Monday, March 31, 2014

Still Foot Draggin’

After seeing Wandering Willy and his snow pics when he got home, and John & Brenda who still seem to be living in a winter wonderland, I am in no rush to get home to snow banks, cold, and winterizing the rig again.  Rick & Paulette and Jean & Skip are both bragging about having grass to cut, but I’ll be lucky if I can even see any grass under the snow when I get back.  But then, they live on that ‘almost tropical’ island, somewhere off out west coast!

So I am trying to go north as slowly as possible, playing leapfrog with Nina & Paul as they also move slowly northward in their seasonal migration.  I have been able to track them down again, enjoying their free camp with the great views of Lake Mead.

The crowds are quite a bit less here; than was starting to build on the beach at Nevada Telephone Cove where we recently exited after pushing the 7 day limit.

Forgot to mention the Bayfield Bunch, who are getting hitch itch to depart the heat and rattlesnakes of Arizona, but not looking forward to their version of the winter wonderland awaiting them back in Ontario.

Hailey has been enjoying the shoreline hunting opportunities here, after the slim pickings on the beach of Lake Mohave.

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Besides, some of the ducks on Lake Mohave …

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were getting a bit ‘upset’ at having their photos taken all the time!IMG_3629

There have been a few high wind advisories in the region lately. My tenting neighbours almost took flight the other morning as the winds got a bit gusty.

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There’s still a person inside this tent!IMG_3674

But if it’s too breezy outside for her liking, Hailey has indoor ‘caves’ to explore and plush mice to catch.IMG_0400IMG_0402IMG_3586IMG_3585IMG_3584

Trying to keep my posts shorter these days – that’s it.

Thursday, March 27, 2014

Just Birds

Still at Nevada Telephone Cove on Lake Mohave in Lake Mead National Recreation Area.  Don & Donna from Driving Miss Donna have moved on, and other friends from the north have moved in for a few days.IMG_3424

Sticking pretty close to the beach, but I did go for a hike in Upper Grapevine Canyon, not too far from here.  There are some easily accessible petroglyphs there.IMG_3469IMG_3470IMG_3468IMG_3465IMG_3464

The cactus are starting to bloom in the desert.

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The ducks and other waterfowl are enjoying the beach time as well.

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There are gulls …

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And doves …IMG_3312IMG_3328IMG_3324

And the hawks and buzzards are patrolling the nearby canyons.

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John and Brenda tell me that if I make it home by July, I should miss the worst of the snow!  Forecasts from the north country make it plain that the snow has not even started to melt yet – yikes!  So as a result, I haven’t made it very far yet on my northern trek.  May have to get the wheels rolling soon though and get another day’s travel behind me.  Rumour has it there might be a ‘beast’ from Wheeling It  somewhere north on Lake Mead, so perhaps I should watch the weather for a while from up on Lake Mead.  Don’t want to rush things you know!

Sunday, March 23, 2014

Havasu in the rear view mirror.

Actually, all I could see in the rear-view mirror was the front of a white 5th wheel chasing me down the road.  But in the side mirrors I could see Lake Havasu as Ms Hailey and I moved down the road.  Before leaving Lake Havasu the propane was topped off for $2.69/g, which was a bit lower than some of the stations in town who were offering it at $3.99!

It’s that time of year, so we were headed – north.  A short jog west on I-40 was enough of the Interstate for this week.  And a look at the diesel prices in Needles ($4.79/g) was enough to turn us back north, out of California, and back into Arizona again!  IMG_3427IMG_3392IMG_3391

Our mission was to meet up with Don and Don, from Driving Miss Donna,  good friends from way back in high school.  Nevada Telephone Cove seemed like a good place to meet up, so I carried on up there and found a primo spot on the beach.IMG_0380

The next day, Don & Donna arrived and pulled in beside me.

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From here it was easy to keep an eye to the sky, in case flight MH370 came by!

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Park Rangers patrolled the water as well as the roads.

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I took a bit of time to explore some of the area.  Just down the shore, was a tiny, private little cove where two washes converged.

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The weather has been decidedly warm, verging on hot, very much unlike the weather back in Alberta and Saskatchewan, where winter has been decidedly reluctant to release it’s grip on the area.