Rusty and I both need groceries!
We sit in camp chairs in front of the Best little Trailer, I with pen and paper in hand to write a shopping list. Rusty’s supply of protein-rich foods and fresh fruit has dwindled, so I want to know what foods he likes. We put together a list that includes peanut butter, sardines, protein bars, canned chicken, lima beans, baked beans, and pepperjack cheese (Rusty’s favorite!), as well as bananas, oranges, grapefruit, and avocados, among other items.
This plant grows all over and adds bright yellow-green to the landscape.
After several days in camp, just getting out on the road is a pleasure.
Bridget and Spike are happy to go somewhere, even if it’s only a ride on the bench seat, out and back to camp.
I don’t know what it is about Chino Valley, Arizona, that appeals to me so much. It’s a wide valley of dry grass and juniper bordered by mountains. Nothing spectacular. Yet every time I drive Highway 89 through those fields dotted with stick-built and manufactured homes, a peace comes over me. The town of Chino Valley has that effect on me, too. Maybe it’s the ordinariness. Oh well, no need to analyze it to death.
These flowers are very small. The entire cluster is only about three inches across. They grow in surprisingly difficult locations. I’ve even found them growing in tire tracks!
We pass a field of long-horn cattle.
Another field holds . . . what is that? Pronghorns? Yep, that’s what they are, a herd of about seven pronghorn antelopes calmly grazing not far from a few homes and the highway. Apparently they’re acclimated to the presence and noise of humans and their vehicles. I want to photograph them but it’s not a good place to stop.
Shopping for Rusty requires care.
At Chino Valley’s Safeway, I look at all the labels in order to buy low-fat or no-fat, reduced sodium or salt-free, and also no dyes (Rusty’s orders!). Fortunately it’s not a hot day so the crew can wait in the Perfect Tow Vehicle for as long as it takes.
A juniper falls and rises again!
Back at Camp Drake, we divvy up the groceries.
After lunch at our camps, I bring over a big bowl of vanilla ice cream to Rusty’s truck. (I’m keeping Rusty’s ice cream in my refrigerator, as well as the pepperjack cheese.) Of course, Spike walks over with me.
Rusty moved his truck to a slightly different angle to improve cell reception.
Timber runs around on his tether, excited to have company.
The gregarious Spikey makes friends wherever he goes.
He and Spike are good pals.
Timber is a blur of happy play.
I hand the bowl of ice cream to Rusty and head back to my camp.
Almost home I hear Rusty yelling and laughing.
“Spike! What are you doing in here? Spike!”
Oh for heaven’s sake, what is that boy doing now. I hurry back and I find Spike inside Rusty’s camper with Timber! Spike is looking for a share of the ice cream and Timber is wondering why Spike has moved into his home.
If Timber had a mean bone in his body, which he apparently doesn’t, Spike would be chopped meat for a stunt like this. I grab the little moocher and carry him home.
I like to find subtle designs in nature.
Where were we this time last year?
In the month of April 2012 the crew and I camped at Willard Springs in the Coconino National Forest south of Flagstaff (slightly north of here at a higher elevation).
Willard Springs and the water dog
I remember my delight with the piney woods, the green meadows, and the spring flowers, a refreshing change after the desert camps of the previous winter months.
I wrote a post that includes a slideshow of photos of Willard Springs and pics of the interior of the BLT. The post is called “A Look Inside Our Casita.”
Since this photo, I’ve extended the storage drawers all the way back, making a long and very useful counter top!
How long will the crew and I stay at Camp Drake?
I want to stay through next Monday, the 22nd, in order to be here when Rusty returns from his visit to the Prescott VA to fill out his application for housing. Unless there are unanticipated developments, soon after that, within a day or two, we will break camp. The 14-day limit will be up and temperatures are predicted to climb into the 90s next week.
I put more products on the Shopping Links pages.
Our internet antenna which also acts as a rudder for the BLT
With five steady bars for internet, I added more products to the three pages, including links for cat and dog owners. Did you know you can buy pet meds and food through Amazon? If you subscribe to have the meds or food shipped regularly, Amazon gives you a discount.
I thank you for any Amazon purchase you make through my blog. Every purchase, whether featured on my blog or not, helps. Okay, enough with the sales talk!
rvsue
rvsue and her canine crew 