5C's Que Pasa

We eased into the day yesterday as we didn’t have far to travel.  I was still sitting at the computer in my nightie when there was a knock at the door.  I knew who it was as I have seen her photo so many times while reading her blog posts.  Kathy lives in B.C. and winters in Mazatlan and writes Kathy and Eric’s Travels.  We have never met in person although once in Hermosillo we waved at each other as we drove past each other.  She had just read my post yesterday morning that we were in the same park and I was about to read her’s when she knocked at the door.  We actually had both crossed out of Mexico within hours of each other last Thursday.  Always interesting to read someone else’s take on the same road you traveled on the same day.

Later, on the way to walk the girls along the canal, we stopped for another quick visit.

There was quite a wind blowing and for the first time I needed my jacket.  Once I got on the dyke I buttoned it right up to the neck, I was chilly and we were walking into the wind.  The girls didn’t seem to mind the weather and just scampered along.  Eventually we packed up the RV and were ready to drive out of the RV Park at 11:00AM.

We travel with two 5 gallon water bottles which we use for drinking water.  We get the water delivered to the RV on the Isla but in the US we have to find a place to fill them up.  Here in Yuma there are hundreds of water stations, almost on every street corner plus there is always lots of space to pull over even when driving a 40′ bus towing a car.

So our first stop was filling up a bottle, 5 gallons for $1.00.  We have gone thru 10 gallons in 8 days.  We do drink a lot of water and it has been very dry.

Next stop the shopping mall.  Colin hadn’t had a chance yet to check out the stores.  He always needs new shorts as he tends to wear his beige ones to do any RV or car work and they get stained 😐  Everything in Yuma is large,  including the roads and the parking lots.

Before we started the drive North we conveniently had lunch in the RV.

Finally we were on the road to Quartzsite.  Only 85 miles away but the perfect stop for us as will become evident over the next day.  We always stop in the BLM area off exit 112.  It was empty of RV’s, less that ten so easy to find a quiet place away from everyone.

A short but scenic drive. With our extra stops today we managed a mere 93 miles.

The big Q.

It didn’t take long to do a basic set up and soon we were all outside. If Caeli has a favorite position, this would be it.

While Carmeh is always on the move. She is a hunter.

The wind was blowing and it was still very cool.  The sun kept hiding behind the clouds.  The wee bit that it was out it was warm but overall it was chilly.  Once again I donned my jacket.

Colin braved the elements.

I’m the wee spec of yellow huddled in my chair trying to read. I was also trying to keep my glass of wine from falling off the table during the wind gusts.

Finally about 5:00PM we gave up and came inside to continue our relaxation.  Even Carmeh was more than ready to come in at that point.  Usually at this time of the year we are battling the huge amount of flies that like to buzz around in the heat.  We don’t mind the cool of the evening and overnight but this was the first day that we have been so cold in Arizona.  If it is this cold in April I am glad we go further South to Mexico.

Colin braved the elements to get this shot for me.

He later caught me writing yesterday’s
post. Love all the windows we have in this RV.

Every morning in Yuma we started the day with birdsong.  Such a variety and so pronounced.  It was time to rise and shine when the symphony started 😉

Sunday was to be my shopping day.  Part of the reason for our time in Yuma was for me to so some serious shopping for thinner summer clothes.  I did my due diligence and discovered that the large stores only opened at 11AM on Sunday so off I went to Walmart, just down the road.  We needed important things like a can opener ( ours  had simply stopped functioning ) and food.

I often bring back a toy for each of the girls. Carmeh is always sniffing out all bags that come into our house or the RV just in case it is her lucky day.

She is a toy dog and the louder the squeak the happier she is.

Caeli has only 2 toys she plays with and one is an old sprinkler head. I keep trying though. She looks at this new one and says “what am I supposed to do with this’?

Food in the fridge and the girls are happy,  so Colin and I decide to head out to the mall together.  We were somewhat dismayed to discover that all the stores like JC Penney, Kohls, etc were all closed.  Yes it was Easter Sunday but I am pretty certain that stores like the Bay and Sears were not closed in Canada.  So now what?  Brilliant idea, let’s go find the best taco stand in the area as discovered by my friend Lynne.  You can read her blog post here about her quest to find the perfect fish taco place between the Baja and Arizona.  It is very interesting post and entertaining.  So we headed to El Cositas here in Yuma which was a tad difficult to find as we just were looking for a lot across from Fry’s.  I somehow missed the SW part of the directions but we did find it.  Guess what?  They were also closed.  More disappointment.  So we finally settled for a small soft ice cream cone from Dairy Queen.  We couldn’t go home without spending some money 😛   I then spent the rest of the afternoon dealing with laundry.  I did make us a great dinner and once the dishes were done I was ready for bed.

Good thing I went to bed early as the birds started their symphony at first light and they had quite the artistic director.  Good thing the birds woke us up as the RV washers Colin had hired showed up early at 7:15 AM.

Soon the sounds of water pouring over the roof had Carmeh shaking like a leaf. I finally just had Colin take her outside of the RV. I have no idea why she gets so upset when someone is on the roof.

Apparently while I was at Walmart on Sunday a woman had come up to the RV with a flyer offering both interior and exterior cleaning.  She told Colin they could do the entire exterior of the RV for $40.00. Colin asked if that included washing the window screens.  She said yes and for another $5.00 also washed the car.  Our window screens were filthy due to the sand and humidity.  The RV  and car look great.  Such a deal.  The screens are so clean that you can’t even see them.  They washed them twice by hand and also power washed them.  All of this was completed by 8:15AM Monday morning.

Soon I was off to do my shopping while Colin stayed back at the RV and did many chores.  He really is a very hard worker and he goes non stop.  He is happy to get these things done as he knows when he gets home he will be busy with our company business.  I did have a successful day at the mall and you will see the results over the next few months.  Of course all the purchases will be declared when we cross into Canada.  Quick question?  Do you declare the entire amount of your purchases or do you just declare the amount spent?  I do the latter.  Why should I have to add a state tax to my maximum duty free allowance which by the way is now $800.00 CAD?

I had also ordered a few items online which were delivered to the RV park and held for me.  Sadly for the first time in years of doing this, an item never arrived.

On March 11th I had ordered 18 of  these miniature hot air balloons and they still had not arrived. I discovered that they had been shipped via Singapore Post.  You might say a slow boat from China.  So it is a loss, but a very small one.  I told the office at the park that they could keep them, if and when they arrived and enjoy them next winter at their functions.

This is a close up of the dog stroller I had ordered for the future.

No longer will Colin have to carry the girls down the beach if they can’t walk.  I love it.  The wheels are strong and did well here in the gravel as well as the sand along the canal.  Both of the girls fit side by side and they can also lay down.  The cover also zips closed so they can’t jump out.  I don’t think that will be a problem with these two.  They already love it.  I am so happy to have this for down the road.  This is where I got it on Amazon.  I only paid $39.99 and it is much better that I thought it would be.

Yeah Colin, he made dinner.  A great thin crust spinach and feta pizza compliments of Dominos Pizza.  Life is good.

We left Ajo about 9AM.  Not planned but it just fell into place.

It was cool at 6:30 AM ( the time on the device is not correct ) but still very dry.

Stopped for diesel at Love’s in Gila Bend, such low prices compared to anywhere else we have seen since then.  Cost per gallon was a mere $2.489/gal cash.  Yep, another reason to carry all the US cash with us… actually we have started to use a credit card.  Yikes at 1.30 with the exchange rate.

Earlier in the morning while Colin was playing with the girls he touched one of Caeli’s ears and she actually screamed.  While fueling up at Love’s I had a thought to check her ears.  Her right ear was an angry red and swollen.  It looked like her ear canal was closed tight.  The left ear appeared normal.  We both knew that she was in distress and need to see a vet ASAP.  As Colin drove I was on the phone researching vets in Yuma and trying to make an appointment. It was Saturday of the Easter weekend and it was not easy  After 60 minutes of many calls  ( I called several RV parks of which I had the numbers asking for recommendations and telephone numbers ) and finally I found a vet clinic that would take us at 2PM.  We knew we would be in Yuma by 12 :15 but a certain clinic refused to stay the extra 15 minutes  ( they closed at noon )  even though I offered to pay extra.  I have no idea of the scenry between Gila Bend and Yuma,  I was either on the phone or checking maps.

We got the the Desert Veterinary Clinic an hour early but still had to wait until  the scheduled 2PM appointment time   ( it was lunch time ).   In the end we only saw the vet at 2:20PM but she was so worth the wait.  What a fabulous lady. As she handled Caeli she kept talking to her and kissing her. Caeli had no fear or apprehension.  The situation was such that we never thought to take photos.  After a more than thorough check she took a swab from each of Caeli’s ears.  Caeli had a major fungal infection in the right ear and the beginning of one in her left ear.  Likely due to her being swamped by a wave on the Isla last Monday or Tuesday.  We now have a creme to apply twice daily and already we can see a positive change.  For 2 weeks we apply it twice per day and then once per day for yet another two weeks.  What a relief, we were very concerned re her ear canal being comprised.  You don’t want to know the cost of the ER visit…doesn’t matter as we would have paid more if necessary.

By now it was mid afternoon and we knew we had to check into the RV Park by 4 PM.  Turns out that today they decided to go to summer hours and the office closed at 3PM.  Fortunately there was a sign on the door as to which site to go see about checking in.  We were only 15 minutes late ( despite the fact that I was told that 4 PM was check in at the latest ).  The lady was not happy but did give us a site, etc.  By then we were exhausted.   We were set up by 4PM and got internet for the first time since early AM on April 2nd.

We also were able to pick up the items/packages we had ordered online.  One of which was a dog stroller.

Due to the heat we put the girls into the new stroller and wheeled them to the dike.

They loved it and sat side by side with no agitation whatsoever.  I had ordered the stroller based on the problems we had with each of the girls over the past winter with periods of paralysis.  It will now travel in the RV and be there for when and if we need it.  Once we let the girls out they just walked as normal.  We are at the Arizona Sands RV Park here in Yuma, a Passport America Park.  We really like the accessibility to the canal dike where we can let the girls roam off leash to roam.

Half of the way back to the park is along this Oleander hedge.

Rather than follow the path the girls preferred to walk the crest of the dike.

We are on Sagebrush Lane.

We were fortunate to enjoy a wonderful sunset on our first night.

I can observe sunset after sunset and think that this one is the best.

But truly each and every one is special in it’s own way.

Having left Mexico we arrived at our first USA stop which just happened to be in the BLM lands south of Why, Arizona @ exit 55 about 4:40PM on Thursday April 2nd.  Amazing that we had left Mazatlan just the morning before and managed to cover 887 miles.

Who is in that cute Winnie waiting at the entrance for us?

Why none other than the world famous Suzanne Anthony, author and world traveler.  She also happens to write an outstanding blog called Take to the Highway.  You really must read it as she has a way with words and her photos are excellent.

I was somewhat in a daze from 2 long days of travel and was more than ready to open a bottle of champagne to celebrate our reunion.  Suzanne was one of the bloggers at my first International Bloggers Convention in 2013.

We both just eased into dusk and the sunset. The conversation never stopped and Colin kept the music and the wine flowing.

Colin also kept taking the photos. Gracias.

Wow. I did take this one.

Two special friends in an incomparable setting.

I have no idea how it became a bit   a lot past 8PM. I knew I had to get dinner on the table. We never stopped chatting and sharing, nor did we run out of discussion material. In fact we barely covered the surface. Hmm…not sure why the photo is so blurred….artistic to say the least 🙂

I believe Colin and the girls went to bed at sometime.  I do remember walking Suzanne back to her RV and getting home at 1:30AM.  Nothing like intensifying our short period of time together.  As Suzanne had mentioned to me, it was truly magical.  An evening that will never be forgotten and hopefully repeated in the future.  All too so the morning arrived and I do mean that literally.  Carmeh loves to sit and watch for the odd gecko passing by.  So when the sun rose and the first bird started singing outside our window she was up and so were we.  It was only 6:15AM.  Less than 5 hours sleep.  I tried to ignore her.  She just jumped up and down over our bodies trying to wake us up.  Okay Carmeh, you win, we are up.  Sorry to say I was in no frame of mind to take photos, nor for the rest of Friday 🙁  I actually took no photos this entire stay, just not into it, so sorry.

I was doing our supper dishes when Miss Suzanne appeared at our door to announce her imminent departure. She had other places to be and other friends to see.  So adios mi amiga, hope to see you soon.

Dishes done, it was time to take the girls for a stroll.  We had to leash them as we were too worried about the rattlesnakes.  It was just so hot for this time of year and record highs had been recorded over the last few days.  Poor girls they pulled and pulled and choked themselves.  Yes we have tried harnesses but just have not found the perfect one for doxies.  It was way too hot to walk more than 30 minutes and back to the RV we came.  I did sit outside in the shade to read but it was so dry and hot.  Inside the RV it was 89F and 1% humidity.  Such a drastic change from the humidity of the Isla.  Both Colin and I were finding it difficult to breathe and our noses were getting dry and sore.  No fun.  You might find it hard to believe but both of us had fingernails break.  Not a big deal for me but for Colin the guitar player a disaster.  I don’t recall such an extreme from the Isla to the desert.

Finally we turned on the inverter so I could check emails and so a blog post.  Turns out that AT&T does not have service this far South.  Last time we were here, perhaps 3 years ago I was using Verizon and we had internet.  Because I has just requested our service to be turned on for April 2nd, I called AT&T to check that they did so and it took 53 minutes to confirm that we had no signal.  Good thing I had signed us up with our Canadian Telus cell service for a special 30 day package that gave us 250 cell minutes for $50.00.  So that is why I did not post Friday.

Mid phone call to AT&T the power went out.  Our inverter had turned off because the batteries had dropped to 11.7 volts ( this happens automatically ).  We later discovered that the fridge had been on electric in error.  Colin turned on the generator ( I really hate doing that ) so that I had the computer running so I could do my thing with the tech specialist.  Most frustrating.  Meanwhile it was time to enjoy our second sunset in the desert.

A cloudy day brings lots of color to the sky.

We had the fire on for ambiance as we snugged our girls. Caeli is my baby.

Carmeh belongs to Colin…and to Suzanne for very special late night cuddles.

Mother Nature provided a wonderful show but not quite as great as the night prior.

Thank you Colin for this great moon shot.

Yet another wonderful evening in the desert.

We could have stayed another day and night but because of the inverter/battery issue and no internet we decided to leave Saturday morning.  As it turned out, it was a great decision as we had a dog emergency to deal with.  Stay tuned.

Hola everyone.   I apologize to everyone who was worried ( thanks for your emails ), but we had no internet.  On with the story….

We left San Carlos at 7:00AM on Thursday April 2nd. The mosquitoes were vicious and were coming through the screens. We both felt the roads all the way from there to Santa Ana were in good condition and then onto Sonoyta as well. I have heard that the road to Nogales from Santa Ana is in bad shape.

What the heck? Turned out to be burning tires.

Much of the boulevard at the North end of Hermosillo is planted with oranges trees. What a great idea. Free fruit for those who need it.

Just after the Hermosillo toll we stopped at a Pemex. Colin took the girls out to do their business while I cut up fruit and muffins for us to enjoy as we kept driving. I could hear a bird singing while inside. Colin captured this photo, this guy was way up high in a cactus.  Great real estate location.

What a cute little woodpecker. Not sure if he was a baby.

I could tell it was going to be a special day and that was confirmed when we got to the military check at Benjamin Hill.  For the very first time ever we were given the signal to keep driving and got to miss the in depth inside check 😆   Last year they came in and even opened my spice bottles and sniffed them.  In no time, due to the good roads, we were @ Santa Ana and headed directly West for Sonoyta/Lukeville.  As we drove through Altar this large group of youths ( maybe scouts ) started waving and I got this shot at the last possible second.

They just started smiling and waving as we passed by. Wish we could have stopped and chatted and found out what they were all about.

Very odd and very slow driving combination.

We did stop in Sonoyta for about 5 minutes to look at plant pots.  They wanted $70.00 US for one and $100.00 US for two.  No gracias.  Literally highway robbery.  Next stop the Mexican/USA border.

Gulp! There were at least 18 vehicles ahead of us.

This was a first in all of our years crossing into the USA that we had more that one vehicle in front of us, but it was also our first time crossing during Semena Santa.  It took us 40 minutes in line to get to the US border officer.  As we got closer we saw that only one lane was open.  Ridiculous considering the line up.  I have to say that by the time we got through the line it must have been close to a two hour wait behind us and possibly longer.  Usually we pull up and have a quick chat about where we have been and for how long and what are we bringing into the US.  Usually it is all agriculture based.  Not so this trip.  Finally it was our turn.  Where were we coming from….’San Carlos’…for how long….’one night but we were in Mazatlan before that’.  We were asked to pull ahead and stop at his signal.  He never indicated that he was coming on board but suddenly there he was at our door and yes he did have to jump up to the door level entry as our steps were broken.  Out came a flashlight, he checked the shower, then the bedroom and asked me to open a closet door.  Was he looking for illegal aliens?  Once he saw the amount of clothes in there, he said adios.  What the heck, I was saying in my mind?  What about all the fruit, cucumber and tomatoes I was crossing with?  He was not interested.  Okay, so I will bring these items into the US illegally.  You did not ask me, I am stunned.

The girls were extremely impatient at the delay in crossing and rather vocal about it. They wanted us to get moving or get out and go for a walk.  I had to snap this photo, Caeli looked so relaxed with her paws on the dash but look at her legs.

We were both stunned by the new exit. Usually you just drive forward onto the highway. Now there is a maze of sorts.  We had to make an extremely wide turn to go between the two tall yellow pillars.

You can’t really see it in this quick shot taken on the fly but the base of those yellow protruding bases are black with past collisions.

Colin said it was very difficult to navigate due to the narrowness of the space.  The RV rocked as we went over the tope stripes and if you were not correctly positioned one could easily incur damage to your rig.  From here you had to take a sharp left which should have been alright except for the 2 cars parked ( you can see a white vehicle to the left of the top left pillar) in the way of our turn. Thank goodness Colin is so experienced.  Meanwhile as all of this was transpiring, the line behind us was growing. By the way, we saw a dozen agents sitting inside the building doing ???

Finally 45 minutes later we reached our destination, the BLM lands at mile 55, just North of the border.  Waiting for us was a very special visitor and some special moments.  Stayed tuned for the details.