Wandering Spirit

Yes,

TIRES…you read that right!

My tires and I have a history, if you’ve read the blog for awhile, you know.  Short story here is that Saturday late my tire pressure alert went off only a block from home.  It was dark out so when I got home I checked it and sure enough, 21 pounds of pressure when there is supposed to be 35.  I pulled out my trusty air pump ( it’s Slime brand) and filled it up.  I couldn’t do much else at that point.

Upon examination of the tire in the morning ( after pumping it from 29 to 35 pounds), I found a bright shiny horse shoe nail deeply imbedded.  My neighbor Fred looked at it and felt it shouldn’t be a problem driving on it, since it was a slow leak, and because of the location, which was neatly lying between the tread.  I should be able to make it the 45 MILES to Discount Tire to have it repaired.  That was Sunday and they are closed, so Monday after the shed moving I crept down the bumpy dirt road….all 7.7 miles of it, cringing with each bumpity-bump.  But I made it to the tire store and they repaired it, no charge!

After that, feeling SO relieved I stopped at Petsmart for dog food and then went to Walmart, where I made a bee-line for the cell phone department and asked about a cheap pay-as-you-go phone that uses Verizon, and that is exactly what they sold me.  It’s a flip phone that cost $12.88 and the phone card is $15.  When I activate it I’ll have a Verizon line for emergencies when there is no AT&T, like there never is where I’m staying.

In the Walmart parking lot I send out the previous blog, “Pioneer Spirit”, and by the time we get back home it’s almost 6pm.  The wind is rip-roaring around and it’s cold, so we get inside our cozy home ASAP.

I think some hot chocolate would be Divine.

It was cold enough to have snow on the mountains!

Below, the shed all set up!

it’s here, alive and well, and I’m experiencing it first hand.

I’ve chosen my site here at Cababbl Loco Ranch.  It’s the larger of two sites up on a hill and neither site has received much use any time recently, so it needs some work.  No problem.  That’s ok, I have nothing but time .

Because it’s on a hill it will have a tendency to be windy at times, also there is the distant hum of the main generator, which I find that I forget I’m hearing after a few minutes.  So it’s not perfect, but ‘near perfect’.

This is how it looked ‘before’.

Wednesday morning our walk takes us there and I begin to pull some weeds.  It rained recently and there is still some moisture in the rocky soil, so weeds come up fairly easily right now.

Before long I hear the sound of an ATV coming up the hill.  It’s Fred and Colleen stopping by to say hello.  Wait…no.  They listen to my plan and then Colleen gets out, dons gloves, and starts helping me pull weeds.  Fred goes back for the Weed Wacker and when he comes back goes to town chopping more dead weeds. Soon we have a huge pile of weeds.  Next Paul comes up with his ATV (this is the first time I’ve met him) and begins hauling away our huge pile of weeds!

A few minutes later Jim( the owner) comes up with the back hoe.

Fred moving rocks.    Jim on the machine. He begins leveling the site.

Now there are rocks to move and Fred begins that task.  Later after we have all left, Paul comes back with this big huge rake thing attached to a tractor, and rakes it all down, and also smooths the road up the hill a bit.

Wow, we are ready to roll.

Previously Fred and Colleen have taken me shed hunting in their ATV.  The deal is, if I find a shed that I like that is not in use, I can use it on my site!  We find a really nice shed that is available, it has a floor and a bench and shelves and is even insulated.  But oh my gosh, how will I ever get it up that hill? Fred says ‘no problem’, and we ride over to see the ‘shed mover’.  Dick, another resident here, built this quite awhile back, and the guys have moved many a shed with it!

Today was the big shed moving day!

They jack it up in front, tilt the rollers down and then roll the shed in place, and tie it down.

Phew.  Did it!

Here it goes up the hill.  Fred is behind it with his ATV.

Dick backs it into the spot I’ve chosen for it.

Fred, Colleen, Bill and Dick working to get it level.

So this is what I’m taking about….Pioneer Spirit….everyone working together to help me get situated on the hill…people who don’t even know me, or hardly know me.  All volunteer.

I’m blown away.  Thank you to everyone who has been helping me.  When I settle in up there we’ll have a big party!

Well, its big for me, anyway! 😁

So I’m planning to lease a boondocking site here at CLR.  I’m pretty excited about it.  Right now, I’m in the process of deciding which site I’d like to have, but I think I’ve made my decision.

The lease is for a year, but when it gets too warm, I’ll leave, and come back late next fall.  I figure it this way:

1.  A year lease costs a little over what a half of a months rent was where I lived before I retired.
2. Even if I stay only 4 months a year, that would equal $200 per month, which is very nice.
3. Yes, I could boondocking somewhere else for free or cheaper, but I like it here.  “Location, location, location”, as they say.

In this case “location” is a place I’ve bonded with, people are nice, population is light. I can socialize or not, my site is fairly private, I’ll have a shed, and there are showers, bathrooms, water and dump nearby.  There is electricity and internet nearby for 12 hours a day.  I will need to get a phone for emergency use only, since AT&T doesn’t work here.  I prefer Verizon.  Does anyone know where to get something really inexpensive,  ‘pay as you go’ with Verizon?

I’m about 90% sure that I’ll be doing this….just need to make sure the site I want is ok to lease.

The thought is, to do it for a year and see how it feels.  My solar panel is small so I’ll need to use my generator sometimes.  Where I’ll be, no one will hear it except me.  I’ll need a portable disposal tank. ( That’s a container on wheels used to empty your tanks and haul them to the dump site).  I’ve heard that there are those who will do that for me for a small fee, but….well….to put it bluntly, I’d rather deal with my own s**t!

☺️

People here like rocks.  And Stones.  See I fit right in, since I like The Rolling Stones.

Sorry, couldn’t resist.

Actually I like rocks too….the kind in the earth.  Over the years, people have built rock walls and such here.  A few pictures are below.

This is a wall and the fire pit at the site I’m in now.

Protection for the Mesquite trees.

Part of another rock wall nearby. No cement, just rocks.

Oh, and I met my first scorpion!!!

Yikes!!!

But the sunset was pretty, as usual….

Sunset above Ruth’s place and you can see her horse Major, and the owners (Jim) horse Banjo ( the white one).

it must have been the winter of ’79-’80 that my parents came to Wild Horse Ranch.  That was the name of CLR back then.  It was part of an outfit that sold memberships to a number of similar places, and at that time it was all about rockhounding!  In case you were wondering, a rockhound is someone who looks for/digs for/collects rocks, and then maybe does something with them like make jewelry. 😁

Anyway, back then the yearly membership was something like $150 a year.  My parents weren’t rockhounds but loved the country out here, so they became ‘snowbirds’ for a year or two spending the winter at WHR, and then they ended up moving out to Tucson from Michigan which is where we all lived back then.  They moved about 40 miles from the ranch.

Here is a sign that looks like it was left from the old days, but maybe repainted.

Some of the buildings and stone walls were being built then, and I remember my dad talking about helping out.  They loved WHR and the way they talked about the place made me curious, though there was no way I could come out here at the time.

Besides, it sounded like a lot of old retired people were out here. 😀 Now I fit right in!

That was a long time ago but I never forgot their stories and their pictures of Wild Horse Ranch, and how much they loved it.  When I was getting close to retirement myself, one of the places high on my list of places to visit was WHR.  But gosh, I couldn’t really remember where they said it was, except I knew they had to go through Three Points, aka Robles Junction to get there.  My mom was still alive then, but sadly she had little memory of those days when she and my dad were here.

I poured over maps and the internet with no luck.  It was so long ago, I began to think it didn’t exist anymore.  I did find a dude ranch in the area which claimed to be there for 40+ years, so I contacted them and briefly told them my story, and asked if by any chance WHR was still around.  “It sure is!” was the answer.”But now it’s called Caballo Loco Ranch!”  That was the lead I needed.  There wasn’t much about it on the internet but I did find contact info so I began emailing the owner, Jim.  I asked for pictures…didn’t get any.  He said ” come see for yourself.”  And I did.  In February of of 2015 I stayed at an RV Park in Tucson and while I was there, I drove JR out to the ranch.  It was love at first site and I blogged about it back then.  I ended up staying at CLR for a week at that time. I just felt this connection…to the place itself, but also to my parents.  My dad has been gone since shortly after they moved to Arizona…it’s been a long time…but here I feel his presents….his spirit….and my moms too.

A typical scene here

It seems easy to get in touch with Spirit here.  Pure nature is my catalyst for that it seems.  Lack of distraction is part of it.  Here is an area on our beautiful earth that is still winning…less conquered by humanities unnatural ways…less manipulated…less devastated.

Sun drenched, quiet days.  Dark nights, marked with animal sounds….coyote, owls, unknown twitters and calls.  Meditation comes easier.  Communication with Spirit and self comes easier.  Knowing my own heart comes easier…and believe me….so often I have not known my heart very well.

How To Get Here

In the Arizona Benchmark map 2012 edition, turn to page 87.  You see Tucson in the NE corner of this page.  See the gold road coming out of Tucson, heading SW?  That is Hwy 86 or Ajo Rd.  Follow with your finger to Three Points, where it splits, and then follow 286 for almost 2 inches down.  On the left you will see Caballo Loco Ranch Rd.  If you are looking on Google Maps you will see that it’s called TR Ranch Road.  On my GPS it tells me I’m coming to Caballo Loco Ranch Road, but after I’m driving on it, then it tells me I’m driving on Britten Ranch Road.  As it turns out, the official address is on W Britten Ranch Road.  No wonder it’s hard to find!

More info.  The place is for sale and has been for over a year.

Some of last evenings sunset.

Some big news coming up in the next post!

from January 5, 2017

The Sky is pure blue here at CLR today .  My thermometer reads 60 degrees at 10:30am.  We took a good walk this morning, all the way to the observatory which is as high as you can get here at the ranch.  High as in altitude.  😀The obserlvatory is not in usable condition at this time but the views are 360 degrees . And yes Joy made it all the way up there without her stroller.  She’s doing really well here so far.

View of the observatory. It’s the dome shaped building that is highest up.

Looking southwest from the observatory, at part of the CLR boondocking area.

Zoomed in a bit.

Forthe most part these RV’s stay here in the boondocks area year round but people occupy most of them just for the winter months.

The sites on the lower levels ( where I am) are full hookups run on generator for 12 hours a day.  Not all are 30 amp though, some appear to be regular 110.  Some of the sites are big with great views….others, not so much.

The generator that runs the place is huge, and loud.  In many sites you can hear it.  I’m telling you all this because I want you to know the good along with the not so good.  Many people in the full hookup section also have their RV home here year round but only stay for the winter.  In fact if you lease a lot in the full hookup section, it’s called ‘6 in, 6 out’.  You are only allowed to stay for 6 months.  If things are still the same as they used to be 2 years ago, in the summer the generator is only run once a week anyway, so I can’t imagine staying for the summer.

People have been asking me about the price so here is the print out I was given.  Sorry about the wrinkles.

Some people here have ATV’s that they use to get around this huge property, and also use on the trails round about.  CLR is boardered by BLM land so if you like to hike or ATV this is a great place to do it.  There are old mines to find.  If you are a rockhound, this is your heaven.  Hunters come here too, which is hard for me….right now it’s deer.

There is a potluck in the clubhouse every Tuesday evening. Bingo every Wednesday evening.

The clubhouse.

Every other Saturday morning there is a breakfast and every Sunday morning a non denominational church service.  You can socialize as much or as little as you wish.

Besides the big clubhouse with the kitchen, there is the ‘Bunkhouse’ which is a combo game room/pool table and quite a sizable library.  There’s even a sewing machine if you care to use it.

The Bunk House.

There is a laundry with washers, dryers, iron and ironing board and even close lines out back.  There are two bathroom/shower houses, one up by the boon docks and one next to the bunk house.

And yet more info….you can bring your horse.

This very sweet boy is Major, and he belongs to my neighbor.

Also understand that the boondockers have solar, but also rely on their own generators, and they use them as needed.

The community of Three Points is about 18 miles away.  There you find a restaurant, and a combo gas station/grocery/hardware, a school, and two dollar stores.  There is a tiny farmers market Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  About 20 miles farther on past Three Points is Tucson.  If you go south from the ranch, after you go down the dirt road eventually you will come to the road that goes to Avivaca.  If you continue down 286 you come to Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, and a bit farther, Mexico!

Not much traffic out this way.

This is the most traffic I’ve come across on the dirt road. 😀

Oh and the Caballo Loco….the crazy horse…..here he is….

He resides in the clubhouse!

In part two I’ll review how I ever found this place, how to get here, and my feelings about it.

Can you believe it?  2017!!  Wasn’t it just Y2K we were all concerned about?

January 1

I wake up at 4am with a sense that it’s going to rain.  Where the feeling came from, I’m not sure…dream, or intuition?  I feel greatful for this ‘knowing’ because last evening I left my chair, both dog beds and all the new Christmas dog toys out in the open.  I rush outside in the dark and collect everything and put it all in JR.  I’m scooping up the last fluffy Christmas toy, when sure enough, the rain in upon us.

When we leave the campground shortly before 9, it’s still raining.

Im concerned about the 7.7 mile long dirt road that leads to Caballo Loco Ranch.  I shoot off an email to the owner, Jim, and ask how the road is, due to the rain.   At my first rest stop I see that he has answered.  He says “The road is fine, come on in!”

That’s great news, but I’m also concerned about the roads I’ll be traveling on once I leave the freeway.  I have a total of 40 or 50 off freeway miles, and on most of those roads there are washes running through them.

It rains on and off as I travel east on I-8 and then on I-10.  Its no longer raining when I leave the freeway at exit 236 towards Mariana.

S. Sandario Rd is like a roller coaster with dip after dip for washes.  Amazingly they are all empty!  Hwy 86 is fine and at Three Points we take 286 until we reach the dirt road to the ranch.

View behind me from the dirt road to the ranch!

Finally we reach the ranch!

After 7.7 miles of bumpity-bump, but really no splish-splash ( except for mud), we reach the office…where no one is…but that’s what I expected.  One of the residents here, Martha, takes me under her wing, (along with Tim, of Tim & Tisha who were my neighbors last time I was here), and help me find the perfect spot to set up camp.  While I’m setting up Tim comes by on his ATV to hand out dog treats (he’s known for that) and offer a helping hand.  He’s known for that too.  A little later Tisha and neighbor Ruth come by to say a quick hello.

Ournew camp.

After lunch, Joy, Shiloh and I take a walk to see where we can pick up the Internet.  I find it’s only usable near the library and the office, and there is no AT&T signal anywhere.

As we walk back home we see a Havalina meandering in the bush near the road.  Shiloh is on instant alert.  I hold tight to his leash and hurry on in the other direction.

Its cold today, in the low 40’s but the folks here assure me it will warm up soon.  I see snow on nearby mountains.

This whole place is off grid, run by a gigantic generator.  It runs from 9am until 9pm and for the other 12 hours you are on your own.

I’ll tell you lots more about  CLR in future posts.  Please continue to comment, though I may take awhile to respond due to internet limitations.

Do I like it here?  No.  I love love LOVE it here!

Sunset last evening!

PS….more pictures to come!

Leaving  Bakersfield on December 29 we proceed slowly on to spend a night in Barstow and then in Needles on December 30, where we get some rain.

See the rain on the window?  It was a gentle pitter patter through most of the evening.

Then continuing on in turtle-like fashion, we cross into Arizona on December 31.

Joy, enJOYing the desert!

Our route takes us right through Quartzsite.  Just driving through gave me the ‘Q Bug’ and I’m looking forward to being there in the first part of February.

Mountains near “Q”.

We finally reach our destination for the night, the KOA at Gila Bend.  You may have known this RV park as Augies Quail Trail, but KOA has taken it over.

We will bring in 2017 surrounded by desert and mountains and sky.  It feels soooo right.

Shiloh, backlit by the winter desert sun.

On January 1 we will proceed to our destination where I plan to stay for the entire month of January…Caballo Loco Ranch/RV Park.

Goodbye 2016.  Time, where have you gone?  I swear, life goes by so fast…time is short.  Enjoy every day in all the ways that you can.  All of our situations are different, but generally we are so blessed in so many ways that much of the world can’t even imagine.  I am grateful for the gifts of beauty and blessings and abundance of good people and good things in my life.

My resolutions for 2017?  I’m not fond of the word ‘resolutions’, but anyway….

*To appreciate my life and health and take better care of it.

*To not take for granted life, love, and the beauty all around me….to see it all with new, fresh eyes everyday, and give thanks for it.

*Do what  I love and love what I do.

*Try to make a smaller footprint on this precious earth.

May 2017 be the best year ever for you and yours.

Peace.

Below, my last sunset of 2016.

I spend all day Tuesday the 27th packing up.  (Except for time spent walking Joy and Shiloh, buying a big bag of dog food, and filling JR’s tank with gas.)

We have been at Mary’s house since early November, so there is a lot of packing up to do.  Once again I am surprised at all the ‘stuff’ I have, as I try to find places for it in WS and JR.

Wednesday, December 28.  Time to go.  I’ve been saying my good-bys and it’s harder this time.  Is it the season…or is it because in my time of traveling, my heart is telling me this is truly home?  Or, are there other factors at work here?  I don’t know, probably all of the above, but my urge to wander is strong, and the road is calling me.

Mary and I say our good-bys and she leaves for work.  It takes me almost 3 more hours to clear out of her house.  (And walk the dogs).  I want things to be tidy when I leave, like they were when I arrived.

Our destination today is Orange Grove RV Park, 219 miles away, near Bakersfield, which is actually a long days drive for me.  Today it seems especially long for some reason, and we don’t arrive until 3:30pm.

We walk, pick a few oranges, and have dinner.

There are LOADS of ripe, reachable oranges here now, and guests are encouraged to pick them.  If you are in need of vitamin C, come and spend a night or two here.  The park is busier than it was in early November, but there are still at least 100 open spaces here I’d guess.

Dinner for me is Chickpea salad with lettuce and spinach in a pita.  Think tuna salad, but sub chickpeas smashed with a potato masher for the fish, and I use vegan mayo.  I also have a cup of left over potato leek soup that I made for dinner last night for Mary and I.  Yummy!

Today, December 29, we travel to Barstow, CA, only 129 miles, and through the Tehachapi Mountains.

I’m having issues with my laptop, so I’m posting from my IPad.  I have run out of space on my laptop, and though I’ve transferred my pictures (which take most of the space) to an external hard drive , when they transferred they got all out of order .  13,000 pictures out of order is unacceptable so I don’t want to remove them from my internal drive yet.  Now my laptop won’t even let me access them.  It may take awhile to sort this mess out, since I have no idea what I’m doing!

Or whatever you are celebrating….

from Joy, Shiloh, Mary and I….

Fun times…..

On Christmas morning…

Never had to teach them how to open presents…..

Like most children, they just know…

Peace.

It’s been nice….and I needed the comfort of friends and family.  Though I am and always have had a Wandering Spirit, there is a lot to be said for stability and roots and permanence.

The biggest of ‘thank yous ‘ goes out to Mary for accepting us into her home and heart    unconditionally  and with such love.  She makes me feel like her home is my home, and Joy and Shiloh’s home too.  We have discussed the possibility of home-sharing in the future, since she is considering a similar lifestyle to mine when she retires.  I’m learning that I like to have a place to come back to occasionally, and I think she already felt that for herself, since she has been RVing for over 30 years!  Of course many don’t need or want that, and I’ve only realized that I like it as I’ve traveled.

Mary was such a good sport and went with me to see the Stones documentary, one night only showing, called ” Ole’ Ole’ Ole’  “.   We had fun!

Another thing of importance I have learned while traveling is that this area of the planet IS indeed my home.  See, everywhere I roam, while I’m there I ask myself,  “Could this be my home?  Would I enjoy living here someday?  Could I settle here?”  There are definitely some places that feel more comfortable than others, and I’ve lived in a few places other than here before….Ohio, Michigan, California, New Hampshire, California, back to Michigan, and finally back to California again!  When I moved to California the third time, to the Monterey Peninsula for the second time,  I began to feel like I was home….but then my Wandering Spirit kicks in and whispers….’is there someplace else?’    I’m beginning to think maybe not. Gosh, it’s only taken me 67 years to figure that out!  😊

However….there is still so much to see, and there is no way I’m done wandering!  Being here has been great and I’ve been able to visit with friends. (But there are some friends that I would have liked to visit with and didn’t get the chance  😕).  I’ve also visited doctors….not so much fun but necessary.  Still waiting on one last test result and if that one is ok the plan is, a few days after Christmas I’ll be heading for Arizona, southwest of Tucson where I’d like to spend about a month.  More about that later.  In February I’d like to go to the Fiberglass Rally in Quartzsite again.  It’s a fairly informal gathering of people with molded fiberglass RV’s like Casita, Scamp, Escape, and Oliver.  Last year there were over 200 RV’s ( these are mostly travel trailers) gathered….like a cute little city.

I’ve had just about everything out of WS to clean and reorganize, and I’m now beginning the process of putting it all back together again.  One change I’m making is that I’m leaving behind my food  processer and blender stick and adding this instead:

Blendtec is one of those super blenders comparable to Vitamix (but it costs less $$$).  Mary has had both kinds and likes Blendtec better.

I’ve considered buying a super blender ( that’s my own term, by the way😁) for years, and due to a very decent price at Costco, I finally broke down and did it.

Looking forward to getting back on the road, exploring, meeting people, and focusing on the beauty of nature!  I hope you will continue to ride along with us!

PS. I wanted to add…just got the one final result (medical test) that I referred to above it it’s all good!  Therefore I will continue on with my plan to get back on the road shortly after Christmas. Yay!