LOG

DATE

EVENT
23 July 07 Today was one of those rare perfect summer days in Maryland. Together with Reds, Patricia's father and her brother Bill, we went to Larriland Farms in Woodbine, Maryland to pick blueberries, plumbs, and peaches- at least they did, I just stood by and took some pictures. Patricia also took some pictures. It was a perfect day and we enjoyed being outside at this beautiful farm.
   
12 Aug 07 We are dog sitting Maggie, Carolyn's boyfriend Mark's dog, this week. Today was another very pleasant low humidity day in our area, so we took Maggie across the street to let her swim in Back Creek. Back Creek leads to the Chesapeake Bay, which is very close by. Maggie had a good time chasing sticks that Patricia threw into the water for her to fetch. I sat under a tree and took pictures. I wonder why dogs love to roll in the dirt after a swim?
   
21-25 Aug 07 After staying at home for the summer, we finally got away for a few days. We meet up with Patricia's brother Bill and his girlfriend Michael Ann in Chincoteague, Virginia. The weather was not the best for a mini vacation, but we needed the rain. Chincoteague ( of the pony Misty fame) is an island and the beach is on Assateague Island. We also visited Assateague, Maryland, which is part of the same barrier island (see photos on the Maryland page). Marshes and mosquitoes are abundant in this area. Further south on the Eastern Shore of Virginia is the Turner Gallery; purportedly the largest personal wildlife gallery and foundry in the United States.
   
16-17 Sep 07 We went to Delaware for a few days to check out housing in the "retirement friendly" state and  visit Bombbay Hook National Wildlife Refuge near Dover and Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge close to Rehoboth. This was a "fact finding" trip. There appears to be plenty of housing for retirees but at a price. Most of the retirement communities have "fees" that are just a little too steep for us. The wildlife refuges were well worth the short drive. Both are very well managed and we thoroughly enjoyed our visits. We will probably go back when the snow geese arrive in November.
26 Nov 07 Departed for Snowbird 2007-08. Stopped for the night in Dillon, SC.
27 Nov-07 Arrived in Savannah, GA for a two night stay, following a brief stop in Charleston, SC. Never did get She Crab Soup, but had some tasty Fried Green Tomatoes!
28 Nov 07 Took a narrated tour of Savannah with Old Savannah Tours. Enjoyed seeing this historic city with its squares and streets  lined with live oak trees draped in Spanish Moss. Also drove out to Tybee Island and had lunch on this deserted (for the season) ocean front community. On the way back we stopped at Fort Pulaski National Monument at the mouth of the Savannah River and got caught up on some Civil War history.
29 Nov 07 On the road heading West; stopped for the night in Tallahassee, FL
30 Nov 07- 2 Dec 07 Arrived in Gulf Shores, AL for a three night visit. Staying at the Best Western on the beach (Gulf of Mexico); really nice view from our Gulf front room. Visited Ft Morgan , site of the 1884 Naval Battle of Mobile Bay. Checked out several commercial RV campgrounds in the area, but none compared to the Alabama Gulf State Park campground. Walked a one mile accessible loop at Bon Secure National Wildlife Preserve. Also visited Perdido Key in Florida (a few miles from the hotel) and the Gulf  Islands National Seashore. There are many new high rise condos being built in the area; did not realize that there were so many people who could afford $750K for a couple of rooms over looking the Gulf! This area was  hit very hard by Hurricane Ivan in 2004, but sustained very little damage from Katrina in 2005, relatively speaking. Posting of pictures will be delayed for several days.
3-4 Dec 07 On to South Padre Island; expect to arrive 5 December. Stopped for the night in Beaumont, TX. Enjoyed authentic Texas Bar-B-Que at Willy Ray's for dinner, but we forgot how much "fun" it is to navigate on and off the Texas Interstates using their "service" roads, especially in the night! Stopped the second night in Odem, Texas on US 77.
5- 8  Dec 07 Love our room overlooking the Gulf of Mexico at La Quinta Inn and Suites on South Padre Island. Hooked up with Kathy and Paul Longthorpe who are staying at an RV park in Brownsville. Paul took us to Boca Beach where he drove on the beach to the mouth of the Rio Grande River. We also enjoyed visiting the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge and the Sabal Palm Audubon Center. Our first trip across the border was fun. We knew that many people cross the border for dental care and pick up less expensive prescription drugs, but we had no idea that we would be hustled to see a dentist and get prescriptions at the "Almost Free Pharmacy!" Paul and Kathy showed us around town where we also enjoyed pastries and coffee at a shop where we were serenaded and a wonderful Mexican lunch in a very nice restaurant. Our trip to Nuevo Progresso was very enjoyable and would not have been possible without Paul and Kathy's assistance, for which we are very grateful.
9-16 Dec 07

It took us two days to reach Ten Bits Ranch, we stayed overnight in Del Rio, Texas. Our trip to the ranch was through some very remote but beautiful country. We passed through  "Amistad National Recreation Area, which  is the United States portion of International Amistad Reservoir, formed on the Rio Grande along the border of the US and Mexico. The reservoir is known for excellent water-based recreation, especially boating and fishing, and is surrounded by a landscape rich in prehistoric rock art, a vibrant border culture, along with a wide variety of plant and animal life." This looked like a nice place to come back to for a visit.

Ten Bits Ranch is approximately 75 miles from Alpine, Texas, the nearest city with any real services; we saw less than a dozen cars on the road- now we realized that we were really in a remote location. Ten Bits Ranch is an ideal location to get "away from it all." The ranch can accommodate four couples and there was only one other couple there during our stay. We really enjoyed living in a true south western setting. The owner of the ranch told us that if a person wanted to drop out of society, then this part of Southwest Texas was the place to do it.

We took a guided jeep tour  with the Far Flung Outdoor Centers where we "climbed" a "4-wheel drive trail, stopping along the way to see 80 million year old fossils, old mining sites and a variety of rare Big Bend cacti." Although it was cold and windy, our guide Maria made this a most memorable outdoor adventure.

 The ranch was our stepping stone to Big Bend National Park; one of the largest national parks, but least used. We basically had Big Bend to ourselves, driving miles and miles without seeing another person. It was interesting seeing the Rio Grande River and being just a stones throw away from Mexico. One of the most scenic drives that we have ever taken, just to the West of the park, was the River Road, between Lajitas and Presidio through spectacular canyon and mountain country along the Rio Grande River- possibly the most scenic road in Texas.

Arriving at Two Springs, we found that our RV and site had been opened and set up by our good friends Paul and Leetta. They sure do look out for us and we sincerely appreciate their help. We traveled 4,753 miles during our three week trip passing through thirteen states and spending most of this time in Texas. Despite living out of suit cases, we had a great time and look forward to spending the winter in Southern California.

17-31 Dec 07 We brought way to much "stuff "from home; just now getting it all unpacked! Added a few more outdoor landscaping decorations; we are pleased with how it is all coming together, Patricia has an excellent eye for making it all look nice. After spending a few hours in a dentist chair, ended the year with friends at a New Years Party in the Club House.
7 Jan 08 It has been raining here for the past few days and snowing in the mountains. Today we took a short drive to take pictures of the snow capped mountains and wound up in Pioneertown, about fifteen miles from us. Results of the Sawtooth fire in 2006 are just as terrible today as they were last year. I wonder if the Joshua Trees will ever recover?
11 Jan 08

For Patricia’s birthday, we took a side trip to Idyllwild, a quaint artsy town nestled high above the Coachella Valley, in the San Bernardino National Forest. Starting in the desert town of Palm Desert, the National Scenic Byway, Palms to Pines Highway (CA 74 and CA 243) winds up and down the San Jacinto Mountains, at times causing the knuckles to turn white! On the way to Idyllwild we stopped at Lake Hemet, an ideal place for a picnic, which we’ll keep in mind for another outing.

While we were having a .40” rain fall at Two Springs the previous week, Idyllwild had 17” of snow with significantly more on top of the 10,804’ San Jacinto Peak.  On the downhill ride we stopped at Lake Fulmor, another mountain lake nestled in the pines with a fishing pavilion and picnic tables. The scenery on this sixty-six mile trip was breath taking and defiantly worth doing again.

 
14 Jan 08 After a visit to the Eisenhower Medical Center, we watched the new 300' Wind Generators being erected across the street from Two Springs.
24 Jan 08 It snowed in the mountains last night. Mt  San Gorgonio (11,502’) is in the San Bernardino Forest and is beautiful in its cape of snow. Patricia has been taking Line Dancing Lessons and is doing very well.
28 Jan 08 We have received more than two inches of rain (a record)  in the past twenty-four hours. The rain "greens -up" the desert rapidly and coats the mountains with snow. Chains are required to drive on most of the mountain roads now. Last week the desert was basically barren of grass, now it is every where. We always have wind following a storm out here; at times it is VERY WINDY!
29 Jan- 2 Feb 08 We spent five days with our good friends Paul and Leetta at a condo that we rented in Ramona, CA. We had a good time exploring the areas back roads (Paul found some good ones) in addition to visiting Mission San Luis Rey (largest of the California Missions), Mission San Antonio De Pala, Oceanside, the San Diego Zoological Society's Wild Animal Park, Santa Ysabel Indian Mission, and Julian. We have now visited four of California's twenty one missions sine we made our first trip out here in 2004. In the Wild Animal Park we saw many African wild animals including seven lion cubs, not to mention the ugliest bird that I have ever seen. The park is dedicated to the preservation and display of endangered species. We saw one of nine Northern White Rhinoceroses remaining in the world. On one of the mountain back roads we saw at least a hundred wild turkeys! A significant portion of the area that we visited is still recovering from recent wild fires. We were surprised to see the green mountains; rain does wonders for the desert. This is the first time in two years that we have seen a green country side in Southern California.
8 Feb 08 It was in the 70's today, a very welcome departure from the cold weather that we have had for the past month or so. Taking advantage of a beautiful day, we went to Joshua Tree National Park to see the desert wild flowers and have a picnic.
10 Feb 08 This afternoon we went to see the musical Evita  at the Palm Canyon Theater (200 seats) with Paul and Leetta. On one corner of the stage, two women "signed" during the play for the hearing impaired; never seen this before.  
15 Feb 08 We enjoyed a Valentine Pot-Luck Dinner at the Club House; there were approximately seventy who attended. The "Kissing Booth" was very popular!
20 Feb 08 Took a 256 mile day trip today. Started at the southern entrance of Joshua Tree National Park taking pictures of beautiful wildflowers. Then we drove south on Box Canyon Road through the Orocopia Mountains Wilderness Area then down the western side of the Salton Sea on the way to Slab City (just North of Niland. We then drove south to Brawley then up the western side of the Salton Sea.
23 Feb 08 We visited Old Town La Quinta today; it was on our list of places to see and was only twenty miles to the east. The weather was perfect for strolling browsing through the shops and galleries. Coffee outside on the town square was a treat.
25 Feb 08 Fifteen miles to the west of us is the Desert Hills Outlet Shopping Center. The setting alone is conducive to spending! We spent four hours here today and only covered a third of the stores.
27 Feb 08 Today we spent the better part of the day visiting the Living Desert with Paul and Leetta and their neighbors from Oregon, John and Jean. I used my City Bug to get around and the battery lasted for a little more than four hours. The butterfly exhibit was excellent and the Mountain Sheep posed on top of the mountain, just right for my Nikon 80-400 mm telephoto lens. It is always fun visiting the Living Desert where, "you see remarkable plants, animals, places and natural phenomena associated with deserts and learn how The Living Desert is helping to interpret and protect them."
13 Mar 08 We added a new member to our family, his name is Charlie, a seven week old male Chihuahua. His breeder is Susan Parish, wife of Sonny, who is a staff member here at Two Springs RV Resort
20 Mar 08 Today we drove down to the San Diego Wild Animal Park, approximately 120 miles from Two Springs. Paul and Leetta went with us  and if it would not have been for Paul loading and unloading the City Bug, I could not have seen to much of the park. The male Lion was with his pride today; he looked so proud. The flowers in the park are in full bloom. Being Spring Break, there were many children there today, but we still had a good time.
23 Mar 08 EASTER Lou and Ann, Jim, Ann, and Rose were here for a Two Springs Brunch around the pool. Plenty of food Lou went in the pool; he said it had been several years since he was last in a pool. Rose, Ann, and Jim went swimming too. I forgot to mention earlier that there is another couple from Maryland in the park.
24 Apr 08 Departed for home staying overnight in Williams, AZ; Santa Rosa, NM; Okhema, OK; Jackson, TN; and Wytheville, VA. used 160 gallons of diesel fuel, total miles = 2700, MPG =17. Weather was good all the way except that it rained from Little Rock, AR to Jackson, TN ( first real rain that we had seen in six months!). Also, it snowed in Wytheville, VA the morning that we departed for home. Charlie traveled well but, he got sick at the La Quinta in Santa Rosa. I suspect that he ate something that was on the floor that may have been spoiled or may have be soaked with an insect spray that was used in the room. He threw up several times; Patricia stayed up with him all night and by morning he was back to his normal self- frisky as ever. We arrived home in the afternoon on 29 April.
30 Apr 08 Visited Uncle Maurice who is on Hospice Care. Settled into the "at home" routine.