HANGING ON TO THE DONKEYS

I’M DOING THE HOLDING & THE FERRIER IS DOING THE TRIMMING

Probably our coldest night so far as the thermometer showed us a 22F setting this morning.  Everything had a heavy coating of frost on it.  By afternoon we were up into the mid 70's.  The smart people sleep to noon:))  We generally get up about 5:30 a.m.:((

JOLEAN TRIMMING DONKEY HOOVES

Slipped down to the corral first thing & brought Poncho, Nellie, & Sarah, the Mom, Dad, & Daughter family from the main corral into a small pen with the lure of a yummy breakfast of baled hay.  A little clean up here & there & we were ready for the Ferrier.  Jolean arrived about 9:45 & within minutes we were into the donkey pen & the nail hoof clipping & trimming was underway.  Happy to report all went well & nobody got hurt.  No stepped on toes, bites, kicks, or bumps occurred.  Jolean spent about 20 minutes on each donkey & they all seemed to enjoy the extra attention.  As I stood amongst them holding a rope halter on each one as Jolean did the hooves I couldn't help but notice the individual donkey personalities at play.  They love attention & will slowly work their way between each other to be in the front line of attention.  Sometimes I would be petting one & a big head would slowly come around & gently nudge the other donkey out of the way.  Sometimes they would slyly back their bums in between so that they could get the most attention.  Very personable animals & ya just want to give them all a big hug & smooch:))

KELLY’S SET TO DO SOME SERIOUS PLOWING

This afternoon we headed over to the Aviation division of the New Tribes Mission for a tour of the facility & I will blog about that to-morrow.  I can tell you one thing though.....it sure wasn't the dusty little aerodrome we thought it was going to be!!

THAT FLOOR DOWN THERE WAS SO CLEAN YOU COULD HAVE EATEN OFF IT

May have breathed in a little too much donkey dust this morning & am feeling a little pooky to-night so am going to keep the blog a bit on the short side......if that's possible.

IT’S OK GUYS, YOUR ALMOST DONE

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Did you know Sea captains don't like crew cuts.

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

WARBLING SOME COWBOY TUNES & CLEANING CORRALS:))

THIS WATERING SYSTEM MOVES FORWARD A FEW FEET ABOUT EVERY 30 SECONDS

THIS IS THE GOOGLE EARTH IMAGE OF THE SAME CROP CIRCLES I PHOTOGRAPHED THIS WEEK.  RANCH IS AT LOWER LEFT

It was nearly a year ago when an email landed on our desktop while we were boondocked just west of Yuma in California.  That email from DOUG & JOANN, people we had never met, led directly to our ranch sitting job here in southeastern Arizona.  (we later did meet D&J)  They put us in email contact with a couple in Arizona who were hoping to spend a little time catching up on some RVing themselves.....if they could find someone to look after their ranch while they were away.  Well, one thing led to another & we began emailing back & forth with Jeanie & Ray the ranch owners near Douglas, Az.  They gave us the location of their ranch so I fired up our Google Earth to see if I could find the location from the air.  First thing I saw in the approximate ranch area were 6 very round & very large circles on the ground.  I had no idea what they were & the only time I had ever seen anything remotely similar were pictures of mysterious crop circles.  It wasn't until we finally arrived at the ranch about 6 weeks later that I found out what those very larger round circles really were.

Irrigation!! In southern Ontario we have lots of rain so there is no need for irrigation.  Fields are typically square or rectangle like a patchwork quilt.  In the Sulphur Springs Valley here the land is very arid & dry making it  difficult for crops to grow.  And, especially this past 7 years since the annual summer Monsoon rains have not been dropping their usual heavy rainfalls.  The water table in the valley is low & it was one of the factors here at the ranch that persuaded the owners Jeanie &  Ray to sell their 40+ head of cattle a few years back.  Not enough rainfall to sustain their crops for cattle feed.  There is an extensive irrigation system here on the ranch but if the water table isn't up to where it should be, the system becomes less effective.

The way some ranchers have dealt with this problem is to plant their crops in large circles.  A single water pipe, well, & pump system brings the water up & out of the ground from the center of the circle & into a long piping system that travels in a slow circle around the field on sets of wheels.  To-day's photos show a new system being installed last week & another one in operation.  I was lucky enough to come across the watering process on my way home from our photo group yesterday.

 

(click on photos to enlarge)

While Kelly was at her Yoga class this morning I was able to get some shrubs trimmed around the ranch & spent some time cleaning up the corral area.  ‘With no-body around I was really able to belt out some cowboy tunes too:))  To-morrow morning a Ferrier is coming to trim the donkey's hooves.  I wanted the corrals all spiffed up before she got here.  This afternoon we brought the donkeys into the corral from an adjoining field & first thing to-morrow morning we'll put them into a smaller stall for their manicure.  And how do we move these donkeys around so easily??  Yummy hay bales, that's how.  Just place a bale of hay on the ground and they will be there:))

 

HAULING OUT SOME HAY FOR THE DONKEY GUYS.  ONE BALE FOR SUPPER, ONE FOR BREAKFAST……HEEEEE-HAWWWWW!!

To-morrow afternoon we're heading over to the New Tribes Mission where Jeff the head pilot will give us a tour of the facilities.  And Thursday afternoon I will be slipping over to Belle Starr's to give her a hand at re-vitalizing her blogsite.  Yesterday we only had 2 people out for our photo group but that was OK because I was able to help fellow photo grouper MARYBETH set up her own blogsite.  Both Kelly & wish we knew how to do full blown websites but without some kind of instruction course it's not too probable.  If we could land a website course some time, Kelly would take it because she has the most good brains in the family:))  Much easier for her to attend the course then teach me rather than the other way around because the only thing I would probably remember at the end of the day would be what we had for lunch!!

OLD RUSTY FARM MACHINERY

Kelly brought a book home from the Elfrida library the other day called, The Day After Roswell.  To-day I started reading my first ever book about that UFO incident.  I have a very open mind about that sort of thing but have not done a lot of reading about it because there has been no way to separate fact from fiction regarding that incident.  And I have absolutely no interest whatsoever in fiction!!  If this book I started reading to-day is indeed fact, & so far I have no reason to believe it isn't, then the crash of an alien craft northwest of Roswell..........is true!!

WEEKLY SATURDAY NIGHT DONKEY DUST BATH

And one year ago to-day we were boondocked at Pilot Knob just west of Yuma for the night & that is where I took the photo you see at the top of our blog:)) 

SUPER PALS

GROANER'S CORNER:((  If David Letterman were to define the term "Top 10 reasons for Owning a Recreational Vehicle"-
1) A hobby that doesn't make you money, isn't relaxing, and leaves you broke!
2) A lifestyle choice that can kill you...or at least try to!
3) An obsession that will land you in the Funny Farm...or a Campground in Yeehaw Junction, Florida!
4) An amusing distraction...but you don't smile that much!
5) A great way to spend your kids inheritance!
6) A potentially deadly disease for which there is no cure!
7) A terrific way to see the very best and worse in humanity, from your living room.
8) There are easier ways to squander a lot of money! Live and pay Taxes in California for example!
9) The only cheap way to take a vacation that leaves you broke!
10) A way of life that is guaranteed NOT to make a 'homeless guy pushing a shopping cart with all of his worldly belongings in it' jealous!

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

IN AWE OF THE SOUTHWEST

 

CLOUD SHADOWS DRIFT ACROSS THE SWISS HELM MOUNTAINS

I have always been in awe of the American southwest ever since my first venture to this great land in May of 1992.  That trip was done in a small Mazda pickup truck with a topper on the back to sleep under at night.  Frigid desert temperatures & all.  No matter though because the beauty of Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Montana, & northern Arizona far overcame any hardships along the way.  For the next 12 years the mountains, rivers, valleys, canyons, deserts, & endless day & night skys simmered away in my mind.  I longed to one day return to the land that I felt so comfortable & at home in.

CLOUDS SITTING ON THE MULE MOUNTAINS OVER BISBEE

In late December of 2004 a rare window of opportunity presented itself.  I was driving school bus at the time & Christmas Holidays were coming up.  With another driver filling in for me I was able to extend those holidays to 2 weeks.  Kelly had that same time frame off as well.  We had just purchased a small Class C (too small) about a month before so we quickly formulated a travel plan.  Looking at our Wal-Mart atlas I figured the closest mountains & cactus to our place in southern Ontario would be in the south end of Texas.  Big Bend National Park.  To make a long story short we jumped into our Class C & with the pedal to the metal & Max sitting between us we made a bee line for Texas.  I remember straining my eyes looking for mountain tops south of Stockton. 

SOUTHERN END OF THE DRAGOON MOUNTAINS

We were only able to spend about 5 days in Big Bend & surrounding areas before we had to race back to Canada.  But, those 5 short days clinched the deal for us in our desire to return once again to the land of mountains & canyons.  It had been Kelly's first trip to the magic land of desert sand & towering mountains & she was hooked.  As much as we loved Big Bend I knew that it wasn't enough though.  Next trip we were going to have to head further west where the whole land is mountains & canyons & not just a small part of it.  Texas is basically.......flat!!  I knew that what we saw & experienced in Big Bend we would find a hundred times over once we headed west into New Mexico, Arizona, & California.

SNOW TIPPED & CLOUD SHROUDED CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAIN RANGE

Two years later we were able to fulfill our southwest dream as we rolled into Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, & California.  We knew then that we had found our winter home & we have been returning to these States ever since.  Wouldn't even remotely consider going anywhere east of New Mexico!!  The reasons for coming to the southwest are too numerous to mention but to-day reminded me once again of why we love it so much here.

View Full Album

It was another fiery sunrise with tentacles of reds, gold, & pinks, splashing across the undersides of dark rolling clouds.    Distant mountains silouetted against the rising sun on the eastern side of the valley with slivers of light highlighting rocky tips of the Mule mountains on the western side.  As the sun climbed higher, clouds began casting their slowly moving shadows across the mountain faces & that continued for the rest of the day.  Sun splashes crossed the valley floor lighting large & small areas alike with their passing.  On our morning walk we saw clouds to the west sitting on the Mule Mountains over top Bisbee.  To the south were the dark mountaintops of Mexico.  A glance to the southeast brought into view the far distant mountain tops of the Pedregosa mountains & immedIately to the east was the Swiss Helm mountain range.  Beyond the Swiss Helms loomed the mighty & legendary Chiricahua mountains with their high snow encrusted peaks.  A hundred miles or so up the Sulphur Springs Valley to the north we could make out what was probably the southern tips of the Winchester mountains east of Tucson & to our northwest was the forboding & also legendary Dragoon mountain range with it's southern edge stretching all the way from I-10 down to the ghost town of Gleason about 20 miles from us.  And, all this from just standing in one spot here at the ranch turning in a slow 360 degree circle.  And, all this under a big beautiful cloud studded sunny Arizona sky.  Is it any wonder we are in awe every single day of the majestic American southwest..............:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( How is a man like the weather?  Nothing can be done to change either one of them.

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

DOGGY DAY SUNDAY

 

THE DOGS & DONKEY SHOW

Before I forget!!  With Cowichan Bay Rick's email reminder this morning I was able to upload yesterday's Coronado Cave photos to our web album this morning.  Click on CORONADO CAVE ALBUM to check out the rest of our cave hike's photos.  My brain just wouldn't co-operate with me last night in trying to remember how to do that.  Thought there was a different upload procedure with re-sized photos but there isn't.  Just had to make sure I uploaded the correct smaller size in Picasa.  RICK saved the day again:))

It was after midnight by the time I had things squared away with the blog.  Live Writer hiccuped but I was once again able to click past the error & it published OK.  The ranch dogs Gleeson & Pearce had me awake about 4 with a lot of barking & that was it for me & I've been up ever since.  Not a lot of sleep last night so it turned out to be a very slow day.                                          CORKY >>>>

<<<< PEARCE

Kelly woke up with a mild case of shopitus this morning so headed off over to Sierra Vista this morning to do some browsing at a Marshall store.  Corky, a neighbor & friends dog came for the day so I spent a fair time just playing with the all the furry guys.  Rolling around on the grass with bouncing & bounding dogs flying around everywhere is my kinda day.  Corky is a big dog with endless energy so we all had a great time.  Little Motormouse doesn't know she's little & just gets right in there & mixes it up with the big guys.  I love watching them all playing & interacting with each other.  6 dogs just a havin fun.  Oh, & one old two legged dog right down on the ground in the middle of the fray as well:))

When we returned from our cave hike yesterday there were some really nice emails waiting for us & I would like to thank the folks from Santa Tresa NM, Denison Texas, & Gravenhurst Ontario Canada for taking the time to write us with their encouraging thoughts & positive comments.  A big thank-you from the Bayfield Bunch folks & you sure set Checker's, Max, & the Motormouse's, tails to wagging:))                                GLEESON >>>>

TO-DAY’S ALIEN FLYING SAUCER CLOUDS (Belle Starr’s Silverado Ranch is over there about the center of that mountain range)  Mule Mountains

I finally uploaded a couple more photo albums to our Picasa Web Album site this morning & that almost brings me up to date with all our photos.  Most of my photos don't make it into the blog simply for logistical reasons but if anyone happens to be interested  you can go to our WEB ALBUM SITE & click on any album you wish.  Many sunrises & sunsets & simple day to day activities in the lives of The Bayfield Bunch.   Lots of boring stuff but there it is anyway.............:))

SATURDAY NIGHT’S CAMPFIRE

GROANER'S CORNER:((  And did you know that George Bunting was a Baltimore Pharmacist who was inspired to call his skin creams product Noxzema after hearing a customer say, "It sure knocked out my eczema."  First sold in 1914 it was called Dr. bunting's Sunburn Remedy.

FACEBOOK READERS GO HERE TO SEE OUR ACTUAL WEBSITE COMPLETE WITH PHOTOS & MORE INFO.

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

MY SMUG MUG (I am finally working on updating this site)

http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/

TO-DAY WE FOUND THE CORONADO CAVE

KELLY TAKES THE SAFE WAY DOWN FROM THE CAVE’S ENTRANCE

A few days ago Kelly had been reading a brochure about attractions & things to do in Bisbee when she came across something about a cave.  Well, the mention of caves is just about enough to interest most anybody so this morning we sat down at the computer & tried to figure out where this cave was.  Because it was a Bisbee brochure we thought it's probably in Bisbee somewhere.  After searching up & down a few blind alleys we finally realized we were looking entirely in the wrong area for the Coronado Cave.

ON OUR WAY TO THE CORONADO CAVE WHICH IS NEAR ONE OF THOSE HIGH HUACHUCA MOUNTAIN PEAKS TO THE LEFT OF THE HIGHWAY

The Coronado Cave is located right in the Coronado National Memorial Park.  We had been to the park last March so knew exactly how to get there.  For our drive & hike up to Coronado Peak last March 11 ago check out our BLOG and PHOTO ALBUM for that day.  A few weeks ago when we had taken ranch dog Gleeson for his rabies shot in the Coronado area we had noticed a breakfast Cafe along the way with a lot of cars outside so that was our first stop this morning after leaving the ranch about 9:30.  Had us a big mess of bacon & eggs.  A couple of ranchers came in packing guns so that caught our attention pretty quick.  Being from Canada we sure aren't used to seeing that sort of thing.  Next stop was at a feed store along the way for some dog food & then off to Coronado National Park.

THE CAVE IS ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THAT MOUNTAIN ABOUT A QUARTER OF THE WAY UP

The Park is truly a beautiful place with forests, mountains, canyons, birds, & abundant wildlife.  As soon as you begin the ascent off the valley floor to-wards the park you immediately notice the greenery & off to the left you can clearly see 50 or 60 miles or more into Mexico.  The drive to the vistor center is lined with trees on a gently winding road.  Lots of room in the parking lot to-day & we were the only car there.  The hike to the cave begins right at the west end of the Visitor Center's parking lot but it didn't take us long to get ourselves off the trail.  The Parks people are working on a river bed along there so we ended up walking up the dry creek bed before finding the trail again.  It's a steady uphill climb to the cave & about 10 minutes after starting up we could feel our legs burning.  We still don't have our hiking legs on!!  The path wandered upwards with switchbacks, rock scrambles, stone steps, & easy walking fine gravel for three quarters of a mile.  Mesquite trees, agave, yucca, assorted grasses & cacti lined the pathways.  Mexican Jays & Norhern Flickers darted among the trees.   Breathtaking vistas across the valley to the forested peaks on the other side & a backward glance showed us the Mexican valley floor below with the San Jose mountain range far off on the horizon.  It was a picture perfect day with small white puffy clouds in the endless blue Arizona sky.  A cooling breeze coming up the canyon kept us from sweating the steady uphill climb. 

BEAUTIFUL SCENERY ALONG THE PATH LEADING UP TO THE CAVE

And then, all of a sudden, we were there.  I looked up & to my right & there was the cave opening at the far end of a stony set of man made steps.   Not a big opening to the cave & we could see there was a good bit of rock scrambling right at the beginning to actually descend into the cave itself.  Peering down & into the cave I was aware of how very dark it looked in there.  Good thing we had brought 3 small flashlights.  And I had a lighter in my pocket just in case.

The cave interior extends 600 feet in length with 20 foot ceilings & several crawl ways & short passages.  Stalactites, stalagmites, flowstones, & helictites can be found here.  Bats, Coatimundis & Ringtails occasionally use the cave for shelter & warmth although we did not see any trace of animals being in there.  The hardest part  was the rock scramble into the cave right at the entrance.  Once over the large rocks & down the steep incline to the cave floor itself we began to quickly lose the light from the small entrance above.  With flashlights on we slowly headed deeper into the cave.

WE BEGIN TO QUICKLY LOSE THE LIGHT

It was apparent right away that this was more than just a little hole in the wall cave.  We have been to both Kartchner & Carlsbad caverns & this cave reminded us of both those places.  The absolute blackness, the deathly quiet, the still air, & the largeness of the cavern walls & ceilings that our flashlights hardly had power enough to illuminate.  It was the camera flashes that showed us the much larger overall picture.  The floor of the cave was a soft gray kind of stone dust & easy to walk on.  Rocks jutted up & out at odd angles.  A few Stalagmites & Stalactites were illuminated along the way in the soft beams of our lights.  There were dark areas that looked like small passages but we stuck to the larger open spaces & kept moving forward.  Down a bit & then up a bit through a narrowing in the rock & we found ourselves in another very large cavernous room.  Our lightbeams barely reached the far side.  We turned off our lights for a few seconds & stood in the total blackness.  Ahead we could see a faint glow high up on the cave wall so we made our way across the large silent room.  Kelly waited about middle way while I went ahead, scrambled up some rocks, ducked down & duckwalked under an overhang into a smaller double closet space & looked up for the source of light.  And, there it was, a thin ray of sunlight about 15 feet over my head shining through the darkness onto a rock.  Looked like a tough bit of a climb to get up there & while I was briefly thinking about that I heard a sound I didn't like.

WOW:))

Killer bees are a very real problem in Arizona & it was a constant buzzing sound I was hearing.  Peering closer to-wards the sunlight I could make out the tiny shapes of bees buzzing about.  Without further adieu I turned around, squatted down, & duck walked myself right back under that low hanging rock outcrop & out into the bigger blackened room.  I could see Kelly's flashlight below like a starpoint in the vastness of a night sky.  And behind her somewhere further back in the darkness were two other small pin points of light.  Almost like eyes piercing through the night.  The pin points moved & I began to hear the murmur of voices.  Aw yes, another two people have ventured into the this black abyss.

THIS IS ONE VERY BIG PLACE AS KELLY WAITS FOR ME TO CHECK OUT THE LIGHT SOURCE.  REMEMBER, THIS IS ABSOLUTE & TOTAL BLACKKNESS WITHOUT A FLASHLIGHT ON

We kept our lights on & made our way back to where the other lights had stopped when we noticed something glowing red was moving on the cave floor.  Oh dear!!  The other lights weren't moving now as we approached, & they weren't talking either.  I ventured a greeting to our unknown & unseen alien visitors & was relieved to hear a pleasant greeting returned out of the darkness.  But wait, the red circle object on the cave floor moved to-wards us with it's.........4 feet!!  Well, the 4 feet belonged to a cute little pooch with an illuminated red color on his neck & the two pin-points of light were clip on hat lights that belonged to a couple from Tucson.  Nice folks & we had ourselves a little 5 minute chat right there in an underground cave in south eastern Arizona on a fine bright sunny day somewhere over our heads & totally out of sight.

MET THIS COUPLE & THEIR POOCH FROM TUCSON IN THE CAVE

Made our way back until we could see the light of the cave entrance again & began our ascent up the steep slope to the large boulders at the entranceway.  Clambered up & out into the sunshine...... & two young guys standing there eating submarine sandwiches.  How nice I thought for somebody to bring us lunch.

I’M HOPING KELLY CAN KEEP THEIR ATTENTION LONG ENOUGH SO I CAN SLIP AROUND & SNITCH THEIR SANDWICHES:))

The two fellows & a third fellow were just finishing up some eats before heading down into the cave.  Warned them about the bees at the far end, wished them well, & away we went off down the trail heading the three quarters of a mile back to the visitor's center. 

A STOP ALONG THE TRAIL FOR A WATER BREAK

All & all it was one of my favorite kinds of days.  We got to go somewhere we had never been & saw things we had never seen.  Now, why can't we do that everyday!!  Nice to get back to the parking lot & plunk ourselves into the soft seats of the car.  Headed off in the direction of Bisbee making a stop at the Safeway store in old San Jose for a few groceries.  We were back at the ranch by 3 o'clock & the rest of the day was spent relaxing & grabbing some zzzzzzzz's.  Sure had another pile of photos to work on again too.

HEADING BACK DOWN THE TRAIL

And, we handed out 4 more Bayfield Bunch cards to-day as well.  Left one in the Morning Star Cafe, & gave the cave couple a card as well as the fellows outside the cave entrance plus the Park management lady in the Visitor's Center.  I think we've still got about 950 cards left so don't think we'll be running short any time soon........:))

THAT VALLEY FLOOR & MOUNTAIN RANGE OUT THERE IS MEXICO

To see the rest of to-days photos go here to CORONADO CAVE PHOTO ALBUM

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Waiter....."Would you like your coffee black?"  Customer..... "What other colors do you have!!"

FACEBOOK READERS GO HERE TO SEE OUR ACTUAL WEBSITE COMPLETE WITH PHOTOS & MORE INFO.

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

MY SMUG MUG (I am finally working on updating this site)

http://stargeezer.smugmug.com/