17 Mar 2019
This morning at 0818 hrs we said farewell to the Apache Junction KOA campground and beat feet west and south towards our next stop, El Centro California. The GPS took us west on Route 60 to I-10 and then west of Phoenix a ways. We then angled southwest on Route 85 to Gila Bend where we joined up Interstate 8 which will eventually take us all the way to San Diego. El Centro CA is about 20 miles west of Yuma AZ. We arrived at 1409 hrs, driving 290 miles in 5 hrs 51 minutes with three stops.
The drive was uneventful. The scenery was varying and interesting. We saw desert terrain, mountains and a lot of agriculture. Some pictures (in no specific order):
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| We are not in Roswell, but we caught a passing UFO (reflection from RTIC coffee mug!) |
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| Crops with irrigation |
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| Massive solar arrays |
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| These are solar reflectors, not just solar panels |
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A rest area stop with mountains in the background.
The brave(?) sole in the foreground was biking across the state on the Interstate. |
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| Unknown town with beautiful mountains in the background |
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| Many trains along the route |
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| Antennas on top of the mountains |
We passed Gila Bend and Yuma AZ and before long we passed the California state line.
Soon after that we ran into the inspection station.
We pulled in expecting to be quizzed on fruits and vegetables, but the lady said, "Have a nice day!" Just 20 miles from the state line we arrived at Naval Air Facility El Centro.
If you recall from our visit to Pensacola FL back in December, Pensacola is the summer home of the Navy's aerial demonstration team, 'The Blue Angels'. After the Christmas and New Years holidays, the Blue Angels move to their winter home, which is NAF El Centro CA! Back when I made our schedule and reservations it had not yet been announced, but yesterday was their farewell airshow here! Too bad we did not know or we could have adjusted the schedule to arrive here a few days earlier and we could have been here for the show! Oh well..!
Once on base we quickly found the RV park. The office was closed since it was Sunday, but we found the camp host's RV and posted to his door was our arrival info and site assignment. It happened to be right next door to his RV! So we backed big bertha into the site, got her leveled and everything hooked up. While I am doing to outside stuff, Doreen is doing all the inside stuff. As many times as we have done this, we have it down to a science!
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| The sites are paved here and spaced wide apart. The patio area is paved too. |
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| No neighbors anywhere's close to us. |
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| Plenty of room for the truck. |
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| Base housing across the street from the RV park, in the adobe style |
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| Nice RV park, especially for $22.00 per night. We paid $61.00 per night in the Apache Junction KOA! |
So, we are all settled in here for the next three nights. The camp host gave us some suggestions on things to see and do around here, so we will come up with a game plan tomorrow. We will not overload our stay here, though. We were going fast and furious at Apache Junction so we are looking forward to slowing down a bit and taking a break here before we head to San Diego.
Stats Update:
Campsite#: 19 of 30
# States Traveled Through This Trip: 12
Baseball Parks Visited So Far This Trip: 5 (Houston, Corpus Christi, Arizona X 3)
Point to point travel miles: 4112 miles
- Avg point to point travel miles: 216 miles
Vicinity miles: 3839 miles
- Avg vicinity miles: 213 miles
Total miles driven: 7951 miles
Total point to point driving time: 81 hrs 04 minutes
Total fuel purchased: 670.739 gals
Total fuel cost: $1865.22
Average fuel cost: $2.802
Max fuel cost: $3.179
Min fuel cost: $2.279 (Wharton TX)
Average MPG: 11.58 miles/gal
# Nights at end of this stay: 121
Lodging cost: $3665.80
- Average lodging cost/night: $30.30/night
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