Monday, January 28, 2013

Quartzsite, Arizona 2013




Once again it was time for Jean and I  to travel and check out the annual RV Show and Big Tent at Quartzsite, Arizona.

Jean and I left on Wednesday afternoon first stopping at the Bass Pro in Rancho Cucamonga, California. At the Bass Pro we had dinner at the Islomorada  Restaurant and to spend a couple of hours to peruse the store. The plan was to wait awhile for the traffic congestion to lessen so we could have a smoother drive on the freeway to our next stop.

By 8 pm, we were finally on the road making good time and heading to our next destination - Chiriaco Summit.  Chiriaco Summit is a desert stop for truckers and tourists 
located at the summit on the I-10 Freeway route between Indio and Blythe in Southern CaliforniaYou can also find the General George Patton Museum there.

Chiriaco Summit allows truckers and RV's to spend the night while en-route with no charge. It's always a good stopping point for us when driving the Class C. We spent the night in the General Patton Museum parking lot.

On Thursday morning we had breakfast at the Chiriaco Summit Cafe and Gift Shop and eventually got on our way to Quartzsite.   http://www.chiriacosummit.com/


Tioga Ranger and Scout parked in the General Patton Museum

After leaving Chiriaco Summit it's an easy drive to Quartzsite and by 10 am we were setting up camp at Rose RV Park.

http://www.quartzsiteroservpark.com/

We were expecting some other friends to join us at our camp and by 4 pm they had all arrive. Camp was complete.



The next few days we spent exploring the RV Show and all the vendors located in the Big Tent and yes I did have a shopping list for RV stuff. Some of the items I purchased during our stay were: Battery Watering System, more LED lights,  Insect Furnace Screen, storage case for our RVi Braking System and manage to serviced our portable generator.

Jean and Susanne shopping at the Big Tent

At camp we had a pot luck dinner night and I planned to cook my Tamale Pie in my #12 Dutch Oven. Cooking was going well that evening until it started to rain, but rain or shine will not discourage me from cooking in my Dutch Oven. My solution was setting up my Class C awning and it made the difference. The Tamale Pie cooked and we had a great potluck dinner while enjoying the rain.



Like all trips ours was coming to and end, well almost. Everyone was leaving Sunday morning to head toward other locations including Jean and I. By 11 am (Arizona Time) we were all saying our goodbyes and heading in different directions. 

Our next destination was East Shore RV Park located San Dimas, California.

"East Shore RV Park is located on the banks of stream fed Puddingstone Lake, which is stocked with trout and bass several times a year for the fisherman. Bring your own boat or rent one to enjoy fishing, lake swimming, water skiing, sail boating or jet skiing on the Puddingston lake in Bonelli Regional County Park. Large county park within walking distance has picnicking, horseback riding rentals, 18 hole Mountain Meadows Golf Course, Raging Waters River Rides, Slides, hiking, bicycling trails and Hot tub rentals. Picnic areas to handle the needs of organized club groups and patrons of the park."


This was going to be our last night on the road till we made it home. Jean and I wanted one more night of staying in our Class C Tioga Ranger relaxing together. I've stayed there before and it was a good choice to break up the drive of 312 miles.

It was a pleasant night at the park for us and it even rained a little that night. Jean took some photos of the sunset and our camp.

Sunset at East Shore
Our camp at East Shore RV park



 Monday morning it was time to complete our trip and head home, big bummer, but we will be on the road again soon. It was a fun trip to Quartzsite and we plan to go again next year!

More pics from our trip...


Flags



Shelter and party under the rain...



Visiting fellow Elk members at another camp...
















10-4 Good Buddy...

I have been wanting to install a CB radio in our motorhome for some time and I finally installed a Cobra 75 WX ST CB Radio on Saturday, January 17th. I selected the 75 WX ST because it's an all inclusive compact-remote mount radio, with the expected 40 channels, Cobra patented SoundTracker noise reducer, 10 NOAA National Weather channels and scanning capabilities all within the handset. It takes very little room and it is easy to use, even when you're driving. For more information on the 75 WX ST CB radio I suggest you  go to the COBRA link:

https://cobra.com/detail/75-wx-st-compact-remote-mount-cb-radio-with-soundtracker-and-noaa-weather.cfm

Overall, the radio installation work went well, but the antenna is another story.

It turns out that in order to mount or install an antenna on a fiberglass body, you need to acquire a No Ground Plate (NGP) kit in order for the CB Radio to work properly. Go figure, after I went to a local Off-Road shop purchasing a really nice 4 foot Firestik Antenna, 3-way mounting bracket and 18 feet of heavy duty CB radio cable,  none of that stuff was going to work because it was not NGP.

However, I did manage to locate and buy a Midland glass mount antenna (18-258)  for the time being until I can order a NGP kit. The glass mount antenna was attached to the Overhead Bed left window, and the cable from the antenna to the radio was easily hidden. The nice thing about this antenna installation was - no holes were drilled into the body of the motorhome. The only bummer about the antenna it is short which reduces the capabilities of receiving at long distances. I did try it with another CB radio close by and the reception was good. Soon we will be going on a trip to Quartzsite, Arizona and hope that I pick up some CB traffic on the Highway.




https://midlandusa.com/accessories/product/18-258/


If you are wondering what NGP antennas look like, here is a pic and a link. I should mention that there are other brands out there beside Firestik.




http://www.firestik.com/CatalogFrame.htm

Cobra radio mounted on dash board
Antenna mounted on RV above drivers side


*HOW YOUR CB CAN SERVE YOU
• Warn of traffic tie-ups ahead.
• Provide weather and road information.
• Provide help fast in event of emergency or breakdown.
• Suggest good spots to eat and sleep.
• Make long trips more interesting, and help keep you awake.
• Provide direct contact with your office or home.
• Make friends as you travel.
• Provide “local information” to find your destination.
• Communicate with friends and family during outdoor activities.
• Help law enforcement officers by reporting drunk and reckless drivers.

*Taken from the Cobra 75 WX ST instruction manual.