FROM APACHE JUNCTION, AZ, TO HOUSTON, TX.

Monday, March 13 – We pulled out of VIP RV in Apache Junction, AZ, heading East. We planned on stopping in Las Cruces, NM, for the night but our destination park was sold out. No vacancies! So we continued on to Sunland Racetrack and RV Park in Sunland, NM. This park is actually about one hundred feet from El Paso and is a good overnight stop. It is basically a blacktop parking lot with W & E hookups. There is a dump station if needed.                                           

 

Tuesday, March 14 – As planned, we had an early start this morning. We were surprised how light the traffic was going through El Paso. That's good because every freeway in El Paso is under construction. What a mess! We had an easy travel day, although somewhat boring, traveling the entire time on I-10. We prefer the southern route I-90 to San Antonio but with the lack of overnight stops, it can be challenging. Texas is a challenge crossing regardless. Also, we forgot that it is Spring Break here in Texas.

We stopped for the night in Fort Stockton, TX. Before heading to an Parkview RV Park, we stopped at Elvin's Auto Repair to get the 5^th wheel inspected. Texas requires annual inspection but allows for an exemption if the RV is out of state. We renewed our license tags in January via the internet so got the inspection on the trailer today.

We are spending the night in Parkview RV Park in Fort Stockton. This place is pretty basic and a bit rough. It's a dirt parking lot with gravel roads and wires strung all over the place. The sites are FHU site with either 30 or 50 amp electric. It is a PPA park….$14/night. That is the only reason we stayed here. We understood by reading the reviews that we should select a site and pay at the office. It said that normally the office is vacant, and we were to leave our money in the slot.

Well, we did choose a site and set up. Marsha then went looking for the envelope we were to put our money in. She noticed that the office had an Open sign. The lady in the office was very upset with us. She said we were to check-in first and they assign us a location. Oops! We apologized for the misunderstanding, She reluctantly allowed us to stay in the dirty old spot we selected, but made sure we knew that it wasn’t an overnight stay site. Okay then. We are only here for one night so we'll be fine.

Looking right.

Looking left.

 

Wednesday, March 15 – We hit the road early again planning on making San Antonio by early afternoon. We had called the San Antonio Elks Lodge several times checking on an available site but did not receive a call back. We traveled I-10 in particular, planning on staying at this Lodge. Unfortunately, upon arrival, we found the camping area full. Campers were parked all over the place in a rather hap hazard appearance. Dang....no room in the inn.

We considered staying in a Walmart parking lot, but since it was rather early in the day, we decided to push on to the Houston Elks Lodge where we had a spot on hold. It wasn't too bad of a trip, although it made for a rather LONG day. It was good to be “home.” Bella, our cat, appreciated not having another travel day to struggle through tomorrow.

We had a little visitor. Marsha kept watching the show this little one was putting on. We think it caught a grasshopper and was feasting on its body. What do you think? Who know the name of our friend. We are terrible at birding.

Sorry for the blurry photo. It was taken through our rather dirty back window.

We were all setup and relaxing before dark. Glad we decided to push on to Houston.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!

A LITTLE HIKING AND A BIG WIN!

Friday, March 10 – We returned this morning to the Superstition Mountains just outside of Phoenix, AZ. We were here to hike Lost Gold Canyon trail. This trail is and out and back hike. You can extend it out to a 12 mile hike if you like. We're not doing anything near that. We went out a couple miles and returned.

Everything is so amazingly green!

This is a beautiful area we absolutely love! The scenery is unbelievable, and the trails aren't too strenuous. We could sit out here and enjoy nature all day. This trail was quiet. We didn't meet any other hikers the entire time hiking. Everyone else was hiking the Hieroglyphic Trail we did the other day. Both trails leave from the same trailhead. We did pass some horseback riders as we neared the trailhead on our return.

We left at 8:00 a.m, and it was already 80 degrees.

Ups and downs on this trail.

No sounds but the beautiful song of the birds and the bees.

The desert is beginning to come alive. We wish we were here in about two weeks. We know it will be a gorgeous showing on the desert floor.

Saturday, March 11 – We headed back to Goodyear Stadium on the Westside of Phoenix this morning to catch another Cleveland Indians Spring Training game. Today they were playing the Kansas City Royals. What a difference the weekend made on the crowd. Over 8,500 people in attendance today. Goodyear Ballpark features 8,000 stadium seats, 1,500 berm seats, six luxury suites and specialty group areas that seat more than 500. The place was nearly sold out!

As we passed through the gate to our surprise, we were handed a voucher for a Corey Kluber bobblehead. We weren't even aware it was bobblehead day. Kluber is one of the starting pitchers for the Indians. We had to go to a designated tent to pickup our bobbleheads but were thrilled to do so.

It was an exciting and VERY HOT game. The temperatures were in the 90's about the 3rd inning and very sunny.

A little humor for those back in Cleveland, Ohio.

Goodyear Stadium announces warnings about sunburns and even has sunscreen dispensers throughout the stadium. We've been out in the sun all winter and have pretty dark tans and have been blessed with dark skin, so burning isn't usually a problem for us.

The Indians played a great game. All the pitchers were starters so that was exciting. We even got to see a grand slam. That's a home run with the bases loaded for you non-sports fans...LOL The Good Guys win!

Our neighbor here at the park has the neatest sign. So perfect for us.

Another gorgeous sky here in Arizona.

We have really enjoyed our stay in Arizona. We are headed to Houston tomorrow. We plan to stop either in Deming, NM, or Las Cruces, NM. We are sure we will be on the road no later than 7 a.m.  We will see how far we get until we say…Enough is Enough.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day.

IT’S BASEBALL SEASON BABY!

Thursday, March 9 – We drove through Phoenix, AZ, this morning to the Westside of town to Goodyear. We are attending the Cleveland Indians Spring Training baseball game against the Anaheim Angels. This is our third time we attended Cleveland Indians Spring Training. What fun!

Tickets for outfield seats along the first baseline are $14. A bargain for major league baseball. We planned on attending games at other stadiums in the Cactus League, which has thirteen teams in the Phoenix area. Our nephew, who lives in the area, warned us to check ticket prices. Lucky we checked, because we were going to go to the Indians at Giants Stadium. Tickets at Giants Stadium start at $35 for lawn seats, $69 for outfield and $110 for lower box seats. Holy cow! Indians tickets in comparison are $8 for lawn, $14 for outfield and $27 for lower box. Remember, the Indians played in the World Series last season and are considered a contender this year. The Indians have some of the lowest priced tickets in the area.

Just in case you missed that we are American League Champs.

So we're sticking to the Indians in Goodyear Stadium. Their next game we are going to is on Saturday. We already purchased our tickets for that game. One thing you have to accept when attending these game…It's pre-season. You'll see minor league players that are trying to make the team and some older players who may be trying to hold on for one more year. Sometimes they even split the squad and send them to different games at different stadiums.

Boys of summer.

Tomlin, one of our five starters. He did a great job!

Kipnis gets a hit!

Naquin hits a homerun!

Pretty good crowd. 88 degrees…hot!

Another thing Marsha can cross off her bucket list….hehe.

We can’t go to Spring Training without checking out the the Team Shop. Yep, we both bought our 2017 shirts. We added to our bobble head collection.

We lost 5-4 today. Hopefully, we bounce back on Saturday. We enjoyed our day at the ball park along with a hotdog and a couple beers. If in the area, think about attending a game in the Cactus League, but be sure to check prices for your favorite team.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y’all back real soon. Have a great day!