Picacho Peak State Park

Picacho, AZ

We spent 3 nights in Picacho Peak State Park as we prepared for our two weeks of boondocking in Quartzsite, AZ. The park is located just off of I-10 about 40 miles west of Tucson and the closest town with groceries is Eloy, located 13 miles further west. We made a few trips there because, as we all know, one trip to the store is never enough. On one of those trips, we had our first experience with a Blue Beacon truck wash. These facilities are geared to big rig trucks but will wash anything and our truck really needed a wash. We will have to return with the 5th wheel in tow at some point in the near future to get it washed as well.

On our first full day in the park, we decided to hike the Sunset VistanTrail to the peak of the mountain. What we were not aware of is how difficult that the trail got as it approached the peak. We turned around when the trail went vertical and we were expected to scale the rock wall using the two cables that were mounted to the rock. Envision climbing a ladder but instead of rungs, you had a rock wall in front of you with a variety of places to get a foot hold. Dan thought it would be fun and actually climbed up to see just how hard it would be. Amy wanted nothing to do with it, still feeling a bit insecure from her injury this summer. Maybe next time. It was still a gorgeous hike with wonderful views of the cactus fields and near infinite visibility. On the way down, we met a couple that had noticed our check-in to the park through RVillage (a facebook like app for RVers) and recognized us from our profile. We had a very nice 15 minute chat with them and consider them new friends. Unfortunately we heard from them later in the afternoon and Pam, the wife of the couple, had fallen on the way back down the trail and broke her wrist. We felt so bad for them.

On Saturday, our second full day in the park, a friend from Dan’s childhood in Canton, ME was going to come and visit with us for the evening. We spent the morning fixing Amy’s bike tire (again) and rode around the park to check it out. We then prepared to entertain in our house-on-wheels for the first time since leaving Rochester. We had a wonderful time with Dan Mingo and his wife, Mary. We grilled steaks and ate outside until the sun went down and then spent another hour or so inside the RV. It was great to be able to socialize with other adults and Dan really enjoyed reconnecting with a close friend from his childhood. We will definitely be seeing more of Dan and Mary in the future.

On Sunday, we traveled to Leaf Verde RV Resort in Buckeye, AZ, just west of Phoenix and, you guessed it, located just off I-10. This time we will be staying just one night as we prepare for 2 weeks of boondocking in Quartzsite. We chose this RV resort because this is where Jim and Corinne were stopped to prepare for the Quartzsite adventure and we want to caravan in with them and setup camp near each other. Corinne took us into Costco to stock up for the 2 weeks. This was by far the most we’ve spent on supplies in a single stop but we are well stocked for the 2 weeks and beyond.