Tuesday Jan 30, 2024 - Sacramento CA to Sparks NV

It’s all about the weather..  There is a storm coming in a day or two and it’s going to be rain where it’s warm and snow where it’s cold. The Sierra Nevada mountains are going to get a bunch of snow so we need to be careful where we go. I guess getting snowed in somewhere would not be the end of the world but getting snowed in on Donner Pass would be kind of creepy.

We looked it over pretty thoroughly and we will go over Donner Pass to Reno, where we’ve never been, then re-look-at-it over there.

But first we’re going to the Sacramento Train Museum which is a California State Park run place. We first did a drive through downtown and saw the capital. The downtown is kind of run down and there are a lot of homeless folks there, which we had heard. The capital is a beautiful typical state capital looking domed building.

The railway museum is very impressive. There were several school groups, both elementary and high school aged. As usual the elementary school kids were wide eyed and excited and the high school kids not so much. Things never change.

The trains are real and original. The Transcontinental Railroad started here in Sacramento and went east while the other end started in Omaha and came west. 10-15,000 Chinese were hired to build the west end and most of the museum focused on this early history. The 10:30 tour had only 4 of us and the tour guide. He was very knowledgeable but had a super soft voice so you had to stand on top of him to hear. Upstairs were the “Toy Trains”, which were all the old and new model trains like Lionel, Buddy-L, and Bachmann in all the scales from Z to the big ones (G??).

They even had a Thomas the Tank Engine room with a couple of working model trains going. Something for everyone.

After the museum we walked through Old Sacramento, which is the old part of town and is now a tourist place with lots of shops. It used to flood all the time so they moved everything up a floor including the street, so there’s a basement level that’s mostly not used any more.

We collected the van and headed up Rt 80 to Reno. It was only a couple of hours but it climbs and climbs until you crest Donner Pass at 7220 ft elevation. There’s snow up there but it was sunny and warm all day so no trouble weather wise.

We stopped in Truckee just to drive through downtown. Looks like a typical ski town. Next we stopped in Reno and drove through downtown. It is actually pretty tidy but of course it is wall to wall casinos. But tastefully done.

Deb found a hotel in a casino in Sparks, the town next door, which was really inexpensive so looks like another hotel night ahead. We’re guessing it’s cheap because they want you to gamble. We had supper at Poncho and Willie’s, one of the four restaurants within the casino, and it was delicious and reasonable.

Back to the hotel to watch another episode of The Terminal List and then bed.

Monday, Jan 29, 2024 - Morro Bay CA to Sacramento CA

Deb here. Today we decided to turn inland and see what central CA looks like. Jake and Nath are talking about a move to the Sacramento area eventually, and we wanted to see what that area is all about.

After leaving Morro Strand State Beach we continued north on the coast, traveling through Cuyugos and then Cambria. We’d been told that Cambria’s a charming town, and Rafiki had mentioned Moonstone Beach (just north of Cambria), so we veered off of Rt 1 and on to business Rt 1 for a detour through town. I think Cambria was one of the prettiest towns we’d seen, with historic buildings and lots of apparent pride in their little town. Last night on the menu I’d seen a reference to olallieberry pie, a specialty in the

area, and I’d read that Lin’s in Cambria had the goods. We stopped there, had some great conversations with the folks working in the restaurant, and picked up a piece of olallieberry pie and 2 forks to go. We took our pie to Moonstone Beach and sat on a bench overlooking the ocean and eating our pie for breakfast. Doesn’t get much better than that, does it?!

We then backtracked a few miles south and picked up Rtes 41 and 46 east, which turned out to be an absolutely stunning road. Gorgeous green undulating hills, the ocean in the distance, and blue skies. Who knew that CA offered such vistas?

Once inland we traveled on Rte 101 for a while, eventually picking up Rt 5 as we headed north. John had been curious to see what agriculture there is in this part of CA and he had his fill today. Some citrus (lemons and oranges), some vineyards, but primarily nut trees. Pistachios, almonds, and walnuts all grown here as far as the eye can see. We got off of Rt 5 for a stretch, driving on a parallel road that passed through small towns, and saw some small towns in varying shapes of prosperity. We commented that the area looked a lot more like the midwest, with flat landscape and small towns, than it did California.

As we neared Sacramento we picked up some traffic, but fortunately we weren’t in any complete standstills. I’d booked us a room at the Arden Star Hotel, since I couldn’t find a lot of public campgrounds in the area. We checked in at 5:30, had dinner at the nearby Habit Grill (great beyond burgers), and went back to the hotel for showers and to watch a couple of more episodes of The Terminal List before bed.

Sunday Jan 28, 2024 - Carpinteria CA to Morro Bay CA

Today we crawled up the coast roads again. Deb found a State Park campsite in Morro Bay and she’d heard about a town called Solvang which is “The Danish Capital of the United States”. 

Sometimes it’s Rt 101 and sometimes it’s Rt 1. It seems Rt 1 is the old road which drops through small towns and Rt 101 is the 4 lane “quick” coastal route. So if it’s nearer the ocean we take it.

Solvang was indeed very Danish. A group of Danish folks moved here in the early 1900’s and bought thousands of acres. They then enticed more Danish from other parts of the U.S. to move there. Every house and shop looks Danish and the bakeries all sell

Danish something or other. We stopped and got breakfast/lunch at a bakery (the Danish pancake house was swamped with a 50 minute wait). Deb found the town museum and checked out the shops while I found the motorcycle museum and drooled over the restored bikes, a nice collection. I’m at that age where the bikes I used to ride in my youth are now antiques!

We left Solvang and continued on to Morro Bay. and the Morro Strand State Beach and Campground. Lots of empty campsites so not very busy. No showers or hot water but modern facilities other than that. We did not opt for any hookup since we are self contained.

We set up our chairs and table and had a civilized beverage and snacks, then hit the beach. It’s a very big long beach like many in this part of California. Not too crowded other than the sea gulls and the long curved billed birds that we don’t know the name of. Lots of sand dollars on the beach and a few people, old and young, walking the beach like us.

We got dinner at the Dockside restaurant in downtown Morro Bay. It appears to be a local favorite that has been around a long time. Then back to the van to watch “The Terminal List” on Deb’s Mac.

Another good day in the van

Odometer = 22829

Saturday Jan 27, 2024 Carpenteria State Beach Campground

Deb here. I’d booked 2 nights at this lovely oceanfront campground, so we knew we didn’t have a big agenda for the day. Woke up to sunny weather once again, and after a leisurely start to the morning complete with nice hot showers, we had an oatmeal breakfast in the van. John is enjoying his book about the American West, and I was ready to walk, so he stayed put and read while I ventured out on a walk.

I’d heard about the harbor seal rookery down the coastline a bit, so I walked the coastal path to check it out. The big excitement when I arrived was that there was a newly born harbor seal pup that the volunteer pointed out, and I spent some time watching the pup try to connect with its mom. The mom didn’t seem too motherly, but what do I know about harbor seals and parenting?! Apparently this spot is one of 4 harbor seal preserves in southern CA, with another one of the four located in La Jolla, where we’d been with Beth and Joe. After my walk to see the seals I ventured to the visitor center and made the short walk into town to check out a laundromat for later. 

When I returned I told John about the seals, and we both headed there to check them out. The big excitement continued to be the mother/pup combo, and she still wasn’t doing the best job of parenting. Everyone hoped the little one would make it.

By the time we returned it was lunchtime, and after PBJ’s and fresh strawberries in the van we loaded up our laundry and drove into town. John walked to the Carpinteria Historical Museum while I kept an eye on our laundry. John got the full scoop on the town’s history and the background of the tarpits. We both had a nice chat with a man who lived 30 miles down the coast, and he was a wealth of info about the area.

Post laundry, we returned to the campground. I was waiting for lower tide so I could explore the tidepools on the tarpits, and we both read for awhile. By 3 the tide had gone out a lot, so I had a lovely beach walk to check out the tidepools. A sunny Saturday meant lots of kids and families out enjoying the day, and I love seeing kids having fun on the beach.

Early evening we walked into town and had a great dinner at Siam Elephant Thai, and then back to the van for the final season 2 episodes of Reacher.

Friday Jan 26, 2024 Hawthorne CA to Carpenteria CA

We slept in the van on the street outside Maggie’s house and it was quiet all night. We discussed today how easy it would be to just pull into a side street in any old town and go to sleep. For future reference.

Maggie and her friend Tracy were heading to Palm Sprints later this morning so we had plenty of time for coffee and more catching up. Deb and Maggie went to the same elementary and high school and Maggie had the grade school yearbook so they had fun. Maggie has two small dogs, Fenway, a dauchsund and Cooper, another different small breed. Very nice dogs.

Around 9:00 we said our goodbyes and headed to a breakfast place Maggie recommended called Martha’s, a block from the beach in Hermosa. Traffic was very light so no problem parking. We are seeing a more balanced mix of retired age people and young people. Lots of mothers and babies meeting for play dates I suppose. The beach already had walkers and bikers. If we lived here, we would be using all the beachside walking/biking trails. Lots of e-bikes, not much peddling.

After Martha’s we set a course to hug the ocean all the way through and past Los Angeles. I would not have guessed that this would be so easy but since most of the heavy traffic is up on the interstate, Rt 5, the beachside roads are only busy with local traffic. Very few slow sections. The rule of thumb is travel through these oceanside towns between 10 and 2.

We stopped at El Matador Beach State Park, a Tracy recommendation,  where some kind of film crew had set up for the day. They were working on a short film of some kind dragging lots of props and equipment up and down the stairs. The beach featured rocky formations, more like an Oregon or Maine coastline. Beautiful.

We skipped lunch since we had a late breakfast. We took a detour through Oxnard which is the strawberry capital of everywhere it seems. We stopped and bought a few pints from a roadside vendor and had one for our lunch. 

We arrived in Carpinteria around 2:30 and stopped at McDonalds for coffee and to upload the blog. The campground is right on the ocean we found our spot (electricity!!). We walked the beach, Deb one way and Milo the other, and met back after an hour or so. Lots of young families here with lots of kids on bikes cruising the campground. A train track is right next to the campground and we were a little concerned with sleeping tonight but the guy in the next spot said they don’t go trough at night.

Walked into town to a brew/pub called Rincon Brewery. I had a big salad and Deb had fish tacos. Walked back via the grocery store to pick up yogurt. Watched another couple of Reacher episodes (Deb downloaded them before the trip) then off to bed.

Tonight marked our 100th night sleeping in the van!!

Thursday Jan 25, 2024 South Carlsbad Beach State Park to Hawthorne, CA

Deb here. We both slept so well, aided by the wonderful sound of the waves crashing on the shore down below the bluffs. We woke up to a misty and sprinkly morning, but the rain ended and a weak sun came through. We ate our breakfast of yogurt, granola, and banana with the van door open, a view of the ocean, and the sun shining in the van. All in all pretty darn perfect.

Today’s plan was to visit an old grade school/high school friend of mine at her home in Hawthorne. Maggie Read has lived in California since 1980, and has owned her home in Hawthorne for 20+ years, and we had lots of questions for a CA local. Maggie had recommended that we leave the campground by 11’ish to avoid heavy traffic, and by the time we leisurely ate our breakfast and made a stop at McDonald’s to use the WiFi and publish a couple of blog entries it was time to get on the road.

We opted for a hybrid route of Rte. 1/101 and the 405. The traffic was manageable, and driving along the coast was stunning. We enjoyed passing through San Clemente and Laguna Beach, stopping in Laguna at a Ruby’s Diner for a great lunch. I’ve been so impressed by the huge amount of CA coastline that’s open for public use. By the time we made it to Maggie’s home it was 2 p.m.

After a tour of her adorable home and beautiful yard (complete with a mini-vineyard and lots of unique features), and meeting her dogs Fenway and Cooper, she loaded us in her car for a grand tour of the beaches and beach towns nearby. Maggie knows the area so well, having lived in many different towns and apartments in the area before purchasing her home in Hawthorne.

We started at the south end of the chain of beaches and worked our way north, ending at El Segundo Beach after stops at Redondo Beach, Hermosa (my favorite), and Manhattan Beach. Great tour by a local!

Back home to Maggie’s place by 5:30, and she made delicious ceviche with shrimp and crabmeat. While we munched on this with chips she drove to LAX to pick up her friend Tracy, who flew in from SC and was joining her on a weekend in Palm Springs. Once Tracy returned we ate and drank some more, had a great time chatting with Tracy and Maggie, and finally turned into our cozy van at 10 p.m. A lovely day connecting with an old and dear friend!

99 nights in the van

Wednesday Jan 24, 2023 La Jolla to South Carlsbad Beach State Park.

We only had a 45 minute drive to our next stop so we lolly-gagged this morning. Beth had already dropped Joe off so we chatted and nibbled on breakfast until around 9:00 so we could avoid the rush hour traffic. The advice we got from Deb’s friend Maggie is to drive between 10am and 2pm since this part of California is wall to wall people. We said our goodbyes to Beth and sure enough, the traffic was very manageable. Deb found a coffee place in Ensinitas called Better Buzz, and we stopped for a leisurely coffee and tea break. Next stop was the town of Carlsbad, which is just beyond the State Park we’ll stay in tonight. We found a couple of stairways down to the beach and because of high tide the first was just surfers and rocks, no beach. The second one right in

Carlsbad had plenty of sandy beach so we walked a ways and then climbed up to town. We found a place for lunch called Swami’s that Beth had recommended, and it served breakfast all day, My kind of place. After lunch we wandered around town looking for a visitor center with no luck (we learned it had closed a couple of years ago). Since we couldn’t check into the campground until 2, we decided to visit the Museum of Making Music. It was inexpensive and very well done. It;s housed in the building where the National Association of Music Manufacturers (NAMM) is housed, and includes a lot of history about musical instruments and recording technology. The guide also had some pretty good musician jokes…

After our museum visit we drove to the park and checked in. Our campsite is right on a bluff overlooking the ocean. I unpacked and started the blog while Deb checked out the beach and campground store.

Tuesday Jan 23, 2023 - La Jolla CA day 2

We slept inside at Beth and Joe’s and the bed was very comfy. This morning Joe had his first day volunteering at the Torrey Pine Golf Tournament (the Farmers Open) and he had to be there early, so Beth had him delivered by the time we got up. After a leisurely morning we decided to go to Balboa Park and visit the various museums there. It’s a huge park with art museums, an automobile museum, air and space museum, ComicCon museum, etc, etc. Milo split up from Beth and Deb and hit the automotive museum while the women went to the Mingei museum. You can buy a 7 day pass for $67 which we would do if we were staying that long, but we just paid for each individual museum.

Joe called earlier than we expected since it was a tournament warm up day, so we cut the museums short and drove over to pick him up at Torrey Pines. Deb and I snuck over the hill to watch the para-gliders practicing takeoffs over the bluffs overlooking the ocean. It was pretty muddy since they’d had the record breaking rain the previous day (which we drove through).

Then we all went to one of the beaches and had a lovely long walk. Back to the house for some down time and later took off for dinner at Ambrogio, a pizza place they’d been to before. After delicious pizza, salad, and drinks, we drove up Soledad Mountain to see San Diego lights, returned back to the house, and off to bed. Joe had his first long day at the golf course in the morning so needed sleep.

San Diego from Soledad Mountain

Monday Jan 22, 2023 - Old Fogey Hot Springs to La Jolla CA

Grey and sprinkly this morning so glad we brought the towels and swim trunks in last night. All of those towels and wet bathing suits were somewhat dry this morning and the van was nicely humidified, something new for us desert rats. All of the aging hippies were still here and a few were in the hot springs already this morning.

Last night the camp host was in the hot springs and we asked about fees. The sign said $40 for a 14 day pass and $180 for a 6 month pass. Since we were only here for one night there was no charge. He said the reason the hot spring existed is that  the power company drilled to see if the water was hot enough for geothermal (which it wasn’t), so there was a drilled hole and a couple of tanks ready to go. The power company did find hotter water a mile away and we could see the towers this morning in the distance. I think this is a mecca for nomads who have a place for the winter. And Holtville is near enough for supplies. Hippy dippy for sure.

We drove through Holtville and could see that big ag is king. Deb read that Holtville is the “carrot capital of the world”,  and for the next couple of hours all you can see are bright green fields from horizon to horizon. Our goal this morning was to find an IHOP pancake place. We have not been in one so we need to check the box. Our goals are meager…

We stopped at the El Centro IHOP and had a couple of pancakes, a couple eggs, bacon and an endless pot of so-so coffee for $12 each. #lifegoals.

After the “Elevation Sea Level” sign we started to climb. We climbed to 4000 ft over the next 45 minutes and descended 4000 feet in about the same time until we hit the sprawl of the San Diego area. And it rained, then poured, then poured some more. It poured all the way to La Jolla where we will stay a couple of nights with our Vermont friends Beth and Joe. They’re here for a month to warm up and visit their son Tom who works in the San Diego area.

It stopped raining about when we arrived here midday, but the streets were still full of water. They received 2-3 inches of rain in a day. We had a few hours break in the weather so we did a walking/driving tour of La Jolla. Nice big public beaches and playgrounds. Joe says the houses start at a few million dollars anywhere near the beach. After the tour, Beth and Joe made a delicious chicken marsala dinner and we played Wordle (the board game) until bed.

Sunday Jan 21, 2024 - Gilbert Ray Campground to Old Fogey Hot Springs BLM Campground in Holtville, CA

Deb here. It rained off and on during the night, making for some great sleeping. We woke to grey skies and more rain, which as new “desert rats” we found absolutely delightful! After our late night last night we slept in. We made our usual coffee and tea, then packed up and left Gilbert Ray by 9:30 or so.

Our first stop was (you guessed it) McDonald’s, for coffee and the usual breakfast sandwiches. From there we jumped on the I-10, and eventually west on the I-8. Our next stop was Dateland, a classic throwback snack/gift/convenience shop, reminiscent to us of Stuckey’s back in the day. We picked up a bag of medjool dates and a small date shake, which we split. Love those date shakes!

From there it was on to Yuma and a visit to the Yuma Territorial Prison. The prison was built in 1876, operated until 1909, was abandoned for a new facility in Florence, AZ, and finally restored in the 1940’s by the town, and then in the 1960’s by the state as a museum. What an interesting place to visit… lots of information about some of the prisoners there, and a chance to see the very depressing cells. Over its 30 year history the prison housed 3,000 people, including 29 women. There’s an extra creepy “dark cell”, where the worst criminals were held, often up to 100 days. 

By the time we left the prison it was late afternoon and the half of a (small) date shake and breakfast sandwich had worn off, so we headed to Mr. G’s for some food. Our friend Carmen lived in Yuma for many years and told us we needed to visit this establishment. Great stop, inexpensive and tasty Mexican food, and it’s been around Yuma since the 1960’s. It reminded us of one of those classic vintage local fast food places, like Al’s French Frys in Burlington, VT and The Pioneer in Albuquerque, NM.

After our food we left Yuma and continued west. We crossed into CA, picking up an hour, and 40 minutes later stopped at Old Fogey Hot Springs near Holtville. Our friends Lindsay and Dan recommended this spot, and another great tip. The hot springs and camping land is owned by BLM, so free for us tonight. We soaked in the hot springs for awhile, which was lovely, and then moved our van to the camping area.

So here we are tonight, relatively clean, and comfortably set up on BLM land. On to La Jolla tomorrow!

97 nights in the van

Saturday Jan 20, 2024 - Bisbee to Gilbert Ray Campground (via Trombone Shorty)

I had “winterized” the van when we parked as we were expecting below freezing temps. It only take 5 minutes with this van, easy peasy. Deb had bought  tickets to see Trombone Shorty at the Fox Theater in Tucson and we had plans to meet some VT friends, Warren and Roni, and Warren’s cousin Micah, for dinner. Micah had just flown in from Montana for a week’s visit to go bird hunting with Warren. So a leisurely day of packing clothes and provisions up, pull the van up to the driveway and shovel stuff in and fill the water tanks.

We normally park in a garage and walk to the Fox but this van is nine feet tall, so no to a parking garage. I looked on Google Maps satellite pictures and saw what looked like outdoor lots. Quick run down to the post office (the town was busy with tourists), and then off to Tucson. A local news outlet had just done a multi-piece program about Bisbee, and it seems as though the weekends are busier than ever. We stopped at Walmart in Benson to find another bin for the overhead cabinets but no luck.

We found the parking lot an hour before dinner so we walked around town. We kind of know this area from other concerts we’ve been to. We met Warren and crew at the Playground Bar and Lounge where they had the music cranked up. Fortunately we sat outside and the music was not too loud and we had a great dinner and talk with those folks. Micah is from Bozeman MT, went to UVM, and he knows our daughter's good friend Spencer. Wow.

The concert was high energy and non stop. I had my hearing aids in so I could program them for really good sound. After the concert we found the van and drove the 14 or so miles to the campground. We snuck in without disturbing anyone, we hope, since it was 10:30pm. Hopped in bed and shortly a little rain tarted coming down. It is supposed to rain a bit the next few days which the desert should enjoy.

Monday January 15, 2024 - Gilbert Ray Campground back to Bisbee

An even warmer day today. We all packed up, and John and I were on our way back to Bisbee by 9 or so. We stopped at a McDonald’s for coffee and a breakfast sandwich, and were back home by 11:30 a.m. Another wonderful camping trip with dear Bisbee friends!

Sunday January 14, 2024 - Gilbert Ray Campground day 4

Deb again. Yep, you guessed it, another clear and sunny day. I made steel cut oats in our instapot along with English muffins for breakfast. Again, quite decadent to have power at a campsite that enabled me to plug in a toaster and an instapot.

Carmen had a connection with a new sculpture exhibit in Tucson, so we decided to check that out. All of us (dogs too) loaded into the two trucks to make the drive into the city. We arrived at the sculpture park only to learn that the exhibit was closed on Sundays. We walked around the park and got a glimpse of the sculptures, and also checked out the horse show and a dog show that was happening in the same large park.

Carmen and Lou opted to head downtown to walk around (it was Lou’s first visit to Tucson), and the rest of us returned to the campground. After lunch John and Dave decided to see about a tour of Old Tucson (right near the campground), and Deb and I decided to hike the Brown Mountain Trail with the dogs. The campground borders the Tucson Mountain Park, which has a vast number of trails to explore. As Deb and I were walking through the campground to the trailhead Dave and John returned, saying they’d been shut out of a tour of Old Tucson since the tour was already sold out.

Deb and I continued on the trail, and it was so beautiful. The trail is a 4 mile loop (although we had to tack on additional mileage to reach the trailhead from the campground) that climbs steadily up a hill to a ridge, eventually reaching the Brown Mountain summit before looping back down through lower elevation. The loop took longer than we’d anticipated and the others were a bit concerned about our whereabouts, but we made it back to the campground by 5:30 with 2 very tired dogs and all was well.

John and I had made sloppy joes and coleslaw for dinner, and we’d left the sloppy joe mix heating up in the crockpot all afternoon. After some time around the firepit and dinner at Dave and Deb’s we were all ready for a good night’s sleep.

95 nights in the van

Saturday January 13, 2024 - Gilbert Ray Campground day 3

Deb here. Yet another beautiful day, and each day a bit warmer than the last. Carmen had promised us all a waffle morning, and she delivered with delicious Belgian waffles with VT maple syrup. It’s quite decadent to be eating waffles from a waffle iron plugged in outside at a campsite!

Later in the morning we all (including Cote and Benny) loaded into Carmen and Dave’s truck to drive the short distance to Saguaro National Park West. John and I had visited here in 2019, but we hadn’t returned since we’d moved to Bisbee. It being a Saturday of a 3-day weekend the Visitor’s Center was busy, but we enjoyed going inside and checking it out. 

We found out about a dog friendly trail, so set off in the trucks on the park loop road in search of the trailhead. What a gorgeous drive on a well maintained dirt road! There are so many healthy saguaros in the park, and we were quickly dropped into the desert splendor. We parked at the lot for the Golden Gate Multi-Use Trail, and took the dogs on a nice walk out and back into the desert. Just beautiful.

After returning to the campground, we all had a little break before heading out to meet Deb’s son, Matt, and his girlfriend, Alex, for dinner at Zio Peppe Restaurant in Tucson. We met there at 6:15 and had a fun and leisurely dinner (with a couple of bottles of wine) before driving back to the campground and calling it a night.

Friday Jan 12, 2024 - Gilbert Ray Campground day 2

We slept an embarrassing amount of hours (at least I did). The van is so comfy, this always happens. Breakfast at Dave and Deb’s with scrambled eggs and chorizo on tortillas. Today we had bought tickets to see the Van Gogh Immersion Experience, located just north of Tucson in Oro Valley. Deb N had already seen it in San Diego, so she opted to stay back at the campsite  with their two dogs, Benny and Cote. After a morning walk and lunch, the rest of us loaded into Dave’s truck and made the hour drive to Oro Valley. Dave knows the town pretty well being a local boy, and Google Maps filled in all the details.

The Van Gogh thing was pretty amazing. It’s in a big building with the first part explaining his background and details about his family. Like most famous artists, he enjoyed none of the success while he was alive. His siblings thought it was a neat hobby and one sister was a booster of his art after he died by suicide at 37. He was also color blind, which is why his paintings were unique. He was introduced along the way to some Japanese art which influenced his style. The highlight was a giant room with what must have been dozens of projectors all stitched together to show a moving Van Gogh art show. Hard to explain but pretty amazing. You sit in a deck chair and just get immersed in Van Gogh floor to ceiling, wall to wall. 

It was a sunny afternoon drive back to the campground, with more chatting around the fire. Deb N served us a delicious homemade vegetable beef soup and cornbread, which we ate around the table.

Thursday Jan 11, 2024 - Bisbee to Gilbert Ray Campground

I had winterized the van when we last used it so we just needed to fill up with water (tank and toilet) and move everything in from our driveway. We live on a one way street and the van is too big to fit in our funky driveway (I think) so we put everything at the end of our driveway, pull the van up and shovel everything in. There are actually only three people living on our street so it’s never a problem blocking the street. The Home Depot stackable boxes have worked great, and the one we’ve named the “provision box” is our means of moving stuff into and out of the van.

This trip we’re camping with two other couples. Deb and Dave have a proper camper which becomes the meeting place since it can seat 6 around the table. Carmen is picking up her old Peace Corps friend Lou (who lives in Michigan) at the airport and then going straight to the campground. Carmen has a pull-behind toy hauler. The lows will be in the 20’s tonight and then warmer over the weekend so they both brought electric heaters since there’s power at our sites. We have the wonderful Webasto gas heater so we’re all set.

We’d planned that each couple would be responsible for one dinner, and the other night we’d go out to eat somewhere. The drive’s only about two hours long, so not too far. The wind was really howling today so it was a bumpy ride to Benson, and I had to weave around the tumbleweeds blowing across the road. We stopped in Benson at the Horseshoe Cafe for a late lunch, and at that point it was raining and very windy.

Tucson Mountain Park (in the vicinity of our campground) isn’t that far from Tucson, and to reach it you drive over a high narrow pass. Once you’re out of the city and hit the top of Gates Pass you’re in undeveloped desert beauty with saguaro and teddy bear cacti everywhere. By the time we reached the pass the wind had stopped, and it was beautiful weaving down the backside of the pass with the setting sun casting shadows over the mountains and cacti. What an entrance!

Gilbert Ray is a pretty large campground with power at each site and centralized water. They also have tent sites. Flush toilets but no showers or hot water. They did have dish washing / hair washing stations outside of a couple of the bathrooms with hot water. Once again, simple and just enough. The place is full.

Everybody unpacked and we spent the last warm rays of the sun outside of Dave and Deb’s around the propane fire ring we brought. No wood fires allowed. Carmen had made green chili which we enjoyed inside Dave and Deb’s camper and then turned in for the night.