On Sunday, September 30th we left the Carmichael Elks and headed east on I-80 towards the Silver State. Two days prior the Donner Summit had been closed for a while due to a snow storm, however, the skies were sunny and clear for our travels. I-80 between Sacramento and the Nevada State line is, by far, the worst stretch of roadway we have travelled in our two years on the road. From about 30 miles east of Sacramento all the way up the Sierras to the state line the road is concrete which has been broken down by traffic and weather. I have driven on gravel roads that were smoother than this highway. Once we crossed into Nevada the road was nice smooth asphalt that was being well maintained. The People's Republic of California should be ashamed of their roadways.
Sunday and Monday were spent in Fernley, Nevada at a very nice little RV park called the Desert Rose. The park is about 40 miles east of Reno and kind of out in the middle of nowhere, but it is a Passport America park with pull-throughs, full 50 amp hookups, and nice facilities for $14 a night. (Passport rate) During our stay we drove over to nearby Fallon, Nevada to visit the Elks Lodge. Small but friendly lodge located in downtown Fallon. They have very limited RV facilities not suited for large rigs like ours.
Tuesday morning we headed south on US-95, known as the loneliest road in the country. It is 400 miles from Fernley to Las Vegas and there are only a couple small towns along the way. Spectacular desert and mountain views, but you can't help but think about what would happen if you had vehicle problems along the way. Very Very Not Good! Fortunately, we had no problems and arrived in beautiful downtown Tonopah mid afternoon. We stayed the night at the Ramada Hotel and Casino which has a small RV park in the back. Tonopah is exactly half way between Fernley and Vegas, so it is the logical place to stop if you are not in a hurry and want to limit your travels to a couple hundred miles a day as we do.
The next morning we saddled up and headed for Las Vegas. We had scored a coupon at one of the rallies for five free nights at the Las Vegas Outdoor Resorts. We wanted to spend a few days in Vegas so we could visit with my brother Russ, who is a floor supervisor at the Golden Nugget. The Vegas Outdoor Resorts is a nice property, but the lots are much smaller than the lots at the Indio Outdoor Resorts. It also does not have the amenities that Indio has, no golf course and a much smaller clubhouse with no restaurant or bar. Nonetheless, the listed price for the lot we were parked on was $180,000. My brother and his daughter came over to visit while we were there. We went out to dinner and had a nice visit. Russ is also a former Marine.
On Saturday night we went to the clubhouse for an open house put on by the resort's homeowner's association and Monaco Corporation, which is the developer of the resort. They had light snacks and an open bar - yippee! They also had entertainment, a very nice band made up of homeowners and employees of the resort. They also had a couple of local professional session musicians sitting in with them for the evening. They were quite good, playing mostly contemporary soft rock in with a bluesy/jazzy style. Apparently this group formed a couple years ago and entertains regularly at the resort during the winter season.
Sunday morning found us making the gruelling 50 mile trek from Vegas to Pahrump, Nevada. Our intention is to relocate our official residency from California to Pahrump. We will be staying in Pahrump for five weeks during which time we will be trying to get a local mailing address, drivers licenses, and voter cards. We have never been to Pahrump, but most people we have talked to have told us it is a nice friendly little community with just about everything you would need.
We are staying the first two weeks at a Western Horizons Resort, the Charleston Peak RV Resort and Winery. Imagine our surprise to have our fellow 100%ers, Bob and Bette T pull into the parking lot right behind us. We knew that they were going to be here during the same time period, but were surprised to see them right behind us. They are now parked right next door. They are more familiar with Pahrump so they should be a nice resource for information while we are here.
Talk to you all again in about a week. Bye for now.
