Settling In Amongst The Palms – Desert Hot Springs, CA
Believe it or not we’re nearing the end of our time here in Sam’s Family Spa. As I mentioned in a previous post this is our 5th time visiting this particular private park, so it’s quite obviously a place we like. It’s become a handy stop-over point for us, a kind of yearly transition between our volunteer summers in the PNW and our boondocking winters in the desert. For a monthly rate of ~$540 plus elec. we get unlimited spa-time in superb hot pools as well as the chance to catch up on shopping, food & errands. It’s a bit of a splurge, but totally worth it and given how cost-efficient we’ve been with travel this year (we’ve spent under $10/night in park fees) it’s well within the budget.
And catch up on errands is mostly what we’ve been doing.
Over the past few weeks our cats have gotten their yearly dentals at Banfield Pet Hospital, we’ve serviced our Honda CRV, we’ve been getting all kinds of online shopping completed, we’ve stocked up at Costco, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, we’ve signed our new health plan (reminder folks -> if you need ACA health coverage starting 1/1/2015 you only have 4 more days to sign-up!) and we’re getting our yearly self-care blood-tests done. Sounds like regular boring old life, doesn’t it?? Yup, believe it or not RVing is not all travel and fly-by-the-wind bohemian hippy glee. Like regular folks we need to get practical stuff done and the way we do it is to “settle in” for a month or two somewhere and get it all completed at once.
For many fulltime RVers winter is the perfect time to do this.
There are only a few areas of the country that are warm in winter (southwest desert, southern TX and FL) so RVers tend to congregate in those spots and use the season to settle in, plan, prioritize and re-group for the rest of the year. Depending on where you go in winter (and what kind of planning nut you are) this might mean planning waaay ahead, or not at all. FL is super-popular in winter and prime spots often get booked out a year in advance. The southwest desert is wide open, especially if you prefer boondocking so when we stay here we don’t plan at all. Can you guess which one we prefer?
It’s all part of the yearly RV planning process that I’ve written about in detail before. Sometime in the next month I’ll do a wrap-up post of our 2014 travel year, and map out our own 2015 plans to share on the blog too.
Our other priority here has been eating & hanging with fellow RVers Technomadia with whom we’ve been caravanning for…well…months now. We’ve been out for Mexican & Indian, enjoyed numerous happy hours & spa trips, gone to the movies, and hit the annual Tamale Festival (fabulous, by the way). Plus we’ve had a few other RVers (including Mali Mish & Kerri) pass through while we’ve been here. And get this, we’re still enjoying each others company!
The whole idea of caravanning with other RVers is something we never considered before we started RVing, and to be honest we’ve never sought it out. There are plenty of “managed” rallies & caravans out there, especially through established groups such as Escapees or FMCA or WINs. If you like that kind of thing, or you’re a solo traveler seeking the company they are perfect ways to connect, but we’re more “fly solo” types. So, the caravans we’ve done have all been spontaneous and very casual. It’s a curious thing, much like nomadic tribes who form loose families on the road. At some point I’ll write a post about how to caravan with friends without driving each other nuts (well, assuming we’re not nuts by then), ‘coz it’s a fascinating little topic and can be ALOT of fun if approached with the right attitude.
So, that’s it folks. A bunch of practical and un-blog-worthy stuff inter-dispersed with some good, casual relaxing. Sometimes RV life goes that way too. I’ve written a ton about this area in previous posts so I won’t be writing too much about the area before we leave. For new readers and those interested, I’ll point you back to stuff I’ve written previously:
Fun Outings Around Desert Hot Springs:
- The Wild Desert West, Sis & I – Hangin’ At Salton Sea, San Jacinto Mountain & Joshua Tree
- Visit Palm Springs -> Click official site HERE
- Visit Desert Hot Springs -> Click official site HERE
Hiking Around Desert Hot Springs:
- The Wonderfully Crazy Desert
- A Few More Dog-Friendly Hikes – Desert Hot Springs, CA
- Top O-The World At Flag Mountain – Desert Hot Springs, CA
We’re headed out early next week to a rather more remote (and sadly, hot-spring lacking) spot to spend Christmas and New Year. I won’t reveal our destination yet, but I’m betting my well-spa’d RV butt it’s going to be good. See you there!
Other Related Posts:
- Planning RV Travels Part I -> 4 General “Rules” For Planning Where To Stay & When To Go
- Planning RV Travels Part II -> Selecting Pace, Map Routing & Campsites
- Planning RV Travels Part III – Maps, Resources & Links
- 5 Tips For RVing & Camping With Cats
We miss Desert Hot Springs and Sam’s. We need to get back there next year!
I wonder why some people think if you live in a RV there still isn’t chores and the mundane activities of life. There’s a compromise to going off grid. Yet a month of soaking in hot water is a deserving part of being mobile. After this storm passes I’m heading into the desert and can barely wait.
Fulltime RVing is a lifestyle, not a vacation. I think that’s a mental switch that takes a while for some folks to figure out.
Nina
Wait… no bohemian hippy glee?? That’s it, we’ve gotten liven this party up. 🙂
(It’s been most excellent being roaming neighbors with you guys too.)
Tee hee…still love seeing your bus out there.
Nina
Ty so much for sharing, looking forward to your plans for 2015
I so enjoy your posts and such great pictures you take!!! Love your life style. Have a very very Merry Christmas.
Okay, question from people just starting out: if you spend winter boondocking, where do you go to dump tanks?
A dump station! Plenty of them around. Most private RV parks will accept dumping (for a fee) as will some state parks and gas stations. Here’s a good website for finding your nearest dump station:
http://www.sanidumps.com
Nina
Thank you.
Yep…even living in a rv one has chores and routines.…safe travels to your new location….I look forward to more great posts…
“Hippy glee”? I’m not sure I’ve ever seen those two words put together that way. *snort*!
That was a good one, wasn’t it? Made that up on the fly 🙂
Nina
Always enjoy reading your updates and learning from your experiences. Thanks for that. Wishing you a peaceful Christmas.
Thank you! To you too!
Nina
Just finished having our solar installed here in Casa Grande by Marvin Braun (Precision RV) What a awesome job. Eight (7) tiltable solar panels. Thanks so much for telling us about him. Looking forward to some boondocking. Safe travels.
Awesome! Wonderful to hear you had a great experience.
Nina
I was thinking about your guys in Desert Hot Springs with the torrential rains and winds – how have you survived?
This morning we’re seeing the first rain of the big storm that’s currently hitting the coast. It’s not too bad here at our park, but if it keeps going all day it’ll likely wash out part of Palm Springs. That’s what happened last week. For 2-3 days after the rain parts of downtown (by the big washes) were closed off.
Nina
Hi Nina, looking forward to seeing your ideas for next year. Love being able to look at your previous maps to see what coincides with where we are going and therefore what we might do or where we might stay. It’s very helpful, thank you. Sunrises and sunsets in deserts are gorgeous, great shot.
So happy the maps are being used. I sometimes wonder whether it’s worth the trouble to update them (it takes quite a bit of time), but I love being able to look back and see our travels too.
Nina
Please keep updating those maps! Lots of us use them regularly. Thanks for all your sharing! I’m looking forward to hearing about where you will spend the upcoming holidays. We’re hanging out with our kids and taking care of all those annual appts that you mentioned. -Linda
Those desert sunsets are stunning. I never tire of them. We’ve found we like returning to familiar territory to tend to business. Always nice finding that spot where you can settle in for a spell 🙂
Soaking in hot springs sounds REALLY good right now — winter has arrived in Ashland and I’m cold! We’re heading out the first week of January to caravan with good friends for two months. Could you perhaps post your tips about caravanning with friends before then?
🙂
I’ll try and get to writing it before then 🙂
Nina
I too love those desert sunsets, especially when you are behind the lens Nina. Happy travels to you both! 🙂
Hi Nina & Paul! Not meaning to steal your thread, I was wondering if you have ever crossed paths with this guy…
http://www.sunrisesandsunsets.us/2014/12/different-levels-of-nomad/
I have not! What an interesting guy. We did actually cross paths with someone else last year coming down 395 who was travelling by horse & carriage across the country. He’d been doing it for years and had several different horse teams. Can’t for the life of me remember his website, but he was another fascinating character.
Nina
Nina, we are stopping at Sam’s in early Feb 2015 as per your post’s. My question is where is the best location to stay at Sam’s if you have a “Beautiful” Silver Lab? He needs his space. I don’t have a problem walking a tad to one of the hot tubs, as long as Shadow is “comfy” Thanks for any Intel you can send my way. Respectfully, Fireman Dave
We prefer the sites towards the back of the park (furthest away from the pools) since less people tend to stay there (most like to be as close as possible to the pools). All the sites are pretty similar in size, but back here you have a chance of getting a site with no one next to you. Also there is a gate in the back of the park that takes you out to a big desert for walking the dog. So, that’s another good reason to be back here.
Nina
We agree!
How do you decide what will be fun? While you boondock what do you do? I know this sounds ridiculous but I’m not hitting the road to sit in my bus and read.. although I can imagine that might be nice on a rainy day. How do you choose your green areas? What is the criteria? The surrounding areas?
Thanks,
Kathy
While on the road our main activities are hiking, biking, photography, blogging & investing. In summer we aim for cooler climes, in winter we like the wide-open SW desert. We plan our travels around green, dog-friendly areas (mostly state parks, national forests, with a rare few private parks thrown in) with plenty of hiking, and then just explore when we get there.
In addition to my “planning” posts (linked in the blog post above) which explain how we plan our travels, here are some additional posts:
Finding Great Things To Do On The Road
https://www.wheelingit.us/2011/06/18/finding-great-things-to-do-on-the-road/
Finding Cheap & Natural Campgrounds:
https://www.wheelingit.us/2011/01/15/finding-cheap-natural-campgrounds/
Nina
Thanks for the post! Hubby read it, and we went to Sam’s for a couple of nights before heading out to Superstition Mtn for New Year’s eve with family and friends. We are only about 2 hours away, so this is now going to be one of our “go to” places for a quick weekend away. Loved it and just wanted to thank you for sharing with us. We met a lot of great folks, and quite a few who have been going to Sam’s since they were kids in the 70’s!
Outstanding! Glad you enjoyed it as much as we did!
Nina