JEEPED OURSELVES OVER TO ARIZONA’S LAKE PLEASANT TODAY:))

We were up, out the door, & into the Jeep by 8:50 this morning.  Pointed Jeepers nose southward & headed on down through Wickenburg.  Picked up highway 74 heading East.  Lots of Saguaros along this road.  Our destination was LAKE PLEASANT REGIONAL LAKE.  We were on a scouting mission.

   
Lake Pleasant is only an hours drive southeast of Congress so figured we would have us a look around at some camping sites in case we head down that way shortly in the Winnie Wagon.  Located in the Valley Of The Sun I was surprised right off the bat how big this Lake & Park were.  23,662 acres with 10,000 acres of crystal clear water.  Paid the day fee of $6 at the south gate & headed off to have a look at the first of many camp & RV sites along with day use areas.

Impressed at how clean & neat the campsites were.  No trashy messes in this park.  Saw staff raking out some sites & cleaning fire pits.  Most all sites have a BBQ & Ramada.  I think they go for $17 a night.  We were especially interested in having a look at the many shoreline primitive sites.  They go for $10 a night.  Not many people in the Park this time of year so it will be perfect for the Bayfield Hermit Bunch if we decide to head on over there in the next week or two.

 
A DAY USE AREA
We could see the dam at one end & it was obvious from the water level we were here while the large reservoir of water was at it’s seasonal low.  Peek times for boating at Lake Pleasant are Spring, Summer, & Fall when levels are up to capacity.  Drove down one of two boat ramps at the Park.  Largest boat ramp I have ever seen at 10 lanes across.  Could have parked a Boeing 747 here.  Just the parking area alone at the south boat ramp can hold 333 vehicles with boat trailers plus 76 cars.  And then there’s the overflow parking areas.  My mind boggles at the congestion that must be here especially on long hot summer week-ends.  I think Lake Pleasant is only about 30 or 40 miles north of Phoenix so one can easily imagine where all the people flood in from.  In fact we passed a sign on # 17 highway that said, “Welcome To Phoenix.”  Now that’s just about as close as I want to get to any kind of that traffic nonsense!!

LAKE PLEASANTS SOUTH END 10 LANE BOAT RAMP
 
 
LOOKING UP THE WIDE BOAT RAMP
We spent a good 3 hours driving around Lake Pleasant Regional Park stopping here & there.  Managed to get ourselves on a couple short rough & tumble Jeep roads as well.  Stirred us up a little dust.  Popped us into the Visitor’s Center too. 

LAKE PLEASANT REGIONAL PARK VISITOR’S CENTER
 
SHOULD BE GOOD TV, INTERNET, & CELL PHONE COVERAGE WITH ALL THOSE COMMUNICATION DEVICES…AND WHAT THE HECK ARE ICE WORMS??
Saw a Pirate ship anchored at Scorpion Cove plus a Marina with a restaurant accessible by a short cable car & floating bridge.  Saw a lot of docked & dry-docked house boats as well.  The many inlets & coves make it perfect for summer houseboats lazily making their way along the meandering shorelines

THE ‘BLACK SCORPION’ PIRATE SHIP AT ANCHOR
 
THIS LITTLE MOVING CABLE CAR CARRIES PEOPLE UP & DOWN A STEEP ROCK FACE FROM A PARKING LOT ABOVE TO A MARINA & RESTAURANT BELOW

 
A 6 PASSENGER CABLE CAR HEADS DOWN TO A FLOATING BRIDGE LEADING TO THE RESTAURANT & MARINA

Also noticed a number of Scuba divers scattered about in various groups.  We were close enough to one group to know that it was a beginner’s class.  About half a dozen sailboats on the lake along with a few power boats, a couple jet skis & a dive boat.  For us this was a perfect time to be here.  We could leisurely drive ourselves around & take our time looking at things.  No traffic & no congestion.  But no way would I ever want to be anywhere near Lake Pleasant in the summer.  The huge parking areas near the 10 lane boat ramp is a clear indication of how busy that Park must be during it’s peak boating season.

 
LOOK CLOSELY & YOU CAN SEE THE SCUBA DIVER’S AIR BUBBLES JUST BEHIND THE WHITE TRUCK

 
Headed for home around 1 o’clock & were surprised by the heavy traffic heading south on highway 93 north of Wickenburg.  Rolled into our Ghost Town Road driveway shortly after 2 & that was it for our day.  So nice to have gone somewhere again where we had never been before & seen things we had never seen before.  Those are my kind of days…………………:)) 

BOB PERRY is the latest fella to join us on our ‘Friends’ list & we welcome Bob aboard.  Made it just in time Bob for a drive over to Arizona’s Lake Pleasant today:))

GROANER’S CORNER:((  A Russian couple was walking down the street in St. Petersburg the other night, when the man felt a drop hit his nose. "I think it's raining," he said to his wife.
"No, that felt more like snow to me," she replied. "No, I'm sure it was just rain, he said." Well, as these things go, they were about to have a major argument about whether it was raining or snowing. Just then they saw a minor communist party official walking toward them. "Let's not fight about it," the man said, "let's ask Comrade Rudolph whether it's officially raining or snowing."
As the official approached, the man said, "Tell us, Comrade Rudolph, is it officially raining or snowing?"
"It's raining, of course," he answered and walked on. But the woman insisted: "I know that felt like snow!" To which the man quietly replied: "Rudolph the Red knows rain, dear!"
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- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.