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Pompano
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8194
Registered: 11-14-2004
Location: Bay of Conception and Up North
Member Is Offline
Mood: Optimistic
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Pompano - RV Trip: BAJA - UP NORTH.
This will be an ongoing chronicle about an RV camping trip from San Diego to the Pacific Northwest to the Northern
Midwest.
I will try to put in mostly significant and pertinent information about the camping...rates, emenities, etc. But if I should happen to embelish the
boring facts with a few analogies and detours..well, just try to get past that.
Campground 1
Rancho Santa Inez , Catavina, Baja Road.
Rate: 80 pesos
No hookups, has water spigot, outhouse, small cafe, shade trees, garbage cans. The sign coming in says 60 pesos, but evidently the rate went up right
after we drove in...?  Would probably just boondock next trip a
little further up the road in the boulders. Lots of spaces there...free, but no services of course.
Campground 2
KOA, Chula Vista, San Diego
Rate: $60 USD
Full hookups, cable tv, wi-fi, large shaded sites, very clean park, good security with gated entry..need code to get in after 8 pm, store, laundry,
pool. Close to all San Diego downtown events, shops, airport. Friendly & helpful staff. While a bit spendy, I think it is worth it for a few
days while touring or shopping San Diego.
Campground 3
Guajome Regional Park, Hwy 76, 7 miles east of Oceanside.
Rate: $28 USD
Water & Electric only, with common water/sewer dump. A beautiful and scenic park with 2 lakes, a forest of trees with mucho animals like rabbits,
squirrels, deer, many species of birds, and a zillion ants.
I like this one the best, even given the distance to San Diego ..about 35 miles. Gated and secure entry, very well-maintained.
Campground 4
KOA on I-5 Northbound at Los Banos turnoff.
Rate: $60 USD
Since I had passed the last good-looking RV camp about 30 miles back and it was getting towards dusk, I wanted to pull into the very next
park....hence this one.
Typical KOA layout with shade, large sites, full hook-ups, wi-fi, cable, etc. Good place to get refreshed from a long slow, climb over the Grapevine.
Nothing much else to say about it...a good haven for the night. Fuel next door. Since it was free, I applied for and recieved a KOA card which
gives me a 10% discount on further KOA camping. I am thinking, "Ohh..whoppee!..Be still, my heart!" 
KOA - LOS BANOS EXIT INTERSTATE 5
Okay, time to get On with the Road Trip...where's my roadcup?
[Edited on 5-31-2011 by Pompano]
I do what the voices in my tackle box tell me.
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bufeo
Senior Nomad
Posts: 793
Registered: 11-16-2003
Location: Santa Fe New Mexico
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Roger, I also posted this on another thread entitled "Pompano".
"Roger, if you find yourself on I-84 on the way east, we're near it just north of Twin Falls, ID. Good hook-ups and the price is right.  Waaaayyyyyyy below KOA and with wonderful vistas of the Pioneer Mts to the
north. Backyard is BLM for miles and miles."
Allen R
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Pompano
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8194
Registered: 11-14-2004
Location: Bay of Conception and Up North
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Mood: Optimistic
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Hi Allen,
Thanks for the invite and if I get anywhere near Post Falls, I will come see your views. Hasta la vista, amigo.
I do what the voices in my tackle box tell me.
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motoged
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6481
Registered: 7-31-2006
Location: Kamloops, BC
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Mood: Gettin' Better
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Roger,
Dinner for you and Co-pilot will be served if you pass through Kamloops if you are going to Alaska (world-famous trout fishing in our area) 
Don't believe everything you think....
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bufeo
Senior Nomad
Posts: 793
Registered: 11-16-2003
Location: Santa Fe New Mexico
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Well, Roger, Post Falls is nice, but you'd be a mite hard-pressed to see our views from there. It's about 500 miles north of us. That's I-90 up there.
We're off I-84 near Twin Falls.
Allen R.
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irenemm
Senior Nomad
Posts: 623
Registered: 7-16-2009
Location: vicente guerrero, baja
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Mood: relaxed
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Oh this is going to be great another trip with Roger.
I know how much I enjoyed last years trip so I know this is going to be great.
Have a great time and will see you on the Nomads. Enjoy and drive careful.
So looking forward to this.
thanks again.
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BornFisher
Super Nomad
Posts: 2103
Registered: 1-11-2005
Location: K-38 Santa Martha/Encinitas
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ROAD TRIP! ROAD TRIP! We need David K to do the map!!!!!
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8084
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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I'm not big on KOA. And it's not the price.
I suppose first impressions are really important.
We were newlyweds, touring the states in a VW bug and camping in a pup tent. We wanted to see Niagra Falls and there was no campground available....
except KOA. It was crowded but that wasn't the worst of it. The campground was next to an amusement park. The only thing that separated us from the
roller coaster was a cyclone fence. We were right next to those wooden platforms that support the rails. Every 5 minutes of so high pitched screams
came through our walls. It's how I imagine one of Shari's parties to be like. This went on what seemed like all night. I just remember packing in the
morning and feeling more tired than when we turned in. Never again, I said to myself.
That was 35 years ago and I've stayed away since (with one exception).
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Ken Bondy
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3326
Registered: 12-13-2002
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Mood: Mellow
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Skipjack Joe
That was 35 years ago and I've stayed away since (with one exception). |
OK Igor you can't hang a bait like that and not expect it to be taken What was
the exception? Details please.
carpe diem!
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Pompano
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8194
Registered: 11-14-2004
Location: Bay of Conception and Up North
Member Is Offline
Mood: Optimistic
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Ken Bondy
| Quote: | Originally posted by Skipjack Joe
That was 35 years ago and I've stayed away since (with one exception). |
OK Igor you can't hang a bait like that and not expect it to be taken What was
the exception? Details please. |
PERFECTO! Exactly the kind of reports I would like to see on this thread about campgrounds. Your
pros and cons on where you've camped will add the spice of real life.
Igor, Ken has it right..we NEED to know what that exception was?
By the way, the two KOA's we recently stayed at in SoCal were: Nice and Quiet. Lucky?..perhaps.
I do what the voices in my tackle box tell me.
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krafty
Super Nomad
Posts: 1052
Registered: 8-23-2010
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Skipjack there is supposed to be alot of whoopin and hollerin' on your honeymoon, but usually by the happy couple 
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Pompano
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8194
Registered: 11-14-2004
Location: Bay of Conception and Up North
Member Is Offline
Mood: Optimistic
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Replies
| Quote: | Originally posted by bufeo
Well, Roger, Post Falls is nice, but you'd be a mite hard-pressed to see our views from there. It's about 500 miles north of us. That's I-90 up there.
We're off I-84 near Twin Falls.
Allen R. |
Grrrr…argh...well, duuuh? My bad, Allen. Too many ‘Falls’ in my Idaho memories. Twin Falls it is , off I-84. Thanks
and will do, Roger.
Another nomad U2Ued and invited to a place near Coeur d’Alene...which is kinda close to Post Falls off I-90…sheesh.
| Quote: | Originally posted by irenemm
Oh this is going to be great another trip with Roger.
I know how much I enjoyed last years trip so I know this is going to be great.
Have a great time and will see you on the Nomads. Enjoy and drive careful.
So looking forward to this.
thanks again. |
Okay Irene, you may have opened Pandora’s Box, so this simple non-Baja campground report may indeed morph into a full-blown trip
extravaganza…including photos and commentary. Maybe…it all depends on the events of the day.
I do what the voices in my tackle box tell me.
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8084
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
Member Is Offline
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Ken Bondy
| Quote: | Originally posted by Skipjack Joe
That was 35 years ago and I've stayed away since (with one exception). |
OK Igor you can't hang a bait like that and not expect it to be taken What was
the exception? Details please. |
The second was at Jackson Hole. Wyoming in the mid 90s.
http://koa.com/campgrounds/jackson-hole/
I had read so much about the S. Fork of the Snake and wanted to see for myself. It wasn't as bad as Niagra Falls but still not my cup of tea. Kids
playing ball on those gravel roads between the cars. I think it gets louder in the summer. Any campground that has a manicured lawn. That's the red
light. Game rooms, swimming pools - more signs of a place to avoid.
This is more to my liking. You, undoubtedly have stayed at this campground, Roger. Next to Bing's Landing along the banks of the Kenai River. Not too
far from Soldotna. We had wild raspberries growing in our campsite. Even fried up some wild mushrooms after the rains.
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BajaBlanca
Select Nomad
Posts: 13166
Registered: 10-28-2008
Location: La Bocana, BCS
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glad you checked in Roger - everyone, myself included, was going thru rogerwithdrawal symptoms
buckle up everyone !!!!
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8084
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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You can still find campsites like this but it's not easy.
On the banks of the Klamath.
About an hour from now they'll start rising...
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Pompano
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8194
Registered: 11-14-2004
Location: Bay of Conception and Up North
Member Is Offline
Mood: Optimistic
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Ukiah Fairgrounds RV Park - $25
After leaving the KOA near Los Bano, had a great breakfast at PeaSoup Anderson’s….not pea soup
though. Got me to thinking about an old buddy of my Dad’s who was called Peasoup. Got that monicker from his bartending days when he
let a pot of pea soup boil over onto the wall behind the stove…forever staining it and earning his nickname.
Wound my way up I-5 past some fresh fruit stands where I bought cherries, apricots, and pistachios.
Passing near and over some controversial water channels:
Thru the citrus and almond groves:
And thru many vinyards..
to the I-580 thru Oakland, bypassing San Francisco and the Golden Gate:
There… can you see the Gate off there in the distance?
This bridge is not quite as famous as the Gate, but is a great shortcut around the city if heading for Eureka and the Coast Highway.
Getting to Ukiah in the afternoon, we asked about the best RV campground in town...it was definitely this one:
The RV Park at the Fairgrounds.
The park had access to all kinds of options..like barbeques, children's playgrounds, laundy, bathrooms, showers, driving range, art 7 crafts shows,
and much more.
For $25 we got full hookups. I am posting the information for this great little campground.
Ukiah Fairgrounds..The Redwood Empire Fair & Event Center. 707-462-3884 1055 North State St. Ukiah, CA. 95482 www.redwoodempirefair.com info@redwoodempirefair.com
[Edited on 5-25-2011 by Pompano]
I do what the voices in my tackle box tell me.
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tripledigitken
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4848
Registered: 9-27-2006
Member Is Offline
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Roger,
Were'nt you having solar panels installed on a fiver?
I was looking forward to the details.
???????
Ken
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Russ
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6741
Registered: 7-4-2004
Location: Punta Chivato
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Andersen's.... back in the day... $1.25 for all the soup & bread you could eat plus one glass of wine.
Bahia Concepcion where life starts...given a chance!
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BajaBruno
Super Nomad
Posts: 1035
Registered: 9-6-2006
Location: Back in CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: Happy
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Roger, your photo 7 is Red Rock with the Bay Bridge in the background, and 8 seems to be the Dumbarton Bridge, which would make sense since it runs
right alongside the Dumbarton, but it has more lanes---is that a photo from this trip?
Christopher Bruno, Elk Grove, CA.
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Bob H
Elite Nomad
Posts: 5867
Registered: 8-19-2003
Location: San Diego
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Lots of great snap shots Roger! Love'n it!
The SAME boiling water that softens the potato hardens the egg. It's about what you are made of NOT the circumstance.
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