Winter Assignment Winding Down

Our winter workamper assignment at Glamis North KOA is winding down. As this goes to post we have 36 days until we move on to a summer of travel. Our first destination after leaving Niland, CA is the Grand Canyon for a five day tour with the Escapees RV Club. We'll let you know either where we've been or where we are going as the summer progresses. In any event, we plan to be back at Glamis North by mid-October this year for another winter of fun in the sun. The weather here is the best we have ever found -- anywhere. Eating red tomatoes in February; harvesting summer squash in April; wearing shorts and t-shirts in every month. Almost never rains. What's not to like?
This post will clean up a number of photos I've just been harboring on my desktop. Time to post them and clean up the desktop.

Daughter Angel with Erika and Sabrina after a visit to the swimming pool in March.

Riding one of the rental bikes around the park.

Wellhead for an artesian well - in the remote desert. Water spraying out under natural pressure is hot.

Typical of the many abandoned dwellings in the surrounding desert.

Maybe ran out of gas, water, or air in the desert and simply remains there. Takes a long time to rust.

Hooded Oriole that's been hanging out at our lemon tree and sugar feeder in our yard.

Some of the ladies in the park made a quilt for Roslyn, one of the park owners.

The quilt makers presenting the quilt to Roz at the KOA store and Sassy's Outback Cafe.

Pat, Jared and Roz working on a campground reservation at the office.

Yes, Angel is eating a 'smore.

Taco Tuesday at the Bombay Beach American Legion. Couple in blue in foreground are Marianne and Tom Nance, Master Gardener friends from Newport WA who were here for a week visiting the area. Other folks at the table are some of our neighbors at Glamis North KOA.

So, that's the clean-up for now. Stay tuned for more of what/where/who as it happens.

Aerial tram, desert ride, and more.

Ready to ride, from Glamis North KOA into the surrounding desert. Angel, on blue quad, Sabrina, Erika, Grandma Pat, in blue Ranger, Grandpa Dave on red quad, and Sandy, a neighbor, on right.

Our little group at the famous shoe tree. Sabrina made a deposit!

Angel and Erika looking into one of the bat caves. Salton Sea in background.

Typical trail scene on a desert ride.

Palm Springs aerial tram on Mt. St. Jacinto. Ride goes up to 8,516 feet.

The cars pass each other half way up/down.

Sabrina, Angel, and Erika at 8,500'.

Dave and Pat - still going places and doing stuff.

Molly and Annie playing in a KOA Kamp K9.

Erika, Angel, Sabrina and Pat in our golf cart at KOA.

A neighborhood campfire at KOA. We did 'Smores, of course.

Jered, one of our co-workers, showing off his fire-cheating skills.

Summer in winter

The winter is supposed to be over here in California, and I can tell you it is over. We've had summer-like weather for over a month, and it just keeps getting better.

Melanie and her family did a vacation in California, taking in Disneyland and Sea World. We met them in San Diego and did Sea World together; then Angel and her girls came to see us for a week. Picked them up in Palm Springs on Saturday, March 26.

So much going on. So many places to go. So much to do. It's a good thing we're retired, otherwise we wouldn't have the time!

Our group at Sea World. Grandpa Dave, Grandma Pat, Melanie, Bailey, Meghan, Grandma Nancy, Isabel, Jason, Olivia. Photo courtesy of a Japanese tourist. (we returned the favor)

A little splashing going on at one of the shows.

Bailey and Isabel were in the "splash zone".

Meghan, hamming it up with Biff, one of the performers in the seal show.

Melanie and Olivia on right to show the size of the shark jaws.

Pat doing her favorite thing: shopping for souvenirs.

The Shamu Show. No trainers were killed or injured during this show.

As you can see, we were not alone at Sea World.

Joy ride on one of the whales.

You have to see this to believe it.

You all know we live in a 36' fifth wheel RV, but we bought a second on just for quick trips and fast traveling. It's a 21 footer. A lot smaller, but so much faster, and it takes half the fuel as pulling the big one. We'll be leaving our big one in CA and taking the smaller one for the summer.

Time's a-flying!

Not that we're counting the days, but time is flying as May 31 gets closer and closer with each passing day. The weather just keeps getting better, and warmer, all the time. We stay busy but that hasn't prevented us from seeing some attractions and doing a few things. Of course, the snow birds here in the park have a lot of things going each week. Have to pick and choose because it's not possible to do everything.

Place: Calexico CA, town right on Mexican border -about 70 miles south of our campground. Calexico is the site of a huge indoor shopping market and an even larger outdoor flea market/swap meet. It's a good day's outing

Pat with Louise, our next door neighbor at Glamis North KOA.

Pat, Louise, and Jr. The O'Reilly's are from McMinnville OR.

The Calexico market is loosely organized with a lot of the merchandise just dumped on tarps spread on the ground. We noticed a lot of Mexican license plates in the parking lot.

Dig for what you want, haggle for what you will pay. It's a unique market.

Place: Calipatria CA, about 35 miles south of our campground. Calipatria is 184 feet below sea level.

The sign says it all.

Place: Imperial/El Centro CA. Event is the Imperial Valley Mid-Winter Fair & Expo. Imperial is about 60 miles south of our campground. This is a really big do for the community. 4-H and FFA are a big part of it. This may be difficult for our friends up north, but they are showing off their CROPS, and it's only March. The growing season in the Imperial Valley is continuous.

Didn't see much in the way of food on sticks, but some of the food LOOKED like sticks. This must be a Mexican or regional food item. No idea what it is or how it tastes. Not that brave.

Had a nice visit with the California Highway Patrol reps at the fair. I asked for the keys, but she said "NO!" Other than that we had a fun and pleasant time.

Example of a sand car for running on the local sand dunes. This is one of the larger and more expensive types, and can cost over $100,000. Pricey toy.

This looked so good when someone else was eating one we just had to have one. While it was pretty good it probably looks better than it really is. But you know how it is at fairs. You eat stuff you wouldn't eat anywhere else. We didn't get sick, and had a great time.

Tune in often, as we have more to show you soon.

A few more local desert sights

These "fixer-upper" vacation homes are within sight of our home. The smoke in the background is water vapor rising from the hot spring canal behind the cabins. Chocolate Mountain in background.

The Oasis is about eight miles from our home. Officially, it is a CA Dept. of Wildlife area and is managed for the benefit of wildlife. Surrounded by nothing but dry and sandy desert. Maybe that's why it's called an oasis.

Another old cabin on the way to the oasis. Lots of these in the surrounding desert.

This is the Shoe Tree. Don't know why, but it is what it is.

It's the first week in February, and winter would seem to be pretty much over. Nights are already becoming warmer. Daytime temps in 70's to low 80's. Nicest winter - ever, for us.