Monday, April 26, 2021

Sierra Primavera

And so it came to pass that we left Pahrump (we'll always have Pahrump) and drove back across the Mojave into California and the greener land of the Central Valley--land of fruits and nuts--and eventually up into the western foothills of the Sierra, about 30 miles south of Yosemite National Park. Our destination was the Park of the Sierras Escapees' RV park, near Coarsegold, CA. We were there almost two weeks, including an initial stay at the nearby Chukchansi Casino. We were quite enamored of Park of the Sierras, the terrain and natural landscaping, mostly, but also the situation, not too far from Coarsegold and Yosemite and only half an hour's drive to Fresno. It was early spring when we arrived, everything green and budding and blooming, adding to the interest. The Park was still on a mostly buttoned-down basis due to COVID, so we didn't fraternize with the residents much, but we very much liked what we saw. 

Google view of the Park of the Sierras; all the 
previous Escapee RV parks we've visited have
been laid out on right angle grids...flatlanders...
not this park, in the foothills of the Sierras, it's
very hilly, but very scenic; getting our daily steps
proved to be quite a chore



























Our campsite, #314









The enormous clubhouse
















Outcrops like this everywhere, in practically every site


















More or less typical site


















Despite some uniformity in out-buildings, there was plenty of
room for expression in the landscaping; here, the gong show



















Californiana






Sunset in one of the park areas

















Only half the park is developed; the other half has been left
more or less wild, with a mile or so long hiking path; excellent
signage...




















Coarsegold (or some other) Creek runs through the property;
you have to ford it to get to the trail



















Vicki braving the raging torrent


















The Creek


















Interesting erosion, creating many pots and tubs


















But the main attraction was all the wildflowers and new green
leaves everywhere






































































We were hoping it might be a California condor, but it was only 
a (very common) turkey vulture; still, the third largest North
American bird, after the condor and the osprey




















Parting shot/practical advice department: under the car you'll see
a rope of LED lights, something we've seen in any number of RV
parks recently; evidently, the thinking is, the lights scare off any
rodents that might want to chew on your electrical cables and wires
in the engine compartment (a serious problem); we were all set to
order a 40 foot length, but then we happened on to the Monday
Mousetrap YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=EVN9JXUJXdY&ab_channel=ShawnWoods
) and were
disabused, and much amused, by this and similar episodes...truly, 
one of the treasures of the Internet...

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