On the 1st of Nov we packed up and left Ajo, AZ and headed to our home for the winter - the Foothills of Yuma, AZ and Fortuna de Oro RV Park.....
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| Our exit off of I 8 |
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| Our home for the next 4 months |
After checking in, we found our spot # 752 and got settled in.....
The spot that we had selected was "secluded"- we were out of the main mix of rv's in our area, but this was for a reason - that being Molly and proximity to dog "areas". We did have 2 immediate neighbors, and of course they were Canadians. One couple from BC and the other from Ontario. I might add that the shirt I bought last year, the one that says "Yuma, AZ Canada's largest southern city" was appropriate in this park as Canadians from British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba are well represented. That is no problem. I like Canadians.
The month of November activities included the Welcome Back Party...
We also discovered the Restaurant, which is open most every day and for sure serves some great food at reasonable prices. Our first visit was on Taco Tuesday and we were not disappointed....
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| Mary especially likes this horse "art" |
November also found us getting introduced to what would become routines for us: Pickleball for me every morning 6 days a week, and the sewing/quilting group for Mary - meeting every Mon-Wed-Fri from 10 - 3.
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| The Sports Complex has 8 Pickleball Courts and on most days all 8 were busy. |
November also found us investigating the preferred Fabric Outlets in the area.....
November also found us Pickleball Players getting ready for the one area nemesis, wind.
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| Rick from Manitoba on the near ladder shouting words of encouragement |
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| Friends Richard & Harold from BC have things under control |
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| You missed a spot...... |
And a couple of late month events - the Park softball game and Thanksgiving PotLuck Dinner....
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| Opponents were another park in the area |
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| The crowd was large and the refreshments were in abundance- soda, wine, beer, lemonade, crackerjacks, peanuts, popcorrn, and in between the double header games, free hot dogs. And a good time was had by all. |
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| Our table at the Thanksgiving Potluck |
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| A view from our table at the large crowd in attendance |
Last year when we spent the month of January here in the Yuma area, we discovered a few things that made us want to come back. #1 on the list was Prison Hill Brewery in the old town section. And so, soon after we were settled in, we made a trip to the brewery for lunch. We were not disappointed.
Next up, at least for me, was Cocopah Speedway, a 3/8 mile slightly banked dirt oval. I checked it out and found that they had 2 events scheduled for the month of November. The first one involved the American Sprint Car Association Championship weekend and the second was the IMCA Modified Championships. Two great weekends of racing. A drive of about 15 miles had me at both events and I can't tell you how good it was to be back at a race track again. I was really impressed with the 2 shows that they put on and am disappointed to know that I will not be here for the April World of Outlaws show.
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| The sprint cars doing hot laps |
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| The salute to the crowd pace lap |
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| And what a salute |
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| WOW |
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| The IMCA Modifieds |
Also on the to do list was visits to the areas fabric stores - Grandma Jo's and her daughter JoAnn's place.
Probably the one thing that has impressed us the most about the Yuma area is the farming. It is beyond description, so I'll let some of the pictures we took tell the story.
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| Notice the raised beds, 3 plants across. Usually Cauliflower, lettuce, Broccoli, Cabbage |
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| Another view of the field, what you can just barely make out are the irrigation trenches and the watering system in place |
Perhaps the most amazing thing about this whole farming picture is the enormity of it. Drive south towards Somerton or north towards Quartzsite along Rt 95 and it is all farmland and how they utilize this land is beyond description.
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| Here is a harvesting crew. Workers in the rows pick, trim, and place on a conveyor, where another crew cleans, wraps and keeps it moving on the conveyor to where it is boxed. When the box is full, it is placed on a pallet, when the pallet is full, it is paced on a trailer. When the trailer is full, it is moved to roadside to pair up with another full trailer and then moved to distribution point. |
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| Multiple crews working the same field |
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| Trailers being secured and made ready to move |
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| Really quite an operation |
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| Here is a view of picked over field. Within a day, it will be plowed under and the field made ready for the next growing |
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| Cauliflower being harvested |
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| Boxes and boxes of fresh cut cauliflower |
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| After the field is tilled and made ready for planting, trailers of irrigation piping are brought in and assembled- you can see some of them in this picture |
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| Notice the main irrigation ditch. Also note the prepared rows, planted crop, being watered by the recently assembled irrigation system. At a point in the growing cycle, the irrigation pipes are removed prior to harvest and move on to the next field. |
It is just hard to describe all the coordination that is involved in making this whole thing work and if you travel the roads and streets of Yuma, you will always see busloads of farm workers on their way to or from a field where they will either be harvesting or tilling or planting. I sit in our trailer and look out the window and see Interstate 8 and it is like every 5 minutes or so, a truck pulling a double trailer of boxed vegetables is going by. It is just so hard to describe the enormity of the farming operation here, and easy to see why they claim to furnish over 90% of the lettuce consumed in the US in the winter months.
Probably one of the biggest surprises to our Yuma stay so far, was discovering water. And by water I mean bass fishing water. Giving up my bass fishing to go full timing was pretty tough and to find a way to get back in to it is just awesome. Last June at the Bass Elite Series fishing tournament at Cayuga Lake, I had the opportunity to talk to Brett Hite, a professional angler from the Phoenix area, and during the conversation I mentioned that we would be wintering in the Yuma area. He said that I should find Mittrey Lake. And find Mittrey Lake I did.
On my second visit to the lake, I met a young man just coming in with his bass boat and had the opportunity to talk to him for quite a few minutes. He told me a lot about the lake, baits to use, and a little about fishing in the area, since it is not all limited to Mittrey Lake. Oh, and did I mention that he also told me where the local bait and tackle shop is? I left him and the lake so pumped - I had to get back and start putting my fishing equipment together so that I could GO FISHING. My first time fishing there I caught a largemouth just over 1 lb. The second time there, I caught one about 3 lbs. I mentioned that Mittrey was not the only place to go fishing in this area. There was also Fortuna Pond. A drive to Mittrey Lake from our park was about 18 miles. A drive to Fortuna Pond, about 15 miles. I had to check out Fortuna Pond. The only drawback to getting to it or Mittrey for that matter is the amount of dirt road you have to drive over. But, to go fishing, I guess it is worth it.
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| Fortuna Pond. There is free camping allowed here |
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| Notice all the ones taking advantage of the free camping |
And there are some nice bass in this body of water. Not a lot. Just some nice ones. The guy at the Fishing Tackle store told me of a relative of his that caught an 8.5 lb largemouth there and yesterday I heard of one taken that was 7 lb 14 oz. Maybe one of these days I'll get so lucky. I have to relate this story. My first day fishing at Fortuna, I had an odd experience. I noticed a Road Runner in this campers area. I kept watching him as he came toward me, and toward me, and toward me, until he was right in front of me.....
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| Amazing! |
As we got in to December, we started paying attention to the weather, and as our habit has been, we checked temps at places of interest to us.....
This was at 6:30 AM, and reinforces why we like the desert SW.
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| And the sunsets aren't bad either |
Oh, and one more reason we like the winters here....
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| I think he/she has adopted us |
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| Our bird feeder is busy |
Back when we were talking about Mittrey Lake and the inflatable kayak, I didn't mention that seeing that kayak gave me an idea......and here is that idea made real.....
I am now ready to go fishing. On this particular day I had not gotten registration paperwork back from SD, so could not put the motor on and had to rely on oars. But just the day before yesterday, I got my paperwork/registration, so can now legally power my fishing pontoon boat. I have a deep cycle battery and a 30 lb thrust trolling motor that mounts on the back. Let the fishing begin.
Forgot to mention the Arizona Marketplace visits.....
We still go here, if not every week like we did last January, then like every 2-3 weeks now. Used to be our primary reason for going here was the fresh vegetables, but since we've found a nice little farm market up on 95, no need to go as much.
Couldn't finish up without talking about Molly. When we arrived in Yuma, she was still not her old self. There were times when she got us up in the middle of the night to go out, times when she wouldn't finish eating her meals. Still a lot of problems with her stools and she was still on a variety of medications. Well, the longer that we've been here, the better she has been. It almost seems like the place agrees with her.
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| Molly's favorite 3 times of the day....breakfast, lunch, and dinner |
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| Paying close attention- just in case something drops on the floor |
That should have us up to date - at least through december. We are all settled in to our routines and liking it.
