A SCENIC DRIVE THROUGH LESLIE CANYON

Holy Smackers was that sun ever hot to-day. I think we got up into the 80's somewhere. Not a lot of relief but to stay in the shade. I pulled my lounge chair around the back of the motorhome out of the sun, grabbed my binoculars, tipped my chair back, & watched the spiraling of thousands & thousands of Sand Hill cranes. With outstretched wings they soared ever higher in tightening circles. Some of the flocks had hundreds of birds in them & within the many flocks were many patterns, but no confusion. It was like a single great mind was in charge of the aerobatics as groups merged, split, flowed in & around each other. Sometimes as they made their sweeping turns the sun would catch their feathers & there would be great flashes of white in the sky. I was reminded of gliders & sailplanes I have seen winging their way skyward on ascending warm thermals on hot sunny days. Sometimes the cranes were so high I could only see them with the binoculars & at other times they looked like tiny bits of paper falling from the sky as they made their way back to earth landing just south of the ranch at the Whitewater Draw's shallow lake. THE ROAD TO LESLIE CANYON

Kelly slipped into Elfrida for a yoga class at 10:30. They have quite an active community center program & she is going again Friday morning. Eight people in the class plus the instructor & his friendly German Shepherd dog. When the class ended, the German Shepherd walked over & put a big slurpy smooch on Kelly's face. See, I told you about animals sensing good people:))By early afternoon the sun was beating us up pretty good so we jumped in the car, cranked up the A/C & headed east of McNeal for the Swisshelm Mountains. We had heard that it was a nice drive over to Leslie Canyon. Slipped over the south end of the Swisshelms on a dusty but surprisingly good dirt road into a picturesque rolling hills valley surrounded by gentle mountains. This was cattle country with fields of yellow grass stretching off in all directions to the foothills on the horizons. Some distant ranches here & there scattered about. It was a beautiful day for a drive with beautiful high nimbus clouds high overhead. It was a big Arizona sky day. RED TAILED HAWK SOARING IN THE WARM ARIZONA AIR

We headed north up the valley before heading west back to the Elfrida highway. We could see Cochise's Stronghold ahead & to our left shrouded in the blue haze of the day. We remarked that at the same time yesterday we were over there winding our way down the narrow rocky mountain path. Sore feet & all!! A VALLEY OF CATTLE

We were back to the ranch by 4 & on the job by 4:15. We had happy chickens to-day & have been restored to exalted chicken caregivers, feeders, & egg gatherers, in the eyes of His Royal Highness, Sir Rooster of Shuster. Sir Rooster resides in the pen beside his 9 lovely capons & reins supreme over his haramesque little flock of cluckers.............................................SIR ROOSTER OF SHUSTER

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