flgator4
Explorer
Joined 9 years ago
User Profile
User Widgets
All Activity
Re: Summer camping in Idahome picture portfolio, and getting old
Love your report; thank you! We visited Craters of the Moon and City of Rocks last year and loved Idaho. We were only going to stay 1 night but ended up staying 6. We had to start going back home but want to return this summer. We'll be coming from Glacier NP and will start in the north and work out way south. We have 4 young children. Where are the pictures taken in the western part of the state? Where did you see Hells Canyon? Where was the river where your dog caught the trout (and what did you do with the trout? :)) What are your favorite parts? Thanks for any info.663Views0likes0Comments- 247Views0likes0Comments
Re: RV Parks/Campgrounds
It's west of Albuquerque, but we stayed for a night at American RV Resort right off the interstate. We didn't have reservations and got there past closing ,but there were clear directions. It was nice and clean. They had a free continental breakfast in the morning, which was nice. Our kids liked the playground, and there was a fenced dog area next to it.330Views0likes0CommentsRe: South
PawPaw_n_Gram wrote: Mr. Beef wrote: to Texas to Kansas By that - I'm assuming you don't plan to go west of I-45 - the freeway between Houston and Dallas, or certainly not past I-35 - the freeway from Laredo to San Antonio to Dallas to Oklahoma City to Wichita to Kansas City. You can easily put two or three thousand miles on the road traveling in Texas from east to west to north to back east. A few things about Texas. The east Texas Gulf coast is okay, but nothing like the Florida panhandle coast. You probably don't want to go out of your way to visit Galveston or Corpus Christi for the beaches. Texas has wonderful state parks, some with full-hookup sites. Many were initially built by the CCC. Some of my favorites in east Texas are Daingerfield, Caddo Lake, Tyler, Bonham. State parks are open year round. Texas also has many wonderful US Corps of Engineers campgrounds on lakes across the state. Lake O' the Pines is very nice in east Texas. Most COE parks in Texas are open year round - one on every COE lake will be open all year. (A note - flooding in 2015 and 2016 damaged several campgrounds. The COE has not repaired all those, so some individual campgrounds might be closed until repairs are finished.) Lake Texoma north of Dallas and COE parks in Oklahoma are closed from Oct 1 to either late March or late April. The big cities - Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth, San Antonio/Austin - are worth a visit if you like big cities. There are few campgrounds in the city area - most are on the outskirts. For Houston - we tend to stay on the north of town. For Dallas - Cedar Hill State Park is centrally located to the south of the metroplex on Lake Joe Pool. Hickory Creek COE Park just of I-35E is north of the metroplex on Lake Lewisville. Holiday COE Park on Lake Benbrook southwest corner of the metroplex. In Grapevine near DFW airport is a good park run by the City of Grapevine - The Vineyards at Grapevine. For San Antonio - there is on park in the central city that a lot of folks like. Name escapes me. We like the COE parks on Canyon Lake. The Texas Hill Country is a stretch between 15 to 50 miles west of I-35 running from west of San Antonio up to near the Oklahoma border. The most popular areas are west of San Antonio and Austin. Many great state parks in the area and several very good commercial parks. Trying to pick a best park or two in Texas is like trying to pick the best item on a Las Vegas casino buffet. Is the north part of Houston safe? Do you have any specific places to recommend? We might stop there next summer for a couple of nights to see family. I've heard of the TX hill country but didn't know where it was. :)592Views0likes0CommentsRe: Where to see big cactus in AZ and/or NM?
RoyB wrote: We used to really love the Apache Trail North of Apache Junction for seeing the big cactus plants when we lived in the area back in the 60s-70s... X2 on the Lost Dutchman State Park for camp site. Google Image We would park along some of the off-road shoots up the Apache Trail and walk among the big cactus... You can get right up next them... The cactus are generally on the south slopes near the large mountains... The Apache Trail is a great outing where you can take your time to enjoy the beautiful scenery. The Apache Trail is paved up to the Tortilla Flats area then becomes a small two lane (barely) dirt-rock road winding up and down the mountain trails... We used to picnic at a park pullout along an area called Fish Creek which is at the bottom of a pretty big canyon winding trail just north of Tortilla Flats... Using google maps Earth View you can use people view and move along seeing the whole trail at ground level to get an idea about it... Some areas of the trail is flash flood prone if the weather gets bad all of a sudden... Also be aware you away from people population here and must pay attention to what is around you at all times - you are out in the wild here for sure for snakes and spiders and strange looking wildlife forms... Have even run across a pack of Wild Javelina (pigs) one time in this area... Will certainly get your attention haha... google image Lots of other interesting things to see up and down the Apache trail that runs from Roosevelt Lake to Apache Junction. Great pit stop with shops at Tortilla Flats... Be sure to check out the bars stools as they are horse saddles with all of the famous horse names on them... The mountain range near Apache Junction is the Superstitions... The lakes along the Apache Trail are source of water for the Phoenix valley metroplex... Roy Ken I've never heard of those pigs. thanks for the info and pics. I'm going to look into everything.687Views0likes0CommentsRe: Where to see big cactus in AZ and/or NM?
2gypsies wrote: I don't recall seeing any in New Mexico but from Phoenix to Tucson you'll see many. They are awesome, especially in bloom - usually April/May depending on the weather. To really appreciate them you need to walk amidst them. Saguaro Nat'l park east and west have nice trails. Catalina State Park at Tucson is a nice place to stay. In the Phoenix area, stay at one of the Maricopa County Park campgrounds (electric) which have huge sites landscaped by nature with the saguaro and other types of lovely cactus. Lost Dutchman State Park at Apache Junction is another excellent place to stay and some sites have full hookups. Summer isn't the best place to tour these cities though. It's HOT!!! It starts getting hot and dry in May and quite often in March and April but Feb-April are prime wildflower/cactus blooming times. We have to go when the kids are out of school. As a Floridian, I know Feb-April would be nicer, but we can't miss school. :)687Views0likes0CommentsRe: Where to see big cactus in AZ and/or NM?
Thank you for the tips! We thought about taking I-10 after stopping in San Antonio but heard it's isolated. We have 4 young children and that makes me nervous. Safety is the most important thing. I might start this in a separate thread. What do you think about I-10 through TX, NM and AZ?687Views0likes0CommentsWhere to see big cactus in AZ and/or NM?
Where can you see big cactus (the only I figured out was saguaro) in AZ? I saw Saguaro National Park but wanted to know if you can see them farther north. We are thinking about going to AZ and southern Utah next summer. We are coming from FL so we would be driving through NM. I have been to both but never seen the big cactus. Thanks for any help.3.5KViews0likes16Comments
Groups
Bucket List Trips
Bucketlist destinations you just can't miss. Which spots stick with you?Jan 11, 202513,487 Posts Travel Trailer Group
Prefer to camp in a travel trailer? You're not alone.Jan 13, 202544,029 Posts
