In the beginning
Yuma…the place I love to hate. Its where you go when you can’t afford to winter in Palm Springs ( or California as a whole for that matter).
The first time we visited Yuma was a quick trip to see older family members who wintered there. Let’s just say that I didn’t fall in love with the place. Sure the weather was great and for those who might have grown up on the prairies there is a lot of big sky. But I mean that’s about it. It’s a blue collar town located in a large expanse of flat farming land created in the middle of open desert. Approximately nine miles from the actual city of Yuma is a long stretch of desert just off Interstate 8. It is along this flat parched wasteland that you will find more RV parks than you’ve ever seen in one place in your life. The majority of them are devoid of trees and nothing more than parking stalls on grey gravel. They will usually have a clubhouse of some description and a community pool and a requisite plethora of seniors living in park models. God’s waiting room. I was horrified and although we were well into our fifties at the time all I could think was there is NO WAY that we are old enough to be HERE!!!!!!
And beyond that, why? What’s the draw? What do they do all day? Why are these hundreds of parks full? Is this really what my retirement dream of going south for the winter is going to look like? Is this what it’s really going to come down to?
Time to face facts
I’ll admit straight off that I was quick to judge Yuma and to judge it very harshly without ever having spent more than a few days there. I believe that having lived most of my adult life on the coast in the Pacific Northwest the stark contrast between the two regions was jarring. And I was also perhaps a wee bit afraid to face the reality that although I didn’t believe we were old enough for Yuma yet we weren’t exactly far from it. I was still thinking that retirement was going to magically present itself as a vacation that never ends and not really yet willing to consider it as a lifestyle change that would require some fiscal restraint or worse yet, some hard choices. You know, the old “if we want to choose that then we have to do this”.
And so it was time to start looking for the answers to some of my questions….
Why Yuma?
It was pretty evident by the sheer number of snowbirds and retirees in winter residence that many people thought Yuma a perfect choice. Here are some reasons why
Climate
Although sweltering in the summer Yuma remains the sunniest, driest and warmest place in the continental US through the winter months, warmer than Las Vegas, warmer than Lake Havasu, warmer than Laughlin, warmer than Blythe or Needles or Quartzite or Parker or Palm Springs or Phoenix and sunnier than all of those places too. Add to that low humidity and next to no bugs (thinking mosquitoes and sandflies here) to disrupt your time outdoors – Yep, these are good things!
Affordability
Yuma truly has something for every budget in terms of accommodation options and remains highly affordable. In places like Palm Springs you will certainly pay two to three times and more for your monthly pad rentals. Now this is no small thing for those living on fixed incomes as well as for those whose country’s dollar is below the US greenback. And basic necessities like groceries and gasoline are significantly cheaper than in neighbouring California. Even activities such as golf are way below the cost of Phoenix or Palm Springs. Yuma is certainly no rival in terms of golf course selection but it is accessible and affordable.
In addition to the affordability of day to day and recreational activities there is the added bonus of being able to access Los Algodones on the Mexican border for extremely affordable dental, optical and medical and prescription drug services. It is only a fifteen minute drive from Yuma to where you can park your car and walk into Mexico and avail yourself of these first class services. We’re talking $25 for a teeth cleaning and $150 for two pairs of progressives with an eye exam people! How great is that on a tight budget?
Central location
Yuma is pretty easy to get to and certainly within range of several other destinations if you want to do some exploring. It is about three hours to Phoenix, two hours to Palm Springs, two hours to Parker, two hours to San Diego, three and a half to Laughlin and five to Las Vegas. And although there is no doubt about the fact that you are in the desert there are several lakes within a 30 minute drive and the mighty Colorado River is close at hand so there is no real reason to feel land locked.
What do people do here all day?
The bigger question is what don’t people do here all day? Virtually every RV community here has a laundry list of classes and activities scheduled daily to suit pretty much any interest you might have. There are fitness classes, yoga, shuffleboard, pickle ball, tennis, golf, horseshoes, swimming, aqua fit, Zumba, Spanish classes, woodworking, lapidary, pottery, quilting, painting, photography, cycling or hiking, billiards, poker, cribbage, bunco, bingo, line dancing, concerts, dances, car shows, air shows, burger bashes and parades. This is by no means a complete list. If you’re bored it is most certainly by choice.
Why are these hundreds of parks full?
These parks are full of folks from all over the US as well as Canada. Many if not most have tried travelling about looking for the best place to spend their retirement years. Gosh people here have been full timing since before it was ever a thing. And they have all discovered that Yuma ticks off more boxes than most any other first world location available to them. Then after spending a busy and affordable season in a community with great weather meeting likeminded people and making friends, well why wouldn’t they all come back?
Is this really what my retirement dream is going to look like?
Well now that is still a big question for me, and if you’re still with me it’s probably a big question for you too. I can’t honestly say that I started out thinking that Yuma was gonna be “it “. I’m still not sure that we will always come here. But what I have discovered is that there are many things that I really do like about being here. And I’ve also discovered that Yuma is the main reason we have been able to afford to both spend the winter south yet still be able to travel further afield and slowly explore more exotic locations. It is extremely easy to get to Phoenix or other hubs from here for international flights. And when we are here I know we can take full advantage of the many classes and activities on offer and it is really wonderful to reconnect in the fall with friends met in previous seasons. It really is a pretty good fit for us and our current lifestyle. So I have to say that in spite of my early misgivings we are quite happy here and I would definitely recommend Yuma to those seeking an affordable alternative. And you just know I gotta say that our experiences here have really reinforced our overall theory of taking your time to get to know a place and the people within that place. You just might end up liking that place you love to hate!