Batter Up!

One of the great things about March in Arizona 

(besides the weather) ...    is Baseball!

15 Teams make the Phoenix Metro their spring home and the towns

roll out the red carpet for the teams and fans.

We poured on the coal heading west in the hope that we would make it to

Phoenix before spring training concluded at the end of March, and

fortunately we made it in time to catch one of the last games of the spring season.

We returned to Surprise Stadium - where we saw the Texans last year, and this

year we saw the Colorado Rockies vs the Texas Rangers.

My old home vs my new home!

Being a die-hard Broncos fan...   I had to cheer on Colorado.

It was no use however as Texas won 6-5

The great thing about spring training is you are in a much more intimate setting than

at the home stadiums, and its easy to get great seats at reasonable prices.

We were behind the netting just to the right of the plate.

While here we stayed at Lake Pleasant Regional Park, on the northwest

fringe of the Phoenix Metro.

Its a great park with 50amp and water hookups with a dump on the way out.

The views from our site were great, and a nice cool breeze blew off of the lake helping

to moderate the warm daytime temps.

The Ocotillo are green and the flowers in bloom

My job has been a real grind lately with 14hr + days, and each morning 

I would take a break from work and we would go on a walk with

Jim & Kristi before I would go back to my cave to continue my labors...

Many days my work lasted long into the night.

We arrived too late to catch the desert "superbloom" but it still is the greenest

and most flowerful (is that a word?) that we have ever seen.

A desert Tortoise peeks out from his hiding spot

At the end of the week we moved down to Picacho Peak State Park for the 

weekend.   The campground is between Phoenix and Tucson and we find it to

be a nice place out of the cities to just relax.

It has only electric so show up with water and empty holding tanks.

I chose our site (B11) because it faced Northeast and keeps the afternoon sun

out of the front window.

The weather has been close to perfect and a cool breeze fills the Bus with

the scents of the desert.

Site B11

To our rear - looking west to Picacho Peak. 

Saturday morning we met J&K in Tempe for the Tempe Art Festival.

Tempe has a wonderful downtown area, and they close off several blocks plus side streets,

for the affair.    

It was a pretty large and eclectic event which had arts of all kinds including

musicians and street performers.

The lobster ladies struck a pose.

This group came marching down the street beating drums.

It looked like it might be a Native American group, but I'm not certain.

We will stay here in Picacho Peak Sunday night and then we will drive 40 miles

south to Catalina State Park in Oro Valley (north of Tucson)

where we'll stay put for 2 weeks and hook up with Ron & Maxine as well

as reunite with Jim & Kristi.

Tucson is one of our favorite places to visit because there is just sooooo much

to do there.   Hopefully I'll have some time to enjoy.

See you there.

Finally Done

The last 5 1/2 weeks has been a whirlwind.

From Contract to sell the house...

to packed, closed, moved..

We left you in Livingston Texas where we had arrived to get our residency

set up, insurances changed etc.

Our continuing quest now had us leaving Livingston, Texas.

New Temporary licenses in our pockets...

and license plates on the vehicles.

We were back on the road  having accomplished everything,

about 40hrs after arriving.

We came, we saw, we licensed.

We were a blur!

Saturday morning we drove 400 miles west to The Buckhorn Lake Resort,

 nestled in the Texas Hill Country in Kerrville, Texas.

We really enjoy the area and this park is very nice.

Last year we spent a week here during our Fall westward migration.

They often have dinner theaters, and country western headliners.

Sunday morning we were back on the road west bound.

Today would be the day were we leave the humidity of the east behind and

enter the vast arid regions of the American west.

Notice the greenery in the photo below.

We had company on the highway this morning.

The Budweiser Clydesdale Trucks (3 semis)

came barreling by...

 followed by a chase van.

Notice how the landscape has turned color signifying that we are in the dryer region.

In just a hundred miles or so the climate changes. 

Up ahead you can see the Budweiser Gang.

Those of you who have watched The Shawshank Redemption a few hundred

times like me will recognize the road sign...

Fort Hancock Texas.

Where Andy Dufresne, and then Red, crossed the border to Mexico.

We spent the night in Van Horn, Texas at the old KOA, now private.

Its a dusty campground but not much else convenient in this area of west Texas,

and its easy on and off I-10, all pull thrus so no need to unhook the toad,

and a Pilot Truck Stop at the exit if you need to fill up.

We've been wasting no time heading west because this has been a very rainy season

and the spring wildflowers have been in what is known as a "SuperBloom"...

A once every couple of decades explosion of spring color.

Crossing New Mexico we got a taste of hopefully what will still be waiting when we 

get to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona.

These tiny Poppies make the most of the past rains.

A 470 mile day brought us to Benson, Az and Kartchner Caverns State Park.

We normally come here in December to celebrate Kates birthday at the

German Cafe in Sierra Vista.

I would also get my CDL physical here.

This time it was a quick overnight and then a dash to

Casa Grande, Az as I had a conference call at work that I needed to get

settled in time to attend.

Casa Grande is the end of the beginning....

What started with the signing of the contract to sell the house,

ends here with the storeroom that we would unload our stuff into.

The cart is outside of my storage room.

Temperature controlled, each storage unit is also alarmed.

I have a lock on it, but if anyone tried to open it, the alarm goes off.

The facility has an on-site manager who lives there and all the corridors

have cameras so that they can see exactly what is going on 24/7

All of this was moved out of the bus and the pickup.

So as of this evening...   we have reached the end of the beginning.

We are done with the work of transitioning from the world we've known,

and are now full-time RV'ers.

Since we were usually on the road much of the year anyway, its less of a change

than one might think...  but it still feels very free.

To celebrate - I had a crew come and wash and wax the bus.

And then that very night....   it rained!

That tree behind us has beautiful fragrant flowers, and like all desert plants,

the seeds travel in the wind and cling to what ever they touch.

By morning the clean bus was covered with yellow flowers!

The Doodles have made the transition to full timing with no effort.

We'll spend a few more days here in Casa Grande.

We are going to run up to Phoenix (about 40 miles) to go to Ikea...

(Kate wants to start refilling the bus)

and then I've found what is supposed to be a great German Food Resturant.

I've been dieting since November and so far have lost over 70 lbs...

I think its time for a treat!

Next stop is Lake Pleasant where we will hook up with our good

friends Jim & Kristi.

See you there.