MONTICELLO....DEFENSE AGAINST THE APACHE INDIANS

SATURDAY MARCH 1/08

Our first stop this morning was Becky & Norm's to return their laptop computer which they had forgot last night. From there it was over to the southwest part of town to see T or C's Veteran's Memorial Park which is the home of the traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall. This is an impressive & well thought out project which is still ongoing. Be sure to see the photos. OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

Our second stop was to an exotic cactus greenhouse. Got talking to an American fellow who mentioned he was from the suburb of Gates in Rochester. Kelly's originally from Spencerport just outside of Rochester. The owner of the cactus store overheard the conversation, came over & said she was from Rochester too. Small world huh!!

We had read & heard about a little town in a box canyon northwest of T or C called Monticello so we headed out across the desert in search of more history. http://www.geronimotrail.com/side_trip_7.html Once again a smooth paved road led all the way across the desert floor before dropping down into long narrow canyon & once again, we found a town at the end of the road. Monticello's buildings were built facing a town square because it was easier to defend against the Apache Indians who also lived & roamed the area back in the mid to late 1800's. The buildings are mostly adobe & wood, some with inhabitants & some without. A lot of the houses have been tastefully restored & others are in various states of disrepair. There is a large heavily constructed school in total ruins. I wondered if it had suffered a fire. OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/ We spent nearly half an hour here & saw 1 person. The only sounds we heard were horses from some stables near by. I guess it's not fair to call these little places ghost towns but in a sense that's what they are. There are people living here but I think the ghosts of old pioneers are here as well. Maybe not everybody's cup of tea but it's sure a great way to see what's left of & what once was.....the true old American west.
Upon leaving Monticello we had heard about a dirt road across the desert heading in the direction of Chloride so we found that & headed over that way. Once again, a totally serene drive over hill & dale without meeting another car. We were told there might be some water to fiord in a few spots but we found all the washes totally dry. This was also Indian country back in the 1800's & we could imagine the Apache Indian hunting parties riding hard over the ridges & gullies. When you read the history of this whole area there was a lot of fighting going on between the pioneer miners & the Apache Indians. You can feel the history all around you. The well maintained dirt road led us back onto the paved #52 road about 15 miles west of Cuchillo.

We were back in T or C by 2 o'clock in the afternoon & spent the rest of the day relaxing & reading. The sun's rays seem to be getting hotter every day so the brisk breeze was a welcome relief. We have pretty much decided to leave this area Monday morning & head on over to the other side of the White Sands missile range through Alamogordo to Roswell. Because I have an interest in Astronomy it's only normal that I have a likewise interest in the UFO phenomena as well, so in turn it's only natural that I pay a visit to Roswell, New Mexico. Commercialized or not, at least I might get to shake hands with some little green plastic Martians...............................D'ya think!!

THE LITTLE WESTERN TOWN AT THE END OF THE ROAD

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 29/08

To-day was another one of those special day trip days. Stopped at the Elephant Butte State Park office & picked up some maps & pamphlets on the surrounding area. Kelly had heard of a little Pecan store in a town nearby called Cuchillo so off we headed. It's not far from Truth or Consequences & we were there in less than half an hour. Not much left of the town except some old derelict buildings scattered along the road. Rich's Pecan farm was the only place that looked like it had any life to it so we stopped in. Pecan tree orchard at the back. A nice lady came out of the house & over to the shop. They had a big pecan festival there a week ago & she said about 1600 people attended. We bought some pecan fudge & a pecan pie before resuming our journey westward in search of the little western towns of Winston & Chloride. Once you get across the flat open desert setting & into the foothills of the mountains, the scenery really begins to take shape with gently rolling hills studded with Juniper trees. Again, it was my favorite kind of road with good pavement & lots of twists & turns. Another gear jammers paradise. The further we went the more beautiful it became. Distant mountains had snow on their peaks with the slopes covered in forests. It was rare to meet another vehicle & when you did, everybody waved. This is truly a different planet here than where we come from in Canada. It took us awhile to reach Winston & we were disappointed at what we saw. It reminded us right away of another place we had been where the human population had little regard for their environment......Slab City, in California. Old wrecked cars, junk of all description, smashed windows & debris everywhere. This once pretty little place was totally trashed. It was sad because the countryside surrounding Winston is so beautiful. The town of Chloride was only another 2 miles further on & we were apprehensive as to what we were going to find there. These places were all once booming mining towns with thousands of inhabitants but all that's left now in some of them is usually some old tumble down weather beaten buildings with a few residents scattered about. As we rolled into Chloride we could immediately see there was a difference here. OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/ No junk, no old upside down cars with smashed out windows, no litter sprawling across the ground & no sign of human neglect. Yes, there were some buildings in disrepair but there was something different here. The road finally came to a dead end just past the Pioneer Store & old Saloon building. That was it, it just ended there. Back up & turn around. Kelly remarked that it looked like we came to the end of the world. We pulled the car over across from the Pioneer store & shut it down. We could tell that this was going to be an interesting place. The hills & canyons around Chloride are out of a picture book. There is a quiet peacefulness in the air here. We were very fortunate to meet a local resident lady across the street who took us in the Pioneer store for a look around. Her family is connected to that building & she knows the history of all the merchandise first hand having been a part of the 4 year intensive restoration project. This is a truly remarkable building with all it's old history & merchandise intact. The story of how this building was painstakingly restored is as remarkable as the building's history itself. The best way for me to describe it is to have the readers go to the town's informative website. All the information is there & well worth the read for anyone interested in old towns of the west. http://www.pioneerstoremuseum.com/index.html We also briefly met the man who is responsible for the rebirth of this little town. (and putting to-gether the website idea) He was busy with restoration work on the old bank. It is clearly a labor of love for this fellow & if it wasn't for people like him, much of the history of the old west would be lost forever. I forgot to get his name & we didn't want to keep him from his work but if you get to Chloride, I'm sure he won't be far away. This little town is a page out of history.................

A beautiful drive back through the rolling hills & out onto the desert floor. Stopped at the State Park in Elephant Butte to fill some water jugs before returning to the rig. Norm & Becky picked us up around 5 & we all headed out to Hodges Corners Restaurant for a buffet supper. Great place & they had real mashed potatoes too. Of course we ate soooooo much that we nearly all exploded again but what the heck. Becky & Norm insisted on paying the bill so that was pretty nice.
Back to our rig while Kelly helped Becky with some more computer stuff. I googled up a website that had old television & radio theme music on it so we all sat around guessing what themes they were. Kinda neat stirring up those old memories. Gunsmoke, Andy Griffith Show, Petticoat Junction, Gilligan's Island, Star Trek, Superman, Amos & Andy, The Munsters, Bonanza, Dragnet, The Green Hornet, My Three Sons, Father Know's Best, Columbo, Dallas, The Honeymooners, Mash, My Little Margie, Leave it to Beaver, Sanford & Son, The Lone Ranger, and, and, and, the beat goes on:))

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

THROWING SNOWBALLS IN THE EMORY PASS

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 28/08

Nights are cold in the high 30's but as soon as the sun gets up the day warms nicely into the mid 70's & the sun's rays are really warm. Thought we would take a drive west into the mountains & have a look at Emory Pass & the Gila National Forest. Nice smooth road drive across flat plains & then into some gentle twisting & turning foothills. Gotta figure out a way to bring the motorcycle next time. The little town of Hillsboro finally appeared ahead of us. Some RVing friends had suggested we stop into the Barber Shop cafe for a great hamburger but it wasn't open yet so we walked across the road to the General Store Cafe. Great little place with lots of antiques & nice ambience. OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/ I had a big mess of bacon & eggs while Kelly had Pinto beans with an egg on top, plus red chile sauce with cheese. From Hillsboro we headed west through a little place called Kingston & on into the Gila National Forest. Wow, we finally saw green trees that were actually taller than us. We immediately fell in love with the area as we climbed higher & higher up the pine forested mountainside on a road that kept me on the ball shifting gears in the tight corners. I like when that happens:)) Beautiful towering Ponderosa pines & junipers hugged the side of the road. And what a treat it was to see soooooooo much green!! We hadn't realized we missed our trees from back home so much until we drove into this overwhelmly beautiful forest. We caught glimpses of snow ahead high on the mountain & it wasn't long & we were there. We had reached our destination of the Emory Pass summit. Had to pull over & get some pics of that snow for sure. Kelly whooped up a snowball & let it fly over my head. The view from the Vista viewpoint over the valley floor below showed us the winding road we had just come up. We had considered going on to Silver City but we don't like to leave the dogs alone in the motorhome for too long a period so we turned around at the summit & headed back down the mountain. By the time we reached Hillsboro again, the Barber Shop cafe was open so we popped in for a loaf of fresh bread that had just come out of the oven. Really liked the interior of this store & I like how so many people here in the west are so artsy in their decorating.
OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/ The still warm loaf of bread smelled so good in the car on the way home that we couldn't leave it alone & by the time we got back to the rig it looked like a big mouse had been nibbling at it. Still warm as I sliced off a piece & smothered it in real butter. You were right Herb, it was grrrrreat:))

All & all it was a great day. Just love getting out & seeing new things, driving new roads, walking new paths, & just being a part of Mother Nature's wonderful grandeur.....................

A RELAXING DAY FOR AL & THE FURRY GUYS

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 27/08

The photo shows the Rio Grande River behind our rig running alongside the road. 22,000 gallons a second running downriver right now.

Our RV site alongside the Rio Grande was so quiet last night that we slept right through until morning. I like when that happens.
Easier walking for Max this morning because of the smoother pavement instead of the usual rocky desert terrain but he's still having trouble with that left leg.

Kelly headed off over to Becky & Norm's place for more downtown shopping this afternoon while I stayed home with the furry guys. I'm really not a good person to take shopping. I whine a lot, check my watch frequently, go find a bench to sit on, become more irritable by the minute & am usually exiting the 5th store while everybody else is still mulling around in the first store. I am not a fun shopper person to have around!! Of course, I always feel guilty then when Kelly comes home with stuff she bought for me..... You know, us guys just can't win sometimes:((

Becky & Norm came out to our rig for a BBQ to-night & brought their laptop with them. Kelly helped Becky understand her Yahoo email program a bit better & how to send pictures, etc. After they left, our screen door handle broke off locking us in the rig. Had to get a Phillips screw driver, reach outside the door through the screen & unscrew a couple of screws to finally get the door to open. Always something huh....................................

NO PHOTOS UPLOADED TO THE WEB ALBUM TO-DAY

I KNOW WHERE ALL THE HIPPIES WENT

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 26/08
OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

Higher is lower & when your talking about temperatures it sure applies here in the southwest. The higher you go, the lower the temperature gets. We were just getting used to waking up to highs in the low 50's or high 40's, & now we're back into the high 30's, but all we have to do is think about the freezing temperatures back home in Canada right now & we soon button ourselves up!!

Our campsite by the river was a little on the rough side. A fellow stopped by yesterday & suggested we might want to find a different site before the week-end because this area is a favorite hang-out for the local teens with all their drugs & booze. We had pretty much surmised that by all the usual litter on the ground.
We jumped in the car & headed off with some suggested directions to RV sites in the area from some RV friends we had met back in Quartzsite. Found a nice area out around the Elephant Butte Lake Dam. OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/ Had noticed a nice spot with some interesting looking adobe shelters that is part of Elephant Butte State Park. No electricity or water but it's right on the banks of the Rio Grande river & only $8 a night & the best part...........nobody here but us:)) Paseo Del Rio Campground is a clean, well maintained area with hot showers, flush toilets, an interpretive walking path, paved road & high hills all around. We can see the dam & there is a fish hatchery here. The adobe shelters are really nice & we would recommend this place to other RV dry campers. T & C is only a few miles to the west & I think they are in the process of building a Wal-Mart there. Hey RV'ers, what more can ya ask for!!

If you ever wondered what became of all those millions of hippies from back in the 60's, I have the answer for you. They are all right here in Truth or Consequences. The hair is whiter, the beards are longer, clothes are about the same, & they are all still artsy kinds of folks with plenty of strange ways. Yep, all them same characters are right here alright:))

Becky, Norm, (Kelly's sister & brother-in-law) & Kelly went into T & C this afternoon to do some shopping. I do not do shopping thank-you very much!!!! Spent the afternoon getting caught up on computer stuff, checking tire pressures, fluid levels on the vehicles, re-shuffling bins, etc. Anytime soon we will be launching ourselves northeast on the long journey home so I just wanted to have everything ready to rumble. Good productive day followed by a supper with Becky & Norm at a quaint little Mexican restaurant called La Panita. I had my standard burg & fries & they all had some soupy looking weird Mexican stuff or something. I got super sick years ago while in Puerto Vallarta one time eating some of that stuff so if da joint don't got no burgs & fries, I don't go!!!!

Hot sun to-day but the air was cool. Reminded me of a late April day back home in Bayfield, Ontario Canada.............

THE GANG ROLLS INTO TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, NM

MONDAY FEBRUARY 25/08

PHOTOALBUMShttp://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

We hadn't planned on heading out too early this morning but after checking the weather report & finding out they had high wind warnings for the area we figured we'd better get on our way. Didn't want to get stuck at that KOA all day & we didn't want to get caught out on the interstate in high gusting winds later so we were eastbound by 8 a.m. We had originally thought of going up through Silver City but after talking to some people & reading some info on the mountain passes we decided it wasn't an area we would be comfortable taking the motorhome. Thought we might make it as far as Deming though & then swing down to the Pink Store in Mexico, but by the time we reached Deming the winds weren't a big threat yet so we made a last minute decision to roll right on through to Truth or Consequences. Made a quick Wal-Mart/McDonald's stop about 10 a.m. in Las Cruces. The winds were blowing hard from the west so we had a tough cross wind heading north up to T&C from Las Cruces (and it's uphill all the way) but we made it ok. Kelly's sister Becky & husband Norm are there doing a 3 month work camper stint at River Bends Hot Springs. We stopped for gas in Williamsburg, phoned them, & they come a short couple of miles to meet us. They then led us to a quiet little spot right on the banks of the Rio Grande river nearby where we parked & set up the motorhome. Had a big super 3 hour chin wag & then they drove us the 3.8 miles over to where they have their rig parked at the hot springs place. Becky & Norm are full timers & Becky just completed a 3 month traveling nurse assignment in Clearwater, Florida. Their rig is parked right across the road from the hot springs so they showed us around the facilities. Really nice with lots of color & a real southwestern flavor. http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/ The owner's son is in the process of major improvements & renovations & things are really taking shape. Becky & Norm work 3 days on & then have 4 days off. Becky looks after the office, reservations, etc & Norm does the light maintenance. Becky had whooped up a big pot of yummy stew so Kelly & I ate as much as humanly possible before they drove us back to our campsite & dumped us out on the ground:))))

To-morrow we will have us a look around in the colorful & artsy little town of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. (Geeeeezzzzz, can't they do something about that name!!!!)


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

GOOD-BYE ARIZONA - HELLO NEW MEXICO

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 24/08
A fiery Hickiwan sunrise got me right out of bed & outside in my pj's this morning. I like when that happens....the fiery sunrise I mean!!

Said good-bye to Ray, hooked up the car, & rolled out of Hickiwan Trails heading east on highway 86 at 9:20. Managed a few last looks back at some old memories & then it was all speed ahead. Nice quiet road all the way to Tucson. Very little traffic & nice scenery. A nice remember when as we passed the observatories on Kitt Peak. I drove up there last year, walked all around the telescopes & had a great couple of hours. We rolled through Tucson with no problems & easily slipped onto Interstate 10 heading for Benson. Had considered stopping there for the night but just popped into a Wal-Mart & a coffee diner for a quick bite & kept on going. It was a good driving day with light traffic. We had a slight tail wind helping with gas so we went on as far as Lordsburg before pulling into a KOA for the night. KOA's are always neat & tidy but they are also always sooooo expensive. We were too tired to search out a BLM site anyway so we'll swallow the cost to-night.
Seems so strange sitting here looking out the window at lights, neon signs, & traffic motoring by on I-10. Sure don't see this kind of civilization in the desert. We much prefer the desert, thank-you very much!!

We might slide down to one of our other favorite places to-morrow with the car after we reach Demming. The Pink Store in Palomas Mexico is a place like no other. No, we won't be taking the car over the border but we'll park it & walk across. The Pink Store is only a block......

NO PHOTOS ADDED TO THE WEB ALBUM TO-DAY

OUR LAST NIGHT AT HICKIWAN TRAILS:((

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 23/08

The big wind gusts finally subsided about 10 o'clock last night & when I took Max out this morning about 5 a.m. I was happy to see the great summer Scorpion riding high in the sky. In other words, the clouds were gone & the sky was once again full of stars & constellations. Scorpios being one of those summer constellations. The full moon which had been shrouded in clouds the night before had already lost it's perfectly round shape as it slipped over the mountain range to the west.

Our doggy walk was short again because Max still has a bit of a limp. I was sure glad the winds were gone as I climbed atop the rig to put the solar panels down for traveling. As the morning sun cast it's warming rays over the desert & mountains around me I couldn't help but think back over the past 5 years & whisper a quiet.............thank-you.

We had the big wheels rolling by 9:30 & as I wheeled the motorhome slowly out across the narrow & bumpy desert road I was saddened to be leaving a spot that had added so many pleasant memories to the lives of The Bayfield Bunch. I am always melancholy whenever we leave a favorite site because I know we may never pass that way again.
We stopped about a quarter mile down the road to say good-bye to our Canadian friends, Maureen, Mike, & their dog Molly. They are staying on in the area until the first week of March before moving on to Borrego Springs in California. Hope to meet you guys again out here sometime, somewhere. Take care M&M&M:))

When we reached the highway from Darby Wells road I turned right heading for Hickiwan Trails while Kelly, driving the car, turned left into Ajo for groceries, etc. I stopped for gas & propane in Why. Gas came to $185 & that's the first gas stop since leaving Quartzsite one month ago to-day. That tank should take us well over to the other side of New Mexico. Loaded up some propane then went into the little Cafe where the waiter wears a 6 shooter & loaded myself up on a big mess of bacon & eggs.

Rolled into Hickiwan Trails about 11:20 & pulled into the same spot we had been about 3 weeks ago. I had forgot that they were having their 8th anniversary of the park's opening. Ray had things swinging with a live Indian band set up right in front of the office. The Indian ladies were cooking up a storm in the wooden Palapha & RV people were lined up for tamales, burritos, tacos & Indian fry bread. The weather was perfect for a gathering & I'm sure lots of new RV friendships were made to-day. Luckily, I was able to get a bunch of pictures of the festive event for the Hickiwan computer files.......OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

We caught up on our laundry, vacuumed, filled the fresh water tank, etc. Always nice to have electricity & shore water hooked up after being out in the desert for awhile. I didn't bother to set up our satellite dish to-day because I figured we would just use the Wifi here. But, until Ray gets a final part for the bigger antennae, the speeds are slow & the distance is short. I may not get the blog or web album pictures uploaded for a day or two. Depends where & when we stop to-morrow night.

It will be a sad morning when we leave our little Hickiwan Trails for the last time Sunday but with a bit of luck we hope to pass this way again next November. There is no place like the beautiful & majestic American southwest & we'll miss our morning desert walks here:))

(I'll try uploading this now without pictures. The pictures I can add later when we have a better connection speed)

OUR LAST DAYS AT DARBY WELLS

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 22/08

The clouds slunk in during the night making our last day at Darby Wells a rather gloomy affair. High winds rocked the motorhome as temperatures dropped throughout the day keeping us mainly indoors. We did retaliate with a campfire but even that had to be abandoned in the face of ash driven winds.
Cleaned some windows & straightened up the cab area of the rig in preparation for the mornings departure. Too windy to put the solar panels down so hopefully it will quiet down overnight.

Kelly had picked up a second book in Borrego Springs called, "Desert Solitaire, A Season in the Wilderness" by Edward Abbey. To-day I started reading that book & within the first 8 pages I knew I was going to like it because of the author's down to earth straight ahead approach & non conformist attitude. It's the true story of a man's 3 seasons as a Park Ranger in southeastern Utah. Mainly, the Arches State Park near Moab. We were at the Arches back on November 6,7,8,9, & 10th of last year & our photos can be found on those dates in our web album.... http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The New York Times described Edward Abbey as a rebel & an eloquent loner. Yep, I'm a gonna like this book alright!!

Both Kelly & I have been feeling sluggish & under the weather the past few days so we're hoping that we haven't picked up a flu bug or something. Water sources are always a concern while on the road.

And now................ time to vent a little!!!!
In our RV travels over the past few years we have repeatedly come across a problem in North America that totally infuriates me every time I see it at almost every campsite we've ever been too, including this one........BROKEN GLASS!!!!!!!!! The sides of many highways are littered with miles & miles & miles of broken glass & most of it comes from beer & liquor bottles. Tells you something doesn't it!! Nobody ever cleans this mess up & each year the broken glass just keeps piling up. One thing is for sure, wherever there are young males, there will be broken glass. Even on our hikes out into the seemly pristine desert, we always come across broken beer bottles. Every campsite has shards of broken glass somewhere & it's usually in the fire pits. It's an easy equation....Young males + alcohol = broken glass. No rocket science here, just plain immature male stupidity. I speak with knowledge on this subject because I was once one of those immature stupid young males, so I know all to well what goes on in that world of booze.
Next year on our travels I will bring my garden & fan rakes plus a shovel & take it upon myself to clean up each & every campsite we come too. I will make it my project to become part of the clean up solution. And, what about all the glass & trash along the roadsides?? How about getting all those thousands of people charged with alcohol offences every day, out along the highways to pick up there own inconsiderate & immature mess!!!!!!!
There, now I feel better:))))))))))

CHRONICLES OF GHOST MOUNTAIN....THE END

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 21/08

Thanks to a good tip from my friend Bob in Kitchener, Ontario I was able to fix our broken flag pole to-day by inserting a steel rod in the center of the pole & using generous helpings of duct & electrical tape. Tightened a couple band-it clamps on too just for good measure. Workin gooooood:))

Took the dogs for a short walk & then went on a longer hike ourselves up & over some fairly rocky terrain. The rough stones are not always paw friendly. Another reading & relaxing, sunny & warm afternoon. I finally finished my Marshal South, Chronicles of Ghost Mountain book. Quite an accomplishment for me considering I haven't read a book from cover to cover for about 25 years. Tells you something about how much I enjoyed this book & the effect it has had on me:)) We are already looking forward to returning to the Ghost Mountain area of California in the fall of this year.

Decided to hike out into the desert after supper to take a few pictures of the big moon from atop a hill about a quarter mile away just in case it turns cloudy for to-morrow night's full moon. Good thing we took flash lights with us because it was a dark bit of walking & rock scrambling coming back. No easy task.......

Friday will probably be our last day here in the Darby Wells area west of Ajo. Saturday we'll pack up & head for Hickiwan Trails for one night & then we begin our long trek eastwards. To say that I'm feeling sad about our departure would be putting it very mildly. I have grown so accustomed to the peace & quiet & solitude of the desert that I'm going to find getting back into the old neighborhood routine at home.................very difficult this time!!!!

NO PHOTOS UPLOADED TO THE WEB ALBUM TO-DAY

SUNRISE & SUNSET AT OUR HOUSE

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 20/08

We had so hoped to see the lunar eclipse to-night but it was not to be. Heavy cloud cover this morning gave way to clear sunny sky's this afternoon only to return minutes after the moon had broke over the horizon. I was able to get off one moon shot before it disappeared into the soup of heavy cloud cover....OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

The sunrise this morning turned out better & the gathering clouds made for a fiery start to the day. Slipped out the door in my PJ's for some photos & carelessly got tangled up with a teddy bear cholla. They are sometimes called "jumping chollas' because if you get near them it seems the spiky barbs leap right off the plant & imbed themselves in you. I brushed against one of them & a spiky barbed piece pierced my left leg. Reached down to pull it out & the damn thing flipped around & plunged itself into my thumb. Wow, do those things ever hurt. Tried to carefully pull it out but it wouldn't come. Continued taking more photos trying to ignore the pain but after a few minutes I had to put the camera down & go get my toolbox. Was able to pull the fleshy green plant body of the cholla away with a pliers, leaving half a dozen barbs in my skin. They must have barbed hooks on them because even pulling with the pliers, they hung on & pulled the skin up. "Ouch, ouch, ouch!!!!" You have to pull quick because it's really painful the slower you go. Kelly had one of those barbs break off in her finger over 3 weeks ago & it's still causing her grief. As beautiful as those cholla plants are, they are a very nasty bit of prickly business.

A short hike this afternoon mixed with generous servings of naps & reading. The wind suddenly started gusting & we had to scramble to put our awning up. One of those unpredictable gusts broke our flag pole in half so that's the end of that. Maureen & Mike bicycled over for a brief visit. Big winds brought in heavy clouds & the temps went down so they headed back to their rig & we retreated inside for the rest of the day. So disappointed about the lunar eclipse. Was looking forward to taking a few photos. Oh well, it will happen again in a few years & hopefully it will be clear for this Fridays full moon. A full moon in the desert is like no other..................................

KELLY FINDS A SLEEPING SNAKE

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 18/08

Max's leg is coming along better & he's able to go in & out of the motorhome now with no problems. He still has a limp but it's not nearly as bad as a few days ago. He really wanted to go for a walk this morning so we took him for a short spin on the dirt path. He wanted to get into some serious hill climbing but we had to convince him that a few more days on the couch resting that ankle was in order. Little motormouse picked up a nasty pricker in her paw so we had to cut the walk short anyway & carry her home. She later pulled that pricker out all by herself.

While I was working on yesterday's blog this morning, Kelly went for a hike by herself up & over a few nearby hills. She stopped to put up a little Inukshuk & when she picked up a rock.........there was a snake underneath it!! She said the snake was sleeping, (hibernating) was small, & had a patterned greenish color to it. She carefully replaced the rock back over it & continued on. I would have liked a picture of that. We've noticed tiny lizards skittering about so it probably won't be long & the underground creatures will be awakening from their long winter naps & coming up out of the ground. We normally hike early in the morning & it's not until around noon when the temps are up around 80 that the critters may be stirring. Nevertheless, we will have to be careful. We don't want little Motormouse scaring the bee-jeebers out of the rattlesnakes with her little pug nose bat face......................

Our day was basically spent relaxing, listening to soft ambient music, (Sirius Satellite Radio Ch. 073) & reading. Never thought I would be able to do so much of nothing & enjoy it so much. The beauty & serenity of our surroundings just makes it all sooooooooo enjoyable. We are so fortunate:))

NO PHOTOS UPLOADED TO THE WEB ALBUM TO-DAY

NOTE: Hello to Casey & Karen in Windsor, Ontaro. Thanks for the note & hold on to those dreams. We did:))

A DRIVE INTO AJO, AZ.

MONDAY FEBRUARY 18/08

These are lazy days here in the Ajo highlands & I fear it is the lull before the long strenuous journey home, which will begin soon. I am outside again with the laptop watching the rising sun cast it's long cactus shadow fingers across the desert floor. The Gila woodpecker is at the grapefruit rind & it's loud call seems to echo off the nearby canyon walls. It is so quiet here that even the dropping of a pin could be thought of as noise.

I'm late getting this blog & photo upload underway. I normally do this at the end of each day but last night Maureen & Mike (fellow Canadians) invited us over to their site for a campfire. The nearly full moon & still night made for a perfect setting. Mike heaped the logs on & the fire leaped into the air. Despite the moon bright sky I was able to point out some stars & constellations but was unable to locate any satellites. We spent a couple hours sitting around the fire & by the time we got back to our site I was too tired to begin the blog & photo uploads. So, here I am, tilted back in a lawn chair in the early morning Arizona sun tapping away at the keyboard once again. There are now 3 Gila woodpeckers at the grapefruit rind & they are all doing some mighty fine tapping of their own.

Yesterday, we took a drive into the little ex-mining town of Ajo. Groceries, gas, & a stop at the hardware store were in order. Took a few photos of the pretty downtown & included 3 photos that I had taken last year when we were there. The quaint little Spanish flavored villa has fallen on hard times since the closing of the big open pit mine a few years ago. Many of the stores in the downtown western plaza are empty. It's really too bad because it's downtown architecture is truly out of the original southwestern past.....OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

As in the previous 2 days, much of our afternoon was spent reading & relaxing & by the looks of it, to-day is shaping up to be the same:))

A QUIET DAY IN THE SONORAN DESERT

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 17/08

I am sitting in the desert to-night typing this by the light of the moon. Checkers is beside me keeping an eye out for wily coyotes. We hit the 80F mark to-day so the nights are getting warmer.

Max's ankle is about the same so we didn't encourage him to walk on it again to-day. We did have to pull some cholla prickers out of Checkers though. Those things really dig their barbs into whatever brushes up against them.

Lots of sunshine to-day under clear blue Arizona skies. I cleaned windows while Kelly did a bunch of vacuuming. Other than that, we had a very relaxing day again. Started a campfire in the morning & had it going all day. I am still reading my Marshal South book that Kelly bought in Borrego Springs last month. It's a very meaningful book to me & it's the first book in nearly 25 years that I've been able to stick with. The fact that we actually were able to climb up Ghost Mountain & walk through the remains of his family's small adobe cabin back on January 3rd in California will always remain a special memory for me. OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy I can truly identify with this man's thinking & philosophies & as I sit here in the still night air of the Sonoran desert with a canopy of stars overhead & a big half moon to light my keyboard, I feel akin to a man I will never meet.

Checkers growls periodically at unseen soft footprints in the desert night. I can hear another RV'ers dog barking in the distance so there are probably coyotes afoot. We never see them but we know they are here.

To-morrow we'll have to go into Ajo & fill up our gas can again because I made a boo boo the other day. When we left our other boondocking site Thursday just the other side of Why, I checked my fuel gauge in the rig & it said we had a quarter tank of gas left. My well intentioned logic was to wait until we left Darby Wells in a week or so & fill up at that time. No point in driving these rigs with a heavy load of gas on board if you don't have to. Well, the first night here we started up the generator for a few minutes to run the micro wave. Generator ran fine for about a minute & then it petered out & wouldn't re-start. Of course I immediately assumed the worse & figured the engine had run out of oil despite having just checked the oil level a week ago. With dollar signs flying out the window I raced outside, lifted the bin cover & pulled the panel off the generator. Just as I unscrewed the dipstick, Kelly who was holding the flashlight behind me said, "do you think it ran out of gas??" BINGO!!!! Now I remembered........ as a safety feature, once the gas tank gets down to a quarter full, the generator will not operate. It's a safety feature so that the generator doesn't drain the gas tank completely & leave the motorhome stranded in the middle of nowhere without any gas. Did I mention I'm 63..............& male!!!!!!!!!!!!

UPLOADS ARE SLOW TO-NIGHT SO MAY HAVE TO DO THE WEB ALBUM IN THE MORNING.

HAD A GREAT DAY DOING NOTHING:))

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 16/08

We had a great day of basically doing the square root of nothing. Upon awakening this morning around 5:30 I looked up out of the window & saw the star, Vega, shining brightly in the constellation Lyra. That immediately told me the previous day's clouds were gone & we had clear skies overhead.
The sun later broke over the mountain ridge to the east spilling color & warming rays across the desert floor. Max came out for about 20 minutes limping around the campsite but we didn't take him on our walk. This is going to be a long healing process but we are seeing improvements.

Our whole day was spent just relaxing & reading in our lawnchairs soaking up the sun's rays. Had a nice campfire going all morning too. I did go for a short hike to a nearby hill where at the top I found a large circle of stones with a higher pile of stones in the center. It was pretty clear that someone's treasured pet had probably been buried here. I found a similar site near by a couple of days ago.
While standing atop the hill I saw two fifth wheel rigs coming up the road below & heading for our area. Sure enough, they pulled into the only other vacant spot in the area about 3 stones throws away from us. Awwwwww nuts, there goes our beautiful peace & quiet!!!! I walked back to our site, sat down in my chair, & awaited the inevitable people noise. But, it never came. How could this be. Two rigs to-gether means at least 4 people & 4 people means a lot of people noise. But, it never happened. They have now been there about 6 hours & aside from a few dog barks, they haven't made any noise at all & we wouldn't even know they were there. Maybe it's 4 people like ourselves who are out here in the boondocks to enjoy the quiet nature & beauty of the area. We have our fingers crossed.

Kelly phoned her Mom & Dad to-day in Spencerport NY so I took a picture of her sitting in a lawn chair chatting with them,

Mike & Maureen bicycled over from there rig about a quarter mile away. This is their first venture boondocking & they are just loving the whole experience.

We have a big half moon hanging over us at the moment & the moonbeams are casting shadowy Saguaro figures on the desert floor. We're looking forward to seeing the mountains, valleys & canyons bathed in the light of the full moon a week from now. It's going to be real hard to leave here in a couple of weeks:((((((

NO PHOTOS UPLOADED TO THE WEB ALBUM TO-DAY. THE FEW PHOTOS I TOOK TO-DAY WILL BE INCLUDED WITH SUNDAY'S PICTURES.