BOONDOCKING IN THE AJO HIGHLANDS.....2008

DOESN'T GET MUCH BETTER THAN THIS:))

A bit late sitting down at the old keyboard to-night but I did manage to throw a few photos to-gether of a favorite boondocking spot we camped at back in late February of 08. It's just west of Ajo, Arizona in the AJO HIGHLANDS in a place commonly referred to as the Darby Wells Road area.

HOME IS WHEREVER THE RIG IS PARKED:))

Anybody who follows our blog knows we are boondocking folks who avoid RV Parks wherever possible. I've blathered on quite a bit about our dislike of crowded parks in the past so won't re-hash myself here & get all the RV Park folks chasing me around with big sticks again. MY IDEA OF BOONDOCKING

To-day's boondocking photos show what we consider to be just about the perfect setting for people like us who prefer the peace & tranquility of Mother Nature. Only sounds are the coyotes, Gila woodpeckers, a few ravens, & the desert wind. No security lights, trailer lights, or headlights, only the beautiful light of the moon in a clear star studded night sky. Nothing moving past your rig except for the odd rabbit or roadrunner. No big flat sided fiberglass RV's 10 feet away, just endless miles of Saguaro cactus, Cholas, Ocotillos, majestic rock formations, & mountain ranges on all sides for as far as the eye can see. I'll bet this is all sounding pretty boring to a lot of folks out there & the question arises, "what do you do all day?" My answer to that is, "why do we have to do anything!!" We are totally immersed in domestic stuff for 6 months of the year when we are at home in Canada & we consider it a great privilege to step right out of that world once we get down to our desert home in the southwest. And that home is wherever our rig is parked & the quieter the place we can park it the better!! EVERY DAY A CAMPFIRE, EVERY NIGHT A DAY'S MEMORIES

We don't do the same thing day after day though. We do day trips with the car, pop into the nearest town for groceries, & spend large amounts of time relaxing around our rig. If you give it a chance, that relaxing stuff really grows on you. Always a morning hike though. I'm not a television person so couldn't care less if we had a TV or not, except for the news. Nightime is when I enjoy putting the day's blog to-gether. It's a favorite time of mine. Another favorite time is reading. While in Canada I never read a thing but the boondocking lifestyle for me totally lends itself to settling down in a comfy reclining lawn chair in the shade of the rigs awning with a good book. No interruptions, no honking horns, no blaring television, no neighbor's stereos or screaming kids, dirt bikes, ATV's, no social stress & no pesky neighbors. JUST THE WIND, THE THOUGHTS, THE PLANS, THE DREAMS, & THE MEMORIES WAITING FOR THE DESERT MOONRISE

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A diplomat is someone who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that you will look forward to the trip.

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.

ANSWERING SOME QUESTIONS, A FEW EXPLANATIONS, & SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT

After a gusty wind & cloud shrouded cooler day Wednesday we woke up to clear blue sunny skies this morning with light winds from the North-West.  Always nice to step out in the early morn & see a sky full of shimmering stars.  Planet Venus & a crescent Moon were very prominent low in the South-east side by side.  The Moon and Venus rank as the brightest and second-brightest celestial bodies in the nighttime sky.

<<< PHOTO TAKEN FROM MY BEDROOM WINDOW OF THIS MORNINGS CRESCENT MOON & PLANET VENUS TO THE RIGHT

Took Pheebs big comfy bench bed out of the Jeep & replaced it with our rear seat this morning.  Also put the tow bar back on the Jeep & packed some stuff in behind the seats.  A few more things into the Winnie Wagon.  Packing up to go on a trip whether for a few days or a few months is always kind of a nice low key excitement for me.  Just the fact I know we are going somewhere puts an extra spring in my step.  Kinda like getting the maps out & plotting a route.  Fun stuff:))

Our cell phone mysteriously quit working Wednesday.  Kelly spent all morning with Skype calls here & there trying to find out the problem.  It seems Bell Telephone in Canada dropped their partnership with T-Mobile yesterday.  Our phone generally works off AT&T towers but here at our Congress house the only tower we accessed close by was T-Mobile.   So now our phone is dead in the water.  Kelly finally did find a solution but we will have to wait a couple days until another cell phone arrives from T-Mobile itself.  She sure spent a lot of time on Skype this morning getting all our phone stuff straightened out.  Only thing I managed to get straightened out today was me in my recliner.  This technical age for the most part is great but there always seems to be so many glitches along the way.

 

In Wednesday’s post I said the following:  “How unlike our other 6 years when we would spend the entire winter boondocking in our 33’ Class A Damon Challenger & got along just fine”.  A reader in our Shout Box checked me on that statement saying, “you spent a lot of years ranch sitting near Bisbee not boondocking”.  First, I should have worded my initial statement better.  Without going back & looking things up I’m guessing we Ranch sat in 09, 2010, 2011, & 2012.  Four years averaging maybe 2.5 months a season.  Rest of our time was spent boondocking from Fall of 07 to Spring of 2012.  Though technically not boondocking at the Ranch because we had electric & water does not take away from the fact we spent our entire RVing time from day one in the Fall of 2006 right up to the Spring of 2012 living in our rig while Snow Birding in the South-West.  And in Thursday’s post it was the smaller space in our Class C I was referring too.  I should have remembered, referred to, & separated our time at the Ranch as RV Park living & not full blown boondocking.    But for someone to say, “you spent a lot of years ranch sitting near Bisbee not boondocking” is partially incorrect as well.  Whether in an RV Park or Boondocking, a small space is a small space & that was the gist of my post.

Bob over at the THE CARETAKER CHRONICLES & Paul from R SANITY RV ADVENTURES in comments on my Wednesday post wondered whether that Winnebago Destination was really on a Peterbilt frame.  All’s I can say is it had the ‘Peterbuilt’ logo embedded on the front of the coach so from that I was assuming it’s a Peterbilt (truck) frame.  Also has the ‘Workhorse’ emblem as well so maybe it was somehow a combination of both.  Definitely a Chevy gas engine for sure.  To complicate things further the Destinations manual said UFO chassis.  So, confusion is the order of the day here about the chassis thing.  If the numbers had worked out in our favor this week we would probably have grabbed this coach.  We read & researched this type of Winnebago & as with any rig there were some issues but overall we found people who had these rear end Winnebago Destinations & Latitudes loved them.  Nowhere did we read, as some have suggested about the engine being too small for the coach etc.  And no, we do not have any plans whatsoever in buying a diesel coach……………….

Now, to clear up a few other comment things.  In deciding to go back to a Class A all’s we had to do was reverse our pros & cons about going from bigger to smaller to going from smaller to bigger.  People’s needs, circumstances, & priorities change.  Some folks go with change as it happens while others remain steadfast with where they are & what they have.  Kelly & I have always been of the belief if one has the desire & means to make changes then do so.  After all, that is how & why we ultimately arrived at the Snow Bird lifestyle.  It is precisely why we spend our winters where we do.  Had we not thought that way even years ago we would still just be sitting in our Bayfield house every winter forlornly looking out our frosted windows complaining profusely about the miserable cold & stormy weather outside like every other poor soul has had to do this winter.  Sitting in a house all winter in Canada or the Northern States to me makes no sense if, & I emphasize IF one has the financial means, are free of work commitments, & are currently in good enough health to head south into warmer healthier climates………..then why not.

We sold our Damon Class A Motorhome for several reasons last year.  It was 10 years old & we had it for 6 of those years.  It treated us very well in those 6 years but we didn’t want to wait until we got ourselves into an ongoing fix & repair cycle at some point as inevitably happens with aging vehicles.  I am not mechanically inclined & have no interest whatsoever in trying to fix this, that, or the other little thing.  I have zero interest in keeping any kind of a vehicle for 10, 20, or 30+ years unless it was some kind of antique hobby I enjoyed.  Give me the challenge & excitement of a newer & different vehicle any day as opposed to same old, same old, same old. 

Getting back to what I was originally talking about let me say that after buying our Congress house we very contentedly busied ourselves last winter totally enjoying our time working away fixing things up.  Thought to ourselves, ‘well now that we have the house we won’t be traveling as much’ & that was true last winter.  That is how we felt.  We were focused on the house.  But that was last winter & in our lives things have a habit of changing & thank heavens they do.  Remember, I am not a fan of same old-same old. 

With the thought in our heads a year ago about not traveling as much we made the decision at the time to downsize our RV.   Coupling that with our aging Damon we figured it was the right time to make the change which it was……. except for one thing & here is where we made our mistake.  Yes, we here at the Bayfield Bunch, unlike some, do admit our mistakes.   We should have stuck with a Class A instead of switching to a Class C.  Simple as that.   Nothing wrong whatsoever with Class C’s & they have many pros but we have learned in this past year a Class C no matter how hard we tried to adapt, just was not the best vehicle suited to our particular needs.   Remember, every one of us is different & what works great for one person or couple does not necessarily work great for the next person or couple.  It’s important to remember that.  And that is precisely why some of us come south for the winter while others chose to stay in the North.  Why some are Snow Birds, some are Full Timers, some prefer RV Parks & some prefer Boondocking.  Think of what a crowded mess this RV world would be if we all thought alike eh.

In a rather rambling round-a-bout way that brings me back around to my previous thoughts.  Either make the best of what you have & perhaps not be happily satisfied or make the effort to change what it is that is not feeling right about your situation.   Thus our decision to put ourselves back into a roomier Class A Motorhome again at some point in the not to distant future.  Is there a chance we could be making another mistake??  Is there a chance you could walk out of your house & slip on a banana peeling??  If you think not then you are the people out here with that so called perfect Motorhome………….10-4:))

And a reminder to folks looking for any of my ‘Older’ or ‘Newer’ posts…..scroll down to the bottom & look for the pink bar with the word ‘Home’ in the center of it.’  Hover your mouse either on the left or right side of that word for ‘Older’ or ‘Newer’.  I don’t know why this new template won’t visibly display the words openly!!

GROANER’S CORNER:((  A little boy opened the big family bible. He was fascinated as he fingered through the old pages. Suddenly, something fell out of the Bible. He picked up the object and looked at it. What he saw was an old leaf that had been pressed in between the pages. "Mama, look what I found", the boy called out." What have you got there, dear?" With astonishment in the young boy's voice, he answered, "I think it's Adam's underwear

ARE TIMES ‘A-CHANGIN’ FOR RV BOONDOCKERS IN THE GREAT AMERICAN SOUTHWEST??

THIS IS OUR IDEA OF BOONDOCKING AND THAT’S OUR RIG WAY OUT THERE BACK IN 2008
Kelly drew my attention to a fellow Blogger’s post today.  Suzanne’s blog ‘Take To The Highway is on our sidebar and I especially liked what she wrote about in her recent post, Time To Think.  I am in lock step with Suzanne’s thinking and what she is encountering in her travels as a full time RV’er in the southwest.  In her own words she is not finding the same ease and boondocking freedom she did just six short years ago.  Kelly and I began noticing the same thing a few years ago as well.  With more and more RV’ers hitting the road and heading for the southwestern States things are changing.  In California, Borrego Spring’s Rockhouse Road  area was a favorite boondocking destination of ours from 2008 to about 2015 when it became way too crowded after the State Park corralled all the boon-dockers into a smaller area.  With more and more rigs on the road each winter Rockhouse Road is no longer a destination for us.  Too crowded.  Same thing at Darby Well Road near Ajo Arizona.  Loved that place until the mining company fenced a lot of it off eliminating about 80% of the sites.  I consider Kelly and I very fortunate to have got into the RV Snowbird lifestyle when we did back in late 2006.  Being the private people we are and with more and more people pouring into the quietly secluded areas of the southwest I think it’s just as well we are approaching the end of our RVing days rather than just beginning them.  This winter probably being our last I only hope we can once again find some of the peacefully serene people free places like we did in our early days.  Mountains all around, unobstructed sunrises and sunsets, stars from mountain top to mountain top with only the desert winds whispering through tall Saguaros outside our door to keep us company. 

HERE WE ARE IN ONE OF THE BEST BOONDOCKING SITES WE’VE EVER HEAD AND NOT ANOTHER RV IN SIGHT ANYWHERE

LOVE THOSE CLEAR BLUE DESERT SKIES

NO, PHOTO WASN’T TAKEN FROM A DRONE, IT WAS TAKEN BY ME AFTER WE HAD CLIMBED UP A HIGH ROCK CROPPING

THESE PHOTOS WERE TAKEN FROM FEBRUARY 14TH TO 21RST IN 2008 WEST OF AJO ARIZONA

THOSE ARE THE AJO MOUNTAINS ON THE HORIZON

WE HAVE TRIED TO GO BACK TO THIS SPOT OVER THE YEARS BUT THE ROAD HAS BEEN TOO ROUGH AND WASHED OUT

CHECKERS, KELLY, AND LITTLE CORA (MOTORMOUSE)

THAT’S OUR RIG IN THE BACKGROUND

WE SURE DID LOVE OUR ROCK SCRAMBLES BACK THEN AND HERE LITTLE CORA GETS BY WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM HER FRIENDS

A LAZY DAY AT OUR HOUSE AND DID YOU NOTICE MAX BEHIND THE CHAIR

WAITING FOR  A FULL MOON TO TOP YONDER MOUNTAINS

YOU CAN SEE WHY WE LOVE BOONDOCKING SO MUCH
Pheebs and I wandered around under cold cloudy skies this morning with our travels taking us through Goderich, Saltford, and Ben Miller.  Landscape was looking rather sullen and gray.  Did manage to find a few bits of color here and there.

A TOUCH OF COLOR ON A COLD GRAY DAY

FOUND US A NEW BARN BLOCK QUILT

THIS FELLA HAS A GOOD SUPPLY OF FIREWOOD LAID IN FOR THE WINTER PLUS A LOADER TO BRING IT RIGHT TO THE HOUSE

THIS BUILDING IS PART OF THE BEN MILLER INN COMPLEX AS IS THE BUILDING BELOW

With a light frazzle of snow in the air we were home about 10:30.  Kelly had a few things for me to carry out to the Motorhome as she busied herself in the kitchen baking for about the 3rd day in a row.  If the weather is good Monday she will be loading up all the baked goods and heading for her daughter Rebecca’s house in Kitchener.  From there with Rebecca, husband Ricardo, and daughter Ella they will head over to Kelly’s other daughter’s house (Sabra) in Cambridge where additional family members will all gather together for a Christmas Eve dinner.  If weathers not good Pheebs and I will drive Kelly to Rebecca’s then slip back home returning Wednesday morning to pick her up again.   Pheebs and I are looking forward to spending a nice quiet Christmas Eve and Christmas morning at home.  No people stuff.  Love it:))))))
 
SPOTTED THIS BALD EAGLE ON PORTER HILL LINE TODAY
 

On some of my Thursday morning Jeep rides with Pheebs I think of my good buddy Richard and how much I enjoyed our country road coffee tours a couple times a month for the past few years.  I miss those leisurely morning drives now when we worked so hard at straightening out all the world’s problems to our own satisfication.

FIXING A BENT SCREEN DOOR ON OUR MOTORHOME THIS PAST SUMMER

RICHARD APTLY CONVERSES WITH A HERD OF COWS

EXPLORING ALONG THE BANKS OF THE MAITLAND RIVER ONE SUMMERS DAY
As our departure date draws closer I still haven’t decided which route we’ll take.  I do prefer the Chicago I-80 route west through Davenport. Des Moines, and Omaha to Lincoln Nebraska then south down to Tucumcari New Mexico but at this time of year I figure that route will be too risky with winter’s stormy cold weather and probable bad road conditions.  That leaves our old stand-by route down through Indianapolis which will get us further south faster and at this time of year it’s all about reaching warmer weather as soon as possible so we won’t be dilly dallying around anywhere.  In our earlier years we most always made fast tracks south then west until we reached the mountains in New Mexico.  It wasn’t until we came down out of the Sierra Blanca mountains on the west side into Tularosa and Alamogordo that we breathed a big sigh of relief knowing we had once again reached our second home away from home for another winter.  It was from this point on we slowed down and enjoyed our scenic travels.  How nice to see desert cactus again.  We were once more on our ‘other Planet’ and sooooo glad to be there too:))

GROANER’S CORNER:((  Here are some amazing examples of lawyers cross-questioning in court.
Q: And what did he do then? A: He came home and next morning he was dead. Q: So when he woke up the next morning was he dead?
Q: Could you see him from where you were standing? A: I could see his head. Q: And where was his head? A: Just above his shoulders.
Q: The truth of the matter is that you were not an unbiased, objective witness, isn't it. You, too, were shot in the fracas? A: No, sir. I was shot midway between the fracas and the naval.
Q: Now, Mrs. Brown, how was your first marriage terminated? A: By death. Q: And, by whose death was it terminated?
Q: Do you know how far pregnant you are right now?  A: I will be three months November 8th. Q: Apparently then, the date of conception was August 8th? A: Yes. Q: What were you and your husband doing at that time?
Q: Doctor, how many autopsies have you performed on dead people? A: All my autopsies have been on dead people.
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Q: How do you get a lawyer out of a tree?…A: Cut the rope.
Q: Do you know how to save a drowning lawyer?A: Take your foot off his head.
Q: Do you know how to save a drowning lawyer?A: No? Good!
Q: What's the difference between a lawyer and a bucket of pond scum?  A: The bucket.
Q: What is the definition of a shame (as in "that's a shame")?  A: When a busload of lawyers goes off a cliff.
Q: What is the definition of a "crying shame"?A: There was an empty seat.
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An Avon Lady was delivering products in a high-rise and was riding in the elevator. Suddenly, she had the powerful urge to pass wind. Since no one was in the elevator, she let it go - and it was a doozy. Of course, the elevator then stopped at the next floor, so she quickly used some Avon Pine-Scented Spray to cover up the smell. A man entered the elevator and immediately made a face. "Holy cow! What's that smell?" "I don't know, sir. I don't smell anything. What does it smell like to you?" "Like someone crapped a Christmas tree."
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- To avoid taking down my Christmas lights, I'm turning my house into an Italian restaurant.
Q: What is an atheist's favorite Christmas movie? A: "Coincidence on 34th Street"
The holiday season: A deeply religious time that each of us observes, in his own way, by going to the mall of his choice.
“Why won’t Donald Trump be attending midnight mass this year?  Fake pews.”

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