A Hike in Bisnaga Wash

Tom and Joan came to our campsite midmorning. They duly admired our 5th wheel. Interestingly, they recently upgraded to a Bigfoot truck camper, the same model that we had before the 5th wheel.

We were going to hike in Rainbow Wash, but there was no real trail that we could find, and a lot of cactus, so we decided to go elsewhere. We ended up walking in Bisnaga Wash, near our campground. It was a pleasant walk, more interesting near the end, closer to the mountains. Blue blue skies, warmer than we have been in months. Lots of different cactus. There is one cactus, the Jumping Jack Cactus, that drops pieces of cactus that tend to stick to your shoes. We kept having to stop and work the cactus off our shoes. According to the guidebook, this hike was 2.5 miles each way, and we felt that we had a bit of a workout.

After our hike, we headed back to our campground to soak in the hot springs. The swimming pool was cold, but the “therapeutic pool” was nice and hot. We stayed in for a while, and then headed back to our camper for drinks, snacks, and conversation. Tom and Joan appreciated the fruit from Eileen's back yard.

We agreed to head for the Salton Sea tomorrow, Tuesday. When I went to the campground office to ask for Salton Sea information, they sent me down the road to the store, run by a desert rat, a man with a gaunt look. He said that the Salton Sea was polluted, but that it was better to be on the east side. When he found we were from Colorado, he asked about the San Luis Valley. I suggested the town of San Luis, the oldest town in Colorado, the Sand Dunes, and Crestone, the spiritual center.

The picture at the bottom is the view from our campground. Our hike was on the left edge of the big mountain.

Jeeping in Carrizo Canyon.

We got up, with temperatures around freezing, ate breakfast, and waited until 10 AM for Tom and Joan. Then we headed out for Bow Willow Campground, where Tom and Joan had planned to spend the night. As we were driving in, they were driving out. After a few minutes, we agreed to head out in Tom's Jeep, and went up Carrizo Canyon. The lower parts of the canyon were sandy, but the further we went, the rockier it became. In some places it was so rocky that we were getting tossed around pretty hard, even in compound low gear. When the jeep trail petered out, we got out and walked, looking for some pictographs. Other jeepers directed us to the overhang that held the pictographs. The pictographs appeared relatively recent, different from other pictographs that we were familiar with.

The area is beautiful desert, with evidence of recent rains. The Ocotillo trees are green, as are some of the grasses. We have seen relatively few birds or other wildlife, although we did see a Phainopepla.

We finished the day with Margaritas and chips at Tom and Joan's campsite. We agreed that Tom and Joan would come to our campground Monday morning.

West to California

We got up around 7 AM on Saturday, to pack up and head down the road to California. With some last minute computer items for Eileen, we did not make it out of Sun City West until 9:30 AM.

We stopped at the Territorial Prison in Yuma for lunch, and took pictures of the Colorado River from the overlook. The river looked pretty small, due to most of the water being pulled off for irrigation. We saw numerous irrigated fields in Arizona, while the Imperial Valley of California is industrial agriculture. The irrigation canals were prominently marked, a key to the local economy.

In the Yuma area, we saw huge numbers of ATVs, dune buggies, and sand rails, each with a flag on a tall mast for visibility. The dunes are a popular recreation area, and there were dozens of RVers set up in villages spread across the area.

Mapquest claimed that it was only a four hour drive from Sun City West to Ocotillo, the closest city to the park, so Richard thought that we would have lots of time. As the day went on, the four hours came and went, and we were not near Ocotillo. The RV goes slower than the average car, especially in California, where the speed limit for trailers is 55 mph. We also made multiple stops, for air in the tires, bathrooms, gas, groceries, lunch, etc. It took us almost 7 hours to make it to Ocotillo.


At Ocotillo, we turned off Interstate 8 onto county road S2, and headed out into the Anza-Borrego desert. We drove by some badlands, over a small pass, and then found the Agua Caliente Springs park. It cooled down quickly as the sun went behind the mountains. Our campsite is big, removed from the hot springs pools, with AC, water, and sewer. It looks like it will be nice and quiet, which is good, since we be here for six nights, until January 2nd. Tom is supposed to come visit us tomorrow morning, and we can start exploring.

After dinner we played Scrabble.

The Cat's Day

The Cat was exhibiting symptoms of an eye problem that he has had in the past, and we did not have any medicine for him. We could not do anything about it on Christmas Day, but on the 26th we called our Vet in Boulder, to fax a prescription to an animal pharmacy in Phoenix. It took numerous phone calls and a couple of visits to the pharmacy, but we got what the cat needed. The bad news was that it was time consuming and frustrating. The good news is that it was inexpensive.

I had hoped that I could resolve the issue of the cat's medicine in the morning, but it took until mid-afternoon. This meant that we did not leave Arizona on the 26th, as we had planned. I called the park in California to change our arrival date, and to Tom to let him know our reschedule. We will all arrive in California on the 27th.

In the evening, Marianne and Eileen watched a movie on TV, until Marianne went to bed. Richard worked on Eileen's computer, setting up the printer so that it would print 4 by 6 photos. Richard wrote up an instruction for Eileen on how to do it.

Richard took Mike and Liz's two dogs for several walks. Rather, they took him for a walk, towing him down the street by their leashes. The dogs are not small, but luckily, Richard weighs more than the two dogs put together, so he can control them. The dogs seem to worship Richard, lying by his feet.

Christmas Party

We started the day by attending Christmas mass at the Franciscan center. The mass was very welcoming, with beautiful contemporary music. The people were involved, the feeling was nice. Father Joe said the mass. Very nice.

After mass, we drove over to Liz's and Mike's for a Christmas Dinner. There was great food, presents were opened, and all had a good time.

Getting ready for Christmas

We spent the day before Christmas doing a little Christmas shopping, as well as getting ready to head for California. A quiet evening at home.

Heard Museum and Eileen Home

In the morning, Marianne went to the hospital to visit Eileen, while Richard worked on the camper.

In the afternoon, we drove into Phoenix to the Heard Museum of the American Indian. We arrived in time for the tour, and decided to take it. Our guides were two young Indian women. Their personal commentary made the tour more interesting, and we got a little insight into Indian culture, more than if we had just wandered around and seen the exhibits.

We had dinner at a little Mexican restaurant in Phoenix, where we received a call from Eileen, saying that she was being released. We drove to the hospital and brought her home. We and she were very happy that she was back in her house.

Richard swapped some messages with Tom. He is already in Las Vegas, but is concerned about whether Joan will be able to fly out of Seattle, due to the snow there. We will hope that this will all work out, and that we will be able to meet them in the California desert.