The Savage Traveler: Out West Adventure: Part 1-- Buckskin Mountain State Park

Feb. 13—16: (Wednesday) This was probably the worst day of our trip; certainly so far, hopefully for good. We took our time getting away from Superstition Mountain and reading all the coverage we could find about the wonderful basketball game the night before. Then we got on the road and headed a little north and west to the California border, stopping only once, to enjoy the pizza that Mary and Don had insisted we take. Most of the 180 mile drive was Sonoran Desert and very flat. As we got closer to our destination, we came upon fascinating black hills that seemed to be made entirely of bread loaf sized volcanic pieces unlike anything we’d ever seen. When we turned north to Parker, AZ we followed the Colorado River and were in the low, very rugged, red rocked Buckskin Mountains. Parker is on the Colorado River Tribes reservation and we made a quick stop for groceries before driving 11 miles to the state park. It is squeezed in on a point where the river turns about 90 degrees, among other resorts and RV parks on both the Arizona and California sides of the river, between two dams about 14 miles apart. The river is flowing here but it is wide and reservoir-like. As we pulled in to our campsite, we got a call from Ann Robertson saying that their mom, Thelma Hansen, had been in a minor car accident while she was driving, she wasn’t badly hurt, but she was at the hospital and Denny was with her. Once again we’re in a spot with very poor phone and hardly any 3G signal but we managed to talk to Denny and find out a little bit more, most importantly that their big concern was that her heart was acting up. He didn’t know much more at that point so we unhooked the camper and went for a walk along the park-like river bank. It’s very pretty and we were enjoying the 60° sunshine around 5:00. As we strolled in the grass, I missed seeing a recessed in-ground sprinkler head, badly twisted my ankle, and went down in a heap. After a few minutes of shock and moaning I decided I could hobble back to the camper. Marv grilled chicken and made most of our dinner while I iced my ankle, which he had wrapped in a make-shift bandage. I slowly decided that, while my ankle was probably sprained and not broken, as big a problem was that I had apparently cracked a rib or two. Eventually we drove into Parker, where we had been told there was a Redi-Care. But it turned out to be part of the hospital Emergency Room and they said they were extremely busy and it would be at least 2 hours. We opted not to wait and instead got some supplies at a CVS. After long phone calls with Denny and Ann, where we found out that the accident was her fault and they had Mom intubated and sedated with an external pacemaker to try and regulate her heartbeat we returned to the camper. We relearned Backgammon to kill some time as I iced my swollen ankle and then went to bed.

Buckskin Mountains

Changing Terrain

Rugged, low rocks

(Thursday) HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!! After pancakes (I got a heart shaped pancake!) and making spaghetti sauce in the Crockpot for dinner, we managed to return Ann’s call from earlier this morning and learned a little more. She was now in Lansing at the hospital with their mom and was there when the entire team came in to discuss what was happening. They wanted to remove the pacemaker and wake her up to see how she would do on her own. Ann was contacting people and had found out there was a citation issued that will have to be paid in 10 days, but we’ll figure that out later. I have a bruise across my upper chest from the rib problem which hurts more than the ankle. I’m certainly not going to be able to do any hiking for a few days. But it was sunny and breezy and the temperature rose quickly from the high forties into the sixties so sitting outside, reading and writing seemed like a pleasant way to spend the morning. Indeed, it was how we spent the entire day. Marv made a tuna fish salad sandwich for us to share with veggies and half an apple for lunch. Afterwards we went down on the river bank to read in the sun. As we arrived the wind sprang up and gradually got gustier and gustier. But we had discovered that we had a WiFi connection, apparently from the resort across the river, and a better phone connection so we stayed for several hours. Occasionally we heard the braying of donkeys, which we thought must live at the resort across from us. When we got too cool, we moved up by the restroom, which broke the wind for us a bit. Marv talked to Ann again and learned that Mom’s system didn’t resume like they would have preferred so they left everything in place and will try again tomorrow. No one seemed concerned and, in fact, they thought she was doing very well and would have been surprised if she had recovered so soon. So Ann went back to Battle Creek for the night and will come back tomorrow and Saturday, at least. We finally moved back to the camper and sat in the sun, protected by the camper from the wind until we moved indoors and made dinner. We listened to Ella Fitzgerald sing love songs as we enjoyed our Valentine’s Day spaghetti dinner. We did all the dishes and watched some Northern Exposures before bed.

Valentine Heart Pancake

Icing and Reading

(Friday) It only got down to the fifties overnight, which was a nice change from the last week or so. It meant that right after our cereal we could go down to the river to sit in the sun and use the WiFi to read the Lansing State Journal as it warmed towards 70°. We also could read on Facebook that they had removed all the external support from Marv’s mom and she was doing much better. When we were finished reading I put a small pork roast in the Crockpot to cook for dinner and then we drove north to Parker Dam, behind which forms Lake Havasu. We drove across and stopped to see what we could of the dam, but, no doubt because of Homeland Security issues, you can’t see much nor can you do the tour which apparently used to be available. But we also found that the west (California) side of the river is a scenic byway, so we returned to the east side to have lunch at a Mexican restaurant we had been told was good and then returned “to California” to drive the 14 mile or so byway. All along the byway there were signs cautioning drivers to be careful to avoid the wild burros! So now we knew from where the braying was coming. And we saw quite a few peacefully munching on the hills beside the road. The byway is very picturesque and hugs the river the whole way. There are frequent pull offs to get pictures of both the river and the changing scenery along the west side of the road. At one point we were directly across from the State Park and could see our little camper. We saw red rock hills and brown cliffs and even two areas of sand dunes. We stopped at a Visitors Center which had closed at 2:00 but before we left we were hailed by the volunteer who runs it and lives on the property in a camper. He came with his lunch burrito in hand and insisted on opening the center and pretty much talked our ears off. He must not get much company! But he was knowledgeable about this area and about the places we’ll be going so we got some good information from him before a whole pontoon boat of partiers arrived to use the rest room and so he opened up again for them and we left. The whole day my ankle was feeling better and better and, although it is a rainbow colored balloon, I found I could walk pretty normally on it. My ribs, however, are another story; they seem to hurt more and more. We stopped at CVS to return one item we had bought and replaced it with an ankle brace which will do better now than the wrap we had on it. As we were leaving Parker and I had 3G I searched the internet a little and it sounds like I may have a dislocated rib or two, which would explain why it hurts to take a deep breath and the bump on my side. We’ll stop by the Emergency Room on our way out tomorrow and try to find out more then, if they’re not too busy. If they are, it sounds like it won’t do more harm not to fix it right away; I’ll just be uncomfortable a little longer. Back at the camper we finally got to talk to Marv’s mom and found out that her voice is trashed from the breathing tube but she is doing well. They plan on putting her in a regular room tomorrow to continue monitoring her and then think she can go home on Sunday! That will be a huge relief for us. The pork roast came out great for dinner, with lots of leftovers. At 6:30 we went to the giant campfire attended mostly by volunteers and a handful of regular campers like us. An accordion player entertained with lots of songs and a few guys told jokes/stories. We stayed until after 9:00 talking mostly to Lou and Joy, who have sold their house and 40 acres to their son and now live fulltime in their fifth wheel, volunteering at parks year round. It’s a fascinating life style, shared by many of the volunteers here, but I’m not sure I’d be able to give up having a “home” in one spot. Before bed we did dishes one more time and began packing up some things for our departure tomorrow to drive to Joshua Tree National Park.