Dancing in the White Mountains of Arizona

         While we always enjoy the Roost, we may have stayed a little long as we got into some triple digit days.  Although those who brave the REAL summer heat kept assuring us this wasn’t bad, “Wait until it’s 120.”  It was plenty warm for us.  Gary did get to finish his pool league.  In his last 3 pool tournaments, he finished 2nd, 1st, and 2nd.           We left Casa Grande on June 1st, heading up into the White Mountains on top of the Mogollion rim.  This is a dramatic 200 mile long uplift that splits Arizona into two separate regions from the mountains of the north to the basins and deserts of the rest of the state.  The low and mid 80’s felt wonderful and night time temps of high 40’s to 50’s  were great. 
         We were going to stay at the Elk’s in Show Low, but found they no longer allow boondocking, so we sent to Scott’s Reservoir, in Pinetop-Lakeside  for  five days.  It was a great spot and free too.  We found it through the Escapee Day’s End listings.  There were two wildfires concerning to us while we were there and we checked with the ranger station a few times, giving them our phone number in case we needed to evacuate.  One was about an hour east of us and the other about two hours west of us.  We could see the smoke rising from the one to the east each day and with strong winds, it was always a concern.

        There is an interesting story as to how Show Low got it’s name.  Two fellows had bought a 100,000 acre ranch together.  After a while it became obvious the ranch could not support two families so they decided to play a game of cards to determine who would get the ranch.  In 1885, they played 7-up all night, with one fellow only needing 1 point to win.  He was sitting with a 3 and told the other fellow to “show low” to win.  He turned up the deuce of clubs and won the ranch.  The main street thru town  is called “Deuce of Clubs” and the town is called “Show Low” today.  Of course there’s a geocache here at this statue telling the history.  

        We drove down to Fort Apache, where Gary could visit scenes from old Western movies.  The Fort was interesting with their museum and the old houses.  The Army Post was established in 1870 and active until 1922.  Since then it has been home to Theodore Roosevelt  Indian Boarding School.  We then drove 4 miles west to Kinishba Indian Ruins.  This site is a National Historic Landmark that was rescued and rebuilt in the 1930’s and has now fallen into ruins again.  It contains the remains of a village built and occupied by ancestors of  the Hopi and Zuni people from 1200 to 1400 AD.  The village was made up of two main room blocks, one of which stood three stories tall.  Kinishba remains a sacred site for Apache and Pueblo people today.

         We were enjoying the area so much, we moved into a Forest Service campground , Lakeside, for a few more days.  Pinetop-Lakeside is located in the largest contiguous stand of Ponderosa Pine in the world, at an elevation of 7,200 feet.  There are over 50  natural lakes and reservoirs.  After a week here, the Wallow fire was about 40 miles east of us and still 0% contained. It is fast growing toward being the largest in AZ history.  Evacuees from the fire area  are coming to centers set up at the schools here and we have several displaced campground hosts and some evacuees at this park. Smoke continues to rise to the east of us.

         One of the best ways to explore a new area is through Geocaching and Show Low and Pinetop-Lakeside were no exception.  We found 25 caches while there, including 7 in a city park series that took us to all the city parks.  One of the parks held their Fallen Firefighter’s Memorial, Show Low having also lost a firefighter in 2005.  Another geocache took us past the Senior Center and Gary found their pool schedule, so he could go play one day.  We drove past the Bison Golf  Club looking for a geocache, so of course Gary stopped and set up a golf date.  It was a good course and he was happy to shoot a 76.   
         We visited with friends from the Roost, Frank and Suzanne, that have a summer place here and went to Show Low Days with them.  Around 2002, I met a really neat gal online through the Escapees Handcrafters Bof.  Although we had never met, we kept in touch through emails every since.  Joyce and her husband, Don, have a summer trailer in Show Low and invited us for lunch one afternoon.  It was great getting to meet them and we chatted pretty steadily for several hours. 
         In my earlier blogs, I forgot to mention my acquiring a Nook Color a couple months ago.  I love it and it’s great to be able to check library books out from the Greater Phoenix Digital library while traveling and a lot easier than carrying a lot of books.  I’ve also downloaded several free books and subscribed to a couple magazines.  They also have apps now and I’ve downloaded a few games.  (Beware anyone considering Angry Birds - it’s addicting!!!)   There are others that will be good, but I need to wait until I can trade my Verizon USB Air for a 5spot or mifi card.  Then I’ll have the wifi that they require to run. 
         Next we’ll be dancing toward Canyon de Chelly in the northeastern corner of Arizona………….…
Hugs, Katy, Gary, Rusty and Spicy too!

Dancing in the Heat..........

 

   Yes, the heat is on!  While most of May has been great with temps in the high 70’s and 80’s, we’ve had some 90’s too and the air conditioner is starting to run more.  From the weather reports we hear, I know  most of you would love the heat, but try as we might to send it your way, it doesn’t seem to work.  With the nice weather and high gas prices, we revamped our summer plans and decided to stay at the Roost a little longer. 
    I’d always wanted to stay until May and see the Saguaro’s bloom,.  This was the year!   They are awesome to see, as the buds seem to appear overnight out of nowhere.   They first bloom when they are from 6-12 feet tall, about 35 to 70 years old.  The buds open between 10pm and midnight, only to close by late afternoon and never to open again.  Since I’m riding my bike every morning, it’s always exciting to check them out and see the new blooms from the night before.  Each arm may  have several dozen flowers.   The first one started budding the end of April and there are now 4 large Saguaro’s with blooms in various stages throughout the park.   The prickly pair are also blooming their bright flowers. The rest of the desert hasn’t had many wildflowers this  year.

         April 18th marked 6 years since we lost Robert.  We decided to take flowers to the Hall of Flame in Phoenix to recognize the day.  Besides one of the world‘s largest collection of firefighting vehicles, they have a Hall of Heroes that lists all the firefighter‘s who gave their lives in the line of duty.  Their curator was very nice, coming down to talk with us, assist with pictures, and tell us how honored they were to have Robert included in their Hall..  He really made us feel special and so proud to be there.  It was the perfect thing to do that day. 

\    Afterwards, we  had a picnic lunch at the park and found a few geocaches, all things Robert would appreciate.  While at the park, we noticed a few caches that were too far for me to walk on my ankle and made plans to come back up with our bikes.  We had just ordered  a bike rack to fit over the spare tire on either the motor home or our Honda CRV.  Since I’m no longer able to walk far and running is out of the question, I’ve been riding my bike about 4 miles a day.  We’re looking forward to having our son-in-law go though  it and redo the gears when we get to WY.  Until then, Gary has it locked into the first gear and it rides fine there.  At least it’s exercise and that feels good. 
    We went back to the park with our bikes a couple weeks later to get the caches we had missed.  We also stopped at Tempe Town Lake and rode our bikes along side their waterway, while finding more caches.  I included a picture of Gary sitting on the wall at the lake.  The bike rack worked great, so we’re looking forward to having the bikes with us this summer.
 

    We’ve talked with folks who will be up at our old campgrounds and right now the concerns are for the flooding everyone is expecting.   The snow is still really deep there, so opening dates are very uncertain.   I’m sure it’s difficult for those trying to plan campground openings, a guessing game this year.

    While my quilting has ended for the year, Gary continues to play pool.  After a dry spell, he's taken a 2nd and 1st in the last two tournaments he played in.  His pool league ends the 31st of May, and as of now, we plan on leaving the next day for Show Low, AZ.  It’s in the mountains and is usually about 20 degrees cooler than our area.  Temps will probably be in the triple digits by then, so it will feel good.  We’ll stay at an Elks lodge there and then go on to Canyon de Chelly, on of our favorite spots from a few years ago.  From there we’ll head through the four corners and into Cortez, CO, to another Elks. We want to revisit Mesa Verde National Park, some of the other National Monuments in Southwestern CO, and the Durango area.  Then we’ll head north thru Utah toward Wyoming.  We’re looking forward to a relaxing summer with family and old friends in UT and WY.    A quick picture of Spicy dreaming of chipmunks in the forest.

     We'll eventually wind up at our daughter's, Riki's so any mail can be sent to us there at:
401 Twin Ridge Ave.
Evanston, WY, 82930

Dancing north toward cooler temps……………………………
Hugs, Katy, Gary, Rusty and Spicy

Superstition Mountains

     We spent the first part of March enjoying the last of the winter activities at our park.  It's always a little sad as people start leaving for the summer, but fun to share plans as well.  A little different for us this year as we decide where we'll be traveling instead of working.  It looks like it will be the Northwest for early summer and then into Wyoming for August and early September. 
     For dancing we went back to Fiesta Grande, a large (800+ sites) RV park in town that has live bands most Friday nights.  Their dances are open to the public, so we try to go at least twice a month.  Besides a really good country one man band and singer the first time we went in March, the second time was a fifties group.  What memories those great songs brought back as we danced to most of them.
     We took a mini trip to our first Boomer's Rally at Lost Dutchman State Park, just outside of Apache Junction, AZ.  The Boomers are a special interest (BOF) group of Escapees that embrace this lifestyle and enjoy a variety of activities such as hiking, biking, birding, geocaching, golfing, dancing, etc. Steve and Pam, from our park, encouraged us to attend. Their gatherings are called Boomerangs and this was a mini-rang with 12 rigs.  The first evening was a Z-circle, basically a get-to-know-each-other gathering in 3 rigs.  Couples went to another rig every 45 minutes and the attendance varied, so you spent time with 3-4 different couples in each rig.  It was a great start and a good way for us to meet the others.
      Pam and Steve volunteer at this State Park every year and really know the area very well.  They led a couple different hikes over the 5 days that we had to pass on (darn arthritis), but we found other things to do.
On our way to a night geocache, Gary drove over a rattlesnake crossing the road.  The next car confirmed it was still moving and it was gone when we drove back.  A good way to see one, is from the car.  We had a closer encounter a couple days later when we were sitting outside our neighbor's rig.  We left to go back to our rig & their small dog started staring under their rig and growling.  When they looked, they spotted a rattler coiled and ready to strike.  Needless to say, they grabbed the dog in a hurry and got out of the way as the snake crawled back to the desert.  From their pictures they estimated it was 4 feet long. 
      A group of us geocached to Tortilla Flats, an old ghost town area that has a fantastic restaurant and a band playing on the patio from noon-4 each day.   Here we are celebrating  geocache find #1200!!!

The scenery there is fantastic as we drove on up to Canyon Lake.  This is a picture I took when we were there 3 years ago. 

     The next day while others were hiking we went to Goldfield Ghost Town, just down the road from the park.  There were several interesting shops and a really good museum about the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine.  A miner by the name of Jacob Waltz had supposedly mined gold in the Superstition Mountains.  When he was dying he told the location and drew a map, but it has  never been found.  Gary was especially interested as his Dad had done some gold  mining.  They  had a wall of pictures of miners who had spent several years looking in the Superstition Mountains for the lost mine, and Gary knew if they had lived in the area, his Dad would have been there.   Even today people come and look and unfortunately some die while searching.
     We bought three small cactus back to plant close to our lot and also some delicious peach salsa.  It was a fun and interesting town with a lot of history.  This is a picture looking up at the church at the end of the street. While the buildings have all been restored, they are built on the foundations of the old town.

      Of course Gary and Steve found a pool tournament for one evening.  They were really glad they entered after placing 1st and 4th respectively.  Unfortunately, they drew each other for their first match.
     Another evening we all went to Organ Stop Pizza for great organ music and good food!   Organ Stop is home of the world's largest Wurlitzer Organ, with nearly 6000 pipes.  The building housing it was built around it with 43 foot ceilings. They have an 8000 lb rotating hydraulic elevator to lift the console and organist. 
     A wonderful pot luck was held the last evening.  Temps warmed up to the 90's the last couple days after 3 great days of 80's.   Evenings were in the 50's so it made for great stargazing and evening fires.  Pam did a super star program and we all learned a little more about the sky at night.  We even spotted a satellite orbiting through the big dipper.   The last evening we all took couple pictures as the sun set on the Superstitions.

     The 1st of April we headed back to RoVer's Roost in Casa Grande.  As of now we plan on leaving sometime in May.  Usually we have to leave before the cacti are blooming or just as they start.  There are lots of buds and we look forward to watching them open.  Hopefully I'll have pictures to send next time.
Dancing on down the road in hotter weather.....................       Hugs, Katy, Gary, Rusty, and Spicy

Missions and Missiles

     I know these are an unlikely duo, but our continued exploration of Arizona led us to these sites in early March.  A day trip started with a drive to the Titan Missile Museum in Sahuarita, AZ.  The Titan II missile was the largest missile ever built by the US and it was really huge.  We looked down at it from above ground and then walked or took an elevator down to the underground silo.  There we visited the launch control center and experience a simulated launch.  At one time 54 Titan II missiles were in place, but after the last site was deactivated in 1987,  this remains as the only site left.  There are a variety of tours available with many given by former Air Force Missileers.  You can even make reservations to spend the night in the crew's quarters, for $500.00 a person.  The Titan II was a last resort missile and intended only to be used for retalitory strikes.
 

     Next we headed further south of Tuscon to Tubac and the remains of the mission church San Jose de Tumacacori.  Only a portion remains standing today.  The mission was built by Jesuits in the early 1700's and then after they were expelled from New Spain (as it was called then), Fanciscans were assigned to the mission.  In the early 1770's they redecorated the church and around 1800 started building a larger church, but stopped due to lack of funds.  The occupation of the area was dependent on Indian attacks and the war with Mexico.  Following the Gadsden Purchase in 1853 the site became part of the United States.  Tumacacori was established as a National Monument by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1908. 

 

      Our last stop of the day was north to the beautiful San Xavier Del Bac Mission, built in 1783.  It is known as the White Dove of the Desert and is located in the center of a Papago Indian settlement along the banks of the Santa Cruz River, just 9 miles southwest of Tucson.   It is the oldest intact European structure in Arizona. 

     The church's interior is filled with wonderful original statuary and mural paintings.  

     It was a great day and one that left us filled with awe at the structures we had seen, one capable of such massive destruction and the other two giving such magnificent inspiration.  

     Dancing on down the Arizona roads.......................Katy, Gary, Rusty and Spicy

 

 

Dancing in Jan & Feb, 2011

     Gary spent many hours getting the Warrior ready for our first extended trip.  We left for Yuma on 1/12 and spent 6 days in the KOFA C0-Op, enjoying their swimming pool and  hot tub.  There was a pool tournament about an hour after we arrive, so Gary rushed over in time and won it.  The next evening was bingo.  Gary & I each won a pot and then I won blackout.  It wasn't a lot, but paid for our stay there.  Did I mention that at that point, they asked when we were leaving? 
     Of course we had to do some geocaching.  We did a portion of the lightpole series in the desert to test out our Honda's all wheel drive.  We got into some really soft sand and it did great!  We also found 40 caches, our best day ever. 
     On the 18th we headed for Quartzsite to join a  million other RVers.  We parked in our usual area on Plomosa Road, about 5 miles north of town.  We attended two SKP Rallies while there, Chapter 28-Big Sky (WY, MT, & ID) and Chapter 39-Washpan (Eastern WA and the panhandle of ID).  The weather was the best we'd ever had in Quartzsite, with only 2 days of cold and winds.  We also had friends from Wisconsin over to help us root for the Green Bay Packers in the NFL Championship.  (Guess it worked!)  
     On the 29th we moved across the road and a  mile west to the site for the SKP Geocaching Rally.  It was another great even with lots of old friends and some new ones made.  Of course while we were in Quartzsite we had to do some shopping at the Big Tent and other places.  By the time we'd left, we had sure done our part to make Quartzsite green.  Among other things, we got a towbar and base plate for towing the Honda (I drove it, following Gary for this trip.), a fantastic fan for the Warrior, and extra satellite dish for the Warrior.

     We came back to RoVer's Roost, by way of Yuma, to have our solar, inverter, generator system reviewed and brought up to par.  This should really help with getting the most out of our system.  Of course any trip on I-10 between Casa Grande and Yuma involved a stop at Dateland for shakes.  Overall we had a great 3+ weeks and the Warrior worked fine for a smaller home on wheels.  Rusty adapted and didn't cry like he had the first night out.  The dogs were sure glad to see the 5th wheel when we got home.
     SuperBowl Sunday, we had a party at the clubhouse with most of the rooters being for Green Bay.  I brought a bratwurst stew for good luck and once again, it worked. 
     Right after our February Follies, a Texas Hold 'em Tournament was held at the park.  Lessons were available for those who wanted them.  I attended, learned a lot, and even watched some poker on TV for a few nights.  With 22 entries, there were about 8 gals.  Surprisingly, I was the last Gal left (4th overall), and Gary won.  We were each awarded coveted bracelets (bought at the dollar store, I think),  just like the world series of poker.  Don't think we'll take it any further though, I was a nervous wreck!
     I also went to Bear Cabin in Show Low, AZ for a four day Quilt Camp.  It was wonderful with 11 quilters there.  I had some fun projects and it was fun being looking outside at snow while quilting.  Other than the first night, all meals were prepared for us, so it was a real vacation. 

     A reminder that we'll be getting our mail here at the Roost in Casa Grande through at least April.  After that, we'll be traveling and mail will be forwarded to us from our regular South Dakota address.  If you have time, please let me know how you like this new format and the pictures.  I added one of our fantastic Arizona sunsets.  This is the view from our front door, with Tabletop (climbed 2 years ago) in the distance.

     Dancing thru Jan and Feb, toward Spring............................ Hugs, Katy, Gary, Rusty, and Spicy



    

Dancing thru Winter in the Desert 2010-11

In trying to stay current in the rapidly changing techno world (impossible, i know, but we can try), we're going to try a blog instead of travelogs. I think it will be simpler to send one with short bits of info every couple weeks or so, instead of a long travelog every 3-4 months. At least that's the theory.
We had a really nice holiday season with big potluck dinners in our clubhouse. Over 80 people attended both events. In addition to the usual activities and parties we celebrated New Year's at 10pm (that's Midnight in New York), with a dance and watching the ball drop in Times Square.
We had a chance to get together with two other couples that we had gone through training with at Escapees Headquarters in Livingston, TX. Although we had seen each other separately, we hadn't all been together since 2001, when we trained. It was a fun evening reminiscing and sharing our travels.
I also went to an Alpaca farn for Alpacazona, a celebration of all things alpaca and knitting. They had yarn in all forms, as well as some finished projects. It was fun to see the animals and there were even some babies.

     Alas, Gary is now a "Man without a Truck."  We traded our Dodge truck in on a Honda CRV.  It's light enough to tow easily and can be towed with all four wheels down.  It's also all wheel drive, for off road geocaching.  It even came with a portable card table in the back.  It gets about 26 miles to the gallon and will be super to have along for exploring, once we're set up in an area. 
     That's going to be it for Nov and Dec.  I'll send emails to my travelog list when I post a new blog.  I'll be doing another one soon to cover Jan and Feb.
     Dancing on Down the Road..........................   Hugs, Katy, Gary, Rusty, and Spicy

Dancing Through Beautiful Fall Weather 2010

     It's hard to believe we've only been here six weeks today, so much has happened.  Since this was our last summer managing campgrounds, we decided to leave our 5th wheel on our lot in Casa Grande at the Roost and downgrade to a smaller and easier method of travel.  We're in our eleventh year of fulltime RVing and love it as much as the day we started, if not more and we definitely look forward to more traveling.  To facilitate that we've purchased a used 27 ft. Class C Winnebago Warrior.  It was set up exactly the way we wanted and we got a great deal on it.   We also traded the truck in on a used Honda CRV.  It will be great for geocaching and we can tow it flat behind the Class C. Gary already has the solar panels moved over to the Class C, along with the four golf cart batteries.  He also got it all wired for the DISH TV system.  We have the inverter and a tow bay system yet to go.

     We did an overnight shakedown trip to the Eloy airport about 25 miles from here and everything ran great.  We also enjoyed the early morning skydivers and found two geocaches while there.  The only downside was Rusty's crying until 2am, but he'll get used to the new house and bed.
     We enjoyed a day trip to Sabino Canyon in Tucson, a beautiful desert canyon.  We also stopped at the De Grazia Gallery in the Sun, a truly unique and fascinating art studio.
     My quilt class and guild has started and we're doing some fun and different projects.  It's kind of like the first day of school, as snowbirds gather from all over the country.
     Gary's pool league is also in it's fall session.  He's enjoying getting back to that with some extra tournaments thrown in.  He's won one and placed well in some others. Sadly, the golf course across the street is still closed and up for sale.  Gary has enjoyed some golf though at the other courses.
     We've even been dancing once to the Needham Twins and their super music and attended a house party with Gary Allegretto and his great music.  I took a harmonica workshop from him the next day and really enjoyed that. It's always fun to try new things.  He has put the same workshop on for children in the Katrina area and after the Tsunami as well. 
     I'm seeing an ankle and foot specialist here, who has given me one cortisone shot and will probably do another in Dec.  He also started me on Celebrex.  It has helped decrease the swelling and I'm wearing a brace most of the time.  Unfortunately, it hasn't eliminated all the pain, if I'm on it a lot. His evaluation of the arthritis was the same and says the answer when it gets too bad, will be an ankle replacement. If that doesn't work, fusion will be the only other option, so I'm holding off as long as I can.  I do now have a handicapped parking hanger, but then so does half of AZ, it seems.  There are times though when it really helps.
     We weren't going to work this winter, but when I was offered a seasonal job at See's Candies, I thought it might be fun.  It has been and will only last another six weeks.  As a holiday give center everything is prepackaged, so I just have to try and avoid the samples we give out, (not always easy).
     The weather was still very warm when we arrived (high 80's and 90's), but has now settled into a very comfortable pattern of days in the 70's with lots of sunshine and nights in the low 40's.  We were actually 37 yesterday morning.  That's OK, we love being able to use and enjoy the electric blanket.
     We'll be going to Quartzsite in January and plan on some other short trips this winter, as we continue to explore and enjoy Arizona.  We want to spend some time in the Bisbee area and I want to revisit Organ Pipe.  So much to see and so little time, but we enjoy every day.
     Even with our travels with winter, our mail can still come here and they'll hold it while we're gone.  Once again, our address until spring is 3241 S. Montgomery Road, Casa Grande, AZ 85293
     Here's hoping everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We definitely have tons to be thankful for, most of all our wonderful friends and families. 
     Thanksgiving hugs and love,
     Dancing through the Fall........   Katy, Gary, Rusty and Spicy