“Glamping” or “Roughing It” at Sacred Rocks

Sacred Rocks RV Park is mentioned in an article by The Oakland Tribune: “Camping restyled: Campgrounds, RV parks add extras” on 9 May 2010.

eco-friendly vacation cottage

…In 2008, the travel industry slapped the word “glamping” onto this trend of luxury camping…

Sacred Rocks Reserve near San Diego has gone a step further, allotting 36 sites for eco-friendly, solar-powered park models that are on sale as year-round vacation homes. “It’s for people who want to escape the noise of the city and hear the owls at night,” said owner Sharon Courmousis.

I’ll be the first to admit — I prefer camping with four walls, a real bed and a private bathroom. But laptops propped up on picnic tables? RVs with outdoor televisions? Texting around the campfire? Has our inability to disconnect from the outside world and our favorite tech toys gone too far?

Courmousis sees it this way: “At least they’re getting some of what nature has to offer.”

Sacred Rocks Reserve: The tent and RV park in San Diego County’s Boulevard has a mile-long labyrinth for meditation, a pool, clubhouse with movie nights and a dog run. Also available for rent are a bunkhouse that sleeps 14, and two show models of its eco-friendly vacation homes. Home to an artists’ colony, the reserve hosts workshops in writing, poetry, photography and crafts and holds occasional geocaching events.

Details: www.sacredrocks reserve.com; 619-766-4480; tent sites from $18 offseason and $22 peak, RVs from $36/$45 and vacation homes from $78.

Sacred Rocks: South California’s Green Nature Reserve

Twenty years ago, cash was king. Businesses looked to maximize their income at any cost, and many resorted to environmentally unfriendly tactics to get there. We’ve seen numerous green disasters over the years, and at Sacred Rocks Reserve we’re proud to say we’ve never been involved.

You see, we take a green approach to our natural reserve. Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon to see so-called “natural” sites that are really resource-hogs, cranking through energy and failing to recycle even the simplest materials. We don’t believe in that – we want to run a natural reserve that’s 100% green and very earth-friendly.

That’s why we recycled over 850 abandoned tires in 2003. It’s why we removed over 80 tons of trash from our land upon purpose. It’s why we heat our pool using a solar blanket, and it’s why we’ve placed recycling containers throughout the park. We don’t just want to be green by ourselves – we want you to help.

Beyond using energy-friendly options for our facilities and park, we take green approaches to everything from drinking water to recycled firewood. An effort to conservation and the environment doesn’t end with efficient lighting and recycling, it requires an understanding of the earth.

We’ve made hundreds of efforts to be green, and we’re proud of it. If you’re tired of the city’s noise, hustle, and bustle, our green nature reserve could be the natural retreat you need. Just 70 miles from San Diego, we’re the most convenient green retreat you’ll find for a weekend getaway or long-term RV trip.

Sacred Rocks RV Park is the greenest and most restful of San Diego RV parks. Locals and out-of-state visitors alike enjoy the best San Diego camping on 163 acres of countryside, with lots of shade trees, native wildlife and chaparral.

Winter’s Over, So Get Outdoors!

South California isn’t exactly renowned for its harsh winter climate, but the cooler nighttime do act as an occasional reason to stay inside and cut down on family camping trips. Now that temperatures are improving and the heat is being cranked back up to a maximum, it’s time to get outside and enjoy the great outdoors that made South California famous.

For many San Diego residents, that could mean a trip to one of the many great beaches that make our area famous. It could mean a run through the park and a day outside the city. For those that are looking for an alternative to South California’s famous coastline, a trip inland to the Sacred Rocks Reserve could be a good option.

A weekend in the city can be a frustrating experience. There’s the noise, the sometimes relentless heat, and the distinct lack of natural relief. Sure, there are parks, but they’re merely a small oasis – a tiny escape from the city noise and frustrating urgency of a big city. Sacred Rocks Reserve offers real relief from city stresses – a mountain reserve and remote natural playground, just 70 miles from central San Diego.

So what’s it going to be? Another routine weekend in the middle of the city, or an exciting escape to a stunningly beautiful natural reserve? Sacred Rocks Reserve isn’t an every-weekend getaway, but it is a great location for the occasional stress-free weekend. Even better, it’s just over an hour away from the office.

Sacred Rocks is one of the nicest San Diego RV Parks in Southern California. We have Camping, an RV Park and wonderful Tent Camping. Please visit our website for photo’s and more information.
http://www.sacredrocksreserve.com/

Balancing Wildfires and Chaparral

Southern California chaparral

On NPR this morning, Richard Halsey of the California Chaparral Institute discussed “Balancing Wildfires and Chaparral” with Maureen Cavanaugh on These Days.  He attempted to set the record straight about the role chaparral plays in the natural fire cycle of Southern California. It was a fascinating and informative radio talk, explaining how old growth chaparral (the native plant environment of SoCal) helps to prevent erosion and direct rainfall to aquifers instead of flash-flood-type runoff.

Take a peek at Chaparral & Manzanita at Sacred Rocks Reserve! We invite you bring friends, family, and botany nerds to Sacred Rocks and shoot the exuberant springtime blooms with your camera.

The Bloom of 2009

Blooming yucca plant with pink flowers

The hillsides are spectacular.

Just enough rain this year to yield an amazing crop of wild flowers.

It is fun to learn and even more fun to be amazed at seeing what I have not seen before.

Was it not there?

Or are my eyes opened in a different way?

Makes me wonder about life in general.

What is in front of our eyes that we cannot ‘see’?

What do you notice about your life, or your self, or your surroundings that seems new to you, that you are just now ‘seeing’?

Grand Opening of Mountain Homes and Solar Wine and Cheese Party

San Diego County RV Resort Is 1st in the Nation To Offer Solar-Powered Park Models as Low-Cost Weekend Cottages

Sacred Rocks Reserve Mountain Homes is the first park to offer solar-powered park model homes to consumers. Typically upscale in appearance, park models are 400-square foot movable resort cottages that are designed exclusively for part-time recreational use. Park models are technically classified as recreational vehicles, that can be set up on leased or purchased sites in campgrounds and RV parks and used as weekend retreats or seasonal vacation cottages. The park model homes are manufactured by Phoenix-based Cavco Industries, which has equipped its cabin- and cottage-style park models with solar panels, eco friendly features with custom feature options.

“We think these units will be particularly appealing to consumers who want an affordable, environmentally friendly mountain retreat cottage,” said Sharon Courmousis, owner of Sacred Rocks Reserve, located at 3,900 feet in the mountains east of San Diego and is roughly an hour’s drive from San Diego and Imperial County and less than two hours from Yuma, Arizona. Prices for the solar powered park models offered at Sacred Rocks start at around $55,000, which includes the first year’s annual lease fee of $4,800.

Solar Presentation: Saturday, January 24, 2009 from 1:00 to 3:00 pm, an educational presentation about solar power, with a Q&A session following.

Party Hosts: Sharon and Dimitri Courmousis park owners, Ready Solar Inc. and Cavco will co-host the event

Mountain Home Tours: Which are open to the public from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM daily, will provide an opportunity for consumers, government officials and members of the news media to tour the nation’s first solar-powered park models.

Wine and Cheese Party: will be served after the Solar Presentation which will provide an opportunity to socialize and ask additional questions.

FREE Camping Special: During this event pay for 1 night the weekend of January 23-25, 2009 and get the 2nd night free! Please RSVP.

For more information on this event, download the PDF, visit Sacred Rocks Reserve and RV Park, or schedule a private tour of the nation’s first solar park model vacation cottages, by contacting Sharon Courmousis at (619) 766-4480 or sacredrocks@gmail.com.

How to Make your Business Eco-Friendly, Step 4

The Underground: We ran into a few challenges when working through the underground issues.

1. No one knew or mapped where the main water valves were
2. The electric meters were ancient and broken
3. No one know where the septic tanks were, or lids

Can you see? Can you image digging over 17000 feet of trenches – by HAND? Yes, it mostly had to be dug from site to site to site, avoiding existing pipes that worked, laying in new piping for telephone wires, repairing old water, electric and sewer connections, all the time avoiding tree roots to keep from killing the beautiful oak trees. Thanks to workers from the Freedom Ranch, and to winter workampers, as well as to Dimitri, owner, for this hard and important work.

So we are very protective of our undergound. First, we emphasize to all guests that only biodegradable products are to be used for RV holding tanks, and washing dishes as well as laundry. Secondly, we test the septic system annually to be sure the ‘good’ bacteria are doing their jobs of breakdown.

Our store only sells eco-friendly products. We do not allow mechanic work to be done on vehicles due to oil and gas spillage.

The end result is all systems have been updated, we have a map of main connections, our trees remain green and healthy AND our guests enjoy the benefits of a careful conservation strategy.

How to Make Your Business Eco-Friendly Step 3

Water – Being a Southern California native, and a Greek Djibouti East Africa native, we are concerned about water. At Sacred Rocks Reserve, some water is found at 20 feet deep, and other places like our drinking well, the water comes from aquifers that are 370 feet underground. Every quarter we test for coliforms which as I understand it, are bacteria brought by insects and animals. Each year we test for nitrites, which comes from farming operations–and we are fortunate there are none nearby. Our water is pure!

We have been told from official sources that ‘your water is purer than bottled water from ‘springs’ sold in grocery stores. So we decided to put in an ice making machine in 2006. Many people do not know that the ice we provide to our guests comes from some of the best water in California. Our ice is made from our pure water!

When remodeling the restrooms and showers 4 years ago, we decided to install tankless hot water heaters. These ultra efficient gadgets heat water on demand, instead of trying to hold a 50 gallon reservoir full of hot water 24 hours a day. We have saved hundreds of KW hours of electricity as well as hundreds of dollars. Since we installed quarter-metered showers, the amount of water used cautioned. People seem to be more careful with their quarters than with our water! The hot water on demand AND metered showers reduce our carbon footprint while saving money!

We urge water conservation techniques for all who live here, knowing that water is a gift that we must carefully use. We encourage people to cultivate plants that are native to this area or are drought tolerant in order to avoid depleting our water supplies.

We purposefully have avoided planting grass on the common areas even though it is visually appealing. It just takes too much water and wastes it.

Our showers that are located in the tenting and clubhouse area are designed to use limited water and along with the metered showers, the toilets are low flush and use less water than normal toilets.

We cannot allow the washing of cars or motor homes or trailers because limited supplies. Our 35,000 gallon tank would be empty in short order.

If you think of any more ideas for water conservation that we might use, feel free to write a comment. We welcome all feedback.

Winter Conservation Strategies for The Most Earth Friendly Park in America

Several ideas popped up for us to focus on for conserving resources for the winter since we intend to be The Most Earth Friendly Park in America.

One is the pool. Since the air temperature is in the 60s [daytimes] and 30-50 [nights] we are closing usage of the pool until May 1st. It does not make sense to us to use propane and electricity to keep the pool/spa heated for just a few passers-by.

Two, there is little call for ice cubes during the winter. So we are shutting down the icemaker and ice freezer soon and will conserve electricity.

Three, the big tubs of ice cream in the Dreyers freezer have a three week shelf-life, and few visitors really enjoy ice cream when it is cold outside. So we had a big sale on ice cream and have closed down that freezer.

Four, winter office hours start later in the day, at 10am and close earlier 4pm however the telephone is always answered.

Wood Fires (with our own naturally harvested deadwood) are the most fun way to conserve energy (gas and electricity) We put a fire in the office/store in the tiny wood burning fireplace. The clubhouse also has a nice wood burning fireplace that heats up the whole room. We get it going on Wednesdays – for a potluck and games evening AND on Saturdays for Movie Night.

We are asking for your help:

What conservation strategies are you using at your homes and work? Perhaps someone has a good idea we can all use.

New Road Signs – Sacred Rocks Reserve

What you see from Highway 94 going East.