Flynn and Ollie departed Sin City on a Sunday, the same Sunday as the final day of the NFR which had taken over the city. Those in the know are probably cringing at the thought of driving out of town this day, but in reality there was not a single delay, hiccup, or motor vehicle accident on their route. This is because they went South as opposed to the dreaded 15. The long arduous journey of just under 4 hours brought them to La Paz County Park, outside Parker, AZ.
They had booked a week’s stay with the RV. There was water and electricity, but no sewer hook up, no wi-fi, and sketchy Verizon service. The campsite was Colorado River waterfront: sunny, peaceful, and beautiful. It was exactly what a flamingo and an otter needed after three months in a manic city environment. No offense to East Las Vegas, but the constant sirens, frogger-dodging traffic, and light pollution does begin to wear on an animal after a while.
The Parker Strip is a lovely area, with calm river, lots and lots of seasonal humans, and oodles of camping, hiking, and outdoorsy activities. F & O drove to Lake Havasu City three times over the week. The first trip was to tour the town, get an oil change, have a picnic lunch at the Rotary Park on the lake, and visit the BLM office to get the deets on the ‘good’ boondocking locations. They cruised around those popular off-grid spots, mostly off-road, bouncy, dirty, and uncomfortable for Flynn while thrilling and adventurous for Ollie (he loves that sh*t).
Mid-week F&O concentrated on nature and hiking. They drove 3 miles of bump and dirt to the Billy Williams National Wildlife Preserve so Flynn and Ollie could commune with their cousins. A few miles of hiking and all they found was lots of scat – donkey, coyote, and who knows what else. No real live animals were spotted (okay Flynn, a few birds do count). Wait, there were two humans from the Audubon Society doing an “official” audit so maybe that is a win. The two humans were only 100 yards from the parking area, and no other souls were seen during the 3.5 mile hike. Despite being shut out on lion, tiger, and bear observation, the area was beautiful.
Next hike was at the SARA Park, just outside of Lake Havasu City. This place is crazy big, with every facility available, including equestrian & dog parks, frisbee golf and what have you. The trail system is unique if for no other reason that the quirky names they have assigned to each hike. For realz, we have to tell people that F&O hiked the Trash Can? What does that even mean? Clearly the BLM staff were stoned when they made these up. Whatever works, I guess. The hike that was to take 48 minutes took 2 hours because F&O stop a lot, including for lunch while sitting on a on a rock. There was no trash can on the trail (deceived!) so they packed it out.
Did Flynn mention sketchy Verizon and no wi-fi? Okay, another trip to Lake Havasu City to get the sim card for BeBop’s on-board hotspot. As much fun as nature is, Flynn likes his creature comforts and is tired of having non-existent internet. A bird needs his Netflix, Prime, and You Tube for heaven’s sake, and his faithful readers wouldn’t be reading this without it. So, yeah, F&O got some banging bytes & gig in the big blue rig. Now the challenge will be to camp from here on out at places that have good Vz signal. Challenge accepted.
Various other short trips and walks (not hikes) have ensued this week. A stroll to the weekly swap meet, but no purchases. Had one meal out the entire week (wings & shakes, but don’t tell Flynn). Mostly we have been enjoying the glorious desert-scape and sunshine. Oh heck, forgot to mention: made it an entire 7 days without having to dump gray and black tanks! Go BeBob!!! We are ready for boondocking. Next stop is Tonopah, AZ for two nights with zero services in someone’s backyard on a ranch-ish. (Boondockers Welcome, for you camping folk).
Onwards F&O go.
Fin
Flynn