Tag: Arizona

Living and working in Tucson, AZ

Hello everyone! It’s that time again. Tim and I are going to go on another road trip adventure, this time to Baja California! Before all that, I would like to tell you about my last assignment in Tucson, Az.

I worked at Tucson Medical Center, but everyone around here calls it TMC for short. I worked night shift in the ICU. They call it the Neuro ICU, however I personally consider it to be more of a medical ICU. There is also a CVICU (Cardiovascular). The night shift staff has a great team work mentality and are very traveler friendly. I can go into more details if anyone has questions please post them in the comment section.

We parked our home at Far Horizons RV resort. As the name implies, it is an age restricted park (55+), but they allow travel nurses to stay. I can’t tell you how friendly and welcoming the people are at this park. Tim and I are obviously not 55 but we never felt out of place. We made friends with many of our neighbors and even learned how to play a new game, Pickleball! The park is spotless, with at least 5 staff constantly pruning or raking. There is a very nice clubhouse with a pool and hottub. As a traveling nurse, this is a prime spot to stay because of it’s location near different hospitals, including TMC.

Tucson is a great place to visit although it can get very hot in the summer, with daily tempatures exceeding 95 degrees F. Tim and I were here from October to December. This was a great time to be here because the park wasn’t very crowded and the tempatures were perfect 70 degrees F during the day 50 degrees F at night. The snowbirds start to flock here in December and fill up the RV parks till March. There are lots of hiking opportunities. Sabino Canyon National Forest is just around the corner but can get really crowded on the weekends. There are a variey of other forests/parks that are less than an hour drive including Saguaro National Park and Mount Lemon. Since the University of Arizona is here in Tucson, the downtown scene has a fun party vibe going on at night especially during the football season home games.

All in all, my experience in Tucson was pretty awesome. I will remember the friends I made here and the friendliness of the general public. I could see myself returning here for another assignment in the future.

https://www.tmcaz.com/ – Tucson Medical Center

http://www.tucsonvillage.com/ – Far Horizons RV park website

A Mobile RV Repair – Tucson, AZ – The Worst Service of a Lifetime

I’m usually a real easy going person and don’t bother with bad reviews. I like to try to look at the positive but this service was so bad I’d like to make as many people aware of it a possible so hopefully I can save someone else the hassle.

It started about two weeks ago. I had a number of items built up over our previous two month trip that I wanted to repair/upgrade. I saw A Mobile RV Repair in the park and in fact he advertises in the park newspaper here at Far Horizons Tucson so I figured I’d give them a try. I give em a call in the morning, don’t get anyone, and leave a message but never hear back. Not a great sign but I call the next day anyways and get him and set up an appointment. I give him a list of items over the phone that I plan to have repaired/replaced including the water pump, a whole new roof vent, and new sink and some other minor items. Certainly a few hours work.

So when he shows up he immediately tells me he has to leave at noon, his assistant couldn’t make it, and he’ll only be able to do an item or two and he’ll have to come back for the rest. This is a real hassle for us as we live full-time on our RV and my wife works night shift so she usually sleeps during the day. Anyways he takes care of an item or two and we schedule for him to come back out, this time to hopefully complete the work, the following Wednesday. He surprises me by showing up early Monday morning, riling the dog up and waking my wife up. When I tell him he was scheduled for Wednesday he just says “Oh” and the asks if he can work anyways! I tell him no because my wife literally just got home from work and needs to sleep and that he’ll have to come back on Wednesday.

So Wednesday rolls around and he shows up with his assistant and begins to work. All seems to go fine they get the roof vent in and the new water pump in seemingly without too much trouble. However this is where it all went to hell. The water pump was running and running. I had to leave for an appointment but he said he was going to stay behind and test the pump. Later he tells me that the pump is bad, it needs to be sent back to the manufacturer. Mind you this is a brand new pump so I thought it was a bit odd but things do happen and he said he tested and confirmed it was bad. So he removed the new pump and re-installed the old pump again so we could still use our water. Mind you the pump is not the in the most accessible location and he’s charging me $100/hr for this.

Before sending it back I figured I’d take a look at the manual. Low and behold it says if the pump runs continuously to turn a nut right on the face of the pump a quarter turn and that should take care of it. Since the pump is no longer in the RV it’s not real easy for me to actually test that so I give him a call to see if he tried that, no answer and no return call. So I go to Home Depot to get some hoses, a bucket, and some wires so I can test this thing out of the RV. Amazingly with a quarter turn the “defective pump” is miraculously “fixed”. I expect that someone that charges $100/hr could have figured that out easier than me, someone who has only been RVing for 6 months and was never terribly handy in the first place. I figure it’s not too big of a deal though, he said he guarantees his work so I’m sure he’ll come put it back in for free and even refund me the money for removing the new pump and putting the old one back in. I mean clearly the pump was not defective right?

So I call him the next two days to see about him coming out and get the same response, nothing. Finally on the third day he gives me a call back, I ask him if he got my messages, he says sure, he guarantees his work, and when can he come back out? So we set up for that Wednesday morning. Wednesday morning rolls around and there is no RV tech? So I call, no answer, no return call. At this point I’m thinking maybe he’s in the hospital or something but I keep calling. Finally four days later, instead of calling me like a decent human, he sends me a text message, he’s sticking with the story the pump is defective and he’s not coming out. Apparently a quarter turn on a nut is too much to ask of a tech with 30 years experience? I should have sent the pump back to the manufacturer to have them turn the nut and then paid him to reinstall it?

I tried to convince him still to just come out and fix his mistake but he just flat out refused. At this point I tell him I plan to make sure everyone here’s all about his “service” both online and in the park. He then proceeds to threaten me that he’s going to trash my business online if I bother to post the truth about the way I was treated! Mind you he literally isn’t even certain of what my business actually is, lol. Judging by the way he treated me so far, I’ll be expecting him to try anyways. I posted the texts below which I received four days after his NO CALL NO SHOW for entertainment value.

Anyways this was by far the worst service I’ve ever had in my entire life, and having rehabbed a lot of homes, I have worked with a LOT of contractors. The scheduling trouble, the no call no show(is this a business owner or a minimum wage MCDonald’s employee?), the misdiagnosis on the pump, the failure to correct it, and then the (idle?)threats, all add up to some horrendous service. Hopefully at least one person will read this and not even bother to call him.

[11/21/2015 9:31 AM] A Mobile RV Repair (5202352220): A Mobile RV Repair

I guarantee all parts that I sell. You bought a discounted water pump on line that was not adjusted properly or is defective. I have installed over 50 water pumps and have never had a pump I have had to adjust.

[11/21/2015 9:33 AM] Me: All it needed was a quarter turn on the screw. It clearly says in the manual to turn that if the pump is running. At $100 an hour I expect better than that. Then you agree to do, set an appointment, and no call no show? That’s not very professional…

[11/21/2015 9:37 AM] A Mobile RV Repair (5202352220): You cannot adjust pump with it installed, there is not enough room because of where the manufacturer put your pump. Pump was not adjusted properly from supplier.

[11/21/2015 9:38 AM] Me: Now you just making stuff up, you could easily get a small Allen wrench there. It took literally 5 seconds to correct. Just admit you screwed up and take care of it. It’s not that big of a deal.

[11/21/2015 9:43 AM] A Mobile RV Repair (5202352220): I did not screw up. You bought a discounted part on line that was not adjusted properly. You get what you pay for!!!!

[11/21/2015 9:49 AM] Me: It was not a discounted part, it is brand new is functioning just fine. You just didn’t bother with any real troubleshooting. If you want to play it like that, fine. But I’m going to make sure everyone, both here and online, hears about it. Not to mention your terrible customer service. You schedule to do the work and don’t have sufficient time or your assistant the first day, come back on the wrong day the next time, then you make an appointment and no call no show, and then send me text three days later. Again very professional, I’ve gotten better service from $20/hr off Craigslist…

[11/21/2015 10:26 AM] Me: Alright, I guess you made your decision. Unbelievable. You’d rather damage your reputation and your business than admit that you made a little mistake and correct it.

[11/21/2015 11:27 AM] A Mobile RV Repair (5202352220): I’ve been in business since 1984. I have more regular customers than I can handle,so if you want to waste your time bashing me go for it, you are not going to hurt me or my business. I am not going to guarantee any part not supplied by A Mobile RV Repair. Your the one who made mistake by buying inferior part on line, and now you are wanting me to correct your problem at my expense. I see you are in the reality business so you might want to think twice before you start bashing mine. I am pretty computer savey if that’s the way you want to go. 

[11/21/2015 12:31 PM] Me: That’s pretty sad, you’ve been in the business as long as I’ve been alive and I was able to identify the problem within in five minutes. That should tell you something, considering I’ve been RVing for six months. There is nothing wrong with the part. It just hurts your pride to admit you messed, you should have been able to figure that out at least as fast as I did. It be comical if I hadn’t already paid you.

[11/21/2015 12:36 PM] Me: Telling the truth isn’t bashing someone by the way and considering you literally have had nothing to do with my business you’d just be fabricating stories. Judging by the way you’ve handled this I wouldn’t expect any less though …

Grand Canyon National Park, AZ

Whelp, I’ve slashed off another item off my bucket list. Before I go into the details of the awesomeness, let me tell you about where we camped. Man I’m glad we have the means to disperse camp, because the campgrounds around here are pricey and fully booked! We camped right outside of Tusayan in the Kaibab National Forest. We drove up Forest Road 302 a mere ¼ mile before we found a bunch of nice options to choose from. It was the perfect spot, only a 5 minute drive to the entry gate of the Grand Canyon National Park AND we were able to pick up wifi and cell service since we were so close to town. The only thing, (as there always is one thing) were the helicopters constantly flying to and from the airport. They make quite the business from paying customers who want to see the Grand Canyon by air. However it wasn’t a big deal because we spent the days out and about anyways.

When we approached the gate there were 5 lanes filled with cars. It felt like going into Disney World. Once again our America the Beautiful pass got us in for free, otherwise you have to pay $25 per car/7 days. The park attendant hands you a worthless map and you proceed to the visitor center. I say it’s worthless because it doesn’t give any detail about roads or trails. They pretty much herd all tourists to park at the visitor center and utilize the buses to get around. I guess this is efficient to prevent traffic jams within the park. At the visitor center there is information about the trails and which bus to take to get to the trail heads. The trails range from easy paved ridge walks to extremely difficult. Tim and I agreed on the Bright Angel Trail to Plateau Point. A 12 mile round trip classified as extremely difficult with a projected 8-12 hour finish time.

So now the climatic moment of my first view the canyon. We took the blue bus to Bright Angel TH. As I ascend up the hill, my eyes eagerly focus ahead for the first glimpse, my foot steps carefully approach the railing and then….it’s there, stretching to the horizon. I initially had to hold on to the railing to fully take it all in. It was so beautiful it didn’t feel real, it seemed like I was looking at a large beautiful painting on a projector screen. After a few moments I said, “okay lets go” and we descended into the canyon.

Down, down, down we go, passing by heavy dry-mouth breathing, red-faced hikers of all ages and sizes coming up. I started to dread the return trip. I pushed the thought behind me and focused on my footing. Two hours later we reach the campground where we had lunch in the oasis. Beware of the squirrels! They are cute indeed but they are very aggressive. While Tim and I snacked on Cheeze-Its, they creeped up and stared, expecting us to throw one. Tim had to stomp to make them run away, otherwise I’m sure they would of jumped us. After lunch and evading the squirrel attack, we proceeded to plateau point. It…was….hot…. No shade, no water, be prepared if you plan to do this hike. It was very rewarding as you get a spectacular view of the roaring Colorado River. They are plenty of opportunities for cool pictures if you are brave enough to stand on one of the rocks that jut out into the canyon. Ascending the canyon was a grueling 3000 elevation gain. It took us 8 hours to hike the whole trip. I must say this was probably THE most difficult hike I’ve done.

The next day we were both sore and exhausted so we did the easier South Rim trail. It’s paved, easy, has many awesome viewpoints of the canyon, BUT – this is where all the tourists come since you can access the trail from the visitor center. If you walk a mere 100 feet from Mather Point, the tourists thin out significantly. Dogs are allowed on the South Rim Trail, so Marilyn got to enjoy the view too.

We have officially hit our one month anniversary for full-timing (que applause). We’ve had a few hiccups, but we are still truckin’ to Seattle. Next stop, Sequoia National Park.

Tonto and Coconino National Forest, AZ

 

I combined these forests into one post because if you look at the map, they border each other, yet are separated for some reason I don’t know. After a nice visit at Tim’s Grandparent’s home in Tuscon, we took the scenic highway 77 up to highway 188 to Theodore Roosevelt Lake in the Tonto Basin. Highway 77 was a lovely route to take to get into Tonto National Forest. One tall, looming thing stands out in the landscape of Arizona, the Seguaro catcus. The large, Gumbi-like cactus stands as tall as a grown man and grows multiple arms. Since it’s a National Forest, we could of dispersed camped anywhere for free but because I wanted to be by the lake we stayed at Bermuda Flat’s campground for $6/day. We literally pulled the fifth wheel right up to the edge of the lake. We kept the windows open to hear the sound of the water breaking on the sand and to feel the occasional cool breeze. The only thing I didn’t like about the site by the lake was the bugs. They were not the biting kind of fly but they swarmed all day and night anywhere sheltered by the wind. I celebrated by 31st birthday here and was happy to get cell service so I could receive happy birthday calls and messages on Facebook. We spent two nights here before heading to Coconino National Forest.

At Coconino we only stayed one night because we were anxious to get to the Grand Canyon. From Highway 3, F.R. 132 is called Crimson Road, so we passed it initially. We drove quite a ways up the gravel forest road 132 and found a nice little open patch in the woods. Once we started up the narrow gravel road we were dedicated. Doing this with a car or truck is not a big deal, but when you are towing something there is a slight worry in the back of your mind, will I be able to find a spot to camp? Will I be able to turn around if I can’t find a spot? We told ourselves that next time we would pull over and unhitch the trailer so we could scout out a spot a little easier. Since we arrived early, we had time to go for a hike to see Priest’s Draw, a large exposed rock that is popular for bouldering. Bouldering is when you climb up the rock a couple feet without ropes. We saw several people bouldering, carrying with them crash pads to place under the rock for when/if they fall. We also saw a bunch of chipmunks, which triggered me to sing Alvin and the Chipmunks Christmas songs pretty much the whole time.

There wasn’t too much going on in these places, hence the short and sweet post. They were means to get to the Grand Canyon, on which I will extensively report next time! Thanks for reading!