Yuma
Campground
Desert Holiday RV Resort
The campground was 55+ and in the middle of a residential area. The location wasn't the most pleasing to the eye; however, the central location to activities and the great community made up for it. The activity director, Kris, did an amazing job. There were organized dances, bands, jam nights, line dancing, shuffleboard, etc. We have stayed here twice now; 2022 and 2024.
Things to see
American Girl Mine BLM Dispersed Camping
We wanted to take "Fannie" out away from Yuma, to start seeing what true boondocking is going to be like. This area had quite a lot of other boondockers so we certainly didn't feel very isolated. Discovered (and fixed a few days later) an issue with the heating system not coming on. Polly insisted on sleeping with us like she does in the Mother Ship but that's just not going to work. Otherwise, a good first trip!
Arizona Market Place
Every week, this place is a shopping mecca. Plenty of food and drink in a central area. RV supplies. Any kind of clothing you might want. Arts and crafts. Live music.
Art In The Park
A little excursion that we went on in Yuma. Quite a variety of arts and crafts, food vendors, and music. Can we call that music? It was really bad. But we clapped anyway.
Buttercup Sand Dunes
Polly absolutely LOVES sand dunes. As soon as we let her out and she sees them, she knows it is "go time".
Center of the World
Really? Well, yes, really. The founder actually convinced government authorities to recognize this spot as the Center of the World. It isn't just some goofy place to see, it is VERY interesting and educational!
Colorado River State Historic Park
Interesting place to learn the history of the area.
Earp, CA
We took "Fannie" to meet two other couples (and six other dogs!). It was a celebration of Zach's 30th birthday! Zach & Lily (plus four dogs) and Mark & Lisa (plus two dogs). We rented a pontoon boat for an afternoon. Zach and me (Mark) jumped into the river. Wow that was cold. Food, drinks, and music (I brought my guitar) on the river. So good.
Lava Rock Volcano
This was our second, and much more successful, boondocking excursion with "Fannie". There wasn't anyone for at least 5 miles. So quiet at night, and so dark. The walk up the side of the cone was a bit challenging but very worth it. Flew the drone around for some great pics.
Los Algodones, MX
This little town just across the border is only ~10 miles from Yuma. If you need dental work or pharmaceuticals, apparently this is the place to go. There are SO MANY. They even advertise on the U.S. TV stations. We were hoping for good, authentic Mexican food but were sadly disappointed. They seem to tame it down for all the elderly American and Canadian people coming across.
Martha's Gardens Date Farm
We learned a lot about date palm trees and realized we LOVE dates! Our tour guide was the sweetest! Date Shakes are a must!
Valley Of The Names
We explored this area on our way to our boondocking site. This place is quite amazing. You need to see the photos. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of names that people have constructed from rocks in the area.
Whiskey Road Saloon
This nice little place is just a couple blocks from our resort. Walking distance! They have good drinks but no food. Big dance floor and have live music quite often. The line-dance instructor were horrible (Feb 2024). Mark played here during a "lady's shopping experience" but found it annoyingly difficult to get paid. He eventually did.
Yuma Proving Grounds
Because it is still an active military area, there isn't much to see. There is a cool collection of tanks!
Yuma Territorial Prison Park
Another very interesting and educational spot. They have bios of some of the more interesting inmates.
Hiking
Biking
BLM at Fortuna Drive
BLM land abounds around Yuma. There are so many miles of trails for ATV/UTV riding. This set of trails is in the Fortuna Foothills area (Fortuna Dr). We took our mountain bikes out here and had a good ride.
Sugarloaf MTB Trail System
Another wonderful collection of trails for ATV/UTV and mountain bikes in BLM land.
Motorcycling
Yuma to Quartzsite
Okay, so we didn't actually finish this ride. We had electrical problems with Barb's bike. The battery was giving us problems and her bike actually shut off as we were riding. Twice! We had only gotten 30 miles or so and decided it was too risky to keep going. It was promising to be a beautiful ride, though!
Food and Drink
Carnitas El Taste
A nice little place just down the road from the resort so we ordered take-out. They do have dine-in. Very good.
The Chile Pepper
This place has very good food and has a bit of a fast-food vibe on the inside even though it isn't.
Chretin's
Gave this place a try with our friends - Troy and Londa. No complaints. Decent margaritas.
Curries Indian Cuisine and Bar
Do you have any idea how much we love curry? We do have our favorite curry recipes that we make from time to time but we're also always looking for yummy curry in the areas we stay. This restaurant is part of a Ramada Inn and it is SO good. In fact, over the two separate times we've been in Yuma, we have likely been here ten times!
Takos & Beer
Gave this place a try with our friends - Troy and Londa. Good guac. Good street tacos, uh, takos.
To make a long story short ...
Kris and Tom, Lynda and Roy
When we were at Picacho (AZ), we taught several sessions of line dancing. As soon as we arrived here in Yuma, we found out that the activity director (Kris) also teaches line dancing. In fact, 2-3 times per week between Desert Holiday and a neighboring resort. She and Tom had been educators before retiring. Kris does a wonderful job organizing activities at Desert Holiday WITHOUT PAY. Fun fact, Tom and Roy were college roommates and Tom tried to talk Lynda out of marrying Roy. Well, turns out Tom was wrong about the match-up because the marriage has lasted 43+ years! Way to go!
That was 2022. We stayed again in 2024 and were so excited to see all of them again. We even made plans to meet up with them this summer as we make our way up through Idaho. They have a place in Coeur d'Alene.
Parry, the Canadian musician
Parry has been a mainstay at Desert Holiday for several years now, coming down from Canada for most of the winter. He is a wonderful and very generous musician. He hosts the weekly jam nights in the clubhouse and happy hours in various locations around the resort, setting up his P.A. system and singing for the crowd. He and I did a few duets at the karaoke night. Parry is so good, in fact, that he has had airtime on some Canadian radio stations.
The line forms behind me
It was just a regular jam night. Jam nights are a big deal, actually. Parry is on bass, Sue on piano, Ross on lead and rhythm electric guitar. They play a few, then individuals come up. Every time we've been there, there are at least a dozen individual performers. They can play by themselves or have the band back them up. It is a GREAT time. At our last jam before we left, it was getting close to Valentine's Day. I decided to play a few lovey-dovey songs. There were a few teary eyes after a particular Clint Black song. Grace, a wonderful lady and long-term resident, turned around to Barb and said (possibly paraphrasing) "Yes, he is a keeper. And if you decide you don't want him, everyone will have to get in line behind me. The line forms behind me."