MY GOAL TODAY WAS TO TAKE AS FEW PHOTOS AS I COULD….I NEEDED A BREAK FROM MY CAMERAS

AFTERNOON WALK IN THE DESERT

Started my day off amassing over 800 photos from this first week in January into some semblance of order in my photo files.  And the week isn’t even over yet.  Oh Dear:((  Most of today’s photos are of our Chiricahua Mountain Jeep ride a couple days ago.

AFTER PASSING THROUGH PORTAL THIS IS THE LONG NARROW AND DUSTY ROAD TO PARADISE ARIZONA

AS WE CLIMB HIGHER AND LOOK BACK TO PORTAL WE SEE THIS

AND A CLOSER TELEPHOTO LOOK REVEALS THIS

KELLY SPOTS A HOUSE FOR SALE IN THE TREES

THESE ARE THE MAILBOXES FOR PARADISE AND AREA RESIDENTS

WE STOPPED AT THE GATES OF PARADISE FOR A STROLL THROUGH THE CEMETERY AND YOU CAN SEE THOSE PHOTOS ON MY JANUARY 3RD POST

WE HADN’T TURNED WEST INTO PARADISE YET BUT I TOOK THIS EASTERN EDGE SIGN PHOTO ANYWAY

FIRST BUILDING  YOU WILL SEE UPON ENTERING PARADISE

 

EVEN SPOTTED A REAL CHRISTMAS TREE IN PARADISE

PARADISE’S VERY MUCH MOST MODERN HOUSE

AN OLD ORIGINAL MINING DAYS BUILDING

DRIVING THROUGH THE TOWN BASICALLY LOOKS LIKE THIS

FIRST TIME THROUGH PARADISE YEARS AGO WE WERE LUCKY ENOUGH TO MEET A LADY WHO SHOWED US AROUND THE WELL KNOWN  GEORGE WALKER HOUSE….HERE IS MY NOVEMBER 3RD 2009 POST FOR THAT DAY……TODAY WE ENDED UP IN PARADISE

CONTINUING WEST OUT OF PARADISE THE ROAD GETS A LITTLE GRUMPY

I have noticed a weather pattern over the years and if the Southwest is on the warm side during winter months the Northeast will be on the cold side and vice versa.  Feel so sorry for all the outside critters and creatures back home.

A PHOTO OF GRAND BEND NEAR BAYFIELD TAKEN THIS AFTERNOON ABOUT 3 P.M..  AND THAT’S NOT FOG, IT’S SNOW….TEMPERATURE WAS 10F

A PHOTO TAKEN BY THE CAPTAIN  OF THE FREIGHTER ALGOWOOD AS IT ENTERS GODERICH’S SNOWY FROZEN HARBOR JANUARY 3RD 2O18 AND BELOW AS IT TAKES ON A LOAD OF SALT AT THE SIFTO SALT MINE DOCK

THANKS TO THE GODERICH SUNSET SITE FOR THESE TWO PHOTOS

AND ‘OMG’ THIS WAS GRAND BEND TONIGHT AROUND 7 P.M.  SIBERIA OR WHAT!!  AND WITH TONIGHT’S WIND CHILL FACTOR FIGURED IN TEMPRATURES ARE PREDICTED TO GO AS LOW AS 30 BELOW ZERO

It was a good day to sit back, re-organize, and not go anywhere.  A good opportunity to clean up the Jeep with a good wash.  With the types of roads we generally travel on I know it’s rather pointless to try and keep a vehicle clean but I wanted to get the last of the road salt and road grime off and with Janna and Mikes mighty fine deep well water system here I was able to do just that.   We plan to wait until we get to Yuma before we have the Motorhome washed.  No idea when that will be and notice how I said ‘have’ the Motorhome washed.  Nope I’m not gonna do it.   No hurry to get to Yuma though because it’s too hot for us there right now.  Sitting in the desert with 80+ temperatures is not our idea of being comfortable.  It’s 55F here on the East side of the Dragoon Mountains under cloudy skies near Wilcox Arizona and that is just fine with us.  Haven’t decided where we will be going when we leave here.  Maybe outer Mongolia.

THERE ARE NO FENCES OUT HERE ON THESE MOUNTAIN ROADS AND IT IS NOT UNCOMMON TO COME AROUND A CURVE AND SEE ONE OF THESE FELLAS PARKED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD LOOKING AT YA…..OR MAYBE HALF A DOZEN WHICH OF COURSE WOULD BE A DOZEN EYEBALLS STARING YA DOWN

THIS FELLER WAS A BIT CAMERA SHY

WE STEADILY CLIMB HIGHER AND HIGHER

WE CROSSED A FEW SMALL CREEKS ALONG THE WAY

Had a question or two about the night photos I took at the Rodeo RV Park we stayed at.  Ninety per cent of those photos were taken with my Sony RX100-3 camera.  It’s a point and shoot cam and that is all I did……point and shoot.  It’s an amazing little camera and was one of the cameras donated to me by one of our fine blog readers:)) 

WITH EACH MILE DRIVEN WE GAINED ALTITUDE OVER THE SAN SIMON VALLEY FLOOR FAR BELOW

WE ALSO BEGAN SEEING SIGNS OF THE DEVASTING CHIRICAHUA HORESHOE 2 FIRE OF 2011

HAD BETTER GET THE WHEELS TURNED SOON OR WE’LL BE ON THE FAST TRACK TO THE BOTTOM OF THE MOUNTAIN

JUST LOVE EXPLORING ALONG THESE MOUNTAIN ROADS

THE WHOLE TOP OF THAT RIDGE IS BURNT OFF

Speaking of photography I have to mention Gaelyn from Geogypsy.  Gaelyn has taken her photography up a notch to the next level and I was happy to see her do that.  I’m still stuck at the level where I have been for way too long now.  I need some of Gaelyns initiative and patience to follow her up the photography ladder.  We first met Gaelyn at the end of Ghost Town Road in Congress Arizona when she stopped in to visit RV Sue and Her Canine Crew who was boon-docking there at the time.  We’ve met Gaelyn half a dozen times since.  During summer months Gaelyn is a Forest Ranger at the Grand Canyon’s North Rim and spends her winter months knocking around in the Southwest like a lot of the rest of us do.

THIS POINT MARKS THE SUMMIT OF THE ROAD OVER THE CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS AND FROM HERE THE ROAD DESCENDS DOWN THE WESTERN SIDE OF THE CHIRICAHUAS TO THE CHIRICAHUA NATIONAL MONUMENT AND WILCOX BEYOND

AND IT WAS HERE PARKED IN THIS VERY SAME SPOT WITH OUR HYUNDAI SANTA FE BACK IN 2009 THAT WE STOPPED FOR A LEG STRETCH AND CAME TO AN AGREEABLE CONCLUSION….IF WE WERE GOING TO CONTINUE COMING TO THE SOUTHWEST AND ENJOY THE BACK COUNTRY WE WERE GOING TO HAVE TO GET OURSELVES A 4 WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLE…..AND THAT’S WHAT WE DID WHEN WE BOUGHT OUR O6 JEEP WRANGLER IN 2010

FOR US GETTING OUT ON THESE MOUNTAIN AND DESERT ROADS IS ONE OF OUR VERY MUCH MOST FAVORITE THINGS TO DO…..NOTICE THE BURNT TREES BEHIND US

WE DECIDED TO GO A MILE FURTHER TO RUSTLER’S PARK AND ‘HEY’ IS THAT SNOW OVER THERE!!

FIRE RAVAGED HILLS

AGAIN I HAVE TOO MANY PHOTOS FOR ONE POST SO I WILL WRAP UP OUR REMAING CHIRICAHUA JEEP RIDE PHOTOS HOPEFULLY FRIDAY

A commenter in our Shout Box recommended we stop in to see the Texas John Slaughter Ranch east of Douglas Arizona.   We did just that on March 12th of 2009.  I’ve heard it is closed to the public now but here is my post for the day we were there…….. Texas John Slaughter Ranch.

OUT FOR AN AFTERNOON WALK TODAY

All the clouds blew out of Dodge by early afternoon and we were once again under big blue sunny Arizona skies.  Decided to take Pheebs for a walk and was determined not to take a camera with me but going for a walk without a camera is akin to going for a walk without my pants on and I knew that wasn’t going to happen any time soon so with pants securely in place and camera over my shoulder away we went.

EVERYTIME I LOOK OVER THERE AT THE CHIRICAHUA STRONGHOLD I THINK OF A STRENOUS HIKE WE DID ONE DAY BACK IN 2009…..HIKING TO THE COCHISE STRONGHOLD….BY THE WAY FOR ANYONE INTERESTED YOU CAN READ ABOUT OUR ADVENTURES OVER THE YEARS IN THE DRAGOON AND CHIRICAHUA MOUNTINS SIMPLY BY TYPING ‘DRAGOON MOUNTAINS’ OR ‘CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS IN OUR ‘SEARCH’ BOX NEAR THE TOP OF THE RIGHT HAND COLUMN IN MY BLOG

HEADING BACK TO THE RIG PHEEBS CAREFULLY PICKS HER WAY THROUGH THE DESERT SCRUB MAKING SURE SHE DIDN’T GET ANY STICKERS…..AND SHE DIDN’T

Being a Thursday I thought of my good friend Richard back home stuck in the snow and cold.  Today would have been one of our semi-monthly morning country road coffee tours and I couldn’t help but wonder if maybe he was out driving around the snowy rural roads this morning with coffee in hand, kinda teary eyed and a picture of me on his front seat. Ya right:))

THOSE ARE THE CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS IN THE DISTANCE AND A FEW DAYS AGO WE WERE UP THERE AND I TOOK A LONG TELEPHOTO SHOT FROM THE TOP IN THE DIRECTION OF OF JANNA AND MIKE’S HOUSE IN THE  SULPHER SPRINGS VALLEY NEAR THE BASE OF THE DRAGOON MOUNTAINS

JANNA AND MIKE’S PLACE IS WAY OUT THERE SOMEWHERE ON THE FAR SIDE OF THE VALLEY

Earlier this morning looking for a pair of sweat pants I determined they must be in a bin in our rig’s basement.  Opened our door to go out and look but quickly closed it again when I saw Janna in the yard playing ball with Emmi.  Figured she wouldn’t want to start her day by seeing some old frazzled haired toothless guy flopping around outside in a pair of red plaid pyjamas.  I do try to be respectfully considerate sometimes you know.

A CHIRICAHUA STRONGHOLD SUNSET IN THE DRAGOON MOUNTAINS

GROANER’S CORNER:((  A woman went to a computer dating service and said she didn't care about looks, income or background. All she wanted was a man of upright character.  Then a man came in and told them the only thing he was seeking in a woman was intelligence.  The service matched them together at once because they had one thing in common - they were both compulsive liars.

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The owner of a drugstore walks in to find a guy leaning heavily against a wall with an odd look on his face.  The owner asks the clerk, "What's with that guy over there by the wall?  The clerk says, "Well, he came in here at 7 A.M. to get something for his cough. I couldn't find the cough syrup, so I gave him an entire bottle of laxatives."
The owner says, "You idiot! You can't treat a cough with laxatives!"  The clerk says, "Oh yeah? Look at him-he's afraid to cough!"

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NICE MORNING DRIVE, WHOPPERIZED OURSELVES IN DOUGLAS ARIZONA THEN DROPPED IN TO SEE SOME FRIENDS FURTHER UP COCHISE COUNTY’S SULPHUR SPRINGS VALLEY

NO PHEEBS WE CAN’T GO IN THE HOUSE YET…..MOM’S SLEEPING

Air was cold this morning and a brisk wind made it feel colder.  Still warm compared to what’s going on back home in Ontario Canada though.  No hurry to be anywhere again today so we took our time and slowly readied the coach for travel.   It was about 10 a.m. when we waved good-bye to the cozy little Mountain Valley RV Park.

WHILE DOING A LOAD OF LAUNDRY I TOOK A FEW LAST PHOTOS AROUND THE PARK

LAUNDRY ROOM

 

A READER ASKED HOW MUCH WE PAID A NIGHT AND IT WAS $20  WITH FULL HOOK-UPS….ELECTRIC,WATER, SEWER AND 30 AMP SERVICE PLUS WIFI

ONLY 5 SITES HERE WITH ONE OF THEM BEING A PULL THROUGH AND THAT’S THE SIGHT WE HAVE….ABOVE PHOTO SHOWS 4 BACK-IN SITES WITH THE 2 END ONES OCCUPIED

WE HAD A NICE AGAVE BESIDE US

FOR ANYONE COMING HERE I SUGGEST YOU PHONE AHEAD TO SEE IF THERE IS A SITE AVAILABLE AND KEEP IN MIND THE WEBSITE STATES 30 FEET OR LESS FOR RV’S BUT WITH IT NOT BEING CROWDED WE FIT IN JUST FINE WITH OUR 37 FEET

We sure had us one fine morning going on as we rolled the 50 miles south to Douglas Arizona.  If I said we saw 10 cars the whole way I would probably be exaggerating.   Way less people means way less traffic out here in the Southwest and that of course has always been one of the biggest attractions for us.   Mountains from horizon to horizon and wide sweeping valleys one can see across for miles and miles from one side to the other.

THIS STONE MONUMENT ALONG THE WAY IS IN MEMORY OF GERONIMO WHO WAS CAPTURED NEARBY IN SKELETON CANYON

AND OVER THERE IN THAT MOUNTAIN RANGE IS SKELETON CANYON

BORDER PATROL HAD MOBILE CAMERAS SET UP FACING MEXICO ALONG THE HIGHWAY

THE NUMBER OF TIMES WE HAVE DRIVEN THIS HIGHWAY WE HAVE NEVER SEEN MUCH TRAFFIC ON IT

THE CLOSER ONE GETS TO THE MEXICON BORDER THE MORE BORDER PATROL VEHICLES ONE SEES

I SEE A SLEEPING GIANT ON THE HORIZON, DO YOU SEE HIM??

Our destination in Douglas was Walmart and we didn’t have any trouble finding it.  Of all the Walmarts in the United States we have been to the Douglas Walmart more than all the other Stateside Walmarts combined.  We figured the last time here would have been in January of 2012.  Walking in we noticed they had a Burger King so without further ado we whipped in and totally Whoppered ourselves.  We both have always liked Burger King and back home the nearest one to Bayfield is an hour’s drive away. 

AT BURGER KING’S COUNTER GETTING WHOPPERIZED AND BY GOLLY DARE COME DA WHOPPAS NOW

Browsing around the store was like old times and most everything still seemed to be in the same places we remembered them.  Sure was warm in Douglas though and we were soon into short sleeves.  As we were loading groceries into the Motorhome I heard, “Heh AL”.  A black pick-up truck rolled up as I turned around.  Turns out it was a fella we had met at Rusty’s RV Ranch a number of years ago.  He’s been following our blog ever since and recognized the rig and Jeep in the Walmart parking lot.  He said he lives in Portal now and I said, “oh we were just through there yesterday”, and he said, “oh I know cause I’ve been following ya and even in the summer when your back in Bayfield as well”.  So how nice is that to have a blog reader recognize us and stop to say, ‘Howdy’:))

BEEN 6 YEARS SINCE WE HAD BEEN TO THIS DOUGLAS ARIZONA WALMART

Rolled out of Douglas about an hour and half of getting there and headed for our second destination further to the north somewhere between the western side of the Chiricahua Mountains and the Eastern side of the Dragoon Mountains.  What a trip along memory lane it was for us driving through Cochise County’s Sulphur Springs Valley.  Chiricahua Mountains to our far right, Swiss Helm Mountains closer in also to the right.  On our left were the Mule Mountains with the little Alpine town of Bisbee nestled in and further along the Dragoon Mountains where………yup you guessed it, Mike and Janna from Restoration Cowboy have their winter home located just Southeast of the Chiricahua Stronghold near Pearce and Sunsites Arizona.  And that’s where we was a-headed:))

WE HAVE MEMORIES OVER THERE BY THE SWISS HELM MOUNTAINS

HEY SARGE, GOT A FEW ELFRIDA PICS FOR YA

BOUGHT MYSELF A BIG WHITE COWBOY HAT AT THIS STORE ONE TIME

THIS WAS OUR FAVORITE ELFRIDA ARIZONA EATING PLACE

I’LL BET THIS PLACE LOOKS MIGHTY FAMILIAR EH SARGE

ELFRIDA LIBRARY WHERE I ENJOYABLY ATTENDED A LOCAL CAMERA CLUB’S GET TOGETHERS ONE WINTER

ROLLING NORTH UP THE SULPHUR SPRINGS VALLEY

THE COCHISE STRONGHOLD IS DEAD AHEAD AND JANNA AND MIKE ARE NOT FAR FROM THERE

BY GOLLY WE FOUND JANNA AND MIKES PLACE AGAIN….WE HAD BEEN HERE ONCE  BEFORE LAST MARCH

JANNA AND MIKE SURE HAVE DONE A LOT OF WORK ON THIS HOUSE SINCE OUR LAST VISIT

We knew Janna and Mike would be in Wilcox this afternoon picking up some lawn furniture so we made ourselves at home and I took a few pics.  Wasn’t long and they and their little Schnauzer Emmi rolled in and we were all soon catching up on whatever it was we had not been caught up on for the past 10 months.  We’ve known Janna and Mike for 8 or 9 years now and they are two of our favorite fellow RV people.  Long time readers will remember me writing of them before and we, along with a 3 other Jeep Wrangler couples have been out on a couple great off-road Jeep runs through the mountains and desert around Congress Arizona.  Good people these folks.

We are all settled in for the night complete with full hook-ups which Mike put in shortly after they bought this house and property.  So nice to have a completely clear night sky and we can see the lights of Sun City Arizona twinkling on the nearby horizon.  All is well.   I’ll try to get our Chiricahua Mountain Jeep ride photos in tomorrow’s post.  I simply ran out of time to edit them today.  But here’s a follow-up on Tuesday’s post by a blog reader regarding one of the grave markers in the Paradise cemetery.  in a comment by Mike Sipes he says, “Thought I would comment on the picture of Vince Roth's headstone. Vince was the director of the Southwest Research Station there in Portal. His research speciality was spiders, hence the spider web on his grave marker. Trapdoor spiders of the southwest and Mexico were his speciality. I became acquainted with Vince early 1970's while working as a Ranger at Chiricahua National Monument”………….. Thanks for that Mike.

THE FIRST OF JANNA AND MIKE’S TREES

GROANER’S CORNER:((  A famed English explorer was invited to Dartmouth to tell of his adventures in the African jungle.  "Can you imagine, a people so primitive that they love to eat the embryo of certain birds, and slices from the belly of certain animals? And grind up grass seed, make it into paste, burn it over a fire, then smear it with a greasy mess they extract from the mammary fluid of certain other animals?"
When the students looked startled by such barbarism, the explorer added softly, "What I've been describing, of course, is a breakfast of bacon and eggs and buttered toast."

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“I spent a summer working on a rabbit farm. It was a hare raising experience.”

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