Between Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona

34-Day Cross Country RV Trip + 7-Day Caribbean Cruise 2022

Day 2: Quartzsite to Benson, Arizona

April 29, 2022

We have decided that to make good use of our time, we would try to leave the campground around 9:00 every morning. This was just what we did on this second day on the road. As we pulled out of our camp site, we thought we should go in town to see if we can get some spare keys made for the RV. There are plenty of services geared towards RV, so we may have a better chance getting them done here.

Getting ready to leave our site.

The vacant lot across that was parked with many big trucks during the night.

We managed to get a couple of keys made but not the one for the ignition. The ones we had them made were quite expensive, sticker shock! 

Now, we are on our way to our next destination back on I-10 going east. Surprisingly, there are much to see on this stretch of the freeway even though it's just dry, desert land. The mountain ranges and the landscapes were quite interesting, making this an easier drive and not as boring.

As we got a little closer to Phoenix, about an hour and a half from Quartzsite, we made a stop at the Rest Area for a short break. We did not need to use the facility, just stopping for a brief rest. This rest stop was quite nice, with picnic tables and huge lot. They did a good job keeping this place nice and clean.

The last Rest Area before Phoenix.

Our plan for this trip is not to go into big cities along the way. For one, we did not want to deal with the traffic, and also we might have problems finding parking for our RV in town. We also tried to avoid places with lots of people, particularly indoor. We are still dealing with the pandemic.

I-10 started turning south before reaching the city of Phoenix, making it traffic-free for us. 

Caught a glimpse of Phoenix as I-10 turned southward.

Phoenix downtown

Passed by Pecacho Peak State Park which seems to be a good camping place.

Pinal Airpark Boneyard

One of our destination for today was to check out the planes at Pinal Airpark which is just north of Tucson. Sorry that I did not have photos of the planes because we were just driving by and very difficult to take pictures when the vehicle was moving. Please check out our video of the place if interested here. 

When we got there, it was almost 2:00. We wanted to try the Flightline Bar and Grill on site which has good reviews. We made it in time to get in last minute as the place was closing down for the afternoon. The servers were all very nice and did not kick us out but we just did not get to enjoy their salad bar which would have included in our orders. They have already cleaned up the salad bar. We did get everything else that came with our meals, including the all you can drink beverage bar. Food was delicious! Especially their famous Adobe Cream Cheese Burger. Yum!

The inside of Flightline Bar and Grill.

All emptied.

Waiting for food!

It was comfortable and cool 

The famous Adobe Cream Cheese Burger with a side of fries.

This one with a side of macaroni and cheese.

We had to come out from the backdoor since they were closed officially.

Front of Flightline Bar and Grill which, I believe, is mainly for the employees here.

Saguaro National Park West

After viewing all those planes parked at Pinal Airpark we continued our drive south towards Tucson. Of course, we had to make a stop at the Saguaro National Park. There are two Saguaro National Park sites in the area. One in the west and one in the east and we decided to visit the location on the west because of limited time. 

From Pinal Airpark it's a half hour drive whichever route to take but we followed the Google map GPS which took us through the back road instead of I-10. Seemed like a long drive but eventually we got there. We will only be visiting the Visitor Center here and just take a short hike to see the saguaro instead of driving the whole loop since part of the loop is unpaved. It wouldn't be good to ruin our tires so early on in this trip.

I am not going to explain too much about saguaro since most people know that it's the largest species of cactus and it's a symbol of Arizona. It takes years and years for them to grow into such awesome plants. 

Saguaros along the road as we drove into the park.

Huge RV parking available at the Visitor center parking lot.

A short walk to the building.

Visitor Center

View of the cacti from the back of the visitor center.

We thought this man-like shape cactus looked interesting.

600 feet of trail behind the visitor center, we can handle that!

Back of the building as we were on the trail.

On the trail.

Had to watch for bees and other critters.

Absolutely beautiful walk.

Valley Vista RV Resort

After enjoying our afternoon at the National Park, we took the last leg of today's drive to Benson where we will be spending the night at our first Thousand Trails campground. This is called Valley Vista Resort, one of the many 50+ campgrounds in Arizona.

We have already checked in online but they still had some papers for us to fill out when we got there. At least they were expecting us with a package waiting for us outside the office. 

This campground is really clean and quiet. This is not the busy season so the place was not full by any means. It would have been nice to take a dip in their swimming pool but after a day of traveling, we were tired. A simple dinner ended our day and we were ready for bed. 

Entrance to Valley Vista

Video of this part of our day here.

"...but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid..."   -- Numbers 14:9