Lake Elsinore adventures
Summer 2020: We had a blast in Lake Elsinore, CA ! It was our first official RV adventure. Lake Elsinore has so much to offer. From hikes to beaches, and amazing food!! It was the summer vacation I have needed all my life. In my time there I stayed at two RV parks. The First was Lake Elsinore RV Resort. The lake views here were nice but the park and its staff were not. Other than the nice lady at the front desk, the manager and his assistant were not so nice. I had a horrible run in with one of them in the women’s bathroom (keep in mind these are both men). He wanted to close the restroom an hour before the posted time, and he would not leave the bathroom, which made me very uncomfortable. All in all if you need a few nights to stay, this place is okay, I would just avoid the men who run this facility and utilize your own bathroom.
The other park I stayed at was just down the street, Launch Pointe! This place was actually a little more cheaper (monthly), and had so much to offer! They had 24 hour security. Everything was gated and you could only enter and utilize bathrooms if you had a wristband. I felt very secure here. Their private beach was beautiful and well kept. On week days you could have the whole beach to yourself. On hot days me and Jack took full advantage of the beach to cool off. I like that this park was divided, one side was for long term quiet guests and the other side was more suited for families and weekenders. This park also has a restaurant, play ground, splash pad, yurts and vintage RV for rent. Some weekends there was live entertainment. Due to COVID, they cancelled many events that I’m sure I would have enjoyed. The staff ALWAYS worked with me any time I had an issue, which was very rare. Whenever I visit Lake Elsinore, Launch Pointe is the place to be!
Winter Road Trip 2020
In August of 2020, I was displaced from California, due to Covid. I was unable to maintain financially. I moved back home to Alabama. Because of this, I left my RV in storage until I was able to drive it to Alabama. At the time, this RV was in no condition to drive cross country. Once I had the money to get repairs completed, I had the RV towed to the repair shop. In November of 2020 the necessary repairs were completed. I flew to California the day after Thanksgiving. By that Monday I was on the road.
The trip started Monday night and I finally made it to Alabama in the wee hours of the morning, on Friday. The first night of the trip showed me that this was not going to be an easy trip. While driving from California to Arizona, the temperature dropped significantly. Once in Arizona I stopped at a rest stop about 2 hours outside of the Grand Canyon. That first night was spent at a rest area. For a free stay it was good. I felt secure enough. That night, the desert air was very cold. The next day, I detoured and went to visit the Grand Canyon. I would have loved to stay longer and explore longer, but time did not permit it. That night I stopped at an RV park in New Mexico, where the temperature dropped to 10 degrees. It was a rough night. The next morning I discovered my bank account had been compromised and I had no money. I called on my friends and family to help me until my bank was able to recover the funds. That same day I encountered snow, which caused a traffic delay of about 3 hours. This was my first time driving in snow. There were many accidents, I passed at least 6 semi truck accidents. I was shocked at the amount of accidents in such a short period of time. That night I made it into Texas, where I found a truck stop to rest at. The truck stops were full but once I found a spot, I was able to get some rest. The final full day was very stressful. Being that I was still in Texas with almost 1000 more miles to go. I made it to the last leg of the trip in Mississippi and it started to rain. Visibility was horrible due to the fact that it was night time and pouring ran. Since my roof needed work, it rained a significant amount inside of the RV. At that point I only had an hour left in my trip and all I could think was, what else can go wrong? Just then, I got pulled over by the police and they insisted on coming inside of my RV. They never told me why they pulled me over and, they eventually they sent me on my way. I pulled into the driveway about 2 am Friday morning, thus ending a long, exhausting road trip.
This road trip taught me a lot and confirmed one thing, I do not like travelling in the winter. In the future there are many things I will do differently. It was an experience I will never forget and I am grateful for it.