Ak Chin Casino Camping

Harrah's Ak-Chin Casino is located about 40 miles south of Phoenix, and around 15 miles north of Interstate 8, on hwy 347. The Casino is Rver friendly been here 3 nights, and 4 days haven't seen any security. Rv Parking is right along hwy 347, so there's definitely some traffic noise. There is four restaurants the Agave which sits poolside, Steakhouse, Buffet, and a grill.

                                                     The entrance to the Casino

The Hotel

Even got movie theaters.

Bowling alley, and possibly a fifth restaurant not sure of there open.

Egg,cheese, bacon, and onion breakfast burrito, mostly egg though:(. Oh well rent was free for 4 days no complaints.

For you pet minded folks plenty of area  for the kids to run without any traffic. Thanks for visiting!

Road Trip to Slab City

Feeling the need for some wanderlust, decided it was time to take a road trip.....Final destination being Slab City, which is known for being one of the last free spots left in the america, but will get into that upon my arrival. There are several places along the route which I intend to visit ranging from Casino's to Desert Camp spots, and of course the Rubber Tramp Rendezvous in Quartzsite, Az...No set time limit, just

exploring places of interest along the way.......

 Tucson Az my home for the last 10 weeks, with the Santa Catalina's in the background, some great hiking in that area.

 Double Nickel my usual travel speed gotta take time to enjoy the scenery, seems these days everyone's in a hurry, and most don't have anywhere to be....Slow down enjoy life, we are all heading to the same place. I hope :)

 Picacho Peak located about 40 miles north of Tucson rises 3374 ft above sea level, there are two trails to the top both involving cables that you can attach yourself to to avoid a nasty fall.

 Picacho Peak

 The norm for most businesses in the area boarded up, and shut down except for a few overpriced tourist traps.

 Ostrich farm in the area!

 Westward

 Arizona cottonfield always seemed a awkward place to grow cotton. In 2010 Az produced 3 billion pounds of cotton.

My new home for a few days. Will definitely write a post about my experiences here. Thanks for stopping by. Hope you enjoyed!

Sprouting

Living off the grid, and sometimes not seeing a town for over a month. I was constantly searching for a way to to get raw foods, or greens into my diet, that's when I discovered sprouting a perfect solution for anybody who stays out for long periods of time. Its very simple, you can store the un-sprouted sprouts for long periods of time, and they have great nutritional value. While spending time at the folks place over the holidays I was nosing around the pantry, when I found
a bag of mung beans, so I decided to give it a shot. What you need is a Mason Jar, Screen, and a rubber band.

 Soaked the beans for 12 hours. Some sites suggest more, but this worked.

 Top of jar suppose to be screen, and rubber band, but only had cheese cloth at the moment worked fine was kinda yucky after day 3 ill be finding some screen.

 After the 12 hour soak. Drain then the next morning add water swirl for a few minutes then drain again this process is done twice a day for 2-3 days. Leave upside down to avoid killing the sprouts.

 Sprouts after about 36 hours growing fast.

After day 3 had to be moved to a larger jar the sprouts overtook the previous one. So far I have used them on Chicken patties, and Hamburgers. Not to bad but looking forward to trying some other flavors out definitely a great alternative when raw foods aren't avail. If you have any questions feel free to ask:) Happy New Years to all!

Madera Canyon Mount Wrightson Hike Tucson, AZ

Madera Canyon is located about 30 miles southeast of Tucson AZ. There are several hiking trails in the canyon, and is also a very well known bird watching area 3rd best in the United States. Other animals and reptiles in the area include wild turkeys, bobcats, mountain lions, black bear, rattlesnake, deer, rabbits, racoons, and the rare coati. There are a few different trails to the top of Mount Wrightson, which tops out at 9453 ft, the trail crosses 4 life zones beginning in the the cacti, and

heading into the pines, and eventually beyond the tree line. It is known as one of Tucson's sky islands, because in the summer it can be well over 100 degrees in the desert, and a mere 60 degrees up at the top of the mountain.

                                                      Mountain Wrightson looming in the distance!

The journey to the top of the of Mount Wrightson was without doubt a challenge, well for me at least.... a piece of cake for you who have conquered Mount Everest :) . Took me 3 separate attempts to reach the summit. The first time being for to winded due to the lack of oxygen at such elevations. Second attempt we were stopped by the previous days snowstorm, and the 3rd attempt in which we had finally reached the top definitely had its challenges, which included scaling across snow covered slopes holding sharp rocks in my hand to anchor myself in the snow slope. There are several spots on the hike where one miss step will send you on a quick journey to meet your maker, or possibly a helicopter ride to the hospital, so take your time, and bring you favorite walking stick :)

 Trail up the Mountain

 Scenic overlook

 Another trail in the distance, and overlook.

 A remembrance for those who did not make in this case being gaught in a snowstorm:(

 Yours Truly approaching the summit.

View from the top! 

 

A plaque telling the story of Wrightson. Ill get the detail on my next journey........Hope you enjoyed!

 

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas!

Casino Camping Desert Diamond Tucson

More Casino Camping. The Desert Diamond South is located about 12 miles south of Tucson just north of the town of Sahuarita. The Casino contains 3 Restaurants first is the Agave which I chose not to eat at because I heard its a bit expensive, there's also a buffet, and a grill. My personal favorite is the grill with some good breakfast, and lunch specials. You are allowed a 7 day stay, upon
arrival security will usually check you in, then give you a list of rules. So far I have been reprimanded twice once for drinking beer in the parking lot :( ( Now don't get the wrong impression it was my first beer and I just opened it) and the other for not having a leash on Candy, which I usually do unless.... there is a 100 acres parking lot, with no one in it, then she is allowed run , but apparently they didn't agree. Hope this helps any of you that may be traveling in the area:) Here is a few pics!

Parking lot sunset Mount Wrightson in the distance hiked to the top of it once a 8 hour hike, that took 3 attempts:)

The Casino from my favorite camp spot.

3.99 Breakfast special cant go wrong.

The fountain unfortunately it wasn't on:(

Snowstorm on Wrightson. Wish I could have got a shot when the clouds cleared.

Candy being bad not wearing her leash again. Stay tuned will be heading to Quartzsite for the Rubber Tramp Rendezvous, then to Slab City. Looking forward to meeting some of you there!

Day 1096

Figured I would blog a short celebratory post for myself :) Dec 18th 2009  makes it 3 years ago today since I walked away from the rat race, and pursued a nomadic off the grid lifestyle. Looking back all I can say is its a great freedom, being able to call each day your own. If you dreaming of such a lifestyle, be brave enough to follow  your dreams now, cause sometime in the future you will wish you did! Have a great day!

We make ourselves rich
by making our wants few.
Henry Thoreau