IT JUST FELT LIKE A SIERRA VISTA KIND OF DAY

HICKIWAN TRAILS LOOKING TOWARDS THE POZO REDONDO MOUNTAINS

I do think the blog publishing problem I had Wednesday night definitely had something to do with our new Mifi set-up.  Had noticed earlier in the day some sites were taking awhile to open & we hadn’t had that problem until we switched over from our Cradlepoint system.  After repeated attempts to publish the blog I finally published a version without the pics & that told me it had to be a Mifi connection & signal strength glitch.  Later in the night I turned the computer on again & tried publishing the photo version.  Seemed to be working but slowly.  Left the computer on publishing the blog & went back to bed.  By morning the photo version of the blog had published. 

SIERRA VISTA AS SEEN THROUGH MY TELEPHOTO LENS IN JANUARY 2009…..TAKEN FROM OUR BOONDOCKING SITE A FEW MILES WEST OF TOMBSTONE ARIZONA

Woke up to another cloudy cool morning so figured it would be a good day for a run over to SIERRA VISTA.  Threw ourselves into the Jeep about 10:30 & headed west into the Tombstone Hills.   Forty five minutes later we were dodging gunfighter bullets as we rode through the town of Tombstone itself & about 20 minutes after that we were in the city of Sierra Vista.

Sierra Vista is probably the largest city south of Tucson & yet it doesn’t feel like a city to me.  It is very spread out, no high rises & has all the usual big box stores, malls & restaurants you can imagine.  It is located in the San Pedro Valley snuggled right up against the east side of the beautiful Huachuca Mountains.   It is not an old historical city like so many others here in Arizona but that’s OK, I like it anyway & if I had to live in a larger center in southeastern Arizona area I would pick SV for it’s close proximity & easy access to the surrounding mountains & valleys.  No freeways & bypasses here & because it’s not an old city the main thoroughfares were designed wide right from the start.

What is historic about Sierra Vista though is FORT HUACHUCA.  America’s oldest active Army Base.  It was from this fort that troops were dispatched during the Apache Wars to hunt down Cochise & Geronimo.  You can read about our day at Fort Huachuca by clicking here…OUR VISIT TO FORT HUACHUCA.

CROSSING THE SAN PEDRO RIVER IN SEARCH OF THE OLD GHOST TOWN…….CHARLESTON, ARIZONA

Kelly likes browsing around in the Marshal Stores so I sat contentedly in the parking lot with my book this morning.  I did go into the store last year & was able to combine two visits in one.  My first & my last!!!!  She was in the store for about half an hour & came out bag-less.  Always figure that’s kind of good sign.  Another 20 minute browse in second store in the same mall netted her a skirt & we were on our way out of there in search of some grub.

Kelly had a hankering for a hamburger & I had a hankering for a piece of lettuce on a wafer.  Of course Kelly won out & we ended up in a popular place we had never been before.  Sonic!!  Well, we didn’t really know it was a waiters on roller skates kind of place & we felt like the Clampetts as we fumbled around trying to figure out how the Sonic system worked.  Didn’t understand the menu board, call buttons or kids flying by on roller skates.  Kelly had to get out of the Jeep & go nose to nose with the small colored hamburger pictures just to see them.  I was busy trying to keep a low profile under my big white cowboy hat.  All of a sudden the menu board talked to us & Kelly managed to talk back to the menu board & minutes later a smiling young kid in a blue & red uniform wheeled up to our drivers window & dumped a paper bag of burgs on us.  Eight dollars & twenty nine cents later he rollered off into the Sonic sunset.  Burgs were OK & definitely better than anything I could ever cook up.  I did miss my lettuce on a wafer though:))

UP CLOSE & PERSONAL WITH THE MENU

   

KIDS ON ROLLER SKATES

We were back at the rig by 3 & the weather had improved to nearly clear skies & temps up to the 62F mark.  Looks like our weather is on the mend:))

Am going to include a few less pics today & see how I make out with publishing the blog.  Kelly did phone (Skype) the 3G store with some questions & proper instructions on how to route the Mifi through the Cradlepoint for improved reception.  We’ll see how it goes.  Our Mifi has a one year warranty & we have 30 days to return it if not happy.  Needless to say, I was not a happy camper last night!!!!!!!

BETWEEN THE DRAGOON & MULE MOUNTAINS HEADING BACK TO THE RIG TODAY…YA YA I KNOW I’M ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD…..BUT IT’S ARIZONA, DRIVE WHERE YA WANNA:))

GROANER’S CORNER:((  A driver of a huge trailer lost control and plowed into an empty tollbooth , smashing it to pieces.

He climbed down from the wreckage and within a matter of minutes, a truck pulled up and discharged a crew of workers.

The men picked up each broken piece of the former tollbooth and spread some kind of creamy substance on it. Then they began fitting the pieces together. In less than a half hour, they had the entire tollbooth reconstructed and looking good as new.

"Astonishing!" the truck driver said to the crew chief. "What was the white stuff you used to get all the pieces together?"

The crew chief said, "Oh, that was tollgate booth paste."

--------------------------------------------------------------
EMAIL THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))
stargeezerguy@gmail.com
Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.

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.

THE SONORAN DESERT IS BECKONING (photo version)

THE GREENING SONORAN DESERT……ALL OF TONIGHT’S PHOTOS ARE FROM OUR DAYS AT HICKIWAN TRAILS RV PARK IN WHY, ARIZONA

Had us a cloudy day so in these parts at this time of year that equates to….no heat in the air!!  Thermometer barely struggled to 50F by noon & we both stayed inside all day reading.  Of course 50F back home in Bayfield Ontario at this time of year would have us out in short sleeve shirts, shorts & Panama hats!!

We had us a wee peak at the temps over in Ajo, Yuma & Borrego Springs this morning & we see the nights are all well above freezing.  Now, that is encouraging considering I am getting very discouraged with these continuously cold below freezing nights.  I am feeling a very great need for some leisurely walking & hiking in the greening Sonoran Desert a days drive west of us.  Saguaro, Prickly Pear, & California Barrel cactus interspersed with Organ Pipes, Banana Yuccas, Agave, Engelmann’s Hedgehog, Teddy Bear Cholas, tall green stemmed Ocotillos, Beavertail Cactus & many, many more desert plants are beckoning, along with Paloverde, Arizona Sycamore & Quaking Aspen trees.  Oh dear, can you tell I am waaaay overdo for moving on to greener pastures.

ROSE QUARTZ CAN BE FOUND SCATTERED ABOUT THE DESERT FLOOR…..IF YOU KNOW WHERE TO LOOK:))

CHAIN FRUIT CHOLLA

I should clear up a point in Tuesday night’s blog when I referred to cell phones as being stupid.  It’s not the cell phone that is stupid, it’s the…..well you know.  Cell phones used properly are a great thing & I do understand their importance.  I have even been known to use a cell phone myself from time to time:))  I especially like to carry a cell phone in my pocket while on the Motorcycle in case I fall off & have to call someone saying, “I’ve fallen & I can’t get up.”

SOME RIGS AT HICKIWAN TRAILS RV PARK CAN BE SEEN ON TOP RIGHT HORIZON

  

Had an email from a reader this morning saying there are small pocket devices out now for jamming cell phones but they may be illegal.  Interesting concept:))

THAT’S US ON THE LEFT:))

Sure am enjoying my latest book, ‘Pioneering From The Aravapa To The Chiricahuas.’  This book of first hand accounts in this area date back to memories of the late 1800’s & early 1900’s.  This is James Covington Hancock’s thoughts on Tombstone Arizona back in those days based on his having done business there….. "Tombstone was not a rawhide cow town with long haired cowboys & rustlers stalking the streets with a 6-shooter in each hand, shooting at everything that did not suit their fancy.  It was a big rich mining camp filled with mining men from Nevada, California, Colorado, & other places off the Pacific Coast.  People were as rational in dress and manners then as now.” (1937)

As I read all these historical accounts it is amazing how people survived the hardships of frontier life as well as they did.  The West was not like Hollywood movies have portrayed it & yet in some ways, it was.  The violence & over all skull duggery were far greater than I had imagined, yet the comradeship, friendships, loyalty & trustworthiness of people working to survive together & helping one another was of a higher standard than nowadays.  Sure has been a great eye opener for me to see how factually the history of the old west was played out, those oh so many years ago. 

 

Reading MIKE & PAT'S TRAVELS blog this morning about the new tonneau cover installation on their pickup truck I was reminded of something really super dumb I did back in January of 2007 at the Hickiwan Trails RV Park in Why, Arizona.  It had to do with the same type of cover we had on our GMC 4x4 Laredo at the time.  Worst part is….. I made the same mistake twice in one week!!!!!!  You can read my post about that at REALLY DUMB....TWICE!!.  The story begins just after the third photo.

 

THIS IS EXACTLY WERE THE TRUCK WAS PARKED BOTH TIMES I LEFT MY WALLET & HAT ON THE TRUCK BED COVER

Now, while it’s a slow day & I am on the subject of doing dumb things, you might be interested about the time I filled up my gasoline powered Motorcycle a couple summer’s ago with….diesel fuel!!!!  IS THAT A DIESEL MOTORCYCLE SIR??  Aren’t you glad your not me………..!!

GROANER’S CORNER:((  Walmart customers soon will be able to sample a new discount item ... Walmart wine.  The world's largest retail chain is teaming up with E&J GalloWinery of Modesto, California, to produce the spirits at an affordable price, in the $2 - $5 range. While wine connoisseurs may not be too inclined to throw a bottle of Wal-Mart brand wine into their shopping carts, there is a market for cheap wine, said Kathy Micken, professor of marketing at Roger Williams University in Bristol, R.I. She said: "The right name is important."   So, here we go: The top 12 suggested names for Wal-Mart Wine:

12. Chateau Traileur Parc
11. White Trashfindel
10. Big Red Gulp
9. Grape Expectations
8. Chateau Ghetto
7. NASCARbernet
6. Chef Boyardeaux
5. Peanut Noir
4. Chateau des Moines
3. World Championship Riesling

2. Nasti  Spumante.

And the number 1 name for Wal-Mart Wine. . .

1. I Can't Believe It's Not Vinegar!
--------------------------------------------------------EMAIL THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))
stargeezerguy@gmail.com
Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.

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.

THE SONORAN DESERT IS BECKONING

Don’t know why but the blog would not publish tonight.  Menu came up showing the pages moving from left to right across the menu from the computer icon to the world icon OK but it just sat here for over half an hour spinning it’s wheels & the blog never did publish.  I have gone back & taken all the photos out so I will see now if this will solve the problem.  Never did get any ‘error’ messages, it just wouldn’t publish.  OK, so here goes………..

Had us a cloudy day so in these parts at this time of year that equates to….no heat in the air!!  Thermometer barely struggled to 50F by noon & we both stayed inside all day reading.  Of course 50F back home in Bayfield Ontario at this time of year would have us out in short sleeve shirts, shorts & Panama hats!!

We had us a wee peak at the temps over in Ajo, Yuma & Borrego Springs this morning & we see the nights are all well above freezing.  Now, that is encouraging considering I am getting very discouraged with these continuously cold below freezing nights.  I am feeling a very great need for some leisurely walking & hiking in the greening Sonoran Desert a days drive west of us.  Saguaro, Prickly Pear, & California Barrel cactus interspersed with Organ Pipes, Banana Yuccas, Agave, Engelmann’s Hedgehog, Teddy Bear Cholas, tall green stemmed Ocotillos, Beavertail Cactus & many, many more desert plants are beckoning, along with Paloverde, Arizona Sycamore & Quaking Aspen trees.  Oh dear, can you tell I am waaaay overdo for moving on to greener pastures.

I should clear up a point in Tuesday night’s blog when I referred to cell phones as being stupid.  It’s not the cell phone that is stupid, it’s the…..well you know.  Cell phones used properly are a great thing & I do understand their importance.  I have even been known to use a cell phone myself from time to time:))  I especially like to carry a cell phone in my pocket while on the Motorcycle in case I fall off & have to call someone saying, “I’ve fallen & I can’t get up.”

Had an email from a reader this morning saying there are small pocket devices out now for jamming cell phones but they may be illegal.  Interesting concept:))

Sure am enjoying my latest book, ‘Pioneering From The Aravapa To The Chiricahuas.’  This book of first hand accounts in this area date back to memories of the late 1800’s & early 1900’s.  This is James Covington Hancock’s thoughts on Tombstone Arizona back in those days based on his having done business there….. "Tombstone was not a rawhide cow town with long haired cowboys & rustlers stalking the streets with a 6-shooter in each hand, shooting at everything that did not suit their fancy.  It was a big rich mining camp filled with mining men from Nevada, California, Colorado, & other places off the Pacific Coast.  People were as rational in dress and manners then as now.” (1937)

As I read all these historical accounts it is amazing how people survived the hardships of frontier life as well as they did.  The West was not like Hollywood movies have portrayed it & yet in some ways, it was.  The violence & over all skull duggery were far greater than I had imagined, yet the comradeship, friendships, loyalty & trustworthiness of people working to survive together & helping one another was of a higher standard than nowadays.  Sure has been a great eye opener for me to see how factually the history of the old west was played out, those oh so many years ago.

Reading MIKE & PAT'S TRAVELS blog this morning about the new tonneau cover installation on their pickup truck I was reminded of something really super dumb I did back in January of 2007 at the Hickiwan Trails RV Park in Why, Arizona.  It had to do with the same type of cover we had on our GMC 4x4 Laredo at the time.  Worst part is….. I made the same mistake twice in one week!!!!!!  You can read my post about that at REALLY DUMB....TWICE!!.  The story begins just after the third photo.

Now, while it’s a slow day & I am on the subject of doing dumb things, you might be interested about the time I filled up my gasoline powered Motorcycle a couple summer’s ago with….diesel fuel!!!!  IS THAT A DIESEL MOTORCYCLE SIR??  Aren’t you glad your not me………..!!