The American Southwest is an oasis of arid beauty
that glows beneath the midday sun
... and continues to radiate well into the night.
We ended our Baja RVenture as we crossed into Yuma, Arizona, and almost immediately, it hit us. We are so fortunate to live in a country where everyday necessities are always readily available! Inexpensive gas, fully stocked grocery stores, full service RV parks, drinkable water ... the basics that often go unnoticed suddenly felt like luxuries to us after spending six weeks in Mexico. It caused me to pause ... how often do I truly appreciate the simple blessings of living in the U.S. that are often just taken for granted??
... like driving on crazy wide and super smooth highways??
Yuma is a small, sleepy border town that swells in size and buzzes with activity during snowbird season. To welcome the seasonal migration of these gray-haired human "birds", Yuma's airport offers flights to and from many northern cities. We were especially grateful for their reasonable airfares, which made it possible for us to return to Michigan on short notice for a family funeral.
Baby Beest hung out in the airport's small parking area
surrounded by spring flowers in full bloom.
When we returned, we set our sights on Las Vegas, five hours to the north, as the place most likely to have a RAM repair shop capable of diagnosing and fixing Baby Beest's current engine woes. With Easter weekend fast approaching, we chose to slow our travels down a bit and take time to explore the stretch between Yuma and Las Vegas ... an area that attracts multitudes of visitors each year who come in search of ...
Desert Days and Neon Nights
Yes, Yuma surprised us! When we briefly stopped here during our past travels in the area, we didn't consider it to be the type of town that we would want to spend a lot of time in. But during our three days here, we found many "cool" ways to keep comfortably entertained as the daytime temperatures soared to near 100.
In a town that caters to the RV lifestyle, it was easy to find a full service campground so that we could run our AC as we prepared for our trip up north. It's really hard to think about packing winter clothes when the temps are in the 90s.
Historic Downtown Yuma turned out to be a fun spot to spend the days (despite the heat) before our flight. We enjoyed the air conditioned comfort at a cozy coffee shop and decided to catch an afternoon showing of the new sci-fi film, Project Hail Mary.
Popcorn for lunch, anyone?
But before the sci-fi geek got his movie, it seemed only fair that history geek would be able to check out Yuma's #1 tourist attraction, Yuma Territorial Prison. Located on a hill overlooking the Colorado River, this historic prison-turned-museum offered a glimpse into how the Arizona Territory attempted to bring law and order to the lawless southwest during the late 1800s. Stepping back out into the oppressive afternoon heat, I can only imagine how harsh life must have been for those once confined within these walls.
There was definitely no chance of escaping the desert heat here.
After our return from Michigan, we decided to spend one more day in Yuma as Doug wanted to get his teeth cleaned ... in Mexico. Just across the border, the town of Los Algodones is famous for its high concentration of dental clinics. In addition to providing high quality and reasonably priced dental services, its streets are also lined with many colorful souvenir shops and tasty authentic restaurants.
"I'll take a $3 fish taco to go with that $30 dental cleaning."
Wheeling and dealing for a new leather belt
Quartzsite, Arizona
Quartzsite, located north of Yuma along the California/Arizona border, is surrounded by vast stretches of desert BLM land ... that is, public land where camping is often free and wonderfully remote. This tiny town of about 2,500 residents transforms each winter into a sprawling, temporary city of more than a million RVing “snowbirds.” As quirky as it may sound, experiencing this “epic” boondocking scene had long been on my vanlife bucket list. Even though we arrived after the peak season, there was something truly special about soaking up the solitude of desert camping.
Just us ...
Lake Havasu City, Arizona
Continuing north, we arrived at the location of one of the Colorado River's many man-made reservoirs, Lake Havasu. After the dam was built in 1963, the surrounding land quickly developed into a popular retirement and recreational community. Today, hiking, water sports, and year-round sunshine invite tourists to enjoy this desert paradise.
Our sunset view at Cattail Cove State Park
During our three day stay, we took advantage of ...
scenic hiking trails,
an outdoor community music festival,
and magnificent views of the London Bridge!
As strange as it may sound, developer Robert P. McCulloch purchased the historic London Bridge from the British government in 1968 and had its exterior granite blocks carefully dismantled and shipped halfway across the world. The 150-year-old stones were then meticulously reassembled, and the land beneath the bridge was dredged to create a deep canal for recreational boating. His $7+ million gamble was driven by a vision to attract developers and tourists to this remote desert community. Judging by the number of condos, thriving businesses, and the steady stream of boaters cruising the canal on this sunny afternoon, it's obvious that ...
McCulloch's "crazy idea" succeeded wonderfully!
Las Vegas, Nevada
We traded our Desert Days for Neon Nights when we arrived in Las Vegas. While the local RAM dealer worked on our van, we had a chance to once again, to check out Sin City.
Much to Doug's delight, a number of new craft breweries had sprung up since our last visit nine years ago.
Celebrating craft brewery visit #800!
From our "home" at Las Vegas RV Resort, we were about 20 minutes from The Strip, so we decided to try out the local bus system. Unfortunately, this method was painfully slow and convinced us that Uber was the way to go in order to enjoy the ...
glisten of the day
and glimmer of the night.
Colorful
Las Vegas moments included ...
... urban hikes down The Strip
and along the Fremont Street Experience
... a larger than life, AI-enhanced performance of
The Wizard of Oz at The Sphere,
... sweet decisions at the M&M Store,
... spring blossoms at the Bellagio Conservatory,
... a test ride in Las Vegas' newest robotaxi,the ZOOX,
... unique extra-terrestrial sightings in the crowd
underneath the lights of Fremont Street,
... a free concert by the tribute band, Hairball
celebrating the music of Kiss, Queen, Rush, AC/DC,
and other great Rock 'n Roll legends of the 80s,
... and just taking in the Vegas sights and sounds with
the best "jackpot" win of my life.
While our van repair has dragged on a little longer than we originally planned, we're grateful for being "stuck" in an area where the desert days and neon nights allow us to
enjoy our hikes wherever they lead us!
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