All posts by paula

RV Park Reviews

Review – Ventura Ranch KOA *****

We stayed in Santa Paula for a week, near Ventura and Ojai, CA.  We weren’t sure what we wanted to do in the area, but we remembered that it’s a pretty area from a trip we took up here several years ago.

Our criteria when choosing an RV Park to stay at is first: they allow Laddy (some don’t allow Dobermans as some insurance considers them an aggresive breed, for those of you who know Laddy you know how silly that is!); second: price, as we are on a budget; third: they are close enough to the area attractions that we aren’t spending a ton on money on fuel; fourth: at least elec and water as we aren’t into “dry camping”; and fifth: Jeff looks on Google Earth to see if it’s an attractive RV park with shade and enough space.

We knew before arriving in Santa Paula that they would allow Laddy, the price was reasonable for the central Ca. coast, that it was less than 20 miles to either Ventura and the coast and also less than 20 miles to Ojai and the hilly area of the region.  We opted for an elec/water only site as the full hookups were more expensive, and from Google Earth the park looked rustic and pretty with lots of shade trees and space around the sites.

The first site they selected for us was very tight for a 30′ trailer (really 34′ if you count the hitch) and didn’t have room to park the truck as it was on the outside of a loop meaning a pie-wedge shaped space.  They let us move to another site for all but the last night which was part of Easter weekend and already booked.  So, we were comfortable in the site.

The park itself is lovely, large with lots of trees, shrubbery, flowers etc.  There was a patch of irises just behind our trailer that was blooming (my favorite flower).  There were squirrels and bunnies and ducks and a flock of peacocks that would wander through the park, the alpha male showing off his large feathery display several times a day.  This KOA is very kid-friendly with a huge jumping pillow (about 40 kids would fit on it at once!) and a zipline too!  We decided to ride the zipline and there’s a separate blog entry about that with videos 🙂

So, this RV park gets 5 stars from us!

Dog Park Reviews, Places we've been Reviews (parks, museums etc), Restaurant Reviews, Reviews, RV Park Reviews

New to our Blog – Reviews!

After being on the road for several months, Jeff and I have realized we can’t recall names of restaurants we enjoyed, some details about RV Parks that we might want to remember if we come to an area again, etc.

And, we’ve realized that while online review websites such as Yelp.com and BringFido.com have some good information, we find some dog parks and good places to visit through other avenues such as neighbors at an RV Park or just driving by and saying “Oh, look…!”

So, we thought we’d better start documenting the good and the bad about places we’ve been.  We’ll focus on RV Parks, dog parks and restaurants as we need those everywhere, but we’ll also include local attractions such as museums, state and county parks, etc that we visit and either like or want to avoid next time.

Dog Park Reviews

Laddy got to enjoy the beach and surf in Avila Beach, CA

When we first got Laddy he was very unsure of putting his feet into water – what a long way he’s come!!  We took him to a beach in Avila Beach that a neighbor had said dogs could go off-leash, and boy did he have a great time!!  There were several other dogs catching a frisbee in the surf and he joined right in – got very wet but had a blast!

I’m hoping to upload a video of him playing in the water.

Here’s  my review on BringFido: http://www.bringfido.com/attraction/10811/

Restaurant Reviews

Paisano’s Pizza and Pasta in Grover Beach, CA *****

4/3/2013: We were in the mood for pizza while visiting the Pismo Beach area and chose Paisano’s as we drove down E. Grand in the Grover Beach area.  WONDERFUL tasting pizza!  The toppings were crowded on the pizza (not skimpy like some places)  and the sauce and cheese were excellent in flavor.
The pizza was cooked a bit longer than at some places, but it wasn’t dry at all!  It was very flavorful and much more authentic than you’ll get at a chain.
Definitely a place to go to get good pizza!

See our review on Yelp (says the same thing as here): http://www.yelp.com/biz/paisanos-pizza-and-pasta-grover-beach

 

29-Pismo Beach, CA, Places we Visit-Year 1

Pismo Beach

We moved on Saturday to Pismo Beach where we’ll stay for 2 weeks enjoying this area.  We’ve been to San Luis Obispo and Morro Beach before and love this area so we wanted to have plenty of time.

It’s a good thing too, as Thursday I went down with the flu, and Saturday evening Jeff did.  So the first several days of our stay here is Pismo Beach we didn’t do anything but lay around and eat toast.  Ugh!

28-Ventura and Ojai, CA, Places we Visit-Year 1

Riding the zipline at the Ventura Ranch KOA campground

We discovered while we were staying at the Ventura Ranch KOA that they have a zipline!  Neither of us had ridden one before and both of us wanted to, so here was our chance!  We signed up to ride and were in a group consisting of mostly kids – some were young enough that they had to ride tandem (there has to be 80 pounds on the line or it won’t go the whole distance and then the kid would be left dangling in the air!)

Here’s a photo of Jeff in the gear and ready to go:

and here are a couple of Youtube videos that Jeff took, one while he was riding the zipline and one of me riding.  What fun!!

http://youtu.be/9hkQKocKzTU

http://youtu.be/5DIDGKZ-_dY

28-Ventura and Ojai, CA, Places we Visit-Year 1

Ventura/Santa Paula/Ojai – beautiful area of the Calif coast

We’re in the Ventura area this week, staying at a KOA in Santa Paula which is just outside of Ventura.  This is a lovely KOA area, lots of trees and space, and teepees, tents and cabins in addition to RV areas.

One of the attractions in the campground is a group of peacocks.  Several females and at least 2 males.  One strutted around this morning showing off his beautiful tail and Jeff got several pictures. Laddy shows quite a bit of interest in these large birds as they wander through the camp area, and he and Jeff got within a few feet of them one day.