Saturday, March 22, 2014

Rolling North

We had a great start out of the Hot Springs LTVA and were rolling towards Yuma at about 8am. Filled up on gas and continued straight up to Quartzsite. The road was lined with the most beautiful blooming Palo Verde trees. Quartzsite was pretty empty, all the vendors had closed up shop. Hard to believe all that huzzle-buzzle which goes on here just 2 months earlier-

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DSC_0156 At mile marker 99 we pulled into the 14-day area – not to stay 14 days but just to have our lunch. It was very peaceful out there with only a slight breeze blowing across the desert.
I was almost tempted to stay – but no, we are on a mission. We also remembered our German friends Reinhard and Jutta which we met the 2.time right here at mile marker 99.



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As we continued farther north we passed Parker and then Lake Havasu City which has grown so much since we last have seen it 5 years ago.
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Before we reached the I-40 we had to decide which way to go to Las Vegas. We then went via Kingman entering Hwy 93 which is a highway almost entirely without any curve. It runs up to the Hoover Dam which again was way low on water.
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There wasn’t much left of the day so we thought of looking for a spot to park. Right up over the hill is Hacienda Casino and remembering that Casinos use to be very friendly towards RVers we pulled into their parking lot from where we had the most gorgeous view across Lake Mead. Since we were both tired we tried the casino restaurant, which is something we normally would never do. I ordered a burger while Bea had a grand salad. The food was OK and we were ready to retire into the trailer when a young man in a white shirt came up telling us that we could NOT stay in the parking lot, unless we rented a room in their hotel. I was kind of flabbergasted about their policy and had I known that I would never gone into their restaurant. So if you come this way, don’t stay here. It’s not worth it.
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Nice view across Lake Mead, but we couldn’t stay.
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Right across the highway is a graveled area where trucks park. I guess you know that I am not a great fan of parking on truck stops, but this one offered an area way out along a cliff where I figured no truck would bother to pull alongside us.
 
I was dead WRONG!

In spite a widely empty parking lot a noisy truck was pulling up right after we had settled in. I was furious! Are they doing this to piss off RVers and discourage them from using truck stops for their overnight stays? If so they have succeeded with me. Next time I am pulling straight out on the road again. Even driving, after 12 hrs behind the wheel, is better than a noisy night.

I sure hope we‘ll have a better spot tomorrow.

14 comments:

  1. I do think some truck drivers parked close on purpose to irritate RVers. Sure hope you find a better place to stay tomorrow night.

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  2. Thanks for the heads up about that cassino. We'll sure avoid that one. We drove 9 hours today and joe and I are exhausted.We are in Redding. Ca. One more sleep before home it was such fun meeting you and Bea. Looking forwardvto maybe seeing you nex winter

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  3. Just on the back side of the Hacienda is Boulder Beach campground,they have sites on the water for $5.
    http://publiclands.org/explore/site.php?id=407

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    1. Thanks for the heads-up, Rick. In fact we could see vehicles down on the beach but were too tired to explore it further.

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    2. Here are a few websites that I use in our trip planning,hope they help,,,, http://www.uscampgrounds.info/
      http://www.casinocamper.com/rv-parking-locations
      http://www.epgsoft.com/CampgroundMap/
      http://www.rv-camping.org/
      Happy Trails!!

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  4. We always check Casinos before stopping for the night too bad you did not know about the Campground on the other side for $5.00.

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  5. You definitely made some tracks on your first day back on the road. I also check out the casinos first to see if they allow overnight RV parking and if not, they don't get our business either. Hopefully, this day will go better.

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    Replies
    1. Yup, tracks we made. got me all exhausted.

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  6. I've had the same experience with those truckers and I do believe they do it deliberately !!

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  7. You really made good time after leaving the Hot Springs LTVA. I also hate truck stops as that has been my experience with truckers pulling their NOISY rigs right next to you. I can't believe the casino would not let you stay there. Most are glad to see RV'ers as they tend to spend money in the casino.

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  8. I think you must have the PDD! That is a lot of traveling for one day! We are still in Q....just waiting for our Solar installation on Monday. Then...we hit the road! Travel safely and I surely do hope that you can find a good place to spend tonight.

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  9. Let's see, you parked in a "known" truck parking area and then you became upset because truckers parked in their assigned area. Wonder what they could be thinking?

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    Replies
    1. You have read the entire posting yes? The entire parking area was HUGE and EMPTY and yet the first truck pulls right in beside us? I'm sure you offer some logic for that as well. And just to be very clear this was not a site where you would expect any truck park as the ground was really rough. Truckers do this also in non-truck-stops - creeping up to RVs that is.
      Luckily, the trucker shut off his engine later and the rest of the night wasn't too bad.

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    2. Peter, Clearly Don DID NOT read the entire post !! Don't know why he would even bother to make a comment.

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