“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass…It’s about learning to dance in the rain.”
― Vivian Greene
I left my spot next to the swimming pool and hot tub early Monday morning. I went into the town of Camp Verde, picked up a few things and got a take-out Domino’s pizza. I went to set my GPS for my next spot down by Arcosanti, and found that the I-17 was closed. The trip that I’d planned would have taken about 39 minutes; The detour was going to take over two hours. I pulled up my camping apps and opted for a spot in a casino parking lot in Camp Verde. Not exactly my usual idyllic spot, but the lower lot was surprisingly empty, and Cosmo and I made the best of it. I left Tuesday morning and drove down to Bloody Basin Road (I know…horrible name, but a beautiful spot in the middle of nowhere.) There are a half dozen or so spots along the rutted dirt road, but I drove to the end and found my usual spot was empty. It is a flat area between the road and a gully, is lower than the road and surrounded by hills, so I’m sort of in my own private valley. I have been lucky enough to get this same spot twice a year for several years.
It’s my happy place (or at least one of them). Cosmo got out and watered all the cacti, and I swear he had a huge smile on his snout. It is apparently his happy place too. I ate a slice of leftover pizza and then went out to set up my tent so it would look like a few people occupied this site and maybe keep the riff raff out. (It’s probably more appropriate to say “Keep MORE riff raff from coming in.)
After setting up my tent, I got a big garbage bag and picked up some of the trash left by previous occupants. There were many mini-vodka bottles, several mismatched shoes, a child’s t-shirt and some weird car parts. I just can’t understand how someone could occupy such a beautiful spot and then trash it before moving on. It always makes me sad to see a beautiful site trashed.
I was supposed to visit my friend Barbara and her daughter Lark this week, but they are both sick (and contagious) so I’ve postponed my visit. It was blazing hot on Wednesday and Thursday, but early Friday morning the sky opened up and there was torrential rain and thunder and lightning. The gully next to my camping spot turned into a river.
And later in the day as the sun set…
I met a man down the road and he told me of another (he says better) spot on the other side of Cordes Lakes. He said the river always has water, there are shade trees, and it is rarely occupied. Since my visit to Barbara’s is postponed and I will need to stay here another week, I’ll need to run into town at some point to pick up a few supplies and when I return, I think I’ll check out the new spot.
Lessons From The Road: The spring and fall are difficult times to plan for. The weather is such a factor and is quite unpredictable. In the spring, when it starts getting too hot in southern Arizona to survive in a van, it is still snowing in Flagstaff area. I just have to tough it out and see if I can find places in between that are suitable. Same holds true for fall, when I’m so ready to head south for the winter, but Quartzsite and places on the way are still 110⁰. I’m in the Cordes Lakes (AZ) area, and one day it is 89, without a hint of air movement, and the next it is in the upper 60’s with torrential thunderstorms. I’m ready for the winter in the desert, but apparently the desert is not ready for me.