Lees Ferry, Condor Egg, and The Colorado River

April 23 - 26
Lees Ferry near Page, AZ

After leaving Desert View Watchtower at the Grand Canyon we proceeded on Hwy 64 east. We were mildly concerned that this road might not be appropriate for RVs, but it turned out well with great views and decent road conditions.  We drove for about three hours, which is typical for us. We came to the crossroads of Hwy 89 and 89A and I waited with the RV while Ellen took the car and went ahead to check out our next possible camping spot.  On the map, my waiting point was the town of Bitter Springs.  It consisted of about a dozen houses and an LDS church.  Ellen called with the campground confirmation and I started the last eighteen miles of our drive to Lee's Ferry Campground.

The reason for the long prelude is to set up the last eighteen mile drive.  I entered the canyons bordering the Colorado River…

Lee's Ferry setup.  There were neighbors, but not real close.

Rising majestically on either side were red hills, you realize you are not paying proper attention to the road as you traverse this path.  You come to two side by side bridges spanning the river.  An old one used for pedestrians and a newer one for vehicles.  There was no one following me so I stopped on the bridge to look down on the river.  Then took a right and headed the last few miles to the campground.  It was on a hill overlooking the river with tiered sites.  Still boondocking, but it did have garbage, and restrooms.  After vulch-ing a site, our term for waiting like a vulture for someone to leave a site,  we set up in a great site overlooking the river.

Our View

It was a beautiful day and we decided to take a bike ride to see the extent of the campground and the beach.  Ellen had seen that high winds were coming and we wanted to enjoy the ride before the wind arrived. At the end of the road we found a parking lot for rafters of the section of the Colorado set up.  Sounded like great fun, but I think you bought your tickets elsewhere, and met your guides here…  Oh well, another time.   Rode back to the beach below the campground, but deep sand and the winds arrival kept my feet out of the water.  I did help rescue a pop up canopy that was rolling down the beach.  Did I say wind???

Navajo Bridge Visitor Center

The next day we returned to the bridges.  There was a visitor center there. The older of the two was called Navajo Bridge and was one of the first bridges spanning the Colorado river in Arizona.  Before that you had to take Lee's Ferry across.   A little over half way across the bridge there was a table, a spotting scope, a camera on a tripod, and two of the nicest folks you will ever meet.  They volunteer with the naturalists who keep track of the wildlife in the area.  They had spotted a Condor nest in the cliff above the river.  They were explaining to excited children and adults alike the significance of this find.  Everyone had a look through the scope and momma condor sitting on her egg.  If we waited long enough papa would return too.  This was a find of a lifetime as the condor usually nested in the cliffs much farther into the wilderness.

The Volunteer Table  (Insert smile here)

Old and new bridge. Left for walking only.  

View from Navajo Bridge

View of the river downstream of the dam.

The next day we took a drive to Page and stopped to view the dam that created Lake Powell.  Spectacular view!  We drove north to look at Wahweap RV Campground, where we might have stayed if they hadn't been full.  It was OK, but where we landed was better.  Also we wanted to drive up to Lone Rock, a place on the beach where an Instgramer we follow was staying.  We considered it, but were concerned about sand and wind.  Nice place!  We spotted the lone dark RV (all others were white) belonging to the folks we follow. They were not home so we left a post it note on their door, smiled and left.  Walmart for Grocery shopping and back home.

Lone Rock.  Lake Powell.  No wind...  yet.

Got up early the next morning and headed to Horseshoe Bend to beat the heat and crowds.  It was a wonderful hike and the view was everything we hoped for.  The morning sun made it interesting to get a good picture, but the lack of afternoon heat made up for this deficit.  Oh, and they were working on the trail, so we had to trek through the deep sand to reach the canyon view.  People kept ignoring the workers as they were told to stay off the regular trail and walk through the sand.  Like herding cats…  But the regular trail was much easier to traverse.  Just dodge the equipment doing the repairs.  From there we took a drive to Antelope point and lunched in the car while enjoying the view.

Beautiful Horseshoe Bend

Horseshoe Bend with us blocking the view.

Trail repair work blocking the trail.

Our last full day we did laundry, etc to get ready for our next destination/adventure.  From here we move on to Zion.  Marching as it were…

Campground panorama from the RV roof.

The BIG one! Grand Canyon Nat'l Park

April 19 - 23, 2017
Grand Canyon National Park

Obligatory park entrance pic!

There is starting to be a pattern with how I feel as I arrive and leave the places we stay.  I'm so excited to be in a new beautiful area but by the time we leave I'm often ready to move on and can't wait to leave!

We saw a lot of deer the first day near our
camping spot but none after that!

When we left Cottonwood BLM, I was so excited to leave the open windy hot desert with the disappointing sunsets (I had expected at least one glorious sunset!) and head to the mountains and trees and cooler weather!  And when we arrived on the National Forest land just south of Grand Canyon entrance near Tusayan, it was pretty exciting even if the trees were pretty small!  We really liked the area we stayed (off National Forest road 302) BUT…

1. We didn't realize (silly us) that when the wind blows, that dust puddle we were staying in would swirl around and blow right through us!
2. Turns out this was the closest place to the entrance and you wouldn't believe how many people came back at night (as in the dark!) to park and sleep for the night and our area was prime pickings!
3. We knew helicopter tours flew right over this area (reading reviews online) but it was much louder and more frequent than we expected!
4. We checked out other camping spots while we were there but most were too rough for us to take the motorhome into (deep ruts or dropoffs mainly).

When we went to visit Crater Lake in Oregon, we got up early to beat the crowds and managed to be there when very few people were there.  We arrived just after sunrise so everything was lit with the warmth of the sun and it was soooo quiet.  I was deeply moved by the beauty of the place.

When the sun started to peak the horizon we knew it was
time because of all the oohs and ahhs from the crowd!

I was trying to figure out when to arrive for our first look of the Grand Canyon.  Should we go when it's fully lit to get the total impact?  Or see it unfold as the sun rises?  Or perhaps at sunset?  Where should we go for our first look?  We chose to get up early before the sun rose and start at the main point near the visitors center.  I have to say I would not recommend that for your first look!  We didn't expect so many people to get up that early and it was pretty anti-climatic to watch it unfold so slowly as the sun rose (no dramatic clouds to add to the impact!).

Waiting and waiting for the sun to show us the canyon!

Still morning so plenty of shadows to show us the vista!

However, the crowds cleared out after the sun passed the horizon and after about an hour or two when the whole canyon was lit, that's when we could really appreciate what we were seeing.  Interestingly, we weren't as impressed as we thought we'd be.  I think it's because we've seen quite a few impressive places and the lighting wasn't the greatest.  During the day, it was pretty bland as there were no shadows to give you perspective on what you were seeing.  However, it still was impressive especially how massive the area is both length and depth.  We were also impressed with the park itself - lots of nice paths along the rim, bus system and parking.  It was very well maintained.

Selfie without a viewfinder!  Basically I turn the camera around
and look at the ring on the lens to see if I have the horizon in view!

I had a lot of fun with my new camera that we purchased when we went through Flagstaff (the last trip to approach Sedona from the north).  I'm pleased with the quality of the pictures and it was easy to transition from my Canon 60D to the settings on this one.   I had been using my smartphone but its biggest drawback was a lack of a viewfinder for bright sun not to mention how slow my phone can get with all the apps I have.  So far I'm loving the Sony A6000 for how small it is (although it's not THAT small!) as well as the viewfinder and screen info and how quickly I can adjust for different lighting and depth of field I want.

We love our e-bikes!  Makes bike riding fun no matter
how many ups and downs but you still get a workout!

We didn't do much else at the Grand Canyon other than following the rim both directions from the main visitor center either walking, driving or taking the bus.  

We loved the scripture placed in various places.  Amen!

We did take advantage of the numerous bike paths and had a wonderful bike ride through the "forest".  On the last day, we got up early and left by 6:45 am because there was going to be a major windstorm later that day and we wanted to move to a place with less sand.  We stopped at Desert View on the east end of Grand Canyon because it had great RV parking (even with tow car).   What a great stop!  And we finally got our stamp there at the gift shop.  We tried at the main visitor center but they (like many other NP's) didn't have any paper for us to stamp (so now we're starting to bring it with us!).

Highlights:  We finally made it to the Grand Canyon!
Lowlights:  Sand storm when the wind blew (thankfully not that often!)

Things we've learned/wonder:  Our battery continues to lose amp hours as we boondock but we are still at 12.1 or 12.2 (50%) under load in the morning.  We don't know if that's because these aren't true deep cycle batteries or if the battery is bad.  Would we lose amp hours daily with true deep cycle golf cart batteries that we plan to purchase when these die?  Or will they do as we expect - charge back all but marginal amp hours by the end of each day.  We shall find out someday!

Thought this was cool to look up into the tower at Desert View

We walked the 85 steps to
the top of  the tower!

Rejected by Thousand Trails

April 6 - 19,
Verde Valley near Cottonwood


There was some concern in our hearts as we headed north to Verde Valley Thousand Trails.  We tried on Thousand Trails website to get a reservation and failed.  This was nothing new so we called their reservation line and was told they had quite a few sites down with electrical problems and there was nothing available for the two weeks we wanted to stay.  Next call was to the young lady who sold us our Zone Passes and has magically found space for us when all else failed.  She said she would work on it and get back to us.  She never did…

So we approached their gate and set about checking in.  There was no reservation listed for us and we were too long for a tent site.  He sent us to the manager to see what could be done.  He found a place for us for three days, in three days.  He told us we could stay in the office parking lot until then, but would have to move in the morning as they were fixing the parking lot.  I asked about boondocking spots…   The office parking lot was it.  When we purchased our membership we were told if all the sites were full at any campground there would be boondocking available.  I just didn't know it would be the office parking lot.  We exited Thousand Trails and drove back to some BLM land Ellen had previously found. OK rant finished…   or maybe I'll continue it later.

Our morning visitor for several days on BLM land.

The place Ellen found was wonderful and scenic.  On a bluff overlook the valley.  We set up and looked for something fun to do.  "used Bookstore near me" Google sent us into oldtown Cottonwood. (5.6 miles)  Charming.  It had nothing we couldn't live without, but the people were very friendly.  We walked the street and window shopped.  Nice little town.

Tuzigoot

Montezuma's Castle

During our stay we visited several National Monuments, Montezuma's Castle and Well (along with about forty fourth graders on a field trip),  and Tuzigoot.  There were more as the area has a rich history.  Drove to Prescott and saw the Sharlott Hall Museum. Not to be missed.  There might have been a pub with libations and appetizers.  Ice Cream might have been had.  The usual fun.  On the way back we drove through Jerome.  Town on the side of a hill.  Or should I say cliff?  The views (and switchback down grade) were amazing.  We also took the Verde Valley Train on a sight seeing trip.  Well worth the high price.  One delightful aspect of the trip was the background music in the railcar.  Every train song imaginable.  When they got to "Peace Train" folks sang along.

Next we went to Sedona which is a tourist town set in the most amazing venue ever.  Surrounded with red monolithic hills on every side.  I don't know how long it takes residents to become numb to the awesome surroundings and just think of it as home.  We went on a few (easier) hikes in the area but we were able to take great pictures just driving around!

A comment on the drive to Sedona…  Approached from the south you venture through red cliffs and desert views, from the north you get forest, creeks, and  great canyon descents.  We loved both, one is majestic and awe inspiring for me, the other reminded me of home,  the great Northwest.  We stopped at picnic areas and I walked in the creek. "Insert smile here."

Hike in the canyon

Different canyon hike

Speaks for itself...

Ellen finished and filed our taxes (life must continue), I changed the oil in the motorhome, and we did laundry.  I'm going to digress into Thousand Trails again as we did spend our three days there, were ousted, and returned to our hilltop BLM spot.  We go there for hookups, trash dumping, and laundry facilities.  The parking is side by side and the views are of other RVs. Not our favorite.  But you get the good with the bad.  The good, we emptied our tanks and refilled our water, we watched some TV, we went to their karaoke night.  The bad, the view, very limited Verizon coverage, and the Laundry facilities.  You have to get a two dollar card from them and add money to it to use their machines. I drove into Cottonwood and used the laundromat.

View from south bound road to Sedona.  That is the road 1000 feet below!

This one also says it all.

From here we head to the Grand Canyon.

Go Forth (north!)

April 1 Ramsey Mine Road, BLM Brenda AZ
April 2 Escapees North Ranch, Congress AZ
April 3 - 6 Lake Pleasant Regional Park, AZ

Yeah!  We're finally in new territory again - places we haven't seen yet!  After spending a few weeks in LA and Palm Springs and Joshua Tree which we'd seen last time we were through the area, we headed for our northern loop - generally heading home and equally important we hope to get to cooler weather!  So far we're not into the mid-80's weather.  We prefer under 80 (at least that's up from around 70 which is still preferred!).

Pictures never seem to capture the grandeur!  That teeny tiny
cactus and monolith way in the distance were very striking!
Ramsey Mine Road BLM

Our first stop was more BLM land on Ramsey Mine Road which is near Brenda, AZ (you recognize that right?)!  We planned to stay two nights here and it was very beautiful, peaceful and for the first time fairly isolated of other overnighters.   We had a little bit of odd traffic on the road (things that make you uncomfortable but probably just in our heads).  Added to that we had an overwhelming electrical burn smell that was reminiscent of our Trimetric monitor burning up so of course that raised the anxiety level a bit!  We came to the conclusion that it was coming from somewhere outside but we sure couldn't pinpoint it or be sure.  So we decided moving on would help us determine if it's us or the air outside (after moving on, so far so good - no smell!).

Pulling onto the scales at Escapees North Ranch to get weighed!

We were excited to head to our first Escapees park at North Ranch (near Congress, AZ) so we could do a 4 corner weigh on the coach (our first one!).  We wanted to make sure we weren't overweight on any one corner (we knew we weren't over all) and get a benchmark for future remodels (more solar, replace booth with a buffet and table/chairs, replace couch with recliner etc.).  We were pleased with the results for the most part but we were pretty much right on top of the max on the driver front side.  So we moved a 40 lb footstool (that has paperwork, maps, brochure type stuff in it) to the passenger side so as we drive and that should balance us a bit more.  We basically  learned that our solar did not put us over the top in the front and might have helped balance our weight to the passenger side a bit more.  Unfortunately propane was filled to half and it's on the driver front so we really have no room to add more weight there.  Not sure what we'll do but now we know!

Our spot at Lake Pleasant right by the water.  After seeing the
neighbors hammock, we decided to get one too!

We scouted out a place to go next and we consulted the folks on the forums about heading to Cottonwood from Congress and we were told we wouldn't like it if we went the more direct route on 89A (and after seeing parts of that route - we are in total agreement!).  So we went south a little to get to I17 and saw there was a lake on the way and we really like water!  So we stayed 3 nights at Lake Pleasant Regional park (no hookups $20/night).  We were greeted by a rattle snake (we think that's what it was but it didn't rattle(?)).  We were facing an inlet portion of the lake with lots of bushes and trees and cacti which is totally weird to us (by a lake!).

Enjoyed bike rides, hikes, and the usual side trips there at the lake.  One thing we were disappointed in is we wanted to have lunch at the local BBQ and brews at the lake but it annoyed us to pay $6 to park to even check it out to see if we wanted to have lunch there.  So we went to Peoria instead!

Another selfie capturing cacti on our hike!

Isn't this so peaceful?  Sunrise on the water at Lake Pleasant.

Battery update:  We can't believe how much power the fridge wants to use between sundown and ? (not sure when it finally calms down).  We use about 10 amps per hour in the evening (most due to the fridge) and over 75 AH (amp hours) overnight!  We did leave the dish on so it could record but didn't use the TV other than to verify DISH and guide set up.  We think we only have around 100 AH available before it reaches 50% (the safe level) because these batteries have been ruined (don't have the capacity they are rated at).  But we decided to keep using these batteries as we continue to learn how to manage them better and to continue to understand our power needs through all the seasons and places (like shady NW!).  If you've been following this blog, you know we've gone back and forth on that!

Finally a brewery!!  That's an amber and coffee stout.  mmm...

Highlights:  4 corner weigh, Lake Pleasant 

Lowlights:  Electrical burn scare

Things we've learned:  We want an anemometer (measures wind speed).  We have had so much wind and we're always curious how hard its blowing so we can get a sense of what 10 mph feels like vs. 20, 30 etc.

Route 66 Golden Shores and Bullhead City

Feb 7 - Feb 12, 2017

Obligatory cool Post Office pic complete with a Pat finger

After leaving Lake Havasu City, we decided to stay at a Passport America RV park at 50% off for a couple of nights so we could dump our tanks and garbage, and do laundry.  After boondocking at beautiful open BLM areas, it was hard to be side by side in an RV park again.  But our neighbors were really friendly as usual and that always helps!

I think this was near the museum!

We spent a wonderful day driving up through Oatman and up to Kingman then across to Bullhead City to check out places to camp next.  We found our next spot dry camping (no hookups)  right on the river for $17 a night.  It was nice to be able to scout it out ahead of time before movnig!

The drive to Oatman and on to Kingman was beautiful (and we did see two donkey butts) but we didn't stop in town.  We took a picture of the Route 66 signs and stopped to see the Route 66 museum in Kingman which was cool.    Oh and we had breakfast at Cracker Barrel there which felt like"home" even though we don' have them in Washington state (at least where we've been!).

Proof we saw donkey(butts)

After leaving the RV "park", we pulled into our perfect spot at Davis campground with a gorgeous view out our large front windows.  While there, we rode our bikes along the river path, had campfires, read books, roasted hot dogs on the campfire, had happy hour dinner at a casino (with a boat ride to get across the river) and took a few drives around the area. And of course more errands (barber, shoe shopping (not successfully) pedicure while waiting for the movie to start since we didn't know Nevada is one hour behind Arizona!).

Next door to us at Davis Campground we met another couple from Washington and discovered so many things in common around places we'd been in Washington, books and movies etc.  This is always one of our favorite parts  - meeting folks and sharing information and a bonus to connect with folks from "home"!

Loved this spot right on the river.
Waiting for Pat to arrive in the Motorhome.

Bike ride along the river to the dam.

While we were here,  we discovered another important clue to the battery puzzle! We were monitoring how the batteries were doing with a few cloudy days and noted we were about 35 amp hours down close to the end of the day.  Not so good but we'd just run the generator later that evening.  When we went to log our "end of daylight" readings, it said we were 100% full!!  No way we made up 35 amp hours with practically no sun.  SO that is not good because it throws into question all the monitoring we've done to date.  If we're gone all day and come home and see we're 100% but we're not really, it would explain why the battery monitor thinks we're not very far down but the battery continues to go downhill.   This is a really good (and bad) thing to learn.  Our work-around:  we turned off the Tri-metic auto reset feature (since we don't know why it jumped to 100%) and when we're plugged in at Las Vegas, we will wait to reset it to 100% until after it gains the 35 amps AND after we validate our batteries are fully charged with the hydrometer (hopefully).  Basically after that, we don't plan on resetting the state of charge so we'll always know how many amps down (or up) from our new starting point.

We wondered if we should wait to leave to Las Vegas since winds were predicted at around 30 mph (with gusts higher).  Motorhomes do not travel well in wind (stressful at a minimum!). But we decided to go for it since most of the drive would be a headwind.  It turned out fine and not as bad as some of the drive cross country when we picked up the motorhome in Michigan last August.  Not sure if additional weight (being fully loaded and with solar panels) helped with that or what!

Highlights:  Camping right on the river at Davis camp with morning and evening campfires.  Weather was perfect until the day we left.  Possibly learning why the Trimetric said we'd only used 20% when the battery volts indicated we used more than 50%.

Lowlights:  still not really into the casino scene.  Too smoky, expensive (where we went).

Things we learned: Trimetric resets to 100% charged when it's not!

Lake Havasu City - Battery Woes Continued!

Lake Havasu City, AZ
Jan 26 - Feb 7th, 2017

First of all, I am so happy that I can type again.  My cast hand really hurts - not where it was broken but where it was confined for so long.  Fingers, thumb, wrist are all protesting as I try to move them!  But exercising them is good right?  So here I go...

One of the places we stayed (for free!) near Lake Havasu City

We were in the Lake Havasu area from 1/26 and left on 2/7 and stayed 4 different places (not normally what'd we'd choose!)!!  First we stayed at BLM land south of Lake Havasu city.   Met some vloggers and folks we follow on Instagram which is super cool.  Met the neighbors across the road from us and enjoyed a walk and visit.  But we left there after a couple of nights to stay in town at an RV park while we had our batteries removed and tested.


We have been experiencing low voltage overnight since we started boondocking at Joshua Tree National Park but our Trimetric battery monitor indicated that we have never been close to 50% discharged.  We were told by a battery guy in Quartzsite that it's either a bad battery OR it's just not getting fully charged (even though our trimetric says it is AND we had been plugged in for 3 days prior to QZ).  So to make sure they were fully charged, we stayed at an RV park where we could be plugged in and paid $20 to have each battery charged.  At the end of the day, they told us our batteries were bad.

So we called Newmar who put us in touch with Interstate batteries who told us we should have come to them in the first place - they would have charged and tested them for free.  So before we left the RV park, we pulled the batteries again and had them look at them.  They "tested" the fully charged batteries and told us they are good and they told us the hydrometer only tells you if all the cells are equal (no bad cells) but it won't tell you if they are charged.  The battery guy we met in Quartzsite had convinced us to purchase a hydrometer as the only way to tell if your batteries are fully charged (as well as see if any cell is bad).  Arghhh!

Arrow in the "red" zone.  Red means bad :(

Basically, the hydrometer has never been in the "good" or very good zone even after the full charge (but according to Intersate the battery is good).   At this point since we are at the mercy of Interstate (who has the power to exchange it for a good battery) we decide we will try again and see if the battery holds it voltage now that it's fully charged (again).

So we hooked up the batteries and unfortunately caught the control wires for the Trimetric on the positive cable and burned up the Trimetric (so no monitoring of the batteries!).  Found a source for a new Trimetric who sent it to general delivery (arrived the next day!!).  For the rest of the time at Lake Havasu (after replacing the Trimetric) - we monitored amps and state of charge and volts.  It is definitely better (dropping no further than 12.0 (under load) vs. the 11.7 we had been experiencing.  However, according to the Trimetric we aren't anywhere near the 50% so we are back to where we started - the Trimetric doesn't show us using near 50% (the most we show we'd been down is 70 AH and we should have 168 AH which is 4 batteries at 84 amps each at 50%).  But the volts are low (although it's not an accurate indicator "under load").

So we decided that when we get to Las Vegas, we will fully charge the batteries and do a hydrometer test, then let it rest then do it again.  If  either reading is bad, we will try Interstate battery in Las Vegas.

Testing tilting our solar panels to bring in more power!

BUT back to Lake Havasu!   We stayed north of the city on BLM land until we got an appointment to have the bay door unstuck (first mentioned in our Free Camping  post on 1/14/17).  After getting the door open, we decided to settle south of Lake Havasu again (slightly different spot) so we would be closer to our friends from home who were in Big River.  We got to go to their church with them twice and of course the obligatory meal afterwards!  We would have watched the super bowl with them but it started quite late in the day and it would be a long drive in the dark.  It was a sad game to watch since we were rooting for Atlanta!  Oh, and we also loved joining them for Friday night karaoke!

One of our hikes

We enjoyed walking along the lake (and good eats!) near London Bridge, short hikes, sunrises and sunsets, bike rides etc. while we continued to learn and monitor the solar panels and testing tilting them.   We also got mail from home which should be all the final tax stuff (oh boy!).

Highlights: Visiting with our friends from home!

Lowlights:  Ongoing battery battle (but we don't want to replace these until we figure out what went wrong  and until we know how to manage batteries (and wear these out) so we don't ruin another set!).

Things we learned:  secure wires away from the battery(!), the furnace uses a lot of battery (most boondockers use indoor propane heaters of some kind),

We haven't been able to sample
many micro brews yet - so far a
serious shortage in most of the
areas we've been so far!

Things we're wondering:    How much battery do we really need and why we can't seem to manage batteries successfully?!  Will the sun be able to fully charge whatever batteries we end up with or will we need more solar panels?  Will the NW sun (and trees) even work for us or does it matter if we stay primarily at Thousand Trails with hookups when in the NW?

One of the reasons we love wide open free BLM camping!