Rockhounds

Overflow parking at Rockhound.  No room for awnings.

Our winter trip to Tucson finally arrived. We left Amarillo a day after we had received about 6 inches of snow, so some warm temperatures and sunshine looked inviting. We stopped in Ruidoso and picked up my brother, Larry, and his wife Terry. Later that afternoon we arrived at Rockhound State Park in southwestern New Mexico. We hadn't been able to get a reservation for that night and the campground was full, but we got a spot in the overflow camping area (which is really the group camping area). We had water and electricity and about an hour later we had three more rigs there with us. A pretty tight squeeze.  This is a remote, quiet, campground with great desert mountain views and stargazing opportunities. At $14 per night it is also a real bargain. The staff and camp host were all friendly and helpful.  The regular campsites are large and spaced far apart and only a handful of them can be reserved in advance.  All others are first come first served.  

At Catalina State Park.  Betty is wearing the
sugar cane emerald necklace bought from a
dealer from a Brazilian emerald mine.

Labradorite Larry purchased from a mineral
dealer from Madagascar.

The next day we arrived at Catalina State Park. This park is on the north side of Tucson with mountains on several sides, and a new shopping center with restaurants and a Wal Mart across the street. The Tucson Gem and Mineral Show was the purpose of our trip. We spent a day at the convention center where the gems and a lot of bling were. We bought a sugar cane emerald necklace and an emerald in matrix pendant for Betty.  Later we ventured out to where the minerals and fossils could be found. Larry bought araganite crystals and about 30 pounds of labradorite.  There really was something for everyone.

These girls agree.  Size does matter.

The following day we saw the Saguaro National Park.  Unbelievably large and beautiful cacti in any shape or configuration you can imagine.  Our GPS was taking us along several miles of rough roads to get to the headquarters, so after a couple miles we turned back before risking the need for chiropractic treatment.  However, what we saw was amazing.  Would I go back?  You bet.  But next time we'll take a different road.

In a huge campsite, the sunrise illuminates the 

Florida Mountains in the background

We left Tucson and returned to Rockhound State Park. This time we had a reservation and it was an awesome site. The campground is terraced on the side of a mountain so practically every campsite has a great view. We hiked some then enjoyed a glass (or two) of wine by a campfire. The next morning we did a bit of rockhounding. It is possible to find opals, turquoise and a variety of other rocks and minerals. This is one of the few parks where visitors are encouraged to take some rocks with you when you leave! We did!

When we left Amarillo it had just snowed. Within hours of our return it began snowing again. Even more amazing, it snowed in Tucson shortly after we left!  How lucky is that?

We hope to see you on the road soon!

A campfire in the evening with friends or family.  
It doesn't get any better.

Larry and I relax at sunset in Tucson.

Learn from mistakes

I would like to be able to say I never made a mistake, but we all know that's just not true. To err is human.  Learning from my mistakes is a good thing. Learning from the mistakes made by others is a really good thing.  It's a lot less painful.

Not too long ago a friend backed up to his fifth wheel trailer at a crowded campground to hitch up and head home.  After raising the front jacks and thereby lowering the trailer onto the hitch in the bed of his truck, he did a visual check to make sure all was as it should be before pulling out.  He made it about two feet before the trailer came loose from the hitch and landed on the bed of his truck. Both the truck and trailer were damaged as was his pride, I am sure.

Here is what had happened.  You may have noticed that all the parts of a fifth wheel hitch are usually painted black. In the shade or dim light it can easily appear to be properly connected and latched. When he did his visual inspection everything looked fine, but in reality he had secured the hitch without the pin from the trailer being engaged behind the locking mechanism. It was on top of it.  When he pulled away all hell broke loose, so to speak.  Later, as we discussed it, he suggested that the actual locking parts of the hitch ought to be painted a different color so it would be easier to see if things were connected as they should be.

That is exactly what I did today. Now, if I am properly hitched, I should see the white pin with a red locking mechanism in place. Hopefully the same thing won't happen to me.  The campgrounds are all pretty crowded this time of year and that would be a really embarrassing thing to have happen.

We hope to see you on the road soon.

More Preparations

The mattress before it is unwrapped.

We are still making preparations to our approaching Tucson trip. We removed the flimsy spring filled mattress from the sleeper sofa and swapped it out for a memory foam mattress only to discover that a six inch mattress is probably a little too thick. We almost broke the sofa trying to fold it back up, so we ordered a thinner version. It arrived a few days ago and we opened it up to let it expand. It definitely fits better.  There is no doubt it will be more comfortable than the original mattress that came with the sofa.  It almost seems that they manufacture those sleeper sofas with the most uncomfortable mattress possible.

The 6" mattress after unwrapping.

Other than that, we cleaned the roof vent screens and skylights. It is amazing how much West Texas dust had accumulated on them in the year that we have had this rig. Betty checked the pantry and other cabinets to be sure our supplies were all in order and made a list of things to get before we hit the road.  I have refilled one propane tank and I still need check tire pressures, then I have to get an oil change in my truck.  We got about 6 inches of wet snow here today, so in anticipation of that I  pulled the trailer onto the paved driveway last night before the snow hit. That will make loading things tomorrow a lot less messy. Unless something else comes up, I think we will be ready to load the groceries and our clothes then hit the road in a couple of days.  With all this white stuff on the ground Tucson is sounding like a pretty good destination right now.

We hope to see you on the road.

Our favorite apps when traveling

One thing we have discovered when traveling is that technology has made our lives much easier and more complicated simultaneously. Learning how to utilize any new technology can be a frustrating experience; just when you think you have it mastered, it changes. You know the story.

On the other hand it keeps us from getting lost, helps us find whatever we need or want, allows us to pay bills and take care of financial matters, stay in touch with friends and family, and on and on.  Once you figure out what it is you need to do, you can probably find an app for that. Here are some of our favorite apps. Some are native to our iPhones, iPads and Nexus. Others are available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.

iPad (top), Nexus 7 and iPhone.
All my devices have a protective skin on them.

GPS and maps - your mobile device (tablet or smartphone) probably came with a map app. The Google Map app is particularly good. On an iPhone, with the app open, tap the forked arrow to enter to and from points, then tap the arrow with "Start" under it and voila, you have a GPS. I think most phones have a GPS receiver built into them, so using them as a miniature GPS is usually possible.  This is particularly handy if you find yourself in a situation where your primary GPS is not working for some reason. In a previous post I explained how I use my Nexus 7 as a big screen GPS. Check it out. I have also downloaded some topo maps as well for our off road adventures.

Financial - banking business no longer has to be conducted over a counter with a teller. We can pay anybody or any business with our bank's app. If they can be paid by an electronic funds transfer, that's what happens, if not, the bank will print and mail them a paper check on my behalf. We can also deposit checks by simply taking a picture of it with my phone and tapping "Make Deposit". It's that simple. USAA pioneered that technology, but Bank of America and others now offer it as well. Credit cards can be paid online, too. Just get the app for your credit card provider and set up the account you want the payments to come out of.

Books - Amazon is well known for their selection of books, but did you know many public libraries now offer e-books? Check with your local library and see if they do. You'll need to ask what device and app works with their system. If you have the right device, the app is free. Overdrive is what some libraries use and 3M Cloud Library is another. I have both apps on my iPad and my Nexus. You can check out books which are then downloaded to your device and return them when you are finished, otherwise they return automatically at the end of the lending period....from anywhere with a wi-fi connection. Amazon, which sells the Kindle, also has an app which allows you to download and read their books without having to buy a Kindle.  Amazon, Apple and Google all offer books, magazines, music and videos for sale, but they also have a lot of books that are free.  Another source for free books is  Project Gutenberg. It is a website where thousands of books (42,000 at last count) have been digitized and are available to download for free.

Fuel - Finding fuel in an unfamiliar place can be a chore sometimes. There are several apps to help, but the one I use is Gas Buddy. It needs a device with GPS capability and a data connection in order to work best. Just open the app, tap the "Find gas near me" icon and in a few seconds it displays stations and their prices. You can sort them by price or distance from your current location and view a map to find the station you select.  This is really helpful and can save you a bundle on fuel costs. Many stations have a photo as well, so you can tell if the rig you are driving can access the pumps or not. The app is free.

Google Drive - Drive is a free service provided by Google which allows a user to store documents, spreadsheets, presentations, etc on Google's servers. You can then access your documents from anywhere with any device. Mobile devices will need the Drive app (free).  Currently creating and editing from a mobile device is a little limited, but that is changing rapidly.

Weather - I use two apps for this. Weather+ gives great current and forecast weather for multiple locations. The free version has ads and limits the number of locations you can store. My Radar is the other app I use. It shows an almost real time display of current radar. Both of these apps can be very helpful in planning, especially if you are in an area without TV reception.  We camped along the Mexican border last spring and for several days we only got one TV station and it was all Spanish speaking.  These apps were really useful then.

First Aid - Here is an app I have never used, but its nice to know its there if I need it. I haven't taken a first aid class in many years. I can see it now, "let me get you out of this burning car first, then I've gotta run get my tablet to find out what to do about that severed arm there! YIKES! Does that hurt?"  The app is free from the American Red Cross and is packed with useful information.

Communication - Skype is a great way to communicate with and see how much the grandkids have grown. With Apple users we can use Face Time to place and receive video calls from other iPhone or iPad users. For Android devices there is Google +.   Google Voice allows you to pick a free phone number and make free domestic phone calls from a wi-if connection or you can give that number to others and have it ring whatever number(s) you designate. Direct TV has an app that lets me communicate with my receiver at the cabin so I can select shows to record, etc. All free apps.

Camping - These two are not apps but rather websites you'll have to access with your browser.  Since this blog is about RVs and camping I felt they ought to be  included.  RVpark Reviews (www.rvparkreviews.com) is great for getting honest information about almost any campground you can think of.  Actual users tell anything from the personalities of the employees to the condition of the restrooms and everything in between.  Campsite Photos (www.campsitephotos.com) has photographs of individual campsites in hundreds of campgrounds.  When making reservations in advance at an unknown campground this is a big help in choosing a site.  You can usually see where the hookups are,  where the trees are, if the site is paved, etc.

We also have a few games on our mobile devices for the grand kids to play with when we get to see them along with some other apps that we have just because they were there. I would love to hear what you use or like and see where that might fit in with your travels. Now what I REALLY need is an app to mow the yard while I'm gone.....hmm, let's see.....

We hope to see you on the road soon!