We are home!
It was a long but uneventful trip up the San Joquin from Bakersfield on 99. We arrived home between rain showers around 3:30 pm.
Now time for some trip decompression, rest, and trip reflection.
Judy continues to improve, and it is great to be home!
Well, we are getting close. We are here in Bakersfield, CA and will head home tomorrow.
The decision today was to travel North from San Bernadino from I-10W, then West over Tehachapi to Bakersfield or continue on I-10/ I-210W/I-5N through the LA Basin over the Grapevine. There was still lingering weather to the north and high winds forecast in the high desert towards Tehachapi. We decided to do the Grapevine route recognizing traffic would be heavy but no wind/weather.
As predicted, lots of traffic, and trucks but we got through it all and arrived at our stop for the night in Bakersfield, the River Run RV Park where we have stayed numerous times.
Home tomorrow, a long drive up 99. The forecast is cold and raining. This will be complicated by being unable to park the RV in the driveway due to the driveway damage from the car fire incident on 4/5. We will get Judy in the house, unload as we can from the street, and park the RV at the fairgrounds for the weekend pending further action.
The road goes on forever and the party never ends - but hopefully we are almost there.
Another layover day. After the hard drive yesterday, we both needed a little down time before going over the hill to Bakersfield tomorrow.
Didn't do much today. Slept in a little and relaxed, Judy did her exercises, washed her hair and we ate in. Soup for lunch and a bag meal for dinner.
The RV Park is virtually deserted, not like most other times we have come through here during "snowbird season" in February-March-Early April. As mentioned, we are sort of in-between RV travel seasons right now. The snowbirds have gone home, the kids are still in school, and the old people - well you never know what they are up to, but not a lot of them are here right now.
The decision in the morning is what route to take. to Bakersfield. It is either North towards Victorville then West over the Tejon pass at Tehachapi or through the LA Basin and over the Grapevine on I-5. The Tejon route is longer but less traffic. The Grapevine is shorter but with LA traffic. A "Hobson's choice" weather being equal. Right now, both routes are forecasting dry roads. The wind however appears to be stronger going North with a pretty good crosswind component. Right now, I prefer traffic to wind, but we will see in the morning.
A nice evening at the Emerald Desert RV Park and early to bed.
Well, we are back in California. It was a very challenging drive today, but we are here at the Emerald Desert RV Park, in Palm Desert, CA. It is a really nice RV park and we have stayed here virtually every trip East and West and even some trips just to here,
Dinner tonight was takeout pizza from a favorite Italian restaurant just down the road from the RV park. SWtill very god.
We got an early start from the RV park in Eloy, AZ around 8:00 am. Made it around the loop around Phoeniz just fine, but then hit a major traffic delay just west of Phoenix. Heavy Westbound traffic on I-10 West was forced into two lane compressions due to road construction. It was stop and go for at least 45 minutes. When that cleared, the winds came up and we delt with a moderate crosswind all the way to Palm Desert. And the road on I-10 in Arizona is especially bad. Between bouncing around on the road and fighting the wind, it was a long day. Nevertheless, we are here and have a layover day tomorrow before going on to Bakersfield on Friday. The big decision for Friday travel will be either the Tejon Pass through Tehachapi or the LA basin and the Grapevine on I-5. Weather and wind will be the determining factors and a final decision will be made before leaving on Friday.
Judy continues to do well. She had a bit of a rough day with all the bouncing around but recovered after we arrived.
We are getting closer and are excited as we near home.
A long drive today over perhaps the portion of the trip West the most vulnerable to high winds and dust storms. Lots of open space with loose sandy soil. Warning signs in the most likely spots. Flashing warning signs, speed limit reduction signs, pull of the roadway, shut of the engine, turn off the vehicle lights, stay in the vehicle and keep buckled in. Scary stuff. Thankfully we have never experienced one of these zero visibility dust storms. Today was all good. Very little wind and open roads.
It was our longest leg of the trip today (330 miles) and we made good time arriving in Eloy, AZ, just South o Phoenix. We also gained an hour as AZ is not on Daylight Saving Time. We are staying at a seniors RV park. We have stayed here before and it is a good overnight stopping point.
Our destination tomorrow is Palm Desert, CA. Back into CA with $4,00+ a gallon gas. We have been averaging from $2.97 to $3.50 a gallon all the way across country. Nothing higher even at the "last gas for 100 miles" stations in the middle of nowhere,
Judy continues to improve. She is a little stronger each day. She had a good night last night in the RV bed and mobility access is definitely improving. We are both anxious to get home but will continue to pace ourselves doing so.
A layover day in Las Cruces, NM today. We are pacing ourselves to give Judy as much rest as possible and time to recover in the RV as we head home.
It was a great day for her today. She was able to transition getting in and out of bed in the RV and use the RV bathroom. She still needs some assistance, but this is major progress for her. She will no longer need to sleep on the RV sofa and use a portable toilet. It will not be possible for her to shower in the RV due to the small space, but she is able to wash herself. I helped her wash her hair today, but she is close to doing that by herself. Still not a lot of energy, but she is doing her exercises, getting her appetite back, and is fully cognitive. Real progress.
I also did the laundry today in the RV park and picked up a few supplies to get us home.
It was take out Mexican food for dinner from our favorite restaurant just down the street. It was excellent as always.
An eventful day. We are on to Arizona tomorrow, Eloy, AZ, just South of Phoenix. A fairly long drive but the weather looks good, and all the RV equipment is working fine.
We got an early start today, getting on the road at 8:30 am.
It was a fairly easy drive. Very little wind, lots of straight open road, and not much traffic. I put it on cruise control and enjoyed the scenery. Actually, there wasn't much to look at that wasn't any different after the first 30 minutes of driving.
The first city/town we went through was Van Horn, TX. Besides a crossroads oasis town, it is known as the site (30 miles north) of Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin rocket launch site, where several high-priced celebrity sub-orbital rocket launches have occurred. The Van Horn site uses the "New Shepard" launch vehicle and will be the vehicle used for Blue Origins space tourism they plan to expand in the future. Blue Origin is an ambitious space exploration enterprise and hopes to be an active partner with the government in ongoing space exploration activities.
Just West of Van Horn we entered the Mountain Time Zone and went through the Border Patrol checkpoint near Sierra Blanca. West bound you just go the sensor gauntlet. Eastbound you are stopped and talk to a Border Patrol agent. They clearly seem to profile, and they always have dogs and handlers ready as needed. Trucks have a separate lane with different inspection protocols apparently.
The biggest challenge today was getting through El Paso at the Western border of Texas. Every time we have come through here there has been highway construction. This trip was no exception but getting through has been significantly improved. Since it is Sunday, traffic was a little less congested and we made it through without any delays. El Paso has certainly grown over the years and appears to be thriving.
We arrived in Las Cruces around 1:00 pm due to the time change and ease of travel today. We have a layover day here tomorrow at the La Hacienda RV Resort. We stay here every time we come this way.
Tomorrow will be laundry day and a getting few things from Walmart. Tomorrow night dinner will be take out from La Posada de Mesila. Our favorite Mexican restaurant anywhere,
Judy continues to make progress and she has expanded her mobility within the RV. She diligently does here exercises, even while travelling. I don't expect she will be able to exit/enter the RV without assistance before we get home, but we are not ruling it out. Her spirits remain high and wants to regain her previous strength and mobility as soon as possible but also realizes it is going to take some time.
We are still on track for returning home next Saturday, 5/6. No severe weather is forecast or anticipated.
