On October 1, 2018 we checked in to Fortuna de Oro RV Resort in the Foothills of Yuma, AZ. For the past 3 years this has been our winter home. Note how we have the whole place to ourselves.
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| Site 831, our winter home |
To give you a perspective of where we "live":
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| About 240 to Tucson and 160 to San Diego |
Some pics from our stay at FDO:
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| Sunset from our site in Yuma |
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| Moon Setting in the West |
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| Sunrise in the East |
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| At one of the everyday Happy Hours with Tim & Vicki |
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| The Park Welcome Back Dinner |
January 2019 was a busy month for us. First up was the annual car show that was hosted by the park. What a collection of restored masterpieces. I'll just share a few pics.....
Next up was the Field to Feast Farm Tour hosted by the Yuma County Visitors Bureau. This is the second time we have done this and continue to be amazed at the place agriculture sits in the Yuma economy. Truly impressive......
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| On the bus after arriving at University of AZ experimental farm. That is Paula the "Poop Professor" giving us a talk on food safety and how her work contributes to it. No doubt about it- her talk was best part of the day. And she is so good at what she does. |
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| Then it was off to the fields where we picked specific veg for our lunch, and then freestyle picking for ourselves |
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| Mary on patrol |
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| Lots to pick from |
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| Sharing info |
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| Lunch prepared by Culinary Students at Western AZ University. Mary & Linda holding our places. |
Later on that month, I took the tour of the Marine Corp Air Base in Yuma. This was also sponsored by the Yuma County Visitors Bureau and highlighted their contribution to the overall Yuma economy. It was a pretty thorough tour and lasted approximately 4 hours, ending with a nice lunch on the base at which time we were entertained by a talk by resident F35 fighter pilots, as well as a presentation by the Marine Search & Rescue Team stationed there.
MCAS(Marine Corp Air Station) Yuma is the busiest air station in the Marine Corps and supports 80 percent of the Corps air to ground aviation training because of its access to 2.8 million acres of training ranges and superb flying weather. Each year, approximately 100 aviation units deploy here for training, bringing about 14,000 personnel and 600 aircraft to Yuma for periods lasting from a few days to seven weeks.
It is home to the F35 and the Osprey.
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| Started out the morning with a demo of Police Dogs in action |
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| At one point I thought the dog was going to tear this poor guys arm off..... |
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| These dogs are amazing and so well trained |
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| We also got a talk and demo by the Bomb Squad |
All in all it was a great day touring the base, which is huge.
Also on our schedule is our annual trips to Los Algodones (Mexico) for dental work....one visit in October and another just before we leave the area.
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| Courtyard outside our Dentists Office in Los Algodones |
Pickleball is a big part of why I like Fortuna de Oro. 11 courts. And a great bunch to play with.
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| 11 Pickleball Courts. And BUSY every morning |
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| "Dinking" training session |
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| The Group |
Every day that I played Pickleball, when I got back to the trailer, Lexie would be waiting for me to take her for a walk to her favorite place - the dog park. She had more fun with the dogs in the big park......
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| Position is everything in life |
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| Playing with her buddies |
One day we took a ride to the Quechan Casino for their Seafood Buffet and while there caught a glimpse of this rig, which was in town to participate in the big Air Show at the Marine Corp Base....
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| Can you just imagine trying to park this rig?????? |
When I started this post I showed pics of our rig in our spot in early October. There was nobody there at that time. Then around mid to late October, rigs started showing up and by early January it looked like this:
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| A small city |
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| This was our road. Fully occupied. |
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| Right behind us. Taken from the roof of our rig |
1200 + sites in the park. That is a lot of people in a small area. A City unto itself.
I did make a few trips to Mitrey Lake to do some bass fishing in my one man pontoon boat....but have to admit that this was one of the worst fishing seasons for me. Combination of the cold weather we experienced together with higher than normal winds kept the fish "quiet" and me off the water. Hopefully next year will be different.
After spending almost 6 months in Yuma, it was time to pack up and head out. But not before an enjoyable lunch with GOOD friends and Neighbors, Marty & Linda. Louie and Lexie had to stay home for this one.
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| Lunch at Tako's & Beer Mexican Grill |
Marty & Linda - good friends that we sincerely hope to meet up with again......
On March 12, we headed East. Our ultimate goal was the Escapees Escapade being held this year at the Pima County Fairgrounds in Tucson, but first was a one night stop over at Picacho Peak RV Park, which would allow us an early start to check in early with the Escapee Group. We've stayed there before and had pleasant memories. The scenery is awesome. As you will see....
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| Our site, with Picacho Peak in the background |
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| View towards the office/clubhouse/pool complex |
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| Picacho Peak in the fog |
And then it was on to Tucson and the 59th Escapade. Todays travels would only encompass about 60 miles, but we did need to be there early to check in and get settled. Both Mary and I were on the Staff and we managed to get a real good spot.....
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| That is us right in the middle of this pic |
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| View from front of our spot looking down towards Old Pueblo Hall |
I mentioned that both Mary and I were on the Staff. Mary was involved with the Crafts Group and I was Property Team Ass't. As part of the Property Team, I was involved with the setup of the main hall and all the classrooms. Quite a job, but much easier than the last time that we were there 2 years ago. The Fairgrounds people have really come a long way. Once everything was set up it was a matter of responding to requests for equipment, rearranging rooms for private events, tearing down and setting up for new events.....all in all we kept busy. Along the way .......
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| All the Volunteer Staff got together for bag "stuffing" party. These were the bags that each attendee of the Escapade got when checking in. We filled a couple thousand of them. And then they brought in pizza for all of us hard workers. |
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| Staff Appreciation dinner with friends Kevin & Ros and John & Kathy |
We arrived at the Fairgrounds on tuesday and the Escapade started officially on Sunday with a welcoming ceremony in the afternoon followed by an Ice Cream Social (we had to set it up) and that night Evening Entertainment provided by
The American Rogues.....wow!
The Monday night entertainment was just as good.......
The Redhead Express
The rest of the week was all about classes and learning. Mary & Ros with the Crafts Group had a better than anticipated Escapade. Their sessions were well attended and enjoyed by all.
A view of the 59th Escapade from above........
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| This was quite an event- to say the least. Thanks to fummins family for a great pic.... |
And then it was friday and time to pack up and move on. So sorry to see it end. It was a great time. We didn't travel far the day we left, just up the road to Far Horizons RV Park. Far Horizons is a sister park to Fortuna de Oro(owned by the same Co- Cal-Am Resorts) and what we did was use up the balance of the month that we had already paid for. Our drive couldn't have been more than 10-12 miles. We did have a decent spot there and were lucky enough to have a front row seat to the
Air Show put on by the Air Force Thunderbirds, flying out of Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson.
These guys were GOOD!
As always, any trip to Tucson has to include a trip to Trader Joes. On our last trip to Tucson and after visiting Trader Joes, we discovered another reason to go there.....Pizza Luna. By far, some of the best pizza we've had.
For sure, we'll be going back there.
Another day we took a trip up Speedway Blvd and traveled over the mountains to Old Tucson area. We've always loved this trip, it is so scenic, with beautiful residences on the hillsides, all surrounded by Saguaro Cactus'. There are literally thousands of them dotting the landscape.....
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| Looking West, towards AZ Desert Museum, Old Tucson, and Saguaro Nat'l Park |
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| Looking back up the mountain that we just traveled from Tucson on.... |
Our next stop when leaving Tucson area was to Benson. Benson is kind of special to us as this is where it all started - 4 years ago. We checked in to Butterfield RV Resort to begin what would be a one month stay.
Our spot in Benson......
Oh, and while we were there we bought a new truck. And is it a beauty! 2019 Ford F350. Bought it at the same dealership in Sierra Vista that we bought the last one. One of the real nice things about this unit is the fact that Ford now ships the dually crew cab 8' box with a 48 gallon fuel tank. That is a big deal. It has so many bells and whistles that I can't begin to describe them. Anyways, we were fortunate to get involved with Hitchin Post Iron again to have the 5th Wheel swapped out from the old to the new. Never a dull moment with us.......
Lexie has had quite a time here at this park. She made a new 'friend', Benson, a toy Australian Shepard. What a time they have together. Never seen 2 dogs get along so well together......her owner thinks she is a god send as his Benson is only 7 months old and has energy to spare and seeing him and Lexie run, run, run...is a good thing. And one that he appreciates. As do I.
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| Time for treats....and they both beg |
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| and more treats |
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| Lexie the begger |
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| 2 pups in action |
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| These 2 were non stop |
And you don't come to Benson without making a trip to Tombstone. We met up with old friends Kitty & Jerry for lunch at Big Nose Kates (one of our favorite places)
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| The main drag out in front of the OK Corral |
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| Lunch (and beer) at Big Nose Kates |
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| Mick caught me taking a pic of him...... |
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| Part of the crowd |
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| We had front row seats, courtesy of Jerry & Kitty |
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| Don't all waiters carry a gun? |
Tombstone will always be one of our favorite places to visit. For sure we'll be back again at least once before we leave this area, which will be around the 28th when we head on over to New Mexico for a month's stay in various places, beginning with Rusty's RV Park on the eastern edge of the Chirachua Mountains.
