I’m a Teenager!!

Posted on April 2, 2020 by liv2rv

Hello everyone, it’s your favorite dog blogger, Makena! I thought it was time for an update on my blog, as quite a bit has been happening for me, both good and bad. Let’s just get the bad stuff out of the way first…

OUR NEW HOME

What in the world were my parents thinking when they sold my house?? I was NOT consulted on this purchase of what amounts to a human sized dog house. I have gone from 40 feet of floor space, to 11 feet. I knew something was going on, because my parents kept packing up their stuff, and moving it out. But then I noticed they were packing up all my toys, food and treats, and it was removed from the RV as well. At that point, I became very nervous about what was happening. That night, which turned out to be the last night in our home, I refused to sleep with my parents. They would put me in bed, and I jumped off, and sat by the door. They again put me in bed, and I jumped off and went by the door. Finally they gave up, and put a blanket down by the door. That’s where I spent the night. There was no way I was going to let my parents leave, without taking me along. So I slept all night in front of the door.

Nobody leaves without me

The one thing I do like about the camper, is the booth dinette. However, I have to stand on my paws to see the computer, as the table sits up higher than the dining table in our fifth wheel. As you can see, it’s not as comfortable for blogging. But I will still keep my peeps informed!

Keeping my peeps informed!

The nice part about the booth dinette is I can sit on top and look out the window. I like that a lot. I can get some sunshine, fresh air, and see what is going on outside.

But there is barely enough room for my dog bed, blanket and food dish on the floor. And when they need to get something out of the refrigerator, or cook on the stove, I get moved around. And there’s not much space to run around indoors to play. I’m slowly adapting to my new digs. They promised me I would have a bigger house in a year or so.

MY BIRTHDAY PARTY!

So on to the good news. I just turned 13 years old, so my parents decided to have a birthday party for me. They tried to make sure that everyone practiced good social distancing during the party. Here I am demonstrating how to keep an appropriate social distance, which is something I have spent my whole life doing. P1060362 (1)

My friends Duffy and Finnegan attended my party, and they were busy trying to find the feral cats that hang out behind this park model.

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Si also attended, but he didn’t get the memo on proper social distancing! I had to keep my tail down…it’s kinda like a face mask for my butt!

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Missing from my party was my Grandpa Stu. We share the same date of birth, only 70 years apart. Also missing was Buddy, my next door neighbor for the past two winters. His parents had to leave early to get back to Canada. I like Buddy, because he lets me share his recliner with him. His mom gave us some treats before they left to celebrate my birthday.

CHRISTMAS

This past Christmas, I was again able to spend a few days with my dad’s family for Christmas. Gary and Julia again rented a pet friendly house, in Tempe. I was able to meet up with my cousin Simon, who just keeps getting bigger and bigger. He just turned three years old. We did our customary picture, but had a new addition this year. Simon is now a “big brother” to Amira, born in September.

Currently, I have been spending a lot of time hanging out at Dave and Marilyn’s house in Yuma. My parents have been helping them with some outdoor projects. I like having a bigger house to hang out in, especially when I can just relax in the sunshine.

Stay safe everyone! Take care and thanks for following along.

Quote of the Day: “The world would be a nicer place if everyone had the ability to love as unconditionally as a dog.” – M.K. Clinton

Honey, we shrunk the RV!

Posted on March 18, 2020 by liv2rv

What a strange month this is turning out to be. We hope everyone is staying safe, washing their hands often, and taking COVID-19 seriously.

Our goal this year was to lose weight. On March 3, we accomplished that goal, shedding over 12,000 pounds! We were up at 6 am to drive to Avondale, Arizona, to drop off our beloved 5th wheel, a 2014 Heartland Landmark, and then pick up our new home, a 2008 Host Everest camper, from Tom’s Camperland in Mesa, Arizona. It was a very long day, and we did not arrive back in Yuma until 10 pm. But everything went well, and we had a good experience with the staff at Tom’s Camperland.

We went from 40 feet of living space, to 11 feet! It has been a bit of an adjustment. Here’s the final view of our 5th wheel when we dropped it off at the dealership.

Bye-bye

And the first photo of us with our “new home.”

The next day, March 4, we began the process of moving our stuff back in!

The above photo shows the stuff we are keeping. We have a number of bins full of stuff that we are keeping, but not taking with us to Alaska (more on that later). Thankfully, our friends Dave and Marilyn, who live here in Yuma, have offered us the use of their shed to store some of our stuff. They figure this way we have to come back to Yuma someday to pick up our stuff! Our friends Bob, Tom and Ellen let us temporarily store our food in their refrigerators.

We have made great progress, and this was our view yesterday, March 17. The two big chairs will be going to Dave and Marilyn’s when we leave, as well as our grill.

Here’s some interior and exterior photos of our new home, that we took at the dealership. Once we get a little more settled in, I can take some more photos of how it looks with our stuff.

The camper has three slides. This view shows the propane, batteries, and a slide-out tray for storage. It also has a 2500 watt generator, and a 150 watt solar panel, to keep the batteries charged.

Having three slides, very unusual for a 2008 model, makes the interior feel less cramped. It has a side entry door and the couch and u-shaped dinette both fold into beds.

It has a small kitchen, but the two drawers below the stove are very deep.

I was pretty adamant about having a “dry bath” not a wet bath, which provides a separate shower.

The bed is a full queen, but the way it’s oriented, means you have exactly 60 inches of width. I’ve bumped into the wall on the right a few times. Sometimes Dan keeps the closet door (the mirrored doors) open when he sleeps, so he has a little more elbow room. There is an emergency escape hatch on the roof above the bed. It’s pretty easy to open and get out if necessary. Hopefully we will never need to use it!

The only modification we have made so far is changing out the old 25 pound 19-inch television, to a 28 inch 7 pound LED-TV. We did this to not only get a better quality picture, but also so we could hook up our channel master DVR which needs to use a HDMI cable.

WORK UPDATES

COVID-19 has certainly created a lot of changes here at Westwind RV. The majority of the residents here are from Canada, and they have made a rapid mass exodus over the past 10 days. Normally people start departing around the third week of March, but with all the uncertainty, many have left early. With Canada shutting it’s border down, and a mandatory 14 day quarantine for anyone returning to Canada, the park has rapidly emptied out. We wish all of our Canadian friends very safe travels home. There are a lot of folks from Washington and Oregon here. They are in no hurry to leave!

Next week we are supposed to have a Westwind work camper appreciation dinner with the owner of the park, and new managers. Who knows if they will still have this large gathering? Although there have not yet been any confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Yuma County, Imperial County just to the West of us, in California, has had several confirmed cases. And with testing finally ramping up, who knows what things will look like next week.

For the past several months, the golf course has been holding 50/50 raffles at the dances, as well as a raffle and golf outing, to raise money for Shriner’s Children’s Hospital. This is an annual event, and this year, over $6,600 was raised, a record amount! Here is a photo of our golf course pro shop staff with the local Shriner’s donating the check. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun as well.

Art, Terry, Jonell, Debbie, Henry, Dan and Yuma Shriner’s

ALASKA UPDATES

The reason we downsized to a camper was for our trip to Alaska. As of now, we still plan on going. Our plan was to cross into Canada on May 18. Today, they closed the border in Canada to US Citizens. A lot can happen in two months, and it is certainly going to get worse as the number of confirmed cases rapidly increases each day. We have not made a plan B yet for the summer. We feel fortunate to have our health, our families are safe, and if we can’t go this summer, so be it. It’s better to stay safe.

Our friends Tom and Ellen were planning on going to work in Skagway Alaska for the summer, but that has been cancelled. Skagway is a major port for the cruise ships. And since the ships are not allowed to dock in Canada until July at the earliest, they stores would not have any customers until late in the summer. They are currently looking for new summer jobs. If you need two hardworking work campers, let me know.

Now go wash your hands!

Quote of the Day: “Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon.” – Doug Larson

An Electric Parade for Christmas!

Posted on December 23, 2019 by liv2rv

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of our readers! And safe travels for those who will be traveling during the holiday season.

We really enjoy working two days a week in the golf pro shop here at Westwind Golf and RV Resort. It’s a very low stress job! The weather has cooled down (lows in the 40’s, and high’s in the mid 60’s) making it much easier to tell the difference between a Canadian snowbird (still in shorts) and a year-round Yuma resident (pants, gloves, earmuffs, and a winter coat!)

Last Saturday was the Foothills Off-Road Vehicle Club’s annual Electric Light Parade. Members decorate their jeeps and other off-road vehicles and go from RV park to RV park at night to show off their vehicles, and to collect donations for the Yuma food pantry. This year there were a few hot rods added to the parade, which were a big hit with the crowd. Enjoy!

Quote for the day: “My idea of Christmas, whether old-fashioned or modern, is very simple: loving others. Come to think of it, why do we have to wait for Christmas to do that?” – Bob Hope

Back to work for the Winter

Posted on November 24, 2019 by liv2rv

Life is pretty good in Yuma, Arizona, the sunniest place in the United States! The park we are working at, Westwind RV and Golf Resort, is slowly filling up, as the Canadian and American snowbirds make their way south. We are about half full, and should be close to capacity in January. It has been a lot of fun catching up with the many friends and co-workers we met last year, that have returned again for another season. In addition, our friends Tom, Ellen and Bob have joined us this year at Westwind to work. They all seem to be enjoying their jobs, and the warm, but not humid, weather.

This year, we have new jobs, which we are both enjoying. Last season I had a paid (minimum wage) job in the office, three days a week, and Dan worked three days on the golf course, which covered our site rent, and all utilities. This year, we are working in the Golf Pro Shop, two 10-hour days a week. We really enjoy working just two days, Friday and Saturday. Here’s a few pictures the inside of the Pro Shop.

It’s small, but we have a great view of the first hole out the window that you see above on the right.

Our view

We have seen many “interesting” shots off the first tee!! Here are some views of the course, which is a nine-hole Par 3.

This is the first hole straight ahead, with #3 on the left, and #9 fairway on the right. One of Dan’s duties is to fish out all the balls in the pond (and there are many!).

In exchange for our two 10-hour days, we receive our site for free, all utilities, and a $640 voucher each month which can be used at the onsite restaurant, golf shop, and concert tickets. Our duties are taking tee times, selling merchandise (clothing, hats, gloves, golf balls), and keeping the patio area outside the Pro Shop clean. It’s as easy as it sounds! I don’t miss working in the office, but I do miss working with Lori and Roy. We were able to get together for dinner, and talk about future work camping opportunities and places to explore. We both have a lot more travel adventures in our future!

Another bonus of coming back to Yuma is getting together with friends Dave and Marilyn, that own a house here. We have had several get togethers, and met up for the Howling at the Moon on November 12. It was Tom, Ellen and Bob’s first experience, and they all seemed to enjoy the strange little gathering in the desert.

Howling at the Moon

Bob, Jim, Carol, Marilyn (Dave behind in blue shirt)

Ellen, Tom and Dan as sun was setting behind

The sunsets in Arizona are always full of color

And then it was time to start “howling!” If you are ever in the Yuma area, and it’s a full-moon, you need to partake in this free festival!

We hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving. It looks like most of the country is going to be hit with some storms, so stay safe!

Quote for the Day: “Of all possessions a friend is the most precious.” – Herodotus

Winding down for the season…not yet!

Posted on September 5, 2019 by liv2rv

We have started our last month here at Luton’s Teton Cabins, but instead of winding down, we are full speed ahead. September is the third busiest month in the park, and we are at full occupancy until the third week of September, and then half full for the remainder of the month. Many of our guests this month are repeat visitors, and it’s always fun catching up with them. By the middle of the month, Dan will switch over from housekeeping to steam cleaning the carpets in all the cabins and the lodge. He enjoys the change of pace. Karen and I continue to be busy in the office, booking many reservations for next year.

I haven’t been faithfully posting this summer, but with this being our fourth year here, I just haven’t been that motivated. We are very excited about going to Alaska next summer. Our friends and co-workers Karen and Al have done a fabulous job planning out an itinerary and looking into fishing and sightseeing opportunities. We have already made a few campground reservations, but have a loose enough schedule to make changes, if need be.

Dan and Al have have gone fishing multiple times this summer, including one successful outing on Jackson Lake in the park. I think it’s the “here fishy, fishy” hat that draws them in!

All those fish led to a wonderful employee pot-luck for everyone. Dan and Al grilled the fish.

This has been a good summer for visitors! A former co-worker of mine, Laura, came out here with her family, and we were able to spend a little bit of time with them! Makena especially loved meeting her kids, and suckered them into some belly rubs! Ironically, it was six years to the day that I left work when Laura and her family came to visit. We had a great time catching up on the past six years, and I’m so happy she stopped by!

Dan’s brother Gary and his wife Julia also came out to the Teton’s. Julia’s father John was celebrating his 90th birthday, and their entire family flew out to the Teton’s, and took a bus trip for the next week visiting many national parks and historic sites. They were only here two days in this location, but we enjoyed our brief visit, and took Gary and Julia out for a hike along String Lake, one of our many favorite places here.

Jean, Julia, birthday boy John and Gary

We met up with friends Jack and Ruth Ann, and Ruth Ann’s sister Jean. We first met them working at Amazon in 2013. Jack and Ruth Ann, as well as our friends Tom and Ellen, took us “under their wings” when we first started. We all ate lunch together at Amazon, and learned so much from them about RV’ing. Jack and Ruth Ann have been full-time since 2005. They have volunteered several times at the Albuquerque Balloon Festival, and we talked about doing that in the next year or two with them.

Jean, Jack, Ruth Ann, Jonell and Dan

And speaking of Tom and Ellen, we did make it up one night to West Yellowstone, Montana, to surprise Tom for his birthday! We will be seeing them again next week when they stop through for their last visit to the Teton’s. They will be joining us this winter in Yuma, and next summer they will be working in Skagway, Alaska.

Happy Birthday Tom!

Friends Dan and Nancy from Wisconsin also stopped in for a visit. Dan just retired from teaching in June, and they were visiting their son in Idaho, and stopped on the way back. We had a long discussion on full-time RV’ing, and on their way back home, they stopped in South Dakota and changed their residency. They will be working on transitioning to this wonderful lifestyle! We wish them all the best!

Dan, Nancy, Jonell and Dan

We always enjoy playing ‘tour guide’ and giving out suggestions to our guests on things to see and do in Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. We have enjoyed our four summers in this area, but we are also ready to move on to new adventures!

Quote for the day: “Remember that the most valuable antiques are dear old friends.” – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Working and visitors

Posted on February 20, 2019 by liv2rv

For the first five years of our full-time RV life, we only worked from mid-May to the end of December. We spent January thru March just hanging out in Florida, but I would get bored by March. I need to have something structured to do with my time. This is the first year we will be working all the way thru mid-April, at Westwind RV and Golf Resort. (yes I know, “poor us” having to stay in one place for six full months!)

Our current job is a good test to see how this longer winter job will work out for us, from both a financial standpoint, and on my “boredom” meter. We probably won’t decide until the end of March what we will do next winter. We really want to give this a good try, and see how everything goes. Ideally, it would be nice to find shorter term jobs, and be able to travel more.

Work in the office/registration has definitely picked up. January was very busy, and February has been crazy as well, as this is the peak of the snow bird season. March is when we start taking reservations for next season, so we don’t anticipate much of a slowdown at work until early April. Dan has been busy on the golf course, and enjoys cutting the fairways, and rolling the greens.

But once again we have been faced with the sad reality of life. Monday we noticed an ambulance down the street from us, in front of the motorhome of the work camper that works opposite days of Dan on the golf course. His wife had a heart attack, and passed away. We spent some time with him yesterday, and he told us they should have started RVing earlier in life. We hear that all the time. Don’t wait on your dreams, whatever they are.

We did have some visitors this past month, which we always enjoy (our door is always open!) As Makena posted in her blog, Dan’s parents were able to visit for a couple of weeks. They were able to golf a few rounds on the par 3 course here in the park that Dan works on, as well as participate in many other activities that go on every day in the park. They had a great time, and we were happy that they were able to make it out to Yuma for a visit.

Our friends Joan and Steve stopped in as well. They volunteer at the Lake Mead Recreation Area in Nevada. Due to the government shutdown, they were not able to work, so they drove down for a visit. We learned some new card games, and talked about future work camping and volunteer jobs. We also got together with Henry and Terry, that work in the pro shop here. All six of us worked together at Crazy Horse Memorial, so it was nice reminiscing about that summer.

Joan, Jonell, Dan, Terry, Henry and Steve

Friends from Wisconsin, Dean and Jeannie texted us that they were passing through Arizona on their way to California for a volunteer work camping job, so we had a quick breakfast visit. They spend the winters traveling in their Airstream, and summers back in Wisconsin. It’s probably been five years since we have seen them, and it was great catching up with their adventures.

While Dan’s parents were visiting, Dan’s cousin Dave and his wife, Dee, stopped by as well. They are over-the-road truck drivers, and were in Yuma to pick up a load. It was a quick hello, as they had three days to get to Georgia.

The big Quartzsite RV show took place at the end of January, and we drove up to check it out. It was basically a giant flea market, but we did meet up with Terry and Wendy for lunch. And as you can see, it was cold out in the desert!

Our park has a concert series where they bring in tribute bands, and we have attended several of the concerts. Some good, some okay. Dan’s parents were able to see ‘December of 63,’ a tribute to Franki Vali. It was an excellent show, and Dan’s mom was able to meet the band!

And then there was the very energetic ABBA tribute band…

Quote for the Day: “It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.” – Marcus Aurelius

The dog blog is back for another year!

Posted on January 30, 2019 by liv2rv

Hello everyone! Your favorite dog blogger is back! And Happy (belated) New Year!! My parents need to leave the computer open and the wifi on while they are busy at work, so I can keep my peeps updated more often! For those new to the blog, I’m a little Jack Russell Terrier that likes to take over the blog once in a while, and post about my life on the road.

Keeping my peeps informed!

Normally my parents do their work camping thing (which pays for my toys and treats) from mid-May to the end of December. I’m not sure that I like this idea of them working all the way through mid-April this year. Usually I get to spend the first four months of the year being the center of attention. Now they are off working 3 days a week, and I’m home alone listening to the radio. I guess it’s better than being back in Wisconsin, where it’s 22 below, and that’s just the air temperature! My mom’s sister Margie sent her this picture this morning. That is just wrong! I feel bad for my cousins, Rudy and Reagan. They are German Shorthair Pointers, so they have even less hair than I do! I would need to use a litter box, because there’s no way I’m going outdoors to pee in that temperature!

I did get to go with my parents to San Diego (thanks Gary and Julia for booking a dog-friendly house so I could come along!). I’ve visited the Atlantic Ocean several times in Florida, and was excited to get my paws wet in the Pacific Ocean! I’m officially a coast-to-coast traveler now!

My mom and I sat down for our regular photo with my cousin Simon. That tiny baby has grown into a handsome young boy.

Simon has also grown into the perfect height for getting snacks! I’ve taught him well.

I was super excited when my grandparents came to visit me here in Yuma! They have been very busy with golfing, line dancing, playing cards and participating in many other activities in the park. When they came over, gramps was a little pooped out, and grandma was more interested in her iPad. I feel left out….

sigh…

Longtime readers may recall that grandpa and I share the same birthday, March 20. They will not be here in March, so we decided to have an early birthday celebration, with gramps turning 82, and I will be 12! The cake was delicious!

Looking at the photo with 2 candles, has caused me to reflect on the 10 years that have passed since the last time I had 2 candles on a cake.

just a pup at age 2

I now have some gray behind the ears, but I think I still look great for my age! Back then, we were living in a house, and I enjoyed playing with the neighbor kids, Adam, Faith, Josh and Ben. They would play football with me, which I enjoyed. But I really enjoy living in a fifth wheel. The smaller space suits me better, and I get to meet people from all over the country, and discover new spots to sniff and pee. Life is good!

Quote for the day: “A boy can learn a lot from a dog: obedience, loyalty, and the importance of turning around three times before lying down.” – Robert Benchley

A visit to Los Algodones, Mexico

Posted on January 21, 2019 by liv2rv

Los Algodones, Baja California, Mexico, about 9 miles west of Yuma, is unofficially known as the dental capital of the world. Over 350 dentists practice in the small town of 5500 people. There are also a number of eye doctors, and several pharmacies. It is a popular tourist destination for both Americans and Canadians, looking for reasonable dental work as well as prescription drugs. We have many visitors to Westwind RV park where Dan and I are working, that stay for a week while they get dental work done. Everyone raves about how affordable it is to have root canals, implants, crowns, etc.

Our friends Dave and Marilyn that live in Yuma during the winter, have been to Algodones many times, and took us over the border for a day to check the town out. You can drive across the border and parking in town for $1-2, or parking in the lot for a $6 fee before the border, and walking across. The parking lot is owned by the Quechan Tribe, not the United States. Since Dave and Marilyn have a small vehicle, they drive across and park. If we were going with our one-ton dually truck, we would park and walk in, as the town is not really a big truck friendly town.

This is the entry into Mexico, with pedestrians on the right. Algodones is a very small port of entry city.

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The purple pharmacy/liquor stores are huge, and very popular. We found a great deal on Kahlua, $7.50 for a one-liter bottle! As for the drugs, you do need to have a prescription, just like you would in the US. I don’t know much about the rules/regulations on getting prescription drugs across the border, but many people were getting their prescriptions filled.

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The city is filled with dentists and eye doctors. It’s a one-stop medical shop for many tourists. Many of them live in Yuma, and commute daily into Mexico.

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We found a great spot for some excellent shrimp tacos, and real Coca-Cola, not the high-fructose corn-syrup stuff sold in the US. It was delicious!

There are plenty of street vendors selling everything from t-shirts, tablecloths, jewelry and other knickknacks. We found the people to be very polite, and everyone spoke English. This town is very dependent on tourism, and they go out of their way to treat you in a kind, respectful manner.

Apparently the people of Algodones are Packer fans, as Dave found a pack of Green Bay Packer peanut (or should I say cacahuate) M&M’s at the grocery store for us! Must be why everyone is so nice!

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What’s that in the background?

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This has been in place for over a decade. Call it whatever you want.

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When leaving Mexico, whether by vehicle or foot, plan on spending a long time waiting. There is one long line for vehicles, as there are only two vehicle lanes of entry into the US. Fortunately (or unfortunately), there are plenty of vendors to keep you entertained. One man was selling homemade tortilla shells. I bought a bag of them for $1.50. They were still warm, and they were excellent!

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This is the pedestrian walkway back into the US.

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We had a great time visiting the city, and plan on going back to get our teeth cleaned (and more shrimp tacos!) before we leave Yuma.

Quote for the day: “I always encourage people to get out there, travel the world, see new things, experience new people, experience new culture. What happens is that it helps you grow and be your best self.” – Karamo Brown

Spending A Sunny December In Yuma

Posted on December 13, 2018 by liv2rv

We’ve been watching the weather around the country, and now we understand why people come to Yuma, Arizona for the winter. While everyone else has had miserable weather, it’s hard to complain when the temperature “only” gets into the 60’s, and there is a cloud or two in the sky, and no humidity. The weather is truly the reason to come to this area!

Work continues, with a few minor changes. One of the gals in the office has left for medical reasons, so now there is just two of us on Thursday – Saturday. Our office manager has come in to help on busy days. My coworker and I have commented that we like it now, because it is busier with just two of us, and the work seems to flow better. We’re not tripping over each other, and the days fly by. And, bonus, the Arizona minimum wage goes up in January, to $11.00/hour, so we will get a 50 cent an hour pay increase! We also received holiday pay for Thanksgiving, even though the office was closed. That was a pleasant surprise!

We are trying to get into the Christmas spirit here, and put up a few decorations in the fifth wheel. Growing up in Wisconsin, I still have a hard time getting into the spirit when there is no snow on the ground. We were briefly watching Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer the other night, and Makena wanted nothing to do with Rudolph and barked at the television for several minutes. I guess she was making fun of Rudolph too?

But all was “calm” once the stockings were hung by the fireplace! It was too warm to have the fireplace on.

Besides work, we have been busy with golfing here at Westwind RV and Golf Resort, and getting together with our friends Dave and Marilyn.

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I’ll have more “fun” things to blog about in future posts, but we did take some time to help them put in a new patio at their house. It’s projects like these that make us happy to not own a house anymore! Fortunately, we did this on one of the “cold” days down here. Work, work, work…

Everything turned out great, and they cooked us a delicious steak dinner (we will work for food!!)

We spent a day in Quartzsite, Arizona, about 70 miles north of Yuma, to visit with friends Terry and Wendy. We worked with them 3 years ago at Luton’s Teton Cabins in Wyoming. They have spent the last two summers working at a campground right near the ocean in California, and will go back for another summer in April. Fortunately, they were not affected by the wildfires this year in California.

It was great catching up with them, and we made plans to get together again in January. They are in Lake Havasu, Arizona for the winter.

We spent a little bit of time looking at some of the “flea markets” at Quartzsite. The big RV show will be in January, and we plan on going back to check that out. At this time of the year, there is not much going on in the town, and the flea markets are mainly rusty junk and rocks. Lots of rocks for sale!

Buckets and buckets of rocks for sale!

We were watching the funeral service for President George H.W. Bush, and they were showing highlights of life, including footage of his parachute jump at age 90. After the jump he was interviewed, and I thought that his advice was perfect…

Quote for the Day: “Get out and do something. Get out and enjoy life.” – President George H.W. Bush

Welcome to Yuma!

Posted on October 15, 2018 by liv2rv

We have arrived in Yuma, Arizona for the winter, after an uneventful drive down south from Moran, Wyoming. Uneventful, that is, after we got the brake lights and turn signals working on the 5th wheel trailer. We were all hitched up, ready to leave Luton’s Teton Cabins, our summer job, when I went behind the 5th wheel to check the lights. I waited and waited for Dan to turn on the blinkers and hit the brakes, and he was waiting for me to raise my arms to left him know everything was working. The lights would turn on, and the trailer brakes worked, but that was it. Ugh…..

Al and Karen were hitched up and ready to leave, and came over to help us out, but they had a long drive and we encouraged them to get moving. Brad, our boss came over to help us out. He went home to get his pick-up truck, and came back and we plugged the 5th wheel into hs 7 pin hitch. Everything worked, which made us very happy, because we now knew the issue was with our truck, and not with the 5th wheel. After doing some ‘google’ searches (what did we do before ‘google’?!), we narrowed the problem down to two 25 amp fuses in the engine compartment. It was hard to get at, but we swapped one good fuse with one of the bad ones, and that took care of the brake lights/turn signal issue.

We are not really sure what caused both fuses to blow. Dan did help out another couple working here that was having problems with their travel trailer, and had plugged their trailer into our truck. We think that whatever problems they were having with their wiring, caused the fuses to blow.

So we were happy, and got on the road….and then the ‘check engine’ light came on! The good fuse that we pulled was for the urea heater, which has to do with the DEF fluid. We figured that was why the light came on, so we didn’t worry about it, as we were only planning on driving about 200 miles that day to Fort Hall, Idaho.

We had no additional issues with the truck or trailer on our drive, and opted for the more scenic US Highway 93 down through Nevada, instead of I-15 through Utah. We were surprised by all the snow on top of the mountains in Nevada.

We spent several nights in small little towns in Nevada, and then decided to stop in Needles, California for two nights, as we finally hit some warmer weather and sunshine. Needles contains some of the old Route 66 roads that you can still drive on.

Fortunately, we did not need to stop for gas during our brief stay in California!

Laughlin, Nevada is about 25 miles north of Needles, so we drove up to check out the casinos for a few hours. Many of the casinos will allow you to boondock in their parking lots for several nights. No big wins for us 😦

We continued on to Yuma, and are all set up for the winter at Westwind RV and Golf Resort. We start our jobs this Thursday, and will be working Thursday, Friday and Saturdays. I’ll have more on our jobs after we start, and have more details of what things are like here. So far the weather has been excellent!! Warm, but not humid.

There is a US Marine air base nearby, and we frequently get fly overs by an assortment of planes and helicopters.

The park is a mix of park models and RV spots for rent by the day, week, month or season. Right now, things are quiet, and the park, which has 1057 spaces, is mostly empty. Last year they were at 94% capacity throughout January, February and March. We are looking forward to a very busy season!

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Yuma is known for clear skies, but we have had several cloudy days, which resulted in a spectacular sunset, as seen from our spot.

We have no idea what our time here will bring, but we are really looking forward to our new adventures. Take care!

Quote for the day: “Go for it now. The future is promised to no one.” – Wayne Dyer

Liv2RV

Living and working around the country in a RV

Category Archives: Full time RVing