Life's a...Pismo Beach!

We've settled in, sort of.  This central coast area of California is definitely one of our favorite places, with Pismo Beach both fun and accommodating for all those needs; Outlet Stores, TJs, restaurants, wineries...Ahhh...  The morning fog rolls out and the days are in the mid-60s.  The air is fresh and clean.  The sinuses are happy!  And the beauty, just as in the desert, is breathtaking.

Spring Break in Pismo Beach

There are rentals on the beach

Great surfing

Our site here at the State Beach is large and grassy with no hookups, so boondocking continues to be our modus operandi.  There are paths leading to huge sandy dunes covered in blooming ice plant, and large groves of gnarly Eucalyptus trees housing the seasonal migrating Monarch butterflies.  We spotted a few stragglers, but October thru February is more the season.

Our site

Dunes and beach

From the dunes looking back at the campground

From dunes to town and pier

Monarch Butterfly grove

Gnarly old Eucalyptus

Mornings start with beachcombing!  I have a 3.5 mile course along a dune path south to beach, then north to pier, thru town and back.  The Sandpipers dance and the fog rolls in and out.  I find an occasional intact Sand Dollar....A prize!

The pier structure fascinates me.....

But now we need to get ready for this really big weekend plus a day...that's 4 days of family and grandkids, so we're off to buy hotdogs, hamburgers, fixins' for smores, chips, dips, brownie bites, blueberries, potato salad...and wine (for your's truly)!  The kids are renting a small RV and driving down from Half Moon Bay, about 200 miles north.  There will be lots of pictures, so stay tuned.....

Random acts of kindness...and Karma!

Before attempting a drive thru Los Angeles, we find that parking at the Morongo Casino, just west of Palm Springs, with its large parking area for trucks and RVs, a good staging area for the following day's drive.  Especially on a Saturday night when the buffet special is prime rib.  And Sunday traffic is noticeably lighter with the truckers obviously taking a day for...rest.

So leaving Quartzsite, after that marvelous sunset with intermingling jet trails, and having a much needed run and morning walk, we drove the mere 156 miles west on I-10.  A very easy, lazy day indeed.  And carnivores as we are, at least on this week's diet plan, prime rib is tickling the fancy!

So this is a really good story:  We go into the casino, after driving the jeep over to the parking lot from our parking area, and Howard driving thru a barricade...seriously...and taking out a ton of cement and chain link...We follow a very young crowd of short-skirted young ladies and gold-chained men into a jam-packed bell ringing, light flashing, cha-ching induced frenzy and found our way to the last of a long line waiting for the popular prime rib buffet!

Morongo Casino

Our View

As dinner becomes a viable, visible possiblity, 3 Asian (Korean) men in front of us turned and gestured to a coupon with a $100 printed on the face, then pointed and beckoned for us to join them.  There was enough English to indicate that their party of 3 left room for the two of us to be included in the $100 comp from the hotel...We just had to pay the tax of $10.50!!!  That was $40 worth of savings for yours truly.  Years and years ago, while still traveling in our old '91 Dolphin, we were in line at the toll booth at the Oakland San Francisco Bay Bridge, when the toll-taker waved us on shouting that the guy in front had paid our toll...and have a great day!  Faith in man-kind restored, and we need to keep this goodwill chain going!

But there is more!  We got an early Sunday a.m. start into gale-force winds that soon turned into horizontal rain on the freeways of southern California.  Cars were hydro-planing, visibility was low and we are following a GPS directive.  Anxiety levels hit a few highs but all went well. Thankfully we travel in a high profile vehicle so others usually figure they'd best stay clear...(probably old farts that shouldn't be driving, especially after last night's barricade destruction and all that red meat!)

We got to the ocean along the 101 and the nerves eased.  I clicked away at traffic scenes and sleeping vineyards, then played with the new Picasa 3 editing tools.  We pulled into the Pismo State Beach campground in early afternoon and were pleasantly surprised that reservations were NOT required, though this is the busy Spring Break season.  We were assigned a very nice, large, grassy site for the next 10 days and paid the asking price of $330, then proceeded to get ourselves anchored.  Within a short time the ranger drove up very officially and announced that...We had been overcharged...$100.  The fee should have been $230...thus the karma!

Playing with Picasa

God, how I love this life!!  There will be lots of beach photos and family fun to come...

Perhaps our last desert sunset..for awhile!

Leaving Benson, our first night's stop was Quartzsite; you know that big RV Mecca in January and February!  There is still a bit of life left here now...as many of us head north!

But the timing could not be more perfect for this, perhaps the most beautiful desert sunset, with all the jet contrails and clouds, on our last night in the desert for awhile!

We'll see you at the beach...

A Brief stay in Benson...

Benson, like Tucson, is another great place to hang around and explore, just for different reasons.  Small town about 45 miles east of Tucson, along I-10, with Tombstone, Bisbee, and Kartchner Caverns nearby, and those beautiful Dragoon Mountains providing hiking and jeep tracks and lighting up with the setting sun.  Nope, we did none of the above though have on many visits in the past.

Dragoons near Cochise Stronghold..2 yrs. ago

We stay at the SKP Saguaro Park, another Escapees RV Club co-op park, similar to the one we stayed at in Yuma.  As full time RVers they provide us with an address and excellent mail-forwarding services, as well as many parks across the US to stay for a very reasonable charge.

Our site

We had timed our annual spring cleaning; carpet, ceilings, upholstery, and window valances, to coincide with the end of our 3 month desert stay and the dust, sand and mud encountered to date.  We use Kyle at Complete Carpet Cleaning and think he does a great job keeping this old coach looking spiffy.

Carpets just cleaned & Scotch-guarded

Upholstery, too

And the ugly ceilings are clean!

Howard even did the windows!

And the weather is sunny, clear, and back in the 80s....Then the phone rang.  Hi Mom, we're renting a little RV and thought we could meet you in Pismo Beach for Spring Break!  That would be the Half Moon Bay family; daughter Terri, hubby Clint, 16 yr. old Daniel, 2 1/2 yr. old Liliana, and 10 month old Damien.  Of course darling, we'll leave tomorrow!  And we're on our way to the Central California coast.  Just paid $4.25 per gallon for diesel in Quartzsite.  It's $4.60+ in CA!!  And we're ready for the ocean!

Oh the weather outside is frightful!

We got to Tucson just in time for rain, hail, and snow on the nearby mountains, and it was freezing cold.  Out once more comes the propane catalytic heater since we're boondocking near Tucson Mountain to be near friends Rodger and Sharon, who fed and entertained us in grand style, as usual.  Can't say much for our immediate surroundings though.  Blowing sand until the rain turned our parking into a mud pool and not nearly as well-maintained as our lovely sites near Ajo and Borrego Springs.  Let's just say an eclectic mix!

Cold and muddy!

Pizza and Mexican train with best buddies...priceless!

At their  "oh so cute" winter home in Tucson Estates

When the rain let up we did a day trip to Nogales, MX so Sharon could locate a dentist, much cheaper than in Tucson.  Plus, I wanted to check out that wall again.  The town in very dilapidated and needing some major sidewalk repairs making walking without falling into a very deep hole a challenge.  But we did find some great vendors' shops and Sharon is all set for a root canal...Yay!  Interestingly, not many gringos on the streets like in Algodones.

Border crossing at Nogales

Glad we didn't bring the RV

Sharon shops for treasures

Rodger has his eye on...?

Animal skulls?

Kokopelli, of course!

Yes, we did our share of shopping; Costco and Trader Joe's stock took a major surge!  But for huge fun on a rainy day the four of us went to see Hugo, in 3D.  Magical, dazzling, incredible...a terrific movie well-deserving of so many awards!

There is much to see and do around Tucson that we didn't do on this quick trip, like visiting the U of A campus, Kiit Peak Observatory, Catalina State Park.  The weather was not conducive and we are in the throes of having time constraints and planning ahead...all for fun reasons!

Traditional native cuisine..

If you're traveling the backroad, Highway 86, between Ajo and Tucson, as we recently did, stop in Sells and have lunch at the Desert Rain Cafe.  Our friend, photographer, and fellow blogger, Betty of Nomad's Notes, told us about this place during her visit in Ajo.

The Desert Rain Cafe is a project of the Tohono O'odham Community Action group, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating a healthy, culturally vital and sustainable community.  100% of all proceeds support TOCA's educational programs for this tribal nation's approximately 20,000 people living here in the heart of the Sonoran Desert, 60 miles west of Tucson.

 Despite the cultural richness and the community's many assets, there are extraordinary challenges to be faced, one of which is health.  More than 50% of all adults have Type II (adult-onset) diabetes, the highest rate in the world, with children as young as 6 years old suffering also.

The Cafe is dedicated to preparing traditional, healthy foods with each dish containing at least one local product such as cholla buds, tepary beans or saguaro fruit syrup, using techniques that have been handed down for countless generations that also help regulate blood sugar levels and control diabetes.  Agave syrup is used as a sweetener, mesquite flour in baked goods and olive oil for cooking.

Standing room only

The restaurant is open for breakfast and lunch Monday thru Friday. As luck would have it we stopped by on Thursday afternoon and the day's special was Prickly Pear Glazed Pork Ribs served with a side salad, brown Tepary beans, and a whole wheat tortilla...$9.95.  We added a couple of mesquite oatmeal cookies for dessert and Agave lemonade for drinks.  Absolutely delicious...

Prickly Pear Glazed pork ribs

We couldn't leave without visiting the impressive gift shop next door.  Beautiful Tohono jewelry, baskets, and art work were displayed, along with cookbooks and packages of beans and spices.  We left with a bag of white tepary beans and  recipes for different preparations.  I decided to fix the hummus to take over to friends in Tucson when we visit.

We use a pressure cooker instead of a slow cooker since we boondock so frequently and depend on solar power rather than being plugged into electricity.  Two cups of beans in 10 cups of water cooked under pressure for 30 minutes, then sitting covered for another 20, yielded a perfect texture and doneness.

All of the above; beans with garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, capers, a shot of hot sauce, salt and pepper went into the food processor for maybe a minute and....Voila'!

There is a large vacant lot next to the plaza on main street, perfect for parking the motorhome.  We'll definitely be returning and hope you will, too!

Parking on north side of Plaza