Bambi's Most Magnificent Adventures: Lake Tamarisk RV Resort - Desert Center, CA

Lake Tamarisk RV Resort - Desert Center, CA - August 11, 2021

It seemed to take more effort than in the past to get everything pulled together to get out of Tucson. We had Bambi serviced at Lazy Days RV Service, Fritz serviced at BMW of Tucson, and spent hours packing up to leave … perhaps the thought of being gone longer than usual launched us into a mode of hyper-preparedness, perhaps taking Coco on her first long trip had us thinking and re-thinking her needs, perhaps just the year of pandemic living has made us more cautious … whatever the reason(s), it took a bit more work to get on the road.

But, we did get on the road, leaving Tucson on Wednesday, August 11, headed for our intermediate stop at Lake Tamarisk RV Resort in Desert Center, CA. Desert Center may not seem familiar to many, but the drive along I-10 into California has an area where there is a line of dead, dying, and downed palm trees alongside the roadway … that is Desert Center. It may have been a vision that someone had to build it and they will come, line it with palm trees and it will be seen as an oasis.

The homes are a mixture of mobile homes, travel trailers that no longer travel, and constructed, permanent homes. The homeowners seemed to have put time and effort into creating a unique environment reflecting each homeowner … one had a collection of wind chimes, another a collection of ceramic dogs lining the patio of their now permanent trailer home, another built a cactus garden with kitschy items picked up from their travels. There is an “18 hole” golf course, that is actually a 9 hole golf course with a different tee for the second time around the course. It had the look of what might have once been a dream of retirement living, to one that was a past by, a bit faded, and definitely hot!

So hot that the water from the faucet has to be cooled before using it. The water lines are just 6 inches below the surface of the ground and the water is so super-heated by the temperature on the ground that homeowners add cooled water to their faucet water to be able to use it.

It was a long drive … we had an easy to use site … and fortunately had air conditioning.

In the morning we walked through the area and found Lake Tamarisk and walked around the lake before heading out on our way to Santa Barbara