CAMPED AMID THE SAGUARO CACTUS

 

LOTS OF WAGGING TAILS THIS MORNING AS WE SAY GOODBYE  (photo taken by Jeanie)

The sandman worked overtime last night weaving his nocturnal magic on two fronts.  First he put me gently to sleep & then he removed my lingering last day sadness.  I woke up this morning looking forward to the day instead of looking back on my previous melancholy 24 hours.

   

SUNDAY’S MORNING MOON

I was up at 4 & Kelly was up at 5:30.  Big game of toys with all the dogs & then it was out the door into the frigid 34F morning to feed the critters.  No more thoughts of 'lasts' this morning, it was just get on with the job & get things done.  Took the satellite dish down & put in the slides just as Jeanie & Ray rolled through the front gate in their jeep.  They had left their rig up in the Wilcox area & were planning on taking Gleason & Pearce back up that way to do some hiking in the Dragoon mountains.  Nice to see them & we all had us big chin wag.  Ingrid & Tom rolled in to drop off Corky so it was like a last minute circus before we left.  Jeanie & Ray asked us to come back next winter & we told them to pencil us in:))  And, they brought me 2 jars of 'natural peanut butter.'  My favorite kind......Yaaaaaa:))  Thanks guys.

  

A FEW OF THIS MORNING’S MEMORIES

In a flurry of wagging tails, laughter, hand shakes, hugs, & see ya later's, we had the big wheels rolling out the gate by 9:25 a.m.  A last look back, a wave, & we were gone on down the road.  It was the beginning of a new journey. 

JEANIE & RAY………..SEE YA LATER GUYS & THANKS FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER:))

Beautiful blue morning in the Sulphur Springs Valley as we headed north through Elfrida, Sunsites, & Sunizona on our way to I-10.  Mountain ranges on all horizons as we swung the rigs nose west on I-10 heading for Tucson.  Fired up Garmin Gertie, our on board GPS system, & programmed her to take us through Tucson north to Casa Grande.  Motoring through Tucson the past 2 years has been a nightmare for us because of  major construction going on & we were twice funneled off the interstate into the backwater of secondary roads.  But, not today.  The I-10 construction has been completed & we sailed right through Tucson with no problem at all in the light Sunday traffic.  A bit of construction in the north end but nothing to worry about. 

 

BORDER PATROL CHECKPOINT AHEAD, COCHISE COUNTY ELECTRICAL POWER SUPPLY & DOWNTOWN TUCSON

Spotted a 'Cracker Barrel' sign & immediately went into 'lunch mode' wheeling off I-10 & tracking down the Barrel.  It was a snap decision & we failed to consider the time of day & what day it actually was.  Sunday at noon means herds of people flocking out of all the local churches & heading, where else.......Cracker Barrel!!  Waited half an hour before even getting in the door & seated.  I was very impressed with myself as I sat quietly on a bench outside without uttering a single bluster.  Food was great but slow because of the crowd.  Finally rolled back up onto I-10 at 1:20 p.m.  That little lunch break had taken about an hour & a half.  Yep, I was real proud of myself alright, not one bluster.

PATIENTLY WAITING IN THE CRACKER BARREL LINE UP

Shortly before reaching Tucson earlier in the morning we were still discussing where we were going & with the turn off for Why, Arizona less than a mile ahead we finally decided to go straight north through Tucson & head for a boondocking campground we had stopped at a year ago while heading east.  It was west of Casa Grande on I-8.  We knew if we went this way we could let the dogs out to run around without all the stress of having them on leashes in an RV Park.  HICKIWAN TRAILS in Why Arizona will always be one of our favorite little places & we were thinking of going there but by the sounds of it they are pretty full so we decided to maybe roll through there on our return in late March sometime if we go that way.

JIM KORTSEN PINAL PARK……& WE’RE CLOSE TO THE INTERSTATE!!

Currently we are in the Jim Kortsen West Pinal Park alongside I-8 about 20 minutes west of Casa Grande.  Strictly boondocking here & a bit of traffic noise from I-8 but we have mountains on 3 sides & lots of stately Saguaro Cactus.  Great Verizon signal & lots of TV channels with just the antennae up.  Sites are large & we have no visible neighbors.  Now, how nice is that......and it's all free.  I will never understand why most people insist on jamming themselves into overpriced crowded RV Parks!!

     

JIM KORTSEN  PINAL PARK…..WEST OF CASA GRANDE ON I-8

Gassed up ($150-2.84 a gal) at a nearby gas bar on I-8 & that is the first gas fill up since Deming New Mexico in late October of last year.  In the morning we'll head west to Gila Bend where we'll pick up some propane & water before heading either north to Buckeye on our way west to Quartzite or southwest to Yuma & then up to Quartzite.  We'll probably head into the desert about 6 miles south of Quartzite because we are familiar with that area & there is a much better chance of fewer people.  I would rather have skipped Quartzite but Kelly convinced me we needed a new flag pole & afterall, that is the best place to get one.  Whether I'll go into town remains to be seen.  I think me & the furry guys might just hang out in the quiet desert while Kelly goes into town to do battle with the people hordes.   She's got a lot more patience for that sort of madness than I do.  Besides, 'shopping' is an 8 letter word that nearly gags me every time I think of it!!

So, that's if for tonight in the shadow of Antelope Peak here alongside I-8 in the greening Sonoran desert.  Tomorrow we head west for the big Q.........& a quiet time in the desert for Al:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  What is the highest 'noise' frequency a human can make......Mariah Carey!!

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

OUR LAST DAY AT THE RANCH & A GOODBYE TO BELLE

We started the morning knowing it was our last day at the ranch.  I knew there would be many 'lasts' today & that always fills me with a sadness.  I have a habit of becoming attached to places & with our 7 weeks at the ranch earlier in the spring & our current 12 weeks now ending we have spent nearly 5 months of the past 12 months  right here on this great ranch in Arizona's Cochise County near McNeal Arizona.  We have made a few friends, had a really great time, & created enough memories to last a lifetime. 

     

OUR LAST MORNING WALK ….. GLEASON & PEARCE PLAYING

Took a last walk around the ranch after supper tonight saying goodbye to the chickens, the donkeys & Charlie the cat atop the hay bales.  Gleason & Pearce will do a last sleep over in the motorhome tonight before we leave in the morning.  Ranch owners Jeanie & Ray will be here early & it will be like a shift change with one crew coming on & one crew leaving.  We know Gleason & Pearce will really be happy to see them & that makes leaving a bit easier for us but I still always find it hard because I become so attached to the animals & especially the doggy guys.  Now, I had better get myself out of this sad mood or my whole post is going to become very soggy.

 

GLEASON & PEARCE WAITING FOR THEIR SUPPER TONIGHT & PEARCE WON’T EAT UNTIL I GIVE HIM HIS SMOOCH           (click pics to enlarge)

Had us a nice clear sunny morning going for us as we headed over to Belle's place to say goodbye around 11.  Belle's lady cousin, Willy & her friend Betty had arrived a few days ago from the east & we were glad we got to meet them.  It makes us feel much better knowing Belle is in capable & caring hands for the next month or so.  Two young fellows are in place for now at the ranch feeding & caring for the animals so we've got our fingers crossed that all will work out.  Belle was her usual beaming self when we came in & she always makes us feel so welcome.  She just loves Canadians:))  She had a few issues with her email program on the computer so Kelly set to work straightening things out again.  It's an old computer & I'm afraid Belle is fighting an up hill battle with it.  But she sure does well for 83.  Motty was able to get a lot of things corrected with it last week but the computer is just simply too old & too tired.  The computer is Belle's lifeline so I hope it hangs in there for as long as possible. We will be in touch with Belle via emails though & that is always a positive thing. 

                                

OK GUYS, SEE YA LATER…………

We chatted about the ranch, had us some laughs, some words of encouragement & some words of wisdom.  We talked a bit about Belle's health as well.  With Willy's & Betty's help she is finally going to give the Doctor a call Monday about her ongoing painful hip.  We were heartened by that & hope Belle can receive the proper medical attention now.  She broke that hip last August & had another fall after that.  Told her next time we see her we want to see her out of that wheelchair & outside in the fresh air.  While talking, her sparkling eyes suddenly lit up & she said, " I want to show you something."  Willy slipped into the other room & came back with a beautiful hand knitted afghan.  It was spun from goat hair & had all the vibrant colors of Belle's Peacock outside.  The blues, purples, & greens so perfectly blended together just like the Peacock itself.  A very big warm & sincere thankyou goes out from all of us here to our email friend Renee up in British Columbia for doing this for Belle.  Renee, I wished you could have seen the joy & excitement in Belle's face today.  She was bubbling like a little school girl at the thought of a stranger from afar taking the time to make that for her.  She is also looking forward to seeing you on your travels to Arizona soon.  Thankyou for being so thoughtful & thankyou to all the other folks as well who have taken an interest in Belle's life & have sent her letters & emails of encouragement & help.

 

BELLE’S NEW AFGHAN WITH THE COLORS OF BELLE’S PEACOCK

We stayed for a little over an hour & then it was time to go.  It was time to say goodbye to Belle Starr.    Seems it was only yesterday that we were saying hello to Belle for the first time but now here it was time to say, "OK, see ya later."  And see her later we just might, depending where our travels take us over the next few months & if it's anywhere near here on our return trip we'll definitely stop in to see her.  If not, maybe we'll make it back in the fall.  We'll still be able to be a part of her life though & stay informed as to how she is doing & how the ranch is coming along.  It has been quite a whirlwind of emotions & activities these past 6 weeks with seldom a dull moment at the Silverado Ranch but despite the ups & downs I am a better person today for having met Belle.  She has taught me something & I know it will take time for it to sink in & become sorted out in my mind but she has definitely planted some new software in this old tired hard drive head of mine.........and I thank you for that Belle.

Didn't want to wait until morning to hitch up the car so upon arriving back at the ranch I moved the motorhome ahead a bit, wiggled the car in behind & hitched it up.  Dumped the gray & black water tanks & stowed the gear.  Added water to the fresh water tank & disconnected the water hose.  Only thing left to do in the morning is pull in the slides, take down the Star Choice satellite dish, & pull the electrical plug.  That's it and we are gone.  No idea where yet but maybe we'll have that figured out by the time we get to wherever it is we are going to. 

ALL HITCHED UP & READY TO ROLL IN THE MORNING

And I want to welcome the FREELY LIVING LIFE family & John R to our travels.  Thankyou for taking an interest in the Bayfield Bunch & their daily activities.  Much appreciated:))

OK, better wrap this up or I'll be typing more sad stuff into this post.   I'll be OK once we get a few miles on down the road but until then I've got a couple old ranch Pals to spend some time with now because tomorrow morning I have to tell them...........OK guys, see ya later:((

GROANER'S CORNER:((  As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point the wrong way!!

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

AN ONTARIO SPRING LIKE DAY IN ARIZONA

OK BIG GUY LET’S TALK…………..

It felt like a refreshing Ontario spring day in Arizona's Sulphur Springs Valley this morning.  Just one of those feeling fine days with birds filling the air with happy songs. I often wonder where birds go on rainy days.

SNOW COVERED SAN JOSE/NACO PEAK……………… IN MEXICO

We took a techno break today.  No Delorme GPS or Win 7 stuff.  It was time to let the brain swelling go down & just do some simple domestic stuff.  Kelly was off to her last Yoga class & I busied myself with a shovel & bucket removing all the mud from the motorhome's interior.  Had the vacuum working overtime & shook out all the mats.  Even managed to get the ATV stuck in the mud down near the hay enclosure & had to round up a couple boards to place under the wheels for traction.  By the time I had the ATV unstuck I had about as much mud on me as the ATV did so I first hosed down the ATV & then hosed down myself in the shower.  All & all, a great Ontario spring like morning:))

                            

AWWWWWWW NUTS!!!!!!!!

We plan to leave Sunday morning so it was a busy day getting things stowed away & secured.  Windshield sunscreens to come down, a big patio mat to be hosed off & dried before storage.  Another tire pressure check & outside patio furniture to be cleaned.  Bar-b-que away, tow hitch greased, & coach batteries checked.  Nice feeling to be scurrying around knowing we'll be back on the road shortly.

SURE GOT A BIG PILE OF MUD OUT OF THE MOTORHOME THIS MORNING

A lot of cars coming & going to the Whitewater Draw today with convoys of 4 & 5 cars in some groups.  I was just on my way over to milk the chickens when a small brown car came slowly into the driveway.  Figured it was one of the birders coming in to ask if we had seen the elusive & very rare fuscia feathered Abyssinian Asscratcher that was reported in the area again a few days ago.  But, something looked a bit familiar about this car.  Turns out it was JERRY & SUZI from Benson dropping in to say hello.  They had been to Sierra Vista & thought they would slip over to say goodbye to the Bayfield Bunch before we left the area.  Nice to see them & we had us a chin wag for about half an hour.  Suzi is doing really well since her shoulder surgery back in December & will soon be trying out for the Harlem Globe Trotters.  We're hoping to meet up with them again over in California somewhere when we track down RICK & PAULETTE.

View Full Album

A few days ago when we slipped over to Sierra Vista we went through Tombstone & I cracked off a few pics driving past on the highway.  Not the best pics but noticed a fair few people clicked on them to have a look.  We first spent some time in Tombstone in December of 06 & you can see some much better pictures here at TOMBSTONE 1.  In the spring of this year we were there again & you can see those photos at TOMBSTONE 2 by scrolling to the bottom of the photo album.

                                    

CLOUD PATTERNS                                                 A FACE IN THE CLOUDS

In RICK'S blog this morning he posted about visiting Slab City near Nyland California Thursday.  We spent a few days at the 'Slabs' two winter's ago while having our solar system installed on the rig by Solar Mike who we think is the best Solar installer in the business.  If you have ever wondered what the Slabs look like or have ever heard of Leonard Knight's Salvation Mountain you can see our stay at the Slabs here..........

 

BUSY PACKING UP

SLAB 1 & SLAB 2 & SLAB 3.  We may stop at the Slabs again on our way west shortly & have Solar Mike check our system over to make sure we have been doing things right these past couple years. 

Well it's 7 P.M. & it's raining again.  Jerry phoned from Benson wondering if we could see the full Moon beside Mars in the Eastern sky.  Slipped outside but we are under a solid cloud cover here in McNeal.  Too bad because Mars & the Moon side by each would have made a good photo.  Maybe I can catch them tomorrow night although the positions won't exactly be the same.  We brought ranch dogs Gleason & Pearce in out of the rain & they are 2 very happy guys right now all stretched out in our warm, dry, & cozy motorhome.  Yep, there's a gonna be a lot of contented doggy snoring again tonight & that makes me a happy contented guy myself:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  My mind works like lightning,...........one brilliant 'Flash' and it is gone!!

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

KELLY DOES BATTLE WITH WIN 7 & VERIZON

Heavily rain laden gray clouds spread across the great sky canopy from horizon to horizon this morning bringing us bucket’s of moisture on & off for most of the day.  Better weather ahead but we're sure going to have one big huge clean up in the motorhome Friday.

The skies here in southeastern Arizona are nothing short of spectacular whenever a weather front comes through & I never tire of gazing in wonderment at the 360 degree panoramic view that makes me think I am standing in the middle of a Rembrandt painting.   The views are constantly changing & the colors run the whole spectrum from vivid to pastel.  Physical & geological parts of the surrounding mountains remain the same but their weather induced moody faces are constantly changing.  Shafts of sunlight, deep shadows & wispy clouds mixed with pallets of color fill the skies from mountaintop to mountaintop & play their artistic brushes across the valley floor & up the mountainsides for as far as the eye can see.

I know that a lot of my photos are repetitive & the same landscape here at the ranch is seen over & over but it is the ever changing light that gives each photo it's distinctive individuality.  In last night's blog the header photo at first glance may have at first appeared to be the planet earth.  In fact, it was the moon.  I took the photo in late afternoon when the sky was still blue which in turn gave the moon a blue caste.  In Picasa 3.6 I used the 'Focal B&W (black & white) to turn the overall photo into a black & white with the focal color point on the moon.  I enhanced the blue color a tad & that made it appear to be a photo of the earth taken from.....maybe the moon:))  Just another example of what that simple & easy to use little Picasa photo editing program can do.

Laurie, in SEMI TRUE TALES had an interesting comment in her blog today.  "we have more, and often closer, friends as full timers than we did in our prior, stationary lives."  Kelly & I have found this to be the case as well.  Although not full timers we have found that people we have met in our travels are a different type of people than most of those we know back home.  There is a common bond amongst RV folks that maybe isn't talked about a lot but it is there.  Friendships are formed through common interests, necessity, & a sense & understanding of a nomadic & gypsy way of life.  RV'ers generally have their best foot forward when meeting each other because we are all aware when company is parted there is a very real chance you will never see those folks again.  It's just the nature of the RV lifestyle.  Friendships can be made in an instant & last a lifetime with memories traveling forever.  All RV folks have lived in the sticks & bricks homes at one time or another & at some point in their lives decided there has to be more to life.  They all have a sense of adventure about them, a feeling of freedom, & an awareness that life does not go on forever.  They have made great sacrifices in giving up homes & business's & moving away from friends & families.  Most RV folks have a love of the outdoors & nearly everyone travels with their pets because we have also found most RV folks are animal lovers.  RV'ers are people who have broke with society's 'normal' way of doing things.  They had the courage to break away from what most people perceive to be a 'normal lifestyle' & it is this difference in RV people that bonds them together & cements the lasting friendships.

I did manage to get all our downloads into the new computer at the Elfrida library this morning & everything went smoother than normal.  However, Kelly ran into problems this afternoon trying to set up our Verizon air card with Win 7.  Not compatible it said at first so Kelly tracked it back & found a driver problem.  Straightened that out & ran into an update problem.  Squared that one away & immediately ran into more problems with Verizon & Win 7.  She finally resolved all the problems except for a connection management issue which she'll tackle tomorrow.  I was not happy to find out Win 7 does not come with my good old trusted & reliable buddy, Outlook Express.  Outlook is long gone from Microsoft's stable & has been replaced by something called Windows Live Email.  It has a few similarities to Outlook but definitely not the same.  I suppose I will get used to it in time but I've been with Outlook since way back in the Win 95 days & we worked well together.  Oh sure, we have Hotmail, Yahoo, Gmail, etc but I have never liked any of them with all their crappy ads, unnecessary clutter, & backasswards way of doing things.  Outlook was straight forward & easy to use in all aspects.  RIP Outlook Express:((

And welcome to Susan Smeal for joining our gang of followers.  You are in good company Susan:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  The best way to forget all your troubles is to wear really tight shoes.

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

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