• Debra Giltz
  • Debra Giltz

2020

Une aventure de 365 jours par Debra En savoir plus
  • Début du voyage
    2 janvier 2020

    January 2-9

    9 janvier 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 59 °F

    The weather has been beautiful this week, sunny with temperatures in the mid 60's to low 70's. 😎
    Saturday morning was spent browsing the College of the Desert Street Fair where we purchased a back massager, a dress and of course dates & licorice. Saturday evening we enjoyed Vocolacity's performance here at Cat Spa. Randy's phone gave up the ghost after 5 years of faithful service so he got a Note 10 on Sunday. Monday we took a leisurely bike ride. Tuesday Jim & Angie had us over for a delicious dinner of smoked stuffed pork chops and smoked mac n cheese.
    Wednesday was happy hour at the Giltz's.🍹 Thursday we stopped by Peabody's for breakfast and a killer bloody mary then later headed to the pickleball courts for wine and pickle under the lights.
    En savoir plus

  • January 10-21

    21 janvier 2020, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F

    We continue to enjoy our stay in Desert Hot Springs; out to dinner with Angie & Jim at Nicolino's... love their bolegnase; enjoyed William Florian's tribute to Neil Diamondhttp://www.florianmusic.com/; visited our friend Mark at he and his wife Liz's beautiful winter home in Indio; pigged out on Angie's lemon cream pie, my lemon bars and cocktails made with citrus compliments of Mark;
    toured Sunnylands visitors center and gardens https://sunnylands.org/;
    we continue to play pickleball 5-6 mornings a week; had cousin Steve & Karlene over for dinner; danced the night away to the Stagerobbers; out to lunch with Steve & Karlene at Tony's Burgers; purchased a new TV for the bedroom; spent hours planning our route and booking rv sites for our trip east when we depart 2/3, gotten as far as the Keys & Miami.
    En savoir plus

  • January 22-26

    26 janvier 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    It's been warm and sunny here at Cat Spa. We hiked Tahquitz Canyon on Wednesday. http://www.tahquitzcanyon.com/canyon A short but beautiful trek along the Tahquitz River to Tahquitz Falls. Needing a bit more exercise we also hiked the North Lykken Trail. http://www.hiking-in-ps.com/the-north-lykken-tr…
    We supported our friends who competed in the Catalina Spa Water Volleyball Tournament.
    They took the gold medal! 🏅
    Saturday we took in Danny Vernon's Illusion's of Elvis show. Excellent as usual. https://www.dannyvernon.com
    Sunday we shopped at the Street Fair with Angie & Jim then went to downtown Palm Springs for lunch and ice cream. 😋
    We'll be busy helping with the Cat Spa Pickleball tournament this week and getting ready for our departure, next Monday the 3rd, for Yuma.
    En savoir plus

  • January 27-February 2

    2 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F

    We've had a very busy week helping at the 3rd Annual Catalina Spa and RV Resort Pickleball Tournament. Putting in 12-14 hr days as well as pre-tournament prep. As always it was a blast giving back to the sport we love and watching over 220 players competing for the gold. A big thank you to our tournament director, Jim and his wife Angie, who make it all happen and to the many volunteers and referees who generously give their time.
    Sunday morning we played our last games of pickleball at Cat Spa before heading to Mario's with Mike, Susan, Katrina, Jae, Caroline, Charly, Jim & Angie to watch the Superbowl game.
    Tomorrow we depart for a six night stay at Westwind RV and Golf Resort in Yuma, Arizona.
    En savoir plus

  • February 3-8

    8 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    With wind gusts up to 50 mph we blew out of Desert Hot Springs Monday morning, arriving at Westwind RV Resort around noon mountain time. Cold and breezy the first two days followed by warm, calm perfect Arizona weather. As always we had the coach and car washed and waxed by Sergio's; tacos at El Cositas; spent a morning in Los Algodones to get my haircut at Juanita's, purchase meds, Kahlua, candied pecans & almonds; shopped at Arizona Market Place for new patio chairs.
    Chad & Leslie, our neighbors when we both had houses, are workcamping at Westwind so we shared some meals with them. Thursday Cat Spa friends Donna & Rick took us on a tour of Fortuna de Oro RV Resort where we took in the senior games pickleball tournament, happy hour with live music and wine tasting. Also visited with Karen & Larry who we met at Cat Spa last year, also staying at Fortuna. Friday, all the folks mentioned above met at Westwind for the fish fry (cod flown in from Alaska every Thursday). We were also joined by Jim & Angie who drove down from DHS and Paula & Mike, another set of former neighbors staying at the Palms.
    Saturday morning we played pickleball at Fortuna. Eleven beautiful courts, friendly players and good competition. Thanks Donna & Rick for your hospitality.
    Tomorrow we begin our journey east, stopping in Lordsburg, NM and Midland, Texas before arriving at Grand Prairie, Texas for a week stay to visit family.
    En savoir plus

  • February 9-11

    11 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☁️ 41 °F

    We departed Yuma early Sunday morning and had a beautiful cruise into the small town of Lordsburg, NM where we dry camped at Veterans Park.
    Monday we continued east through New Mexico into the oil and gas fields of Texas. We'd planned on spending two nights in Odessa at the Midessa Oil Patch RV Park but with below freezing temperatures and snow predicted for Tuesday and Wednesday we departed the next morning. Tuesday dawned wet, windy and cold. 34° with temperatures edging downward. After 6 hrs on the road we arrived at Loyd Park in Grand Prairie, Texas. Lucked out on a site with full hook ups for 3 nights before having to move for the remaining 5 to a site with water and electric only. As they say, everything is big in Texas... our site is paved and spacious with a covered picnic area. Wet and cold here but no ice or snow. https://grandfungp.com/loydpark/
    We move on to Bossier City, LA, Jackson Mississippi, Mobile, Alabama and Florida Feb 19th.
    En savoir plus

  • February 12-14

    14 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 41 °F

    Torrential rain Tuesday night. Wednesday we played 5 hours of pickleball at The Summit, an impressive $23 million fitness, activity and entertainment complex for folks over 50.https://grandfungp.com/thesummit/ Thursday we took Auntie Toku out to breakfast, washed & groomed Kuma, checked out the local Costco and took a walk around the park.
    Good news! Friday morning we were informed that we get to keep our full hook up site for three more nights! 😁 We spent the afternoon touring Fort Worth's Botanic Garden. Not a lot of blooms this time of year but still a perfect way to spend Valentine's Day. ❤️ http://www.fwbg.org We had a late lunch in Fort Worth Stockyards Historic District then watched the longhorn cattle drive down East Exchange Avenue. https://www.fortworthstockyards.org/
    En savoir plus

  • February 15

    15 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 55 °F

    Though we've visited the DFW area three times we've never actually done any sightseeing in Dallas so today we headed into town, which was an adventure in itself. Thank goodness for Google Maps! Wanting to avoid traffic and crowds we began our adventure at 7:15. First stop was breakfast at the Maple Leaf Diner, delicious and worth the drive. http://www.mldiner.com/news.html Next stop was a tour of the George W. Bush Presidential Library. Very impressive, informative and moving. https://www.georgewbushlibrary.smu.edu/ We finished our day with a walk around the Dallas Arts District including Klyde Warren Park. What a beautiful, vibrant area. https://www.visitdallas.com/things-to-do/dallas…
    Tomorrow we'll head back for more sightseeing.
    En savoir plus

  • February 16

    16 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

    On our second day of seeing the sights of Dallas we toured the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza located in the former Texas School Book Depository where Lee Harvey Oswald shot President Kennedy. Very interesting and well presented history of JFK's assassination and legacy. https://www.jfk.org/mobile/
    Next we wandered around the Dallas Farmers Market and had a bite to eat. https://dallasfarmersmarket.org/
    We ended our day at Dallas Heritage Village where we strolled the grounds and went into pioneer and Victorian homes and businesses. http://www.dallasheritagevillage.org/
    En savoir plus

  • February 17-18

    18 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☁️ 48 °F

    Monday Auntie Toku, Marie and Robert hosted a potluck at their house. It was wonderful getting together with our Texas cousins, their spouses, children,
    grandchildren and in-laws. Good food, good drink and good company. What more can you ask for? Tuesday was rainy and cold quite a change from the 80° temperature we had on Monday. We spent the day relaxing and grocery shopping.
    Despite the bi-polar weather we've had a great time in the Dallas Fort Worth area. Lots to do and see.
    Wednesday we travel to Bossier City, Louisiana.
    En savoir plus

  • February 19-22

    22 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 50 °F

    After a cold, wet, windy four hour drive we arrived Wednesday afternoon at Diamond Jack's Casino RV Park in Bossier City, Louisiana. We had a late lunch at Crawdaddie's Kitchen in Shreveport. Delicious fish, oysters, hush puppies and crayfish cornbread. https://crawdaddyskitchen.com/
    After many checks of the weather, traffic cams and calls to our next destination we decided to head to Brandon, Mississippi on Thursday as planned, despite flood warnings. We traveled over swollen rivers and bayous before arriving at Timberlake Campground located on the shores of Barnett Reservoir. https://www.therez.ms.gov/Pages/Timberlake.aspx
    Friday we visited the Mississippi Museum of Civil Rights https://mcrm.mdah.ms.gov/galleries/galleries and the Museum of Mississippi History. Both museums were very informative and well curated. Next we headed to Mississippi's State Capitol Building...beautiful and majestic. http://www.legislature.ms.gov/about-the-capitol
    Today we shopped the Mississippi Farmer's Market in Jackson https://www.mdac.ms.gov/bureaus-departments/far… then toured the Mississippi Museum of Art. https://www.msmuseumart.org/index.php/
    It's a good thing we're starting our mornings with kale/spinich/fruit smoothies because we're loving the blue plate specials here in the south.
    We've really enjoyed our stay near Jackson. Friendly people, good food, lots of history.
    Tomorrow we travel southeast for two nights in Mobile.
    En savoir plus

  • February 23

    23 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F

    We had a beautiful drive through the pine forests of Mississippi to the gulf coast. We're staying in Theodore, Alabama at Paynes RV Park. Since rain is forecasted for Monday we decided to visit Mobile's Botanical Gardens. It was good to stretch our legs. The camillias were toward the end of their bloom and azaleas just beginning. Magnolias, jonquils and various other flowering shrubs and trees added to the garden's beauty.En savoir plus

  • February 24

    24 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    Today we toured the USS Alabama at Battleship Memorial Park. It was a self guided tour of pretty much the entire ship inside and out. We also went into the submarine USS Drum...a bit claustrophobic to say the least, and through the aircraft pavilion (didn't spend too much time there as we've toured many air museums). All in all a great way to spend 3+ hours. Informative, historical and a good workout climbing up and down all those ladders. https://www.ussalabama.com/
    We watched a Mardi Gras parade in downtown Mobile where they tossed beads, moon pies, candy and toys off floats.😁 Apparently they have 40 parades beginning February 7th. I had no idea! Next we enjoyed an excellent lunch at the Ruby Slipper Cafe. https://www.therubyslippercafe.net/about/ We ended our tour of Mobile with a cruise down historic Dauphin Street and a visit to the Cathedral-Basilica of the Immaculate Conception.http://www.mobilecathedral.org/cms/
    Tomorrow we travel to Port St. Joe for a three night stay at Old Salt RV Park.
    En savoir plus

  • February 25-27

    27 février 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 50 °F

    We departed Mobile on Fat Tuesday and arrived at Old Salt RV Park in Port St Joe, Florida that afternoon. We're about a quarter block from being in the eastern time zone, a bit confusing as everyplace we went was in the eastern zone and the RV park was in central. There's still a lot of devastation from Hurricane Michael around this area especially in Mexico Beach.
    Wednesday was cold and rainy so we relaxed and I busied myself with domestic chores. We did take a drive out to Cape San Blas and Cape Joseph Penninsula State Park then had a late lunch and strolled around downtown Port St Joe.
    Today was cool and sunny. We spent two hours playing pickleball at Frank Pate Park in Port St Joe. Good competition and as always we met some nice people. Later we toured the Constitution Convention State Museum then took a bike ride through the adjoining neighborhoods. https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-tra…
    After dinner we took Kuma for a walk on the beach.
    Tomorrow we leave for a six night stay at Bee's RV Resort in
    Clermont, Florida.
    En savoir plus

  • February 28-March 2

    2 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    Friday we departed Florida's panhandle for Bee's RV Resort in Clermont, about 30 miles west of Orlando. We continued to see the effects of Hurricane Michael as we traveled inland as well as areas of flooding. Saturday we strolled around downtown Clermont, bicycled 20 miles of the South Lake Trail, had a tasty lunch at Cheeser's Palace Cafe then toured Clermon's Historic Village. A good day. 😊
    Yesterday we visited and dined in Winter Garden then toured the Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Gardens in Winter Park.http://polasek.org/ Lots of driving to get anywhere around here, well over an hour to travel 38 miles due to all of the lakes and traffic.
    Today we relaxed then took a tour and tasting at Lakeridge Winery and Vineyards. We purchased four bottles of their tasty wine and I highly recommend a visit there if you're in the area.
    En savoir plus

  • March 3-4

    4 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F

    Yesterday we spent two and a half hours of perfection kayaking the Wekiwa River and Rock Springs Run. We launched from Wekiwa Springs State Park. The water was 70° and crystal clear or slightly tea stained in color. We saw many water birds, varieties of turtles, and an alligator as well as flowering water plants. https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-tra…
    After our paddle we drove to the Tooting Otter Bar at Wakiva Island for cocktails which we enjoyed on the bank of the river. We also viewed some artwork as they were having their annual Wekiva Paint Out Art Auction. https://www.wekivaisland.com/?utm_source=google…
    Today we played pickleball at Pear Park in Leesburg. Twelve fenced courts and excellent play, though I only lasted about 90 minutes with 80+° temps and 80% humidity. 🥵 After pickleball we took a walk through Venetian Gardens Park, on the shores of Lake Harris, then stopped for local strawberries and red navel oranges. The oranges cost about four times more than the ones we buy in SoCal. They are delicious, but not 4 Xs tastier. Produce and dairy are expensive around here.
    Tomorrow we move to Peace River RV Park in Wauchula, about
    two hours south of here, for a four night stay.
    En savoir plus

  • March 5-7

    6 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

    Thursday we traveled 86 miles south to Peace River RV Resort in Wauchula. Friday morning we played a couple of hours of pickleball at the park's courts then launched the kayak and had a beautiful four mile paddle on the Peace River. Very convenient to have pickleball courts and a boat launch on premises.
    Saturday we drove west to Punta Gorda for pickleball at the Pickleplex. Good play, but windy, on 16 beautiful courts. https://www.pickleplex.org/
    We had a bite to eat and shopped at Punta Gorda's farmers market before visiting our family friend, Shawn, and his family.
    We got to meet his two adorable daughters and got to know his wife, Kelsey, better. What a stellar family.
    En savoir plus

  • March 8

    8 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 68 °F

    Today we spent the day in Sarasota. We shopped the farmers market and shops at Siesta Key, took a long beach walk and lunched on a delicious omelette at the Village Cafe. Next we visited the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens. A fantastic garden that is having a Salvador Dali exhibition and have incorporated Dali's themes into the garden. A bit surreal with lots of eyeballs and eggs. https://selby.org/
    We're really glad we became members of the Oregon Gardens as we've benefited from their reciprocal admissions program during our travels, four gardens so far and more to come!
    Tomorrow we head to Miccosukee Casino in Miami for one night of dry camping before we continue south for five nights at Sunshine Key RV Resort in Big Pine Key.
    En savoir plus

  • March 9-11

    11 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F

    Monday we traveled southeast through orange groves and fields of sugarcane to the edge of the everglades where we spent the night at Miccosukee Casino in Miami.
    Tuesday we continued our journey south until we reached the Overseas Hwy, aka hwy 1, where we had a beautiful drive, by and over turquoise blue water until we arrived at Sunshine Key RV Resort and Marina, our home for the next five nights. https://www.rvonthego.com/florida/sunshine-key-…
    This morning we played pickleball then drove to Marathon Key for a delicious lunch at the Cracked Conch Cafe. We spent the afternoon exploring Bahia Honda State Park.
    https://www.floridastateparks.org/BahiaHonda
    It's interesting to see parts of the old Florida East Coast Railroad running parallel to hwy 1. https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-tra…
    Needless to say it's beautiful here in the Keys... though touristy.
    En savoir plus

  • March 12

    12 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F

    Today we visited the Key Deer Refuge Visitors Center in Big Pine Key. We spotted a couple of the tiny endangered deer while driving to No Name Key.https://www.fws.gov/refuge/National_Key_Deer_Re…
    Next we continued down the Overseas Hwy to Key West where we spent five hours walking and biking the historic district. We shopped Truman Waterfront Market and peeked into some of the shops on Duval Street and Mallory Square; toured the Key West Museum of Art and History
    https://www.kwahs.org/museums/custom-house/visit; had drinks and delicious bite to eat at Santiago's Bodega https://santiagosbodega.com/. We really enjoyed our day in Key West. Great architecture, history, art, food and drink and very bike and pedestrian friendly.
    En savoir plus

  • March 13-14

    14 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 79 °F

    Yesterday we launched our kayak from the resort's boat launch and had a nice paddle around Ohio Key. We paddled the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic, spotted two rays and three small sharks...a good morning. We were on the water again in the afternoon. Our friend Alan, who has a vacation home and boat on Big Pine Key, took us out for a cruise and fed us a delicious dinner of fish he'd caught. Many thanks to Alan & Lisa for their hospitality.
    Today we played pickleball and got to know some interesting folks between games.
    We've enjoyed our stay in the Keys. The corona virus hasn't hit here so it's been more relaxed then on the mainland. Tomorrow we head to Larry & Penny Thompson Park in Miami for a four night stay.
    En savoir plus

  • March 15-18

    18 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ⛅ 81 °F

    We've had a quiet four days during our stay at Larry & Penny Thompson Park in South Miami. http://www.miamidade.gov/parks/larry-penny.asp We've been diligently practicing social distancing, especially since Randy developed tonsillitis and wasn't feeling up to par Sunday or Monday. He was able to schedule a virtual doctor's visit, got a prescription for antibiotics and is feeling much better now. Tuesday we drove to Everglades National Park and took a long bike ride around the Flamingo Campground and Marina as well as Echo Pond. All visitors centers were closed. https://www.nps.gov/ever/planyourvisit/basicinf…
    We came home to a traditional corned beef and cabbage dinner,
    Today we biked the Old Cutler Trail and peddled past many, many multi million dollar mansions. https://www.bikeflorida.net/fl-bike-trails/old-…
    Tomorrow we travel north to Mims on Florida's Space Coast.
    En savoir plus

  • March 19-23

    23 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 81 °F

    We arrived at Seasons in the Sun RV Resort in Mims, FL on Thursday. A very nice park with pools, clubhouse etc, all which were closed. There is a pickleball court but no one is playing, which is probably a good idea. We've mostly been staying at home, cleaning, reading, watching the tube and taking bike rides and walks around the park. Friday we took a drive to Canaveral National Seashore. I managed to snap a photo of a manatee while maintaining a safe social distance. https://www.nps.gov/cana/planyourvisit/basicinf…
    We'd hoped to tour Kennedy Space Center but it was closed due to the virus.
    Since most of the sites we planned on visiting are closed as are restaurants and some RV parks we've decided to practice an abundance of caution and cut our trip short. It will also be good to be close to family during these difficult times. We'll be taking approximately the same route home as it took to get here, just at a slightly faster pace, traveling 5-6
    hours a day. This route will keep us out of tornado alley and the Rocky Mountains.
    I had some delicious take out shrimp and grits today. I'd hope to have some in South Carolina's low country but.... oh well. 🤷‍♀️
    To all of our family and friends, stay safe and healthy.
    En savoir plus

  • March 24-30

    30 mars 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 54 °F

    We began our return journey to Oregon on Tuesday. Our first night was spent in Tallahassee, FL;
    Wednesday in Hattiesburg, MS; Thursday in Longview, TX ; Friday and Saturday in Goodlett, TX. Arrived in Albuquerque for a four night stay on Sunday. We're at Enchanted Trails RV Park a cute place with vintage trailers for rent. We've booked April 2-9 in Kingman, AZ then plan on 2-3 nights of boondocking our way back to our home base in Oregon. Our plans are of course tentative depending on the coronavirus situation. Though we're disappointed that we had to cut our tour of the southeast short we don't miss the humidity and record breaking heat.
    We've been diligently social distancing, "staying at home", washing hands and disinfecting surfaces and hope all of our friends and family are doing the same. It's amazing how many people are not... just ask Randy about the horror of truck stops.
    Stay safe and healthy.
    En savoir plus

  • March 31-April 7

    7 avril 2020, États Unis ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F

    We spent our last two days in Albuquerque hiking the desert adjoining the RV park. We also stocked up on groceries and shouldn't have to provision again for two weeks.😊
    Thursday we departed New Mexico for Arizona, a windy drive, arriving at Ft Beale RV Park in Kingman after a seven hour drive. https://www.visitarizona.com/cities/west-coast/…
    The weather has been beautiful, in the low 70's, so we've been taking our daily walks around the neighborhood and into downtown Kingman. They have some nice murals and metal sculpture. Today we took a walking tour of Kingman's historic buildings. It's been easy to practice social distancing as it's pretty dead around here.
    I got my sewing machine out and repurposed a pillow case into masks for Randy and I. We've been starting out our mornings with dynamic stretching, resistance band, pilates ring and bodyweight exercises. We've also been bowling with our Nintendo Switch. I'm ahead best 2 out of 3 the past two days....not that we're keeping score. 😉
    We'll probably stay put for the next week or two before heading north.
    En savoir plus