_31 December ‘08 Wednesday

We have now passed into “NEW” territory.  As we drove through Las Cruces, New Mexico we entered into this new territory and were well on our way into the “Deep South of Texas”.  Following I-10 through Las Cruces, we found ourselves pulling into a Rest Stop/Texas Visitor Center on the out-skirts of El Paso.  We found this to be one of the best information centers we’ve been in.  They not only had a beautiful building to work out of, but they had “the” information for anything and everywhere you might want to find in Texas.  A couple of exits further into El Paso and we found a spot that we could park the coach, do some grocery shopping, and grab some lunch.  Next, a stop to top-off the fuel tank ($2.06 / gal.), and head down the road.  A couple of hours later we turned off of I-10 and onto T-17.  This took us to our next stop and a night’s sleep.  We had a long day of driving, which we normally try to stay away from, and in doing so we pulled into Balmorhea State Park in the dark.  Balmorhea State Park is known for having the world’s largest spring-fed swimming pool, which covers 1.75 acres and stays between 72 -76 degrees all year long.

_The water winds its way through the park in these canals which you can walk over by a number of bridges. 

_Also there are a couple of fish that are only found here, swimming around in the canals and pool.  With the water being so perfectly clean and clear, you can see to its depth of over 25 feet very easily.  I would imagine anytime between spring and late fall this place would be “The“ place to be, but now…it was just too cool to enjoy the waters and in my opinion too damn expensive.  This morning we continued our drive towards Big Bend.  Today we saw our first field with grazing CAMELS…  I knew there had to be camels somewhere but this was a first for us.  Just before noon, we pulled into Marfa (T-17) and were excited to see this “artists” conclave.  An artist by the name of Donald Judd apparently changed the cultural life of Marfa in the mid 1970s when he established the Chinati Foundation.

_From that point on, writers, poets, designers, musicians and every other artistic mind started to settle in here.  Unfortunately, with today being New Years Eve, there was absolutely nothing happening in Marfa.  We did try to find some of the larger art that is surrounding the area but found very little, except the Caballos De Vigilancia (Fake Dead Horse Listening Outposts).

_We even tried to have a sandwich at one of their food wagons (The Food Shark) only to have them tell us it would take 45 minutes for them to prepare it for us…ok, we’ll pass…

_Back on the road again, Louise went back and made us sandwiches.  In less than 5 minutes I was enjoying one, and they were even better than what we would have paid $7 for in Marfa.  Still heading due south (T-67) we found ourselves arriving in Presidio.  Now we make a left turn and head toward on toward Big Bend National Park.  Just as we were leaving the city limits of Presidio we noticed a large digital sign that was telling us that the road to Big Bend NP was “CLOSED”.  What???  Could that be TRUE???  We immediately pulled into the State Parks Information Center to see just what options we might have (we knew one of them…return to Marfa and take another route).  As we approached the door we saw another sign…”CLOSED”.  Well hell, now what???  We decided to continue on.  About 2 miles further down the road we came across an RV/Golf Course.  Now, we thought, they just might have the information that we need.  As we pulled to a stop in front of the clubhouse, we noticed a golf cart pull up alongside.  Asking Bill (the guy driving the golf cart and who just happens to be the RV Park manager as well) about the road closure, he stepped back, took a long look at the length of our coach, and slowly said…”well, you just MIGHT make it though, but if I were you I would stay here a night and enjoy a happy hour at 4, and grand fireworks display at 7. Now tomorrow afternoon, we are having a wonderful dinner here at the clubhouse that you would enjoy as well”.  Well here we sit, all plugged in, having thoroughly enjoyed the happy hour and the fireworks, and committed to being around for New Years dinner at the clubhouse…what a salesman…   

_28 December ‘08 Sunday

Friday was our last day in Casa Grande.  We pulled out of the gate about noon and headed to Safeway to top off the fuel tank.  We’ve been saving the “gas discount” points so when we pulled in we were able to pick up 35 gallons of diesel for $1.67 and then top off the remainder 10 gallons at $1.96.  Man, just a few months ago we would have been paying close to $4 to $4.50 for the same fuel.  About an hour out of Casa Grande and we started to find our windows getting covered with some large rain drops.  Just as we were passing through Tucson we noticed that the large rain drops were now turning to snowflakes. 

_Fortunately we had planned to spend the night at Western Horizons St. David.  As we pulled up to register, the ground was starting to be completely covered with a light snow cover and the temperature was dropping fast.  Time to settle in for the night…plug in the electricity, drop the air, level and snuggle… As we pulled the curtains back from the windshield in the morning we were surprised to find ICE ON THE INSIDE OF the windshield…

_what the heck is this, we’re supposed to be in SOUTHERN ARIZONA… Being Saturday, the clubhouse was selling freshly made cinnamon rolls so I grabbed a couple of “travel treats”.  We were on the road again by 9:30 and fortunately we’ve left the rain and snow behind.  As we passed through Benson this morning, we had to stop for a picture…Grandma Goodmans… 

_Our route will take us to Deming, New Mexico via I-10 and then we will jump off the highway and find our way up to Rock Hound State Park.  I was a little worried that the campground would be full as we were coming in a little late and on a Saturday…  Well as luck would have it, they had 2 spots left with electrical hook up and we were going to get one.  We felt that electricity was important for our stay with the temperatures dropping so low.  Fact is, last night it got down to 17 degree and we just couldn’t get the feeling of warmth in the coach without having the furnace operating full on.  Rockbound SP sits on the slope of Little Florida Mountains and overlooks the surrounding areas of Deming in the valley below.  There are 29 campsites here and most are taken up by “rock enthusiasts”.  They are looking for a large variety of rocks and minerals, ranging from silica, quartz crystals, agate, common opal, to thundereggs and geodes.  The “rockers” can gather 15 pounds of rock per person and if you can’t see them out there on the hills, you can hear them digging and hammering.  Well Louise just had to give it a try.

_With a stick (that's all she could find in a quick moment of need) she dug her way through the rock and dirt.  She did find some "pretty rocks", but decided that we don’t want to weigh down the coach with rocks so we’re making the most of the area by hiking and a little bit of digging.  The trails are plentiful and we’ve had a chance to cover a few of miles already this morning.   Our first hike took us high up the hillside and kind of followed the shape of the campground below. 

_The flora was tall grasses, cacti, and assorted desert brush.  Those that were “rocking” were found in the crevice areas of the mountains, and as we hiked by we could hear them at their work.  About three miles across the valley, is another state park.  It’s called Spring Canyon State Park.  Last night we had a beautiful sunset that set behind Spring Canyon and this morning, we went to explore those hills.

_The rock formations at Spring Canyon are wonderful.  They are so wonderful that the Ibex Goat that was introduced to the area 40 years ago from Iran, have found this to be a perfect place to live and reproduce. 

_23 December ‘08 Tuesday

We really enjoyed our time at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument but it was time to leave.  Our drive took us back up Hwy 85 and then junctioned with Hwy 86.  The roadway was pretty flat as we traveled through the Tohono O’Odham Indian Reservation.  Their land stretched on and on, in fact we joined it just outside of OPCNM and stayed within it all the way to Casa Grande.  The lands bordered the Mexican border and as we traveled the roads we saw signs like “You Are Traveling in a High Surveillance Area”.  Now they weren’t kidding, as there were Border Patrol vehicles and towers just about everywhere you looked and every once in awhile you would see 3 or 4 pickups stopped alongside the road with someone in cuffs.  The area was mostly scrub grasses with Saguaro Cacti mixed in.

_This is mostly cattle country although we didn’t see any cattle…Must be the “rustlers”.  This is the 2nd time we’ve visited Desert Shadows RV Resort in 2 years so we didn’t have any trouble finding it.  Last year I was able to sell 2 kayaks here during one of their “Garage Sale Saturday’s”.  This last Saturday I wasn’t so lucky but while trying, I was met by a couple that we had met last year…”Joel, is that you???”  It was Sue and Dave… 

_They are also from the Northwest and are now traveling with their 5th wheel.  Louise and I joined them for a glass (or 3) of wine and we also were introduced to some friends of theirs.  Pat and Stan, who were also out of the Northwest and are now also traveling in their 5th wheel.  Pat, Stan, Sue, and Dave met originally in Yakima where they were working and living at that time living.  A little later they decided that they should take some time off of work and bike across the country.  It was gutsy but they did it and they still love riding their bicycles once they reach their next campsite.  This campground is one of those that seem to have it all together.  There is something to do here in the campground all day long if you want and that includes getting up in the morning and having fresh muffins waiting for you at the club house.  We also joined them last night for pictures with Santa…

_it was sponsored by the local fire department.  The $5 proceeds for the picture with Santa goes to the local “Fire Victims Fund” and that was easy to give to.  The night before we went up to the clubhouse for an evening with "Whistle Stop".  Whistle Stop is a Bluegrass / Gospel band that is made up of Mom, Dad, 2 daughters, and a very good banjo player from "outside" (the family that is...).  They were good enough that we were enticed to purchase their CD.  Last night we received an email from another couple that we had met last year.  Bob and Marlene have now purchased a new “winter home” here in Casa Grande and invited us over.  It was really good to see them again.  Their new home is really wonderful…what a find!!!  They have always been great hosts and today wasn’t any different.  Marlene also surprised us with lunch, an incredible Chicken Salad.  We will definitely make a return visit…

_18 December ‘08 Thursday

A lot of time has passed since our “Garage Sale” at Pilot Knob, and a lot of miles have passed under our wheels.  Right now we are sitting right in the middle of some spectacular cacti’s at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, but I want to do a little catch-up.  While in Yuma and camped at Pilot Knob, we had a chance to get together with Mark and Susan for dinner a few times.  We joined them at their new home for dinner one night and had a chance to see all the wonderful new landscaping they had just put in, and their “spool” (swimming pool/hot tub).

_They have found out how to really live in Yuma…  Louise and I also took a day to have our teeth cleaned in Algodones.  We did find a new dentist and found that this was a good change for us as we were really impressed with our cleaning and the chair-side attention that was given.  Of course we made sure that we were there for our shrimp tacos and cervasas…  We also took advantage of the being here in Yuma to have our windshields replaced

_and pick-up our reverse-osmosis system.  After having some on-coming trucks drop gravel in front of us, which took out our windshields, we chose George and Son Glass and RV Connections because of their knowledge, stock, and as it turned out, their price.  We are using it to fill all of our water needs.  It fills directly into our 100 gallon fresh water tank so that we can have pure and soft water no matter what we are doing, having a glass of drinking water, showering, or even washing the clothes in our washer/dryer.  It installed easily but took a couple of days to fill the tank.  Prior to installing the system we decided to drive up to Ehrenburg (Quartzite) and I could take 4 or 5 days there to get everything done.  It would also give us a chance to hit the “deals” at Quartzite or just to see what was going on prior to the “big tent” on the 16th of January.  As it was, we did find a couple of places to spend a couple of dollars prior to heading back to Yuma.  We wanted to spend at least one more day in Yuma so we headed back and spent the night in the parking lot of RV Connection.  Early Tuesday morning we pulled out of RV Connection and stopped to top off the fuel tank.  Diesel prices were $1.94 !!!  I really don’t expect that price to last too long so we pumped as much into the tanks and filler tube as possible and hope that we will continue to find good deals as we move east.  As I mentioned, we are now in a campground at Arizona’s Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.

_In getting here, we drove east on I-10 to Gila Bend and then took a right.  AZ 85 took us all the way down to Organ Pipe and yesterday it took us another 5 miles Lukeville and the Mexican border.  The storm that has hit the entire west coast has caught up with us as well.  From the moment we hit the road out of Yuma, we were in the wind and rain and it continued throughout the rest of the day and the night.  As we were driving through the National Monument we could see very little of the cacti that we knew were out there,

_but we were resigned to see as much as possible, rain or shine.  Fortunately for us, when we awoke the next morning (yesterday) the sun was out and showed us what we had missed on our drive in.  We are surrounded by mountains and in the slopes and valleys below we are seeing the reason we are here…CACTUI !!! 

_We’re in the Sonoran Desert and right now, I’m happy we’re here in winter.  The late spring to late summer temperatures are very hot, reaching 105 and higher a lot of the time, but the cacti that dominate this area thrive on this heat.  Yesterday we took a 10am class on cacti,

_drove 21 miles on a dirt road to see some of the “out of the way” beauty of the park, and…took a 4 ½ mile hike to see a deserted mine.  The Victoria Mine sits at the base of one of the mountains and straight across the desert plain from where we are camped. 

_The narrow and rocky trail took us through a menagerie of cactus and other desert plants, over hills and down and out of the many “wash” (the areas were the rain water rushes through coming from the mountains).  We thought this was going to be an easy 4 mile hike but we were totally surprised.  The rocky and narrowness of the trail kept us off balance and if it weren’t for our Nautilus Walking Sticks…it would have been a bigger challenge yet. 

_Today took us on another adventure.  Our first stop (after 8 miles on a dirt road) and short hike took us to Alamo Canyon.  In the late 1800’s there was a small cattle ranch that was located at the end of one of the many canyons here in the park.  After hiking a mile further into the canyon, we came upon the remains of the “ranch house”.

_It was not the sprawling ranch house of today but given then time and the location…it was more than comfortable (for someone else I’m sure, but not for wimpy me…).  We had driven through a small town on our way to the park.  It looked really interesting so we wanted to make the drive back to explore.  Ajo became a lively little town in 1906 when it became the first copper mine in the state.  We drove through town, stopped at the visitor center, enjoyed lunch, and then drove up to the top of the hill to look down into the mine.  They told us that it is a little over a mile in length and width and drops over 800 feet.  Sitting just off the edge of the pit we found the local museum.  The museum is located in what used to be a mission church and a school for the local Native American/Mexican children.

_In a lot next to the museum sits a small observatory, that is, it used to be…  Arizona University built this little building and used it for 10 years or so and then abruptly took the telescope and left town.  Now all that is left is…

_
2 December ‘08

Tuesday

We drove 187 miles yesterday to arrive here just after noon at the Pilot Knob Campground (Pilot Knob is located 6 miles west of Yuma on Hwy 8).  The drive from Ramona took us through some beautiful areas of rocks.  These rocks reminded us both of the rock fields we saw throughout the Baja…HUGE…  They stood like sentinels on the mountain and hill sides with some as large as a house.  When we were checking in at Pilot Knob we asked were the best prices where in Yuma for diesel as we were getting a little low.  I thought we might full the tank before setting up.  Boy, we were blown away when we heard what the prices were.  The high for diesel was $2.34 and the low…$2.12 !!!  I must say, we are getting a little excited at these prices and hope that they will hold, at least for awhile.  This morning the campground had a “garage sale” for all of us that wanted to set-up a table in front of our RV’s.  Louise started digging in the closets and cabinets inside as I was digging through the basement.  We knew we had things to sell, but putting our hands on them took a little effort.  Finally we found most of the items we knew we wanted to put on the table and placed them beautifully on display.  I even set up the kayak to see if I could find someone that might want to place an order for one of those too.  Well when all was said and done, we took in a grand total of $3.50…  Well it could have been worse, but then again, it could have been a lot better too.  After putting everything into the basement, and ready for next Tuesday’s garage sale, we drove into Yuma to do some shopping at Wal-Mart.  We really didn’t need much but maybe a loaf of bread, some wine, and a couple of other small items, but the surprise came when we checked out…apparently we needed a lot more than either of us knew as it filled the car to its maximum load.