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When friends comment that we must have seen a lot on this trip I always answer that if we had seen even one tenth of one percent of all there was to see, it would be a lot. There were always museums that were closed, park signs we drove past too fast to stop, towns we whizzed by when we opted for the interstate, days we were too tired – or too comfortable – to get back in the van, laundry that needed to be done, dozens of options and only one choice to be made, home sickness. When asked what some of our favorite places were it was impossible to choose. While visiting the national parks had been our initial goal, we found there was just as much majesty and beauty (and fewer crowds) in those places in between and outside of them. Also, meeting people from around the country (and beyond!) was always a treat, especially Walt and Kathy from Wisconsin, Emily and Bill from Utah, Pierre from Canada, Paul and Barbara from upstate New York and Dennis and Cathy, fellow NYC residents. And, last but not least, visiting with old friends and family in new settings was a true pleasure that added so much to our trip.

So we’ll let this blog speak for itself, and we’ll continue to revisit those places and relive some of those experiences in our memories for years to come. Meanwhile, we thought we’d summarize it all by the numbers – as much as our spotty notes and aging brains allow.

Places we explored; some for overnight camping, some day trips

• National Parks, Monuments and Historic Sites: 27
• National Forests: 18
• National Seashores: 5
• National Recreation Areas: 8
• Bureau of Land Management and Conservation areas: 7
• Wildlife Refuges and Sanctuaries: 17
• State Parks: 45
• City/County Parks: 16

Boondocking and other dry camping

• Walmart: 5
• Cracker Barrel: 4
• Rest Areas/Picnic Areas: 4
• Casinos: 4
• Various stealth sites: 3
• Harvest Hosts:
  • Wineries: 6
  • Breweries/Distilleries: 2
  • Farms: 1
  • Other: 1

Respites from the road

• Nights with Friends
  • Virginia: 4 (at Lake Serene with Don and Dolly, of course)
  • Florida: 16
  • Alabama: 3
  • Louisiana: 3
  • Arizona: 25 (thank you, Doug!)
  • California: 7
  • Colorado: 4
  • Nevada: 12 (technically at LG II’s place(s) without him!)
• Hotels/Motels: 20
• Air BnB: 2
• KOA/Other private campgrounds: 8

Attractions

• Museums/Galleries: 25+
• Theaters: 4
• Train rides: 3
• Boat rides: 5
• Bus/trolley/tram rides: 8
• Rodeos, races and horse shows: 3

Wildlife

• Birds (featuring the wrens, cranes and vermillion flycatchers): 217
• Mammals (especially the manatees, pronghorns and big horned sheep): 19
• Reptiles/Amphibians (mostly lizards, but also rattlers and alligators): 9

Memorable meals

• Turquoise Room at La Posada, Winslow AZ
• Vincent’s Café in Phoenix, AZ
• Americana outside of Las Vegas, NV
• El Patio in Presidio, TX
• Sarabeth’s in Key West, FL
• El Tavor in the Grand Canyon NP, AZ
• Outside Inn near Sierra Vista, AZ
• 29 Palms Inn at the north entrance to Joshua Tree NP, Twentynine Palms, CA
• Café Raku in Bisbee, AZ
• Luminaria at the Inn & Spa at Loretto, Santa Fe, NM
• Primo at the JW Marriott, Tucson, AZ
• The Gathering Place in Pie Town, NM
• The Shed near Ocean Springs, MS

Sunday, May 3 – Tuesday, May 19:  On Sunday night we joined Walt and Kathy at their site for “popcorn Sunday”, a tradition they have followed for many years.  Thing is, neither Kathy nor Ron eat popcorn so Walt and I had the bags to ourselves. No other sites were occupied and the campground was eerily silent as we walked back to our van by the light of a full moon.  After packing up and saying a final goodbye to “our” big horned sheep and house finches, we left Riverview at 9:00 am Monday morning, just after our hosts. We stopped for breakfast at McDonalds (one of the only places in town), did a final laundry at the super-clean, super-friendly Station Laundromat in Safford and drove 150 miles to the Lost Dutchman SP where we had reserved the last available site for the night. Before leaving the next day, Kathy returned from the bathroom to find a fat, slow rattlesnake crossing the site pad just a few feet in front of the van. Ron grabbed the camera (in response to wild gestures from Kathy who couldn’t get to the van without crossing the snake’s path) and took a few pictures just before it slithered into the underbrush. We love this park!

Drove another 250+ miles to Kingman, where we made an overnight stop at one of the nicest wineries ever, the Stetson Vineyards and Winery (and event center that was under the same restrictions as the rest of the state)  located 12 miles or so east of the town just off Route 66. Our host Don made us comfortable and left the bathrooms open for us – a  real perk that one doesn’t find at most Harvest Hosts.  We were able to have our dinner (frozen grain bowls) on the covered deck while watching – and being watched by – western scrub jays perched nearby. Also spotted numerous Gambel’s Quail rushing back and forth beneath the vines.  An aside: Don started this winery as a lark.  He and a friend were sitting on the porch of his nearby retirement home, watching the sun set,  fantasizing about sharing the view with others. The event center idea was hatched, and now weddings, graduations and other major life events take place in this lovely venue year round.  Just about all the wine produced is consumed at these events; some bottles are sold over the counter and at wine tastings.  We bought a few to add to our Harvest Host cache.

Our next destination was LG II’s desert retreat project in Nipton, CA on 1100 acres right in the middle of the Mojave Desert Preserve. The site was formerly used as a retreat center by a European businessman and philosopher, but had recently been allowed to languish as its owner became  increasingly involved in projects overseas. The property has palm trees, joshua trees and a fruit orchard, as well as many deciduous trees that house a black vulture roost, all of which are maintained because of the four onsite  wells that tap into a large underground aquifer – and a full time caretaker that keeps the sprinklers and hoses going. The house itself is a three bedroom prefab that contains the owner’s magnificent collections of Hopi artifacts including dozens of kachinas, pottery and knives. Thousands of books line the many bookcases, and hundreds of wine and liquor bottles are stored in coolers and on open shelves. The house is surrounded by a wooden deck in the shape of a star; Ron estimates it to be well over 10,000 square feet of decking.  Lou and friends spent the better part of two weeks sanding and re-painting said deck to ready the house for use as a bed and breakfast by the end of the summer. The pool in the yard has an endless waterfall and an attached hot tub. While we were there we lunched on the deck, took a few “inspection” walks and did some birding.  Bird highlights included the dozen or so black vultures that roost here, a (confused?) spotted sandpiper that landed on the deck and foraged for a while before realizing it was not a mud flat, and a Bullocks Oriole which – of course – landed on our mirror to check us out.  Twice.

 

We left the desert retreat on Friday as planned, heading straight to Best Time in Vegas to get the Zioness ready for the voyage home. Rented a car, checked into the Henderson Hampton Inn and hunkered down until Monday, existing on fast food and air conditioning, only punctuated by a brief visit to the Clark County wetlands where a roadrunner greeted us at the entrance and we saw black-chinned hummingbirds, common gallinules, a few rabbits and some verdin. Oh, and Saturday we decided to have ice cream for dinner from Freddy’s, just a few steps from the motel. First we walked up but they were only doing drive up service so we returned to get the car. Got on the car line, maybe 15 cars back, and waited 32 minutes to order, another 9 minutes to pick up our sundaes and drove back the motel in less than an minute to consume said sundaes. Definitely worth it, though.

After checking out on Monday we were on our way to kill some time back at the park and decided to call Brian for an ETA on the van.  It was ready so we picked it up, dropped off the car and headed on our way back to Kingman to stay at the Desert Diamond Distillery for another Harvest Host overnight. We stopped to buy Subway sandwiches, but when we arrived at the DDD the cafe, a 100-year old restored Pullman car had just opened for business following the months long delay for Covid related restrictions.  We were the first people to eat there, besides the owners, ever! Food looked excellent so we stashed the Subways in the fridge and ordered from the brand new menu. They took our picture to post on their web-site and gifted us with a plaque depicting the distillery.

On Wednesday we left early and stayed on Route 66 through Williams, Seligman and Winslow to Homol’ovi SP where we wanted to stay the night. The wind was roaring, with gusts over 40 mph so we were anxious to get off the interstate and away from the semis that were blowing from side to side in front of us.   Although the campground was pretty empty, it wasn’t easy to secure a site. First we called the number posted at the entry, then we went to the visitors center where the gloved and masked ranger slipped us a different number through the closed door, then finally reached the AZ Parks call center who assigned us a random site.  It turned out to be quite a nice site and the bathrooms were open and clean, so we were able to relax before hitting the road once again. Quite literally because on our way out the next day, Ron ran right over a BIG piece of truck tire in the middle of I 40.  No telling what damage it caused until we get the van to a shop back home.

 

With national parks closed and no state parks open east of Arizona, Harvest Host has been the best thing ever. Our next  HH stop was at the Windrush Alpaca Farm in Clovis NM where our host greeted us with freshly made oatmeal cookies and a bag of food to feed the alpacas.  The animals had recently been shorn and were pretty funny looking but were friendly and curious, coming right up to their fence to say hello. The gift shop was opened for us and the other HH guests, social distancing was respected and we spent a very peaceful night. We were up and out at 8:00 am the next morning, anxious to get through the Texas panhandle and to our Oklahoma Harvest Host before dark.

The Native Spirits Winery is in Norman OK, just southeast of Oklahoma City. Our host Rick moved his car so we could have a flat spot in the parking area, off the grass as rain was forecast. Woke to a cloudy sky but no rain, and pulled out at about 8:30 heading for Arkansas by afternoon.  The rain caught up to us before the border, pelting us with hail and buckets of water for over two hours.  We had decided to stay off the interstate to avoid the big trucks but our scenic route was poorly drained in spots, especially through the small town intersections. We drove through flooded roads, over fallen branches and into  areas where the visibility was down to a foot or two in front of the windshield. But we got ahead of the storm as we entered AR and finally relaxed when we pulled into the Post Winery in Altus. We bought two bottles of sherry and took a spot next to a small pond, where the Canada geese strolled by with their goslings and kept Ron awake with their cackling all night long. We debated sticking it out until the weather cleared but finally decided we could beat the front and left early the next morning.

Saturday was a long drive day, covering 450 miles before landing at Amber Falls Winery and Cellar just south of Nashville TN.  To our surprise there was a band playing, people gathering at picnic tables (although keeping a suitable distance from each other) and a food truck parked nearby. With some misgivings we visited the gift shop (restricted to four shoppers at a time) and bought our token wine before ordering from the food truck and snagging an isolated picnic table for a relaxing dinner.  Our assigned parking spot was up the road near a small outbuilding labeled the Water House where we were soon joined by fellow HH members, a couple from nearby Nashville in a similar rig,  a custom converted RAM that they had recently bought.

 

After leaving the next day we decided to take a side trip, traveling about 45 miles on the Natchez Trace Parkway that runs from southern Mississippi to Nashville.  It was scenic, reminiscent of the skyline drive with picnic spots and pull outs all along the way.  We had an outdoor breakfast and took a short walk before the rain started and we got back on the road again. We may have to do the entire 445 miles some day. As we drove we saw a sign for the Seven Islands Bird Park – how could we pass it up?? It was the only state park we’d ever seen specifically set aside for preserving bird habitat – in this case to restore grasslands that had been paved over, cut down and turned to commercial agricultural use. It was a brief but pleasant stop and we walked one of the short trails through the wooded area, hearing oven birds, wood thrush, pileated and downy woodpeckers and common yellow throats.

Eager to make time now that we were within striking distance of home, we pulled into the Cracker Barrel in Abington VA  just before dark and spent Sunday night before heading for our last Harvest Host, the Back Room Brewery just off I 81 in  Middletown  VA, just outside of Front Royal .  Big disappointment.  We had looked forward to bringing home growlers of local beer for the family, with names like Shenandoah Sunrise and Reliance Road Red Ale.  Unfortunately, none of those were available, the growlers were $26.00 empty and an additional $20.00 to fill and there were only three varieties of bottled beer, already chilled so we had to empty the fridge to keep them cold until we got home.  Oh, well. But on our way up we did do a few miles on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  When we first planned our return trip we  thought we’d spend more time there, camping along the way but, as a national park, it was only open to drive-through traffic.  No camping, no visitors centers, no open bathrooms.  But, although we missed the rhododendron bloom by a week or two, the orange and yellow azaleas were out all along the drive.

So after 131 days and 9926 miles, we pulled into Hart Boulevard at 3:45 Tuesday, May 19th, only 6 weeks later than originally planned, tired, tanned and anxious to see our family and friends again.

 

 

 

 

We started with wildflowers everywhere –  yellow, purple, white, pink – and segued into spectacular cactus flowers on the ocotillo, cholla and prickly pear. Sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words.

 

Wednesday, 4/16 – Sunday, 4/26: We spent a leisurely week (plus) changing from site 7, t0 9 to 2, taking walks and trying to find the adventure wherever we could.  Here are the highlights:

• Did some local birding on the site, trails and Flying W picnic area. Saw hooded orioles, both at our site and down in the river bank cottonwoods; watched the momma house finch go in and out of the ramada to feed her hungry, squealing chicks; Gambels quail calling from cactus and shrubs – and constantly crossing the road; canyon wren echoing from different canyon walls (and from the bathroom wall at the picnic area); Cactus wrens all over the place; finally identified the Bell’s vireo with the help of Kaufman guide and Audubon app; Lucy, yellow and Virginia warblers at the picnic area; brown crested flycatcher, also there; western kingbird; ubiquitous vermillion flycatchers – both male and female; lots of black throated sparrows their tinkling calls and songs; verdin here and there; many turkey vultures, as many as 11 at once, seemingly flying in formation in the evening; red tailed hawks, of course. And a pair of black hawks, seeming courting above the cottonwoods, their favorite nesting place.
• Other wildlife: our first encounter with a rattlesnake – 3+ feet of it – crossing the dirt road about five feet in front of us as we started out for our morning hike; two javelina near the river – I heard a grunt as I was pursuing the (up until then) unidentified vireo, turned my head to see what looked like a black pig, ran up the trail to tell Ron who had already heard them galloping by and was watching through his binoculars; heard falling rocks and searched the cliffs to finally find a few big horned sheep – at least three ewes and a lamb – grazing on the hillside above our site. Got them in the scope but couldn’t get any clear photos; saw a couple of cottontails hopping along, first at this camp; many lizards of all shapes, colors and sizes, one of which had a tail almost three times the length of his body, another of which noisily overturned rocks and hungrily chewed whatever it was he found under there; and our camp hosts Walt and Kathy reported seeing a Gila monster by our former site.
• Woke up one morning, tried to move the van but no sound. The battery had completely died as a result of Sirius overuse – too much Broadway and CNBC without running the engine. Luckily Walt had jumper cables and was able to restart us without a problem.
• Used our outdoor shower for the first time. First Ron washed my hair then I did his.  Heaven! Looking forward to trying it for an actual full body shower in a day or two. (Which we did take a few days later, thankful for the spacious sites and plentiful water.)
• Making plans to get the van serviced in Vegas, then hightailing it home, trying to dodge the Covid 19 virus as we do.
• Weather is starting to heat up drastically. Over 90 during the day and not much below 60 at night.  It is the desert, after all. And the night sky looks like we are in a planetarium: stars, stars, stars, the occasional planet and the rising moon so bright it was casting shadows.
• The cactus is beginning to bloom – hope to have pictures by the next post.

April 12 -Wednesday, April 15: Left Kartchner Caverns SP to take a ride to the Fairbanks, a ghost town in the San Pedro NRCA managed by the Bureau of Land Management.  Apparently Fairbanks was a hopping crossroads until mid-twentieth century, a railroad stop for miners and cross country travelers, providing overnight respite and upscale dining.  The state managed to route highway 82 close to the town after the railroad serving the copper mines stopped running but there wasn’t enough to keep the town alive: the last general store closed its doors in the 1970s.   Birding was sparse but we did manage to see a fly-by caracara, and dozens of lesser goldfinch at the feeders. On our way back to Kartchner we made a short detour for curb-side ice cream sundaes at the Benson Ice Cream shop. Before leaving the campgrounds we had a Zoom brunch with the family, admired the Kuhns’ vegan decorated “eggs” (marshmallows) and chatted with everyone.

On our way to the Sonoita Winery we made another detour to Paton’s Audubon site in Patagonia: closed (of course) so we hiked into the Patagonia-Sonoita Creek bird sanctuary on a road we had never noticed though we’d visited this area many times in the past. The winery is also an active cattle ranch and we watched as they rounded up the cattle in the evening from a hill behind the winery, the only Harvest Host guests of the day. We did buy a couple of bottles of red (untasted) on our way out the next morning.

We have been using a map given to us by Kathy, our Riverview host, listing all the public land in Arizona and noticed an area we’d never explored.  Las Cienegas, BLM land along the San Pedro River is a large swath of grasslands put aside to protect the black-footed prairie dog which had been completely exterminated by the middle of the last century.  Vital to the ecosystem of high prairie grasslands, it was reintroduced and is now coming back. Although the map clearly showed the area, it was vague about how to actually enter the reserve.  So when we were stopped at one of the (many) Border Patrol stations*, we asked the guard who, it turned out, was very familiar with the area and gave us directions.  As we drove into the reserve, I spotted a couple of animals in the distance that didn’t look quite like the cows, horses or mules we’d been seeing.  Quickly whipping out our ever-present binoculars we identified them as prong horns.  To be fair, the sign at the reserve entrance mentioned in passing that pets needed to be leashed during prong horn fawning season or we might very well have overlooked them entirely.  Very exciting as we never expected to see them this far south.  Following the road to the river, we found a pretty spot to have lunch and do a little birding.  We were rewarded by seeing yellow warblers, black-tailed gnat catchers, Bullocks Oriole and –  on the drive out – a gray hawk Ron spotted sitting on a tree branch out in the open, just about eye level, not more than 30 feet away.

 

We spent that night at another winery, High Lonesome in McNeal just outside of Tombstone.  Our hosts Tom and Edith (and six German Shepherds plus two cats) both retired Army sergeants who met during basic training at nearby Fort Huachuca, were gracious and welcoming.  They always knew they would retire to this area but wine making came later, once they settled in and met local vintners.  They knew they didn’t want to make ordinary wines, or duplicate the blends so common in the Wilcox wine making area so they planted European varieties and set about making (as they said) what they liked to drink based on their world-wide travels. We bought two of their award-winning varietals and settled in for the night.

The next morning we headed out to breakfast but paused when we saw the sign for Whitewater Draw.  Now that’s where we ere headed when we left Phoenix over a month ago so we couldn’t pass it by.  Settling for a couple of BelVita biscuits (our go-to breakfast when too busy, tired or distracted to cook) we parked and walked around the water to see what there was to see.  Hearing some noise at the based of a nearby shrub, we turned in time to see a hawk land on a post and proceed to tear into his breakfast.  We watched, fascinated, as he gulped down what looked like a sizeable rodent tail and feet disappearing little by little.  We’re pretty sure it was a Swainson’s, although without our Western Sibley guide we have been struggling with id-ing lots of birds out here.  Just a note: when I was home in March I picked the book off the shelf and put it right back, deciding our schedule would not allow for much birding before we got back east of Texas so the books we had would be sufficient.  Wrong. At least once a day I curse the fact that we don’t have it with us.  I’d pick up another one in a heartbeat but Walmart doesn’t carry bird books and all the places that might, like park and refuge stores, are closed. Anyway, Whitewater draw turned out to be a great birding stop, with hundreds (if not thousands) of yellow-headed blackbirds congregating at the edges of the marsh, dozens of cinnamon teal clustering in the ponds, many Northern shovelers swimming about, clusters of white faces ibis along with snowy egrets and a great blue heron, a vermillion fly catcher and western kingbirds on the wires and – the hit of the day – Ron found a nest containing two great horned owlets in the rafters of the ramada.

 

After lunch at Sandy’s (local spot recommended by Tom and Edie) we returned to Kartchner for one more night to defrost the fridge and take a shower before heading back to Safford.  But not before stopping at the ice cream shop in Benson one more time. Got to Safford, did laundry, dumped the tanks and did a quick eye doctor visit then back up the windy hill to Riverview for another stint. Where we’ll stay until we figure out when (and how) we are coming home…..

Wednesday, April 8 – Sunday April 12: After being turned out from Riverview CG we wandered the desert for a while.  First an overnight in a turnout on forest service land along Stockton Pass.  Pretty, but not stay-able (i.e. no bathroom of any kind, no cell service, no friendly BLM presence. Just a rutted road and a few campfire rings). But gorgeous wildflower carpet on the way in and out.

Then four nights at Indian Bread Rocks picnic area just south of Bowie, BLM land in the same ranger district as Riverview and also free now that BLM has stopped collecting fees.  Leased range land so cows of all colors and sizes freely visited the sites.  Nice and we may be back.

Then a few nights at the Kartchner Caverns State Park where we sit now.  Bathrooms/showers, check; cell service, check; free wifi, check; drinking water and a sanitary dump, check.  Fairly empty the first few nights and very, very quiet.  Also a hummingbird garden, empty of visitors but filled with hummingbirds. Oh and also $30 a night. Not that that’s an issue but it is more highly populated than any of our previous campgrounds and may be full for Easter weekend. Also took a couple of side trips to San Pedro Riparian Area for birding, the Sierra Vista Water reclamation center (more birding) a drive through of historic Tombstone and Fairbanks, a “ghost town” most recently inhabited mid-twentieth century to serve the silver mines in the area.

NOTE: we moved to a different site for Thursday night and booked Saturday and Sunday at the only other empty site here.  That buys us some time to possibly spend a few days at nearby wineries – thank you Harvest Hosts! – then a return to Riverview for another 14 days before (finally??!!??)  heading home. We’ll see.

Meanwhile, here are our thoughts on the nomadic van life.

Ron (negative side):

• I’m getting tired of this, a little bit.
• Our eating schedule is a little helter-skelter.
• My shoes are wearing out and my feet hurt.
• Unable to barbecue because of the wind and it’s hard to do in a fire pit.

Ron:(positives):

• The campgrounds have been spacious and clean.  People are maintaining social distance and sites are pretty far apart.
• Love seeing the animals and birds. Gambels Quail, jackrabbits and cottontails, roadrunners, cattle at Indian Bread Rocks.
• Every day we take a new trail and see new wildflowers.
• The moon has been unbelievable, all phases.
• Love having coffee in the morning and watching the sun coming up.

Kathy (negative side):

• Tired of cooking 2-3 meals a day with limited resources. I want a sit-down restaurant meal!
• My hair is almost always in need of a shampoo.
• Miss my family.
• Miss my well equipped apartment kitchen, endless clean clothes/towels and consistent wifi.

Kathy (positives):

• The weather has become pleasant and mild.
• The wildflowers!!!
• The desert scenery in general.
• Nice to spend so much time outdoors, taking long walks and scenic hikes.
• Our cozy, flexible van.

 

 

 

Tuesday, March 31: Riverside Campground in the Gila Box NRCA is undeniably beautiful, as you can see from the few pictures posted on the previous page, but in addition it has most of the amenities we require as well.  For example:

 

There are, however, a couple of drawbacks.  It’s not really easy to get to:

And communication can be a problem:

Still, we would stay for the duration if our 14-day Federal land camping  limit hadn’t been reached.  Our campground host Kathy was apologetic but rules are rules so here we are again at the Safford Best Western Desert Inn, trying to figure out where we will go next. Our fridge, pantry and fresh water tanks are full, our gray and black tanks are completely empty and our laundry is done; not sure of exact next stops but we are planning to do lots of birding, find some special places to camp and return to Paradise when our two week hiatus is up. Keep you posted!

NOTE: Ignore the date on the pictures.  Pressed the wrong button on setup.

March 12 – 23: Drove out of Phoenix (with a not so brief stop at Whole Foods and Trader Joes) with no idea where we were headed.  We only knew it was sunnier and warmer down south so south we went, aiming for Wilcox and its great birding spots. We let the family know we might be out of range for a while and not to worry and drove east at first, staying off the interstate for a change, all the while admiring the roadside flowers that (as a result of the recent rains) were vibrant and lush, mostly yellow rabbit bush with a few barrel cactus starting to bloom as well. We made a quick lunch stop at Meg’s Place in Ft. Thomas, Navaho burgers on fry bread, and read about some BLM land outside of the nearby town of Safford.

After a false start or two we found our way to a winding (!) canyon road leading to Riverside Campgrounds in the Gila Box National Riparian Conservation Area just before dark.  We grabbed the first site we saw, paid our $5.00 – for two nights! – and settled in.  The following day we realized just how beautiful this place is.  The sites are large and spread apart, overlooking the Gila River and surrounded by wildflowers – yellow, orange, purple, white, pink – unbelievably bright and abundant.

The following day we decided to spend another two nights, then another two; the longest we’ve ever stayed in one spot. We spent our days walking the trails and taking pictures, looking for birds wherever we could find them. The short list:

• Three wrens: Canyon, Cactus and Rock
• Vermillion flycatcher – gorgeous
• Pair of House finches that share our site, building their nest in a corner of our ramada
• Black-throated and Rusty-capped sparrows
• Black chinned (and possibly Ana’s) hummingbirds
• Zone-tailed hawk
• Red-tailed hawk
• Golden eagle
• Peregrine Falcon
• Gambel’s Quail
• Gila and Ladder backed woodpeckers
• Verdin
• Black tailed gnatcatcher
• Phainopepla
• Northern Mockingbird
• Northern Cardinal
• White throated swifts
• Green-violet swallows (maybe cliff swallows, too)

AND a group of five female big horned sheep, grazing on the hills across the river right in front of our campsite. We figured there were no males around because it’s just about time for these ladies to drop some lambs.  We hope to still be here when that happens and that they will be on our side of the canyon when it does.

Now although we are pretty far from civilization and the COVID 19 pandemic panic, we are not unaffected.  Even the stores in this little town are stripped bare of water, toilet paper and cleaning supplies.  We finally got a message – delayed by days – from Deirdre and on our way into town found a spot where we received a cell signal, however faint, and were able to touch base. Everyone in New York is self-quarantining; schools, libraries, bars, theaters, et al are closed at least until the end of the month, sports events have been cancelled, stores are limiting purchases and panic is spreading. Hopefully everyone will stay healthy and the virus will either run its course or a vaccine will be found soon.

On the plus side: the campground is beautiful, quiet and drinking water is both readily available and great tasting.  The campground hosts are super-friendly and informative and while there has been some coming and going, most of the sites remain empty so there is no hurry for us to vacate ours, despite the official 14 day maximum stay. On the minus side: pretty much no cell service throughout the campgrounds except for a spotty signal by site 10,  although I get some notifications (but can’t open them) at night, and the drive in and out can be pretty hairy, with the narrow road, switchbacks and steep drops on either side for several miles.

Tonight we drove into Safford to spend an overnight at the Best Western so we can do laundry, shower and buy whatever supplies are still available at Walmart and Safeway to see us through the next few weeks.

February 27 – March 12: We spent a couple of nice, busy days with Doug upon our return to Phoenix. Visited two really special museums, the Heard Museum of the American Indian and the Museum of Instrumental Music (or MIM).

At the Heard displays are organized by region and tribes,  making it easier to compare pottery and basket styles across the different tribal families and clans, while appreciating the similarities and overlapping histories.  As always, the Hopis fascinate me the most.  Their creation story is remarkably reminiscent of the Book of Genesis and, although only orally transmitted over numerous generations, remains fresh and salient to the Hopis of today.

The MIM captivated me for over three hours.  Exhibits were organized basically by continents with some displays focusing on specific instruments and how they differ from region to region, and in some cases village to village. For example, who knew that there were so many variations of thumb pianos, made from different materials and containing differing numbers of keys?  Or that the steel drum, originating in Trinidad and now widely played throughout the Islands of the Caribbean, could be built to play in many keys?  Or that flutes of some sort were played on every continent?  Most exhibits were accompanied by short videos with audio coming through your headset as you approached the screen.  The performances portrayed were varied, some ceremonial, some casual jam sessions, others shot in the field by audio anthropologists. All were spell binding.  They all featured typical instruments of the region and those exact instruments, along with many others, were displayed nearby.

As planned, I boarded an early flight on Tuesday morning (5 am pickup) heading home for a week, while Ron stayed behind.  Highlights of my week:

• IS 61 show Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, with Allie alternating between two leading roles. She is very talented! And she became a teen while I was there. No more little kids in this family…
• A pizza night on Saturday! A birthday brunch on Sunday! Dinner with Jan and Charlie at Marie’s on Friday! Dinner hosted by Jan and Charlie (that included Loretta and Harlow) on Monday! (Food plays a big part in what makes me happy…)

Highlights of Ron’s week:

• A ball game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Pittsburgh Pirates complete with hot dogs and peanuts.
• Several terrific meals, including chicken kabobs and lamb steaks on the BBQ and tacos and chicken parm at a couple of local restaurants. (good food makes Ron happy, too!)
• A walk into the desert to see if the expected desert bloom has begun. Some flowers but not yet the bloom that can be expected after all the rain.

When I returned, Ron surprised me with tickets for Wednesday night to Sondheim on Sondheim at the intimate Phoenix Theater.  So well-staged and performed; a great way to end the visit but end it we must.  We said a last goodbye to Doug and Sam on a very rainy Thursday morning, did some (!) food shopping at Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s and headed south to find some sun. *

 

*As an aside, the whole country is consumed with worry about the corona virus pandemic, with events being postponed, schools closed, flights cancelled and the stock market in free fall – no one knows what to expect as COVID 19 makes its way across the world with new cases reported minute by minute and the death rate increasing exponentially. So it was no surprise when Jan and Charlie cancelled their plans to meet us in Las Vegas – probably not the best place for any of us to be at this time.  We will be spending the rest of our trip pretty far from crowds and hopefully the worst of it will have been resolved before we get back home.

Friday, 2/21:  When we visited Dolly and Donald last summer we floated the idea of meeting up in Phoenix to see Joe McClaren and Judy and Charlie Zarelli. The last time we were here the guys were not doing too well so we all thought it would be nice to see them once again.  None of us is getting any younger, after all.  One of Dolly’s nieces just moved to Arizona so she and Jean Marie were eager to see her and her family in their new home, making the trip extra appealing.  Dates were chosen, plans were made, tickets were purchased and Jacquie (the niece) found us a VRBO not too far from her Tucson neighborhood.  Unfortunately, Charlie passed away unexpectedly a few weeks ago, right before Christmas, adding extra urgency to our visit.

After much discussion we decided to host a simple lunch with Judy and Joe at a venue of Judy’s choosing and to just spend some time chatting and catching up. And so we all met up at the Village Tavern in Scottsdale, ate, drank and reminisced for a few hours, then visited a bit in Judy’s lovely home before heading down I 10 to the Tucson JW Marriott Resort to spend the weekend.

Just to clarify, we were supposed to spend the whole week at the VRBO but at the last minute the owner cancelled, leaving Jacquie to scramble for a replacement so as not to disappoint us.  She did find another house but it was occupied until Sunday night so,  because her husband Tom is a pilot and has (as Dolly says) a gazillion Marriott points, she very generously shared them to reserve three rooms for us until then.  We got there, road weary and hungry but excited to see this fabled resort and enjoy what it had to offer.

 

Saturday and Sunday,  2/22-2/23:  It was real unseasonably cold and rainy for Tucson this weekend, forcing us to forego the pool and hot tub and to pretty much stay inside the hotel for the day. Molly, Tom and Jacquie’s almost 12 year old daughter, was the only one to brave the chill until JeanMarie joined her for a dip in the spa.

Now before we left Phoenix Doug had said that if it was the Marriott he was familiar with it housed a restaurant called Primo that we shouldn’t miss. After reading the menu a few times Ron was committed and made reservations for us for an early dinner.  All the food is locally sourced, including the venison that Ron chose.  We ended our dinner with an afrogiato – first time I’ve seen it on a menu – served with three light as air zeppoli.  A great, relaxing meal.

After a group brunch the next morning D & D, Ron and I headed to Saguaro National Park West to visit the visitors’ center and drive the loop road. We love this park and the road did not disappoint. Winding through desert vegetation – saguaros, cholla, barrel cactus, ocatillo, et al – was breathtakingly beautiful, a real immersion into the Sonoran desert landscape. Afterwards we headed for our B&B and met Dave (our host) who showed us around the house.  Settled in for the night and began our adventure!

Monday:  Ran some errands, shopped for food and got used to our new surroundings today. Jacquie and Tom hosted us for a lovely dinner of grilled shrimp and vegies and polenta with the most amazing feta sauce.  Jacquie generously shared the recipe and I can’t wait to try it at home!

Tuesday: A trip to Biosphere 2.  The tour was so informative, the research they are doing to help us cope with a changing planet mind-boggling and the passion and commitment the volunteers and staff show was heartening.  Highlight for me is still the “ocean” environment.  That they can replicate the wave movement, the temperature and the salinity of the world’s major bodies of water to study how global warming and acidification is impacting  one of the two major sources of oxygen on the planet and how (if?) we can mitigate those forces so that we can sustain our very being is crucial.  Same with rain forest environment.  Too depressing to dwell on here but such important work.  Dinner was southwestern/Mexican at Seis with Jacquie, Tom and family.

 

Wednesday: This was supposed to be a down-day.  But Sabino Canyon was just a couple of miles away and we heard there was a tram ride into the canyon so off we went.  Definitely worth the trip. We followed our busy day with a relaxing movie (Knives Out again; even better the second time!) and a simple dinner at Panera, the only place open near the cinema and all we really wanted.

Thursday: Today was the perfect day to visit the Desert Museum.  The skies finally cleared, the winds died down and the sun was out all afternoon. Many others thought so too and the parking lot was packed.  But there was plenty of room for all as we wandered the paths and visited the hummingbird enclosure.  The highlight of the day for us was the raptor demonstration starring a gray hawk, a barn owl (beautiful) and three Harris hawks.  Narrated by a very knowledgeable docent, trainers led the birds through their well choreographed routine, swooping repeatedly over the admiring crowd and perching on nearby branches and posts.  Bird facts: Gray hawks are solitary hunters, barn owls can consume thousands of rodents in a week, and Harris hawks hunt in family units.  Who knew?

Friday: We got Donald to his Sky Harbor (Phoenix) flight to Virginia in plenty of time and did some recreational shopping at a closing Pier One before meeting Judy and Doug for lunch at Vincent’s Market Bistro, a place I’d written about in these pages and which Dolly had been drooling over since she read my accolades.  Vincent did not disappoint.  We had a wonderful lunch and were able to linger over coffee and dessert (on the house) for a couple of hours before heading back to Doug’s to show JeanMarie the van and showing off Doug’s newly redecorated bathrooms.