MOVING DAY….. DARBY WELLS NORTH TO DARBY WELLS SOUTH:))

LEAVING OUR DARBY WELLS CAMPSITE UNDER STORMY SKIES THIS MORNING
In the above photo you can see a clump of large round brown rocks on the left.  We were camped just across the road from these large rock formations.  They appear in a lot of my photos and Pheebs and I climbed to the top of the center one.  The locals call these rocks the ‘Cow Plops.’  Story goes that Paul Bunyon once traveled through these parts with his big blue ox, Babe.  Seems Babe left a few deposits along the way but here’s my question to the locals.  Babe wasn’t a Cow.  Babe was an Ox.  Should not these large deposits be called…..Ox plops.  I rest my case……

A COUPLE RIGS PARKED NEAR THE ‘COW PLOPS’…OR ARE THEY REALLY OX PLOPS!!
Our travel plans have changed yet again.  Don’t ya just love it.  Because of the higher altitude & ongoing bad weather in the Patagonia area we have decided to forego that region until another time.  Decided to stay right where we are in the warmer weather here on Darby Wells Road. But, a different site.  I think it is just great that we have the freedom to change our location whenever we want.

SOME FOLKS OUT SCRAMBLING UP COW PLOP ROCK THIS MORNING
After our morning walk we hopped in the Jeep and headed south down Darby Wells road scouting for a new and better location.  Wanted to be further away from the main road, wanted to be further south for a better Verizon signal and we were looking for a bit of altitude so we wouldn’t have to put our Mifi on the roof.  Found a location that fit all three requirements and headed back to the rig.

WE FOUND US A NEW SPOT
Packed up a few more things, took the satellite dish down and by 10:20 we pulled out of our old site under increasingly stormy looking skies.  I am always sad to leave a spot that has given us so many memories in just 10 short days but it was time to change things up a bit.  Kelly followed in the Jeep.

ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL MORNING WALK
Reached the area of our new site and Kelly parked the Jeep off the road.  She jumped in the rig and we headed the 11 miles south to Why Arizona to dump our tanks and take on fresh water at the COYOTE HOWLS CAMPGROUND AND RV PARK which happens to be right next door to Hickiwan Trails.

COYOTE HOWLS CAMPGROUND AND RV PARK…LOTS OF ROOM HERE
By now there was a light rain falling so we didn’t waste any time taking care of business.  Must admit I am a little gun shy now dumping the black tank after my little incident a couple weeks ago but I made sure the connection was secure and all went well.  Ten dollars to dump by the way.

PHEEBS WATCHING FOR KELLY TO RETURN FROM THE COYOTE HOWLS OFFICE
We had no more than left Coyote Howls when the dark foreboding clouds opened up and we got a mixture of rain and sleet.  Lasted about half way back to Ajo and began to clear.  Storms are like that in the desert.  They can come and go quickly.

COLD RAIN AND SLEET ON OUR WAY BACK TO DARBY WELLS ROAD
Stopped and picked up the Jeep.  Kelly followed me as I slowly made my way with the Motor Home over the rough and narrow desert Jeep road to our new digs.  Picked up some new desert pin striping and scrambled a few cupboards.  Raining lightly as we reached our spot.  Did a little wiggling around with the rig to get things reasonably level, put some boards under the passenger side tires and we were all set settled in.  We were home for another week or so.
 
The rain picked up for about an hour and we ended up having to fire up our Legacy Blue Flame Heater to get warmed up.  By 3 o’clock the sky began clearing and by 4 we were once again bathed in a big warming Arizona sun. 

CLEARING SKIES FIND US IN OUR NEW SPOT
We took Pheebs & Motor for a late afternoon walk and met our closest neighbor from maybe a quarter mile away.  Nice fellow out walking his dog, Lady.  Well, Lady and the Pheebs just hit it off right away and the game was on.  They just ran, frolicked, wrestled and bounded non stop for nearly half an hour.  So nice to see 2 dogs having so much fun playing together.

 
PHEEBS AND NEW PAL LADY HAVING A BLAST THIS AFTERNOON
Because we are higher up now we have a totally scenic 360 degree panoramic view all around us.  We have TV channels with just the rig’s aerial and we now have a stronger Verizon signal.  No cell phone, but who cares eh:))

OUR NEW FRONT YARD
And, a reminder to folks that if you see a colored word or words in my posts with capital letters, it is a clickable link.  For example, if you click on TIOGA GEORGE it will take you to his site.  KEN ROCKWELL PHOTOGRAPHY will take you to my favorite helpful photo site and ONE MINUTE ASTRONOMER will take you to an easy to understand daily night sky Astronomy site.

I liked GYPSY'S post awhile back about how she decided to try on the RV lifestyle as a lone RV’er and how a few years later had to reverse that decision.

There was a time when I might have been able to go it alone as a solo RV’er but I’m not so sure I could or would want to do it that way anymore. From a technical point alone it would be a major challenge for me. Kelly handles all that TV set up confusion, internet and cell phone stuff not to mention all the paper work and dozens of phone calls regarding insurances etc. She is also much better than I am at trouble shooting technical problems. Not easy for a feller to have to admit all that but reality being what it is I have to face the fact that my mind is just not quite as sharp as it once was.

OUR NEW NEIGHBORHOOD
In Gypsy’s post she talked about the feelings of loneliness on the road and I think that would be one of my main problems as well. One of the greatest things about RVing is having someone to share all the adventures with. The highs and the lows. The joint decisions and the like minded interests. I do like my alone times but to be alone 24/7 would probably not work for me now at this age and stage. I never feel a need to be around a bunch of people but I do have a need to be with someone close and someone special. And of course that includes the furry guys too.

(Am hoping I never posted the following two paragraphs before because I wrote them a couple weeks ago and don’t think I included them in my posts)
Made myself a ‘no-no’ purchase in Wal-Mart awhile back. It was something I have not had for years and something I like so much I just have to stay away from because it is so very fattening. It was a spur of the moment decision that saw me pick up a whole quart of this stuff for myself. I know of no drink anywhere on this planet that tastes better than……Pumpkin Spice Eggnog:))

YEP, WE LIKE OUR NEW DARBY WELLS DIGS:))
Our change in travel plans again is a good example of why we prefer to travel the way we do. With no obligations, commitments, reservations or restrictive travel plans we are able to stay flexible and footloose. We both prefer to stay on the move seeing new things. As Snow Birds we sit in one spot for 6 and 7 months of the year and our rig never leaves home. Neither one of us has any interest in driving all the way south for the winter and ending up sitting in one spot for another 6 months. We know we are the exception to the rule but it’s just our way……..10-4:))

GROANER’S CORNER:((  Brenda's 6 year old was explaining to the other kids what "extinct" meant:
"Well," she said in all seriousness, "it means that the dinosaurs are all dead and have been dead so long they don't stink anymore, that's why they call them exstinkt."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-Tourists see the world, travelers  experience it.
-Until one has loved an Animal, their  soul remains un-awakened.
BAYFIELD BUNCH PHOTO ALBUMS https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295
The only thing better than right now  will someday be the memories of
right  now...AL.

A ROUGH AND TUMBLE DRIVE AND HIKE IN ARIZONA’S CABEZA PRIETA

Let me first give you a few statistics of the an area we traveled and hiked in today just west of Ajo Arizona.  The CABEZA PRIETA is the 3rd largest Refuge area in the United States outside of Alaska.  It is 60 miles long by 26 miles wide and encloses 860,000 acres.  The Refuge shares a 56 mile border with Mexico.  Temperatures here can reach a hundred degrees for 90 days straight in the summer months.  Hundreds of people and countless animals perished crossing the Cabeza Prieta during the 1849 California Gold Rush.

We set out on the late side this morning arriving at the Cabeza Prieta Visitor Center about 9:40.  Forms had to be filled out before we were issued our permits to travel on the Wildlife Refuge and a 20 minute video was recommended prior to heading out. 

At 10:20 we left the smooth pavement of Rasmussen street in Ajo and headed out on the long dusty 17 mile gravely and rutted road to Charlie Bell’s Pass.  This road is rough with sections of washboard that will scramble your shorts.  Many dry sandy washes are crossed and a few sections of road were partially washed out but navigable.  I was glad we were driving a 4WD Jeep.

FOUND ME A WINDMILL FOR YA MIKE
I would say the first two thirds of the tire bruising road are the best with the last third being very rock infested.  This last section of road will definitely have you leaving some of your vehicles rubber behind in the Prieta.

Lots of Saguaro Cactus and Cholla plants along the way and the drive is scenic but if you want more scenic, less bumpy, and a much shorter drive I would recommend you do the Darby Wells loop drive which also runs out of Ajo and is just south of the Wildlife Refuge.

At times on this road I was in the bottom end of first gear crawling along over the rocks or easing down into or out of rutted dry washes.  It took us one hour and 40 minutes to travel 17 miles to the trailhead at Charlie Bell Pass.

We had not thought this out very well because it was sliding into the hottest part of the day and here we were about to descend on foot down a rough and rugged trail leading a long way below to the floor of Growler Valley between a gap in the Growler Mountains.  It is reported that famed naturalist writer Edward Abbey is buried somewhere in the Growlers just to the south of where we hiked today. 

Our downward trek was a mile and a half of ankle twisting loose gravel, rocks and small boulders.  Very few flat level sections anywhere.  We reached the Valley floor and kept plodding west. We were hoping to eventually reach a windmill and a bunch of nearby Petroglyphs.

THIS IS WHERE WE PARTED WAYS WITH THE JEEP AND BEGAN OUR LONG DESCENT DOWN THAT ROAD AT RIGHT TO THE VALLEY FLOOR BELOW
 
We were told by the Ranger at the Visitor’s Center this is an active area for Mexican illegals moving through the area and if we see any unusual activity around the well we were to turn around immediately and return back up and out of the Valley.  We figured we had gone about a mile and a quarter when our hike came to a halt.

LOOKING ACROSS GROWLER VALLEY TO THE NORTH GROWLER MOUNTAIN RANGE

IT IS SAID THAT WRITER EDWARD ABBEY IS BURIED UP THERE SOMEWHERE IN THE SOUTH GROWLER MOUNTAIN RANGE
There was Border Patrol personnel and vehicles ahead.  Not wanting to walk into something we shouldn’t be walking into we decided to quietly turn around and return from whence we had come.  We figured Border Patrol activity way out here in the middle of nowhere constituted unusual activity.

A RATHER TREACHEROUS TRAIL TO HIKE
It was a hot exhausting climb back up that rocky trail with the warm mid day sun on our backs and no cooling breezes to cool us off.  Took a short break about two thirds of the way up and then made the hard slog for the top along the steepest and ruggedest part of the trail.  Needless to say we were happy to see the Jeep hove into sight and how great it was to take off the two heavy cameras I was carrying and flop into the soft cushy Jeep seat. 

LAST REST STOP BEFORE THE FINAL AND HARDEST PART OF THE TRAIL TO THE TOP OF THE RIDGE
We didn’t waste any time sight seeing on the way back out of the Refuge and it only took us 50 minutes to reach Ajo.  We had been away from the doggy guys back at the rig longer than anticipated and we were anxious to get back.  It was the longest time we had left Pheebs so far.  We knew Motor would be fine but we were a little concerned about the Pheebs.  Let’s just say we had the desert hammer down and had a fun and super bouncy drive back through the desert to Ajo:))

YEP, WE SCUFFED UP A FEW TIRES TODAY ALRIGHT
Glad to get back to the rig and find the gang just fine.  Pheebs had managed to pull a few potatoes out of a closet but other than that everything was honky-dorry.  It’s always a great big happy and slurpy reunion every time we come home.

A QUICK STOP AT MARCELA’S CAFÉ FOR A QUICK BITE ON THE WAY HOME…BURRITO FOR KELLY AND A BURG FOR AL:))
And, a few words about Monday night’s blog.  It has been brought to my attention that from time to time I get myself just a little too over the top, a little too enthusiastic, and a little too excitedly opinionated about my love of the boon docking lifestyle.  It has been suggested it is a topic I talk about too much.  Reluctantly, I have to agree and it’s a topic I will try to curb my enthusiasm and opinions about in the future.  Sometimes some of us fellers have to have a few things pointed out to us now and again eh:))

GROANER’S CORNER:((     After hearing a speech on motivating employees, the owner of a large business posted signs that read ‘DO IT NOW’ on the wall of every department at the office. It was impossible for the employees not to see them all through the day.
A friend dropped by a week later. Seeing the signs, he asked if the scheme really worked.
Well, says the business owner, not exactly the way I thought it would. The cashier ran off with $20,000, the office manager eloped with my secretary and the rest of the employees asked for raises!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-Tourists see the world, travelers  experience it.
-Until one has loved an Animal, their  soul remains un-awakened.
BAYFIELD BUNCH PHOTO ALBUMS https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295
The only thing better than right now  will someday be the memories of
right  now...AL.

TODAY WE DROPPED IN TO SEE……'WANDERWOLF’

(This is Saturday’s post)
I do not have to tell you it was another beautiful desert sunrise.  Some things are just a given:))

SUNRISE BEHIND THE MIGHTY AJO MOUNTAIN RANGE
Had us a whole boat load of laundry to do so loaded up the Jeep and headed the 6 minutes into Ajo.  Kelly remembered where the Laundromat was from a few years ago so it wasn’t long and we had things all sudsy and tumbly.  Slipped down the road to the big Shell station on the curve where they have a nice car wash.  The Jeep was covered in road grime from our Ontario trip down here so figured it was best to get that stuff off.  Besides, I wanted to have the Jeep nice and shiny for our return trip to the Motor Home on a very dusty road:))
 
WE ARE SURROUNDED BY SAGUARO CACTUS
From the gas station it was over to the Circle K store where we knew there was an outside tap on the building.  Filled up our water jugs with about 20 gallons of water.  This way it extends our stays in the desert.  A quick stop at the laundromat to switch the clothes from washers to dryers.  Across the street to Radio Shack we did go to get a power cord for our Cradlepoint Router.  Next came the grocery store and a quick stop for AL at a local Sub shop for eats.  And, then we went to visit somebody:))

Some fellow RV bloggers know Mike from his WANDERWOLF blog.  Good friend of FROGGI DONNA.  TIOGA GEORGE has dropped in to see Mike a couple times.  We were familiar with Mike’s blog, MEANDERINGS OF WONDERWOLF and the last time we were here we looked him up just as he was just getting his studio off the ground back in 07.  Mike is a very talented artist/painter/sculptor fellow who lives at his ‘Lizard Flats’ on 920 Rocalla.   Mike’s artwork hangs on many people’s walls and anyone in Ajo seeing some of the large building murals will be seeing much of Mike’s work.  He’s a friendly kind of a guy and another one of those southwest ‘characters’ you hear me talk about some times.  If your in Ajo you can find Mike, his art, and his playful tiny dog, ‘Little Bit’ alive and well at his quaint and artsy ‘Lonewolf’ studio.  Look for the big Lizard on the front of his building and the artworks in his yard.  Tell him the Bayfield Bunch sent ya:))

MIKE’S GROOVY RV HASN’T MOVED FOR A FEW YEARS BUT HE’S THINKING ABOUT IT…….
 
MIKE AND HIS LONEWOLF STUDIO AT LIZARD FLATS
Mike also gave us a smokin hot tip on another boondocking area close by with a giant Saguaro forest, rock arches and towering Chollas.  Might be a stronger Verizon connection there.  We’ll check it out later.

SOME MIGHTY FIERCE LOOKING SECURITY HERE AT OUR RIG

AND, SHE’S GOT BACK-UP TOO!!
We are having great difficulty where we are with a slow and sometimes non existent Verizon connection.  It fades in and out plus Kelly doesn’t have a phone connection.  It took my blog hours to publish last night and I actually fell asleep while it was doing so.  It timed out twice and the last time I hit ‘Publish’ at 4 a.m this morning it finally finished uploading.
   
A mutual friend of ours and LAURIE AND ODEL has just put her southeastern Arizona ranch up for sale.  Rosanna and her Mother, Carol from PAWS AND HOOVES ( can’t access link due to bad connection) have bought a little house near Placerville California.  I am quoting the following from Laurie’s post this morning in regards to the ranch sale just in case there is anyone out here interested in a fine little ranch just west of the Chiricahua Mountains near Sunizona.  “To Quote Laurie: Anyone looking for a horse property in SE Arizona (Cochise County)? Rosanna’s home is new-ish (15 years, maybe?), 3 bedrooms, two bathrooms, nice big kitchen. Lots of windows. BIG barn, corrals of various sizes. A good well. A big, outdoor, clay oven! A level site for a large RV with a 30 amp hookup and water. The acreage is completely fenced and gated. A covered carport - two, I think. Good horse riding in the area – John and Brenda took their horses over to Council Rocks in the Dragoons a couple of weeks ago”. Unquote:  Depending on our travel plans we may end up at Paws and Hooves in the new year sometime to possibly help the folks out a bit. 

RECENT RAINS HAVE REALLY GREENED UP THE OCOTILLO PLANTS 
Later in the afternoon after realizing the Verizon power cord we bought today wasn’t going to solve our problems we decided to check out the area Mike had told us about.  Hopped into the Jeep and found the dirt road off the nearby highway OK.  Headed out into the desert but after going about a mile on a bumpy, uneven road and fording a few small muddy water bogs we decided it was not suitable to bring the Motor Home out there.  Turned back and headed for the rig.  Ok, option B.

Another outside BBQ under a setting desert sun.  Kelly noticed how pretty the moon and planet Venus looked in the west and I was able to crack off a photo before the light was gone.  Tried taking a few hand held photos later but the shutter speeds were too low.  Took advantage of that and created a few moon and planet abstracts.  Tomorrow night I will set up my tripod and try for some nice clear crisp photos of the Moon and Venus.

LOOK CAREFULLY TO TOP CENTER FOR THE NEW MOON THEN LOOK LEFT FOR THE HARD TO SEE PLANET VENUS
Blog is going to be late again tonight because I cannot get a connection….:((

IN THESE MOON ABSTRACTS THE SMALL BRIGHTER LINES ARE VENUS TO THE LEFT WHILE THE LARGER YELLOW ON RIGHT IS THE MOON:))
GROANER’S CORNER:((  A tourist is sport-fishing off the Florida coast when his boat capsizes. He can swim, but he is so afraid of alligators that he clings to the overturned craft.  Spotting an old beachcomber standing on the shore, the tourist shouts, Are there any gators around here? Naw, the man hollers back, they ain’t been around for years.  The tourist breathes a sigh of relief and starts swimming leisurely toward the shore. As he nears the beach, he yells to the man, How did you get rid of the gators?
We didn’t do nothin, the beachcomber says…………….the sharks got em.