Music on the Patio in Mesa AZ…

One of the best things about staying at these Cal-Am parks for the winter in Arizona is that we are allowed to go to other parks as a guests. Why we like this policy is that we love that each park has live music 5 or 6 days a week.

As a result Sharon and I can attend whichever band we enjoy the most. Our strategy is simple because of timing when figuring out which one to attend. The strategy works because most days the music at Mesa Regal Resort is from 3-5 pm, at Towerpoint Resort music is from 3-6 pm and at Sun Life resort music is at 3-6 pm or 4-7pm depending on the day of the week.

Since we are staying at Towerpoint we can walk over to either of the other parks.from ours in about ten minutes. Whenever we don’t know anything about any of the bands playing we walk over to Mesa Regal at 2 pm and listen to their band for 30 minutes. If we don’t like them we walk back to our park and listen to the band which starts at 3 pm. Again if we don’t like them we can go over to Sun Life and listen to their band.

Over time we have compiled a list of the bands we really like and those that we don’t care much for. We have been here almost a month so our list is getting long however, they don’t overlap bands a lot between the parks We do expect that over time we will have heard nearly all the bands who play these parks.

Best of all we can go listen to the music outside no matter how cold it gets. Why? Because these parks all have these fabulous outdoor heaters that make you warm n matter how low the temperatures go.

As for now we have been enjoying music on the patio at one resort or the other six nights a week. If there are no bands we like playing on one of the nights we usually will choose to go to downtown Gilbert and enjoy happy hour at one of the many establishments in the town.

While I tend to prefer mostly listening to the bands Sharon will often hit the dance floor. She has no problem dancing by herself and as often happens at these parks several other people will join her. These dance groups can often become large groups and as a result Sharon has made lots of fellow dancing friends at the various parks.

Obviously our days do not completely revolve around the music as we are also occupied going to the gym, playing cornhole, putt putt golf or pickleball. I have also been busy doing lots of minor/major repairs around the RV. With my list of repairs slowly dwindling down it will allow us “more time to have too much fun” as our friend and fellow blogger Barney often says…

A few fixes while in Mesa AZ…

We are settling into our winter routine here in Mesa AZ. We’ve been hitting the gym, talking walks, making the short drive to Gilbert, enjoying the music on the patio at this park and birdwatching at the Gilbert Riparian Park. Along with the fun, one huge plus of these extended stays is we have time for a lot of purging, chores and repairs which have been on the back burner.

The first thing I tackled was our Suburban hot water heater. Over the last few weeks we noticed that our electrical side of our hot water wasn’t functioning. That’s really not a big deal since we also have propane which also powers our hot water heater. However, it needed to be repaired.

After close inspection I found that the thermostat had been charred by excessive heat. I also tested the hot water electrical element and it tested fine. I did notice our anode rod was ready to be replaced as well. Finding no other issues I ordered a new thermostat and replaced it. Well, that didn’t fix it either.

The way I do mechanical/electrical repairs is by researching the heck out of the issue online before tackling what I think the problem might be. Then one by one I try all of the “fixes” I have uncovered on the internet. When unsuccessful, I start the process over and research even more for new fixes.

Well while researching I also had to repair our front A/C unit as it too wasn’t seemingly getting electrical current to start up. Having repaired our a/c many times I suspected one of the start or run capacitors was the culprit but upon checking them out everything seemed fine.

Perplexed by the assortment of electrical issues I focused on our power source. After looking at our 50 amp electrical plug I found it too had some char near the base of one prong of the plug. So I took apart the plug and trimmed all the wires to get new copper to the prongs. One prong had a slightly loose connection as well.

Well once I fixed the electrical plug both the A/C and the electric side of the hot water heater started functioning normally. Sometimes stepping back to look at the bigger picture reveals the true solution.In retrospect  I should have realized there might be a loose wire since the A/C would sometimes work but mostly wouldn’t.

With those things fixed I can focus on our really big problem. That problem is our Atwood Levelleg System no longer works because one of the legs is seized up and will not go up or down. We have been fortunate that since the problem first arose we have been able to find nearly level sites at each campground we stayed in..

We are grateful these extended stays allow me the time to do the research needed and a mailing address for parts so I can tackle such problems as these…

We made it to Mesa AZ…

Our last travel day in 2022 took us to our winter destination in Mesa Arizona. The long drive from Benson AZ to Mesa was uneventful and we pulled into the resort around 1:30 pm. We will be staying at Towerpoint RV Resort in Mesa, AZ until April 1st so we will settle in for a while and relax.

We got to this resort in late December just before Christmas. As a result we got to see lots of Christmas gala as well as many decorated golf carts. While it is January now we really enjoyed spending our Christmas in Mesa AZ.

Towerpoint Resort is one of the Cal-Am resorts in Mesa. Cal-Am has many resorts in Mesa which is one of the appeals for staying here. Yes, they are a bit more expensive than we prefer but there are a lot of amenities for the money spent. There is something for everybody offered at these resorts..

Each resort has their own pools, hot tubs, fitness rooms and activities galore. Where we are staying has an extensive woodshop I can use to build some replacement cabinetry. There are pickleball and tennis courts, along with bocci and horseshoes as well.

The best thing about these Cal-Am resorts is they have their own bar/grill on premises with live music six nights a week. Everyday there is a different band playing a different style of music. Even better is that Towerpoint Resort is sandwiched in between Mesa Regal Resort and Sun Life Resort (both of which we have stayed at in the past).

Being this close to the other resorts means we can chose which band and type of music we prefer to listen to each day. Cal-AM allows us to use the facilities and attend events in all of their resorts. Therefore we often walk to one resort to see if we like their band, and if not, go to the next resort until we find a band we like.

We chose Towerpoint for not only it’s proximity to the other resorts but it is also close to places we like to shop. There is a place called the Superstition Ranch Market nearby offering produce cheaper than anywhere else we shop. As an example we often buy 16oz of blueberries for a 1.50, strawberries for 75 cents and brussels sprouts for .69 cents per pound.

A Fry’s grocery store is also within walking distance so we walk there anytime we need groceries. Our favorite thrift store is also within walking distance so if we wanted to we wouldn’t ever have to drive anywhere which Sharon especially likes. That being said, we also love taking the quick drive into the town of Gilbert for happy hour and often visit the Gilbert Riparian Park as well.

We expect these next three months will allow us to fully explore and enjoy all that Mesa has to offer…

Running From the Cold, Tombstone and Benson AZ…

Time to move on westward and our next stop is at Dwayne's Mountain View RV Park in Bowie, AZ.A long 160 plus mile drive into Arizona as the chilly weather keeps us moving. Since we are a bit higher in elevation we don’t plan to stay but one night here.

The next morning we got up to seeing snow on the mountain tops near the park verifying why we shouldn’t stay longer here. We packed up and moved a bit further west to San Pedro Resort Community in the town of Benson, AZ. Lower in elevation we will stay here a few days which will give us time to visit some nearby friends.

There isn’t a lot going on in Benson but the park we are staying at on the outskirts of town at least has some trails leading from the park taking us out into the desert so we were able to do a little birdwatching. Not a lot to see but a nice little hike near the park is never a bad option. Besides if this town was good enough for Pancho Villa it is good enough for us!

We have friends we met at Betty’s RV Park in Louisiana that are staying just south of us so we decided that we would meet up at a brewery in Tombstone AZ. Since we were going ther anyhow we decided to go early and reacquaint ourselves with Tombstone.

Tombstone is quite the touristy town but it does have some historical interest. Even though the towns people have chosen to monetize the town it still has a western flair to it and is worth a visit if you have never been to it. We walked around the town and took in the local sights as well as taking a few photos of the rustic town.

Finally it was happy hour and we met Dan and Merlene for a few cold ones at the Tombstone Brewery. It was such fun reconnecting with old friends we haven’t seen in some time. After several hours of fun conversation we parted ways and headed back to Benson. We have made so many good friends at Betty’s RV Park and always look forward to reconnecting.

One last day in Benson, so we decided to simply walk around town since the weather was dicey. We had hoped to make a trip down to  a neat little town we like south of her called Bisbee. However, since it was a good ways away and with the weather we simply stayed put.

Staying in Benson our last day allowed us to explore the murals of Benson. While Benson is a small town it does have some interesting murals that were commissioned by the town. The artist who did them was quit talented and we enjoyed taking in the stories he tried to portray in his art.