Nov 2022
Fiesta Grande RV Resort & Casa Grande AZ

I booked 14 nights in Casa Grande AZ at an Encore resort which is an extension of my Thousand Trails membership. Located almost exactly half way between downtown Tucson and downtown Phoenix, Fiesta Grande RV Resort is truly a resort. First, the resort is very large with 766 sites with roughly half being permanent structures. Unlike some other resorts, all of these permanent structures are incredibly well maintained. The RV sites are fine gravel with concrete patios and wider than usual. My particular site was a 90 degree site on a road with a 6 foot block wall on the opposite side of the road making backing in around the tree on one side quite difficult. Once I dropped the trailer, my site was perfect. Each pedestal I observed has cable coax connections but a search for cable channels found 1 channel with contact information for setting up service with Cox Communications. A search for over the air TV found 60+ channels out of the Phoenix DMA.

To describe Fiesta Grande as amenity rich is an understatement. There are two heated swimming pools, a jacuzzi, pickle-ball courts, putting green, golf practice net/cage, eight horseshoe pits, eight shuffleboard courts, lending library, and a huge clubhouse for activities. There are plenty of restaurants, banks, and shopping within walking distance and virtually everything you can imagine is within 2 miles. The closest Walmart super center is only a half a mile away. If you're looking for plenty of activities without much driving or a perfect stop to take care of online work, look no further. I did visit two other Encore RV parks in Casa Grande, Casita Verde RV Resort & Foothills West RV Resort. Both of these are on the outskirts of town and I'm glad I saw these properties in person. I will definitely return to Fiesta Grande RV Resort.

 Fiesta Grande RV Resort Site Map

Nov 2022
Saguaro National Park

Located on the outskirts of Tucson in the Sonoran Desert is the preservation of the Monarch of the cactus world, the iconic Saguaro Cactus. The National Park is located on either side of Tucson, Saguaro West, Tucson Mountain District and Saguaro East, Rincon Mountain District. I visited the East side which itself is not contiguous with some rural residences sprinkled along the way. This landscape is stunning and surprisingly fertile considering this is the desert. The Saguaro Cactus grows very slowly only an inch per year for the first 8 years. It may take as much at 70 years before it begins to sprout arms. The Saguaro Cactus finally reaches full height around 150 years old. The National Park ranges in elevation from 2,180 feet in the low-lying areas to 8,666 at it's highest peak in the Rincon Mountains. There are picnic areas scattered around and a try the Cactus Garden Trail at the Saguaro West Visitor's Center. There is no car, van or RV camping in the National Park but with a permit there are Backcountry hike-in sites available in the East District only. Fascinating Place!

Nov 2022
The Valley - Phoenix, Glendale, Tempe, Mesa

First stop, South Mountain Park and Preserve, owned by the city of Phoenix, is more than 16,000 acres and one of the largest municipally managed parks in the nation. This park is a must see in the Phoenix area and has over 70 hiking trails although the roads are well maintained and it can be enjoyed from your vehicle. We drove to the summit to Dobbins Lookout and the views of The Valley are Stunning! We also visited State Farm Stadium which was having an RV show on that day. State Farm Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Glendale, west of Phoenix, and will host Super Bowl LVII. It is the home of the Arizona Cardinals and the annual Fiesta Bowl. On January 10, 2011, the 2011 BCS National Championship Game between Auburn and Oregon had an attendance record setting 78,603 on hand for the game. Auburn won the National Championship that year. War Eagle!

While in Glendale we made our way over to Camelback Ranch which is the Spring Training home of the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers. There were fall ball games going on at the time so I couldn't tour the inside of the ball fields. In downtown Phoenix we found a really cool street/area called Roosevelt Row which is downtown's walkable arts district, home to restaurants, bars, art galleries, and shops of which many are covered in street art. This entertainment district was surrounded by expensive real estate. The traffic made this area hard to photograph. Close by was The Japanese Friendship Garden of Phoenix which was not dog friendly but there was a nice dog friendly city park next door called Margaret T. Hance Park. I was able to let Barron stretch his legs and take care of business. I was able to snap a couple of photos of the Japanese Garden from the park. We only spent one day in this vast valley and I know we only scratched the surface but it was well worth our time.

Nov 2022
Casa Grande Ruins

The Casa Grande Ruins is a well preserved adobe four story building surrounded by other less well preserved ruins. The ruins were part of a number of settlements along the Gila River and linked by a network of irrigation canals. Casa Grande means 'Great House' in Spanish and the nearby city of Casa Grande Arizona was named after the ruins. It's possible the Great House was an ancient astronomical observatory since the four walls exactly face the four points of the compass, and some of the windows are aligned to the positions of the sun and moon at specific times of the year. There ruins in the immediate area such as the remains of a Hohokam farming village. There are other ruins in the immediate area that have not yet been excavated while a second, similarly sized compound is located 850' northeast and usually closed to the public. It's assumed the ancient desert people abandoned the area by about 1450 AD. If you're in the area, this is a very interesting place to see and doesn't take a lot of time.