Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada

After leaving Las Vegas I headed NE towards Hurricane to visit Mac and Susan. I decided to take the back roads rather than just drive up I-15.  This was a very good choice, and usually is over freeways, because my route took me right back into the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, www.nps.gov.lake.  You may recall I was in the same area down around Bullhead City when I stayed at Katherins Landing.  This is the northern side of the same area which is very large, as is Lake Mead.  Unfortunately Lake Mead is very low and nothing like what I recall from my younger days back in the 70’s when we use to come over from LA and water ski with friends.

So as I am driving along I see a campground sign called Callville Bay.  It is a duplicate of Katherins Landing so I pull in for a couple of days since it only costs me $5.00 a night with my senior card.  I found a good spot and started my process of parking by backing into the spot.  

When I park in a back-in spot I always get concerned because I don’t have someone helping me back in and not hit a tree branch or water spigot of something else.  This time I got my right (blind) side a little close to the bushes between sites and put some fairly obvious scrapes on the back side before I realized my error in judgment.  That pretty much ruined my day but I am learning not to get upset by things I cannot control so I just rolled with it and set up my camp.  I will do what I can do about the scratches later.

My camping spot at Callville Bay

Scenes just driving around

All was well the first night but when I woke up Saturday morning, actually was woken up, to the sound of a bunch of kids next door, I realized I need to go.  This is the same thing that happened at Katherines Landing!  Maybe it’s the brown color of my trailer that attracts kids with parents or parents with kids.  Maybe they see it as a big teddy bear or chocolate bar that gives them comfort when they get afraid at night with the coyotes yelping.  Anyway……time to move on down the road.

BTW….I came up with a name for my new trailer.  Do you remember the race horse that fell apart during the Kentucky Derby, Big Brown?  Well, that is the name of my new trailer, Big Brown Trailer or BBT.  Now I have a Big Ford Truck, BFT and a BBT, just like RV Sue.  Confusing?  Silly?  Probably.  It will get more confusing when I refer to them in my Blog with the initials and not the names.

I am starting to realize the need to seek out more isolated campgrounds or spots to boon dock.  I will eventually get some solar panels installed on the BBT so I can boon dock more frequently.  For now the generator is working just fine. 

Mac, my brother, told me he knows a guy in Hurricane that told him he was going to sell his little Yamaha generator and I am hoping to get a chance to buy it at a fair price.  The smaller generators can get pretty expensive but they are quieter and use less gas that my big one.  However, I will keep both because I can plug my BBT right into my big generator if I want and use the microwave and AC plus it charges the batteries through the converter while I am doing that. I have a peculator coffee pot for use when boon docking and I actually like my coffee perked better than brewed with the electric pot.

So….I am reading one of my favorite blogs, Wheeling It, and the writer, Nina, mentions they are staying at a nice BLM area overlooking the lake called Stewarts Point, about 25 miles east of my location.  I figure if they can park there so can I since Paul and Nina are driving a 40 foot class A motor home they call the Beast, and they boon dock about 90% of the time.

Well I called that one right and I am sitting here in a very isolated spot overlooking the lake.  The view, as you can see in the photos, is pretty darn nice.  One would pay dearly for this view and it costs me zero….nadda….zilch!  I am starting to like this lifestyle better every day.  I just need to learn how to conserve my pennies by boon docking and less driving.  At an average of $4.00 a gallon and 11 mpg I can spend some money rolling down the highway!  I really like driving so I have to watch that carefully if I aim to stay out here until whenever.

Today the wind is really blowing but it is also blowing away the clouds and blue sky is starting to show so I am hoping it will slow down later on.  I would like to sit right here for about a week and check the area out plus visit the Valley of Fire State Park.  It’s a lot cheaper to pay the day use fee than the camping fee.   I figure by then I will need to dump and refill my water tanks if I want to stay longer.  I don't like to bother people much but maybe I will introduce myself to Paul and Nina, the folks that write Wheeling It before one of us pulls out.

My new camping spot

 

I probably should have parked on the gravel area.  This area is chalky and will make housecleaning a real chore.

I have my own little point for me and Dexter to sit.

View from our patio outside the door.

If I have to hook up and drive somewhere to dump I might as well keep moving, either on to Hurricane or to another BLM location.  The road to this location off the main highway is about four miles of pretty rough road so once a year is enough.  I am still planning on my locations after Hurricane.  I would like to go back over to southeastern Utah and hang out for awhile and see some things I didn't take time to see last year on my way to Glacier and working.  It is still a little early to go too far north.....still cold.

Big storm blowing in now....looks like rain and the temperature is dropping quickly.  Better batten down the hatches!