our kayaks were bundled up in bubble wrap and plastic, and after many thank you’s and hand shaking, we transferred them to the baby car top rack, tied them down, and headed west.

The biggest reason for buying new boats had to do with weight. I couldn’t believe it when the driver and I hoisted that boat to the top of the rack. I could have done it one handed! Our older boats weighed about 49 pounds and the new ones top out at a featherweight 34 pounds of Kevlar-Fusion. It is amazing what a difference 15 pounds can make!

We continued our route north on I-5, grateful that we didn’t have to stay on that busy highway, and turned west at Grants Pass. One thing about living in this part of Oregon is that there are just a few ways to the coast, and none of them really is a direct route. Highway 199, west and south of Grants Pass meanders though the beautiful Illinois Valley, through Cave Junction and then along the magnificent Smith River to the coast. Mo had a condo in Brookings for several years and we were used to driving this road, but I forgot how beautiful it can be. The fall colors were magnificent with brilliant yellow and gold big leaf maples lighting up the dark green forest. Here and there are some red trees, but most of the native trees are shades of brilliant yellow. It isn’t east coast, of course, but it is still breathtaking. We took turns driving so we each could enjoy the views. Once we reached the Smith River the road narrows and follows the high gorge of the river. “Road Narrows” is a big joke to us. It’s a repeated refrain along this part of the coast. On a very narrow winding road, that is already quite narrow, appear signs that say “Road Narrows”. We are never quite sure how a paved major highway with two lanes can get more narrow!

The distance from home to our first park was a measly 146 miles. After our usual 300 mile plus days last trip, it felt as though we arrived almost too quickly. We are staying at the Hiouchi RV Resort in Hiouchi, California, about 10 miles east of Crescent City on Highway 199. Just down the road is the magnificent Jedediah Smith State Park and the Stout Grove of giant redwoods. The resort allows Camp Club USA discounts only in the months of October, November, April, and May, for seven nights maximum. It is a really lovely park, especially here on the north end along the creek where it doesn’t feel anything at all like a typical park. We have space and privacy, with our own little bubbling creek outside the door, a clean cement pad with a nice picnic table, big trees for shade, ferns and ivy for landscaping. We have excellent WiFi, full TV cable service, water, electric and sewer for just fifteen bucks. No taxes, no other fees. I guess there is a bit of traffic noise from Highway 199 on the eastern edge of the park, but it’s not really obtrusive.

We arrived before 2 in the afternoon, and settled in to our site, made some snacks and opened a bottle of wine before taking the kayaks down and unwrapping them. It was an exciting moment, marred just a little bit by a couple of flaws in my boat that I didn’t expect. I immediately emailed the owner of Swift Kayak in Gravenhurst. I have no idea what the result will be. Hopefully the rim that is cracked slightly can be replaced, and he will let me know how to go about it.

Once the boats were again loaded up on top of the Tracker, we headed in to Crescent City to find an old restaurant on the Citizen Dock where Mo had dinner with her brother and his wife. She remembered it being at the end of a pier with lots of barking sea lions to accompany a decent fish supper. We drove all around the harbor, but the restaurant never appeared. It turned out to be a good thing, though, because the place where we had dinner was fabulous. The Northwest Inn is next to a motel and is a place we would have never stopped if we hadn’t read a little blurb in the RV Park map about the fabulous fish served there.

The restaurant isn’t pretentious at all, with a rustic, but comfortable decor and casual staff. The fish, however, was fabulous. Mo had fresh sole done up in butter and I had fresh snapper stuffed with crab and shrimp served over an amazingly well sauced pasta. It was rich without being heavy at all, and the fish was fresh and sweet.

The drive back to camp went quickly, in spite of the curves. The road between Hiouchi and Crescent City curves through the thickly forested state park, with huge trees right next to the pavement. It’s a beautiful road, and each time we pass through we are enthralled.