Joani & David's Travels

Monday, January 5, 2015

While staying at Northranch Escapee Park in Congress, AZ, Loren and Sharon offered to take us along on a desert drive. It looked pretty straightforward on the map and Scenic Loop Drive had a nice ring to it. Our path took us by the Lost Dutchman Mining Association, or LDMA, a pretty sizable collection of ever-hopeful folks looking to strike it rich searching for gold. It was difficult to tell how many of the old RV's were occupied and maybe some were only used on weekends, but they had several buildings and a large gathering room where the community got together. I suspect their best days are behind them as the place had a run-down, almost ghost town feel to it.

Then the road became really isolated. The term "road" probably should not have been used to describe what we drove on. A Jeep or high clearance four-wheel truck would have been the better choice for a drive out here.

The paths diverged many times giving us ample opportunity to get lost. I suspect everyone wondered at some point how long it would be before our bleached bones would be discovered if we couldn't find our way back. A few fences, a couple of abandoned homesteads and some mining claim signs were the only evidence of human contact with the land.

We piled some rocks into the deep ruts to get the Saturn across. Loren's Google research had indicated this road was suitable for travel in a family sedan. That pretty well cinched it that we were not on the right road, but we really had no idea how to retrace our path so we continued forward.

At one point, we passed another vehicle coming from the other direction. They told us we were indeed on the right road and described what was ahead. That was pretty fortunate since we would have been totally confused, without their help, when we encountered the fence across the road.

We were told to cross the wash and look for the windmill. Check!

Normally a gate says "stay out," but...

...we were told to just swing it out of our way and be sure to close it behind us.

On our return to civilization (Wickenburg, AZ) we feasted on some great food at Anita's Cocina. With full bellies, we embarked on some less adventurous exploration of the town.

Interestingly, there was an old guy sitting on a bench viewing the jail tree. As we approached, he slipped a small plain brown paper bag under his coat. Maybe this statue was his great-great-grandfather and he was just visiting, paying his respects.

All in all, a great adventure in the desert with great friends capped by great food to make it a full, exciting day!

Sunday, January 4, 2015

Loren's brother, Gary, had a large lot (1/4 acre) in Northranch Escapee Park in Congress, AZ. There was plenty of room for our two visiting coaches. The park model home had a large attached "Arizona Room" and plenty of decking and patio space surrounding the house. There was also quite a variety of cacti - we just missed the Easter cactus blooms. You have to love the minimal yard upkeep here. An occasional raking of the gravel beds and pulling a few weeds, maybe an hour a week, tops!

What a special time, meeting up with our friends, Loren and Sharon and finding new friends, Victor (also staying in the park) and Loren's brother, Gary. Thank you again, Gary, for your gracious hospitality!

Sunsets seemed more colorful in the desert than elsewhere and today's sunset was just stunning. I only caught a few shots with my little pocket camera but they give a pretty good idea of the range of light and color we saw nearly every day in the desert.

Our first stay in an Escapee park. I hope they are all this nice.

Saturday, January 3, 2015

We headed to a little cowboy grill in Kirkland, AZ, about 30 miles north of Congress, AZ. Kirkland was a railroad stop in the 1800's, but now it's not much more than an intersection in the roads. The Bar and Steakhouse was nearly the only thing there. The building had been around since 1863 and had quite a checkered history. That is snow in the parking lot and it was pretty cold so you can see we have been able to experience a little bit of winter ourselves.

Loren told some pretty interesting stories from his Army days in Germany. His brother Gary is on the left next to Victor (another American Coach owner). Loren and Sharon met Victor at a rally in Perry, GA. He has a 1999 American Dream, so it was good to compare notes on improvements and problems between our very similar coaches.

Thank you, Loren and Sharon, for a wonderful meal.

Dinner was great, but as usual, we ate more than we should have. It was Gary's birthday and it was very close to Loren's birthday, so our waitress brought everyone a piece of cake!

Thursday, January 1, 2015

After more than seven weeks in Mesa Spirit RV Park, in Mesa, AZ, we were a little sad to leave. We had the good fortune to meet Lowell and Hania and their two beautiful doggies. Thanks to Lowell, I have a great start on a new hobby, woodturning. With some encouragement from Joani, we now have a lot of new equipment in the basement to support that hobby. I think she is looking forward to turning some treasures as much as I am!

The boys warmed up to me with a little ear scratching but treats sealed the deal. Every time I visited they got a little of my attention.

Snickerdoodle

Ewok Widdle

When it was time to leave, all went well until we tried to pull in the bedroom slide - it was dead. After maybe thirty minutes of unsuccessful troubleshooting, I manually cranked the slide in with the help of several neighbors. As you often hear - "It's always something".

It was past check-out time, so we put the slide out of our minds, filled the propane tank and headed to the North Ranch Escapee Park near Congress, AZ. It was a pleasant drive of only 102.4 miles (71,387.9 total).

We were meeting fellow American Coach owners, Loren and Sharon, in Congress before heading to Quartzite. Loren's brother owned a lot in the park with room for both coaches, so we just overnighted in the dry camping area until we figured everything out. Good thing we got that propane - it was in the 20's overnight! Welcome to the higher elevation desert. Looking forward to the increased temperatures in the long-range forecast.

Christmas, December 25, 2014

On Christmas day Mesa Spirit Park, in Mesa, AZ, hosted a giant potluck dinner. They provided the ham and everyone brought a side dish. A sign-up sheet ensured there was plenty of variety. We tried to sample just a small amount of as many of the dishes as we could fit on our plates. Everything was great!

We had met Dave and Lynn (both in red) through RVillage, so not everyone was a stranger, but then every RV'er is family especially during the holidays. Our table was in a prime location where I dished up some dessert first (although there was plenty allowing me to go back for seconds!).

Our dining companions - just before digging in.

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

With over 1,800 sites in Mesa Spirit RV Resort, Mesa, AZ, we could walk several miles without leaving the park. There was plenty to see after dark as many of the snowbirds pulled out all of the stops to celebrate Christmas! We took Sam for a few late-night walks to look at the lights but usually forgot the camera. Tonight, we remembered and captured a little bit of the brilliant Christmas cheer.

Christmas tree ornaments hung on cacti almost looked normal here given the Phoenix climate and ecology.

This guy's hobby led to some of the most intricate Christmas decorating. I wonder if the train runs for his entire stay or just through the holidays.

Sunday, December 21, 2014

We took a break from our snowbird hibernation and headed into the Superstition Mountains east of Apache Junction, AZ. There was desert everywhere and all of a sudden a large blue reservoir appeared, complete with a big marina and dozens of boaters on the water.

Canyon Lake was created by the Mormon Flat Dam on the Salt River. I suspect the lake is covered with people in the heat of the Phoenix summers.

I liked the look of the dry grasses mixed with cacti covering the colorful rocky hills!

Except for the parked cars, Tortilla Flat, AZ, could have been right out of the 1880's. The mannequin hanging from a noose in front of one of the stores did not give it a very inviting feeling and we chose to keep moving.

Joani is always looking for the odd angle or extreme close-up to give her compositions a unique look. She very often finds things that I probably would have overlooked.

The interior vascular system was all that remained of this large, long dead, decaying cactus...

...spread out on the desert floor.

I think the Saguaro below was feeling lonely and decided to give himself a hug.

The yellow-green tint to the hills was very pronounced and warranted a close-up inspection. We found the color was due to sun-loving lichen clinging to the rock.

The low angle of the winter sun lends a dramatic look to the Saguaro, outlining them with light. The backlit Cholla cacti positively "glow"!

On our return, the Goldfield Ghost Town, just off North Apache Trail (Hwy 88) was more inviting than the town of Tortilla Flat and there was a lively crowd of people milling around, so we decided to spend a little time exploring. Sam walked with us right into an old west "shoot-out". All of the gunfire made him pretty skittish, but it only lasted a few minutes and he was back sniffing everything almost as soon as the last bad guy bit the dust.