As we rolled down the long hill from the I10 freeway into
Benson, it felt like we were returning home. The plan is to stay here for two months before heading east. We look forward to returning to the SKP Saguaro Co-op all year.
This is our fourth year here and everything is now familiar enough that we immediately notice the small differences as we pass through town. A couple restaurants have closed, a new car wash (lousy) has been built and the neon pricing sign at Benson Fuels is still broken. Maybe you really can come home? As we approach the park turn off the new electric sign really jumps out, especially because of all the brush and trees that I helped clear out along the road last year.
This is our fourth year here and everything is now familiar enough that we immediately notice the small differences as we pass through town. A couple restaurants have closed, a new car wash (lousy) has been built and the neon pricing sign at Benson Fuels is still broken. Maybe you really can come home? As we approach the park turn off the new electric sign really jumps out, especially because of all the brush and trees that I helped clear out along the road last year.
 |
| The Saguaro totems viewed thru the windshield at site 9 |
As the economy improves more people have taken up RV’ing,
making it harder to get space in the best parks like Saguaro. Reservations are
not accepted here, so I’ve been nervous about arriving after New Years and
getting a vacant lot. As I feared, no lots were available when we pulled in on
January 2nd, so we had to dry-camp until one opened up. Dry camping means we
were assigned a space in a large parking area without any utility hookups. That
isn’t an issue with our coach, so we set up, walked the dogs and, it being
Tuesday, went to Bingo at the clubhouse.
Lucy and Schroeder clearly share our feelings about this
place. They were up and alert as soon as we hit the driveway and couldn’t wait
to get going on their walk after we set up. As I’ve described before, Saguaro
is surrounded by desert that is crisscrossed with miles of trails that are used
extensively by the park dogs and the native wildlife. Lucy and Schroeder wanted
to sniff it all, and pee on most of it, right now!
We were pleasantly surprised when one of the office team
knocked on the door
 |
| Lot 9: home, sweet home, we hope |
Saguaro, like all the cooperative parks, owes its existence
to volunteers. Volunteers conceived of the park, and designed and built most of
it. 28 years later the park still thrives because volunteers continue to
shoulder most of the tasks required to maintain the infrastructure and make
improvements. There are only four paid staff, so volunteers put in thousands of
hours every year. I work on the landscaping and facilities crews, and Kayeanne
volunteers on the clubhouse and Bingo teams.
It is certainly nice to see so many familiar faces. After
four years, it seems we are now recognized
as part of the community. That’s a good feeling. Weekly dinners, Bingo, movies,
entertainment and lots of activities and nice people make us look forward to
coming back every year.
We plan to leave here in early March. After a short detour
to Phoenix to visit old friends and a slight
backtrack to Yuma for a couple of days, we will head to Florida
to see Kayeanne’s brother and cousins.
More soon,
Bob
