Plans Change
The best laid plans of mice and men…
Warranty issues having been diagnosed and sent off to Vanleigh for approval in February and not yet being fully approved, we contacted East Valley and scheduled our repairs for later in the fall and planned a trip up through Wyoming, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho and back through Washington to see family and friends.
We made one last call to East Valley RV repair to check on repair authorizations from Vanleigh and discovered that, although we had been emailed that all repairs were authorized, no-one from Vanleigh had informed EVRV. Immediately emails and phone calls ensued between us and every person listed in management for Tiffin and Vanleigh. Within an hour, we were receiving calls from management folks we had never even heard of (my lovely bride had included the CEO Leigh Tiffin in her email stream). We were informed that all would be taken care of and, after a number of calls we were asked if we could bring Bebop to the factory repair center in Red Bay Alabama. After some deliberation, we decided we could do that (with a trip after repairs to see Jasen and Wyatt in Kentucky.
We agreed that we could be at the repair center in a week and that the factory would take care of all of our fix it list. Last minute chores at Park of the Sierras done and off we go. A whirlwind trip to get to “home” as the Tiffin folks like to call it. Planned to arrive in 8 days on a Saturday so we can rest up from the trip before being semi homeless for real.
Night 1- We head it down the road to our first night at our usual overnight when heading east at Calico Ghost Town and breakfast the next morning at Peggy Sue’s 50’s Diner in Yermo, CA. I have reviewed both in other posts, so won’t go into detail. We fueled at the Love’s in Bakersfield the night before and right after breakfast took the shortcut to I-40 and pointed everything east. https://campgrounds.rvlife.com/regions/california/yermo/calico-ghost-town-campground-514
Night 2- Kingman KOA Journey, Kingman Arizona (full hooks). This is a very nice KOA to see the area from. It is big rig friendly, easy to access from the interstate, and fairly close to the Route 66 museums, turquoise mines and Oatman, AZ if you want to tour the area. They have a nice pool, rec room with decent couches, a good little convenience store and friendly staff. https://koa.com/campgrounds/kingman/
Nights 3/4- We continue east on Interstate 40 to the Homolovi Ruins State Park where we decided to spend two nights to kind of break the trip up. Besides, this is just a short drive back west to get to the Meteor Crater Natural Landmark and get the low down on the big smash. Also a trip into Winslow where we did indeed stand on the infamous corner. Funny anecdote: As we were driving into Winslow, we crossed the city limit sign on I-40 and the song came on, coincidence or aliens? The big reason for choosing the State Park (other than cost) is the scenery and the ancient ancestral dwellings on the mesa tops. Here there are great views across the river plain where crops were grown and as you wander among the ruins there are pottery shards everywhere. Do be careful to watch for the rattlers in the area as it is wild country (there was even one resting in the shade of the ranger station an hour prior to our visit, according to the ranger). This state park has water and 30/50 amp and a dump station on your way out of the park. We had no difficulty maneuvering 60 feet of combination in the park. Reservations are handled through Arizona State Parks https://azstateparks.com/
Night 5- Ahhh, Albuquerque… We chose this quaint little park right next to the Camping World called Enchanted Trails RV park and Trading Post (full hooks, dirt/gravel and kinda unlevel). As you drive into this park, they have an entire life size diorama of vintage trailers and cars. Daughter Kym came out to see us quick for an evening nosh and catch up. I wasn’t trying to be sneaky, but did not let the eldest know we would be in town as the drive from her house to where we were was a long one ( I really didn’t want her to travel that distance after work and then have to go back home, I love you hon) and we will be back in town for Balloon Fiesta. And a trip the following AM to Camping World to replace my trusty old water hose from our first adventure in Piper. The fitting had decided to separate and leak overnight so I got a 50 foot replacement. https://www.enchantedtrails.com/
Night 6- We have a thing for the name Oasis and when we discovered the Oasis RV Resort (full hooks, dead level concrete pads) in Amarillo, TX we just had to give it a try. We pulled into the Love’s right off Interstate 40 and into pothole hell. There has been no repair work done here since the Interstate was built probably. We fueled up and the park is just down the road on the left. This park is more than big rig friendly, everything is nice and wide from the entry road to the grand pull through sites. Easy check in, they did not charge a penny until we arrived on site and very friendly folks. And they introduced us to a new feature in our unsheltered lives… Storm shelters. They are marked on the park map and readily identifiable as you look around the park. Cadillac ranch is just up the siding road and there are a ton of Texas Sized steak houses in town as well as other entertainment. We decide to actually go out for dinner to a local steak house and have beef. https://www.robertsresorts.com/resorts/oasis-amarillo/rv-sites/
Night 7- Oooooooklahoma, The Mustang Run RV park in Oklahoma City. This is another open but pretty park where there is lush grass between each site and at least two storm shelters in the park. There is no shade (immature trees) and the entry is difficult for a big rig as the right turn leaves you taking up the entire entry into multiple businesses but once on the access road, we were fine. Upon leaving you have to cross 4 lanes of traffic to return to the interstate ramp or maneuver through lights and parking lots. There is a pool and clubhouse here that are well appointed as well as laundry on site. We had to break our “not eating out rule” again and go to the Cattleman’s restaurant in Stockyard city. This is a historic eatery with a rich back story that should not be missed and a better steak than the Texas one (hopefully they don’t put out a travel ban on me for saying that). https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100054370397229
Night 8- Fort Smith/Alma RV Park is an ex KOA park that is a couple miles off of the interstate in Alma, Arkansas. This park is big rig friendly and a little quirky. Like I said, Ex-KOA with the trademark office/store building and nice big dirt sites with good 30/50 amp service and sewer. There is a private pond (the folks there insisted it was a lake) on site that you can fish without a license (catch and release). The park is heavily treed and so there is good shade. One side note; We were introduced to another local custom in the south… this park is located in a “dry” county, so if you are inclined to have an adult beverage, bring your own ’cause you can’t buy it here. https://fortsmithalmarvpark.com/
Our optional day: We had originally planned to power through on the last day and arrive at Red Bay kind of late on Friday but as we approached Memphis we both decided to stop for the night. E got on the phone and found Tom Sawyer’s RV Park in West Memphis, Arkansas and booked us a spot. We got off the interstate and headed into the side roads, following the nav program up and over the levee and down through a canopy of trees to the entry point where a staff member came out to give us our registration paperwork. Following the directions, we pulled out between two ponds onto a level spot just on the edge of the Mississippi river! There was no shade out on this gravel bar but you have an unrestricted view of the river right in your face. You can walk the banks of the river or fish the ponds, enjoy the view, crack an adult beverage and visit with your neighbors. We will be doing an in-depth review of this great last minute find. http://tomsawyersrvpark.com/
Welcome To Red Bay. We pulled into Red Bay Alabama on the morning of the tenth travel day. It was a fast trip for us without totally wearing us out and we actually had a good trip.
Come back for our Red Bay adventures.
Jeff
