NEW FACES, FAMILIAR FACES - Gold Canyon

Gold Canyon, AZ - March 16-23

WE FOUND GOLD!
Sunday, we waved good-bye to the inmates as we drove past the razor wire enclosed prisons of Florence and continued our trek north to the beautiful Canyon Vista RV Resort in Gold Canyon, AZ.  Gold Canyon is located just south of Apache Junction with about 10,000 residents (not counting Snowbirds), has only 2 RV parks, a couple of championship golf courses, and abuts the Superstition Wilderness Area and Tonto National Forest.  

Canyon Vista RV Resort is truly a Resort with it's 2 pools, spas, tennis courts, pickle ball courts, softball field, library, craft rooms, wood shop, yoga sessions, fitness center, Happy Hours with music, etc.  The guests are a friendly group of active retirees mostly from MN, WI, MI, and Canada.  We loved this place so much that before we left we reserved a spot for the month of March 2015.

You can see our white RV in the background on the left.
This small area of Canyon Vista is for short-term stays.
 Next year our site will be in the long-term section. 

We enjoyed the hospitality of Ford and Karin Marden, new friends we met at Canyon Vista.

SILLY US
The trail head for Silly Mountain was just a couple miles from our new digs.  This is a popular hiking trail with beautiful views of Superstition Mountain, Apache Junction, Gold Canyon, and the undeveloped desert. Going around the back of Silly Mountain we found the Huff and Puff Trail which brought us to the Crest Trail, and then what we thought was the trail to the summit.  As we approached the pinnacle, we saw a young couple carefully picking their way down over the rocks and that was when the debate started.  "I don't like scary heights.  We might fall and crack our heads open or break a hip.  Hum, should we attempt it?"  "Of course we should, let's go!"  Silly us.

"This is a great climb for a Mountain Goat"
At the top of the picture you can see someone starting the dangerous climb down over the rocks.

A view from the top of Silly Mountain; Apache Junction, Mesa, and Phoenix in the background.
After successfully rock climbing to the summit, we discovered there was
an easier, less dangerous, trail we should have taken.  We took that one on the way down.

WEAVERS NEEDLE
I called Heidi Eckstrom, a friend and neighbor from Bass Lake who has a winter home in Carefree, about meeting for a hike and lunch.  She said Tom Conway (also a neighbor on Bass Lake) was staying in Apache Junction and they were planning to hike to Weavers Needle on Friday; would we like to join them?  Yes, we would!  Heidi and Tom met us at our place Friday morning and we rode together to the Peralta Trailhead in the Superstition Wilderness Area for the 4.4 mile hike.  As Jim, Heidi, and Tom studied the trail map, I signed our little group in the hiking register with a start time of 9:55 a.m.  We started the 2 hour round trip hike, excited for this new adventure. 

The stunning scenery starts at the Peralta Trailhead with hoodoos (those magnificent spires of rock).

Heidi capturing a picture of the ever changing scenery in this ancient volcanic caldera.

Tom refueling with water and a snack.

WEAVERS NEEDLE
We did it!

Four and a half hours later our leg muscles were burning, but spotting the Jeep in the parking lot we were like horses heading for the barn after a long ride.  I signed our group out in the hiking register at 2:25 p.m...no need to send a rescue team for us!  Next stop was lunch and a couple of icy cold beers. Oh, and by the way, when I checked my Fitbit it said we had hiked almost 7 miles and climbed 121 floors, no wonder my legs felt like jelly.

THE BIG HOUSE AND THE GREAT HOUSE

 

FLORENCE, AZ - March 9 - 15
We started making our way north with a one week stop in the middle of the desert, 5 miles south of Florence, AZ.  Desert Gardens RV Park is about 8 years old with a very nice pool, club house, craft rooms, game room, and walking paths through the cactus filled desert.

Sunset at Desert Gardens

THE BIG HOUSE
The town of Florence is located between Tucson and Phoenix on Hwy. 79.  The town doesn't have a very welcoming feel as there are miles and miles of chain-linked fencing topped with razor wire surrounding a collection of federal, state, and private for-profit prisons housing inmates ranging from juvenile detention to maximum security death row.  If you are naughty in Arizona you will probably get 3 hots and a cot in Florence. We checked out the Prison Outlet Store where arts and crafts made by the inmates are sold to the public.  We didn't see anything we wanted to buy.

Many travelers along Hwy. 79 only see the prisons, missing historic Main Street.  Main Street is a few blocks off the highway and is designated a Historic District with some buildings having been restored, some in the process of being restored, and others falling down.

THE GREAT HOUSE

Coolidge, AZ is home to the Casa Grande Ruins.  This National Landmark contains the remains of a large village of the Ancestral People of the Sonoran Desert.  The Hohokam Indians built a canal system to divert water from the Salt and Gila rivers to irrigate their crops, making it possible to have permanent thriving settlements in the desert.  In the late 1800's the area became our Country's first archaeological reserve, protecting the ruins from souvenir-hunters and vandalism.

Casa Grande in the background; remains of other buildings in the front.

Within this large village is "The Great House" named Casa Grande by Spanish explorers who discovered the ruins in the 1600's.  The structure is 4 stories high and 60 feet long. It's believed the Great House was constructed in the 1300's. The roof over Casa Grande was constructed in the 1930's to protect the ruins from further deterioration from the elements.

West side of Casa Grande

A circular hole in the upper west wall aligns with the setting sun and the summer solstice.  Other openings align with the sun and moon at specific times, probably relating to times for planting, harvesting, and celebration

GOING POSTAL
For those of you from New Richmond who complain about the N.R. post office, we found one worse.  Since we won't be home for the April 1st elections, we called our Town Clerk and asked that our absentee ballots be sent to General Delivery, Florence, AZ.  Jim's ballot was there on Friday, mine wasn't.  Saturday morning we went back to the PO to get my ballot.  While waiting in line at the counter, a couple in front of us told the clerk they needed to buy some stamps.  The clerk said "We don't sell stamps here.  You will have to go to the Circle K (a gas station/convenience store) to get them."  WHAT DA!?  You can't buy stamps at a post office???  Jim was next and said he was picking up General Delivery mail for Connie Counter.  The clerk yelled to someone in the back "Is there any mail for Connie Counter?"  The immediate reply was "Nope."  They didn't even look.  Before driving back to Florence on Monday, I called the Post Office and asked if my mail was there; it was.  And guess what?  When I picked up my mail, a lady in front of me bought some stamps!  Go figure.

IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME
Established in 1995, St. Anthony's Greek Orthodox Monastery is a beautiful oasis in the desert just south of Florence.  Visitors, dressed modestly, may quietly stroll through the beautiful lush gardens and take a self-guided tour of the 9 churches and chapels.  In addition to the monks living and working at the monastery, over-night guest may stay at this spiritual retreat.

"Ya, I ust got off da boat."
I wasn't "modestly attired" so before touring the monastery I had to stop at the
 gift shop/book store to borrow a skirt to wear over my jeans and a scarf to cover my head.
 Men must wear long pants, long sleeved shirts. No bare feet in sandals either - socks are a must!

Inside one of the churches.  The huge bronze chandelier is lit with candles on special occasions.

Gazebo along the walking path.

The artistic stonework of the buildings and walkways are beautiful.

The Narthex in one of the chapels.

Intricate wood carving is stunning as well as the designs in the marble floors.

Another architectural design of a chapel.  

The patterned wood ceiling in this chapel was amazing.

Nope, we aren't in Greece, we are in the middle of the Arizona desert.

MORE FUN WITH SNOWBIRD FRIENDS - Skoglund's and Yach's

We had lunch and a great visit with Vern and Donna Skoglund in Scottsdale.

Cathy and Bob Yach came over from Tucson for the day.
While Bob and Jim played a round of golf, Cathy and I shopped at the Mesa Swap Meet.

ARIZONA - MARCH 1 - 9

Yuma, AZ - March 1 & 2
ONE FOOT IN THE NURSING HOME
March 1st we reluctantly left our beautiful spot in California and stopped in Yuma for 2 nights on our way to Green Valley, AZ.  There are hundreds of RV parks in Yuma and we ended up at the Capri RV Resort where the spaces are small and packed together. Jim skillfully maneuvered the RV around until he got it parked in the tight space we were assigned at the end of a street.  We quickly realized that this RV community was made up OLD retirees that had one foot in the door to the nursing home.  A huge red flag went up in my head as I read the longer than usual list of swimming pool rules.  In addition to the common rules, i.e. "No Glass Allowed in Pool Area", also spelled out were the following rules: "Swim Diapers Must Be Worn if You Are Incontinent", and "Do Not Swim if You Have Diarrhea".

We had to keep our feet out of the street and watch out for cars at this campsite.
 If we extended the awning, it would have been hanging over the street.

Amado, AZ - March 2 - 9
FUN WITH FRIENDS
Sunday we were happy to leave Yuma and get to the De Anza RV Resort in Amado, AZ.  This is the same RV park we stayed at for a week last year.  The sites are spacious, the guests are active retirees, and fun activities are offered throughout the week.  Terry and Steve Marine are renting a house again this year in Green Valley and invited us over for dinner after we got settled in our new spot.  Jim and Steve made golf plans, while Terry and I made lunch and shopping plans.  Monday, Terry and I met Mary Johnson to see the movie Philomena.  I loved the movie and give it 5 stars.

IT'S A SMALL WORLD
Fat Tuesday there was a party at the Park club house.  As we were getting introduced to the people at our table, I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around to see Marilyn Davis' smiling face.  Marilyn and Jack Davis are from back home in St. Joseph Township. She and I met while both working at the Town Hall during elections.  Although they stayed at De Anza last year while we were there, we never ran into each other.  By the way, neither one of us plan to leave the sunshine and perfect weather here to be back in St. Joe to work at the April 1st election.

Heck NO, we aren't going back to the cold and snow!

OUTER SPACE
The Smithsonian Institution Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory on Mount Hopkins was just up the road from our campsite.  At the Visitor's Center, 4 huge mirrored telescopes connected to computers give scientists data to study about the Universe, gamma-rays, and black holes.  The observatory is 10 miles up the mountain from the Visitor's Center and can be visited on a guided tour.  Unfortunately, all the tours were booked up through March so we will have to visit another time.

Two of the mirrored telescopes on the left and right of the Visitor's Center.

A closer look at one of the telescopes.

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE
Medera Canyon is located in the Santa Rita Mountains and the Coronado National Forest in Green Valley, and is a popular place for hiking, camping, and bird watching.  We started a 3.4 mile hike at the Bog Spring Trail-head, but a few miles up the trail we missed a turn and ended up hiking about 8 miles up and back along the mountain trail.  It was a beautiful hike among cactus, a variety of trees, and wild flowers.  We even spotted some WILD life. Hehehe.

"Let's go find that Bog Spring"

Taking a break along the trail.
We never did find that Bog Spring, but we saw some surprises along the way.

OUTLAWS AND LAWMEN
We took a scenic drive to historic Tombstone, AZ. One event that made this wild west town famous was The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. On October 26, 1881, lawmen, Virgil, Wyatt and Morgan Earp and Doc Holiday had a gunfight with some wild cowboys who were itching for a fight.  One cowboy (who happened to be the instigator) ran away, while the other three cowboys were shot and killed. Wyatt Earp walked away unscathed; Virgil and Morgan Earp and Doc Holiday were wounded. The entire town is designated a historic district.

We took a tour of Tombstone in the stage coach.

We watched a reenactment of the famous gunfight at the O.K. Corral.
Doc Holiday and the Wyatt brothers took care of those rowdy cowboy varmints.

Lunch at the Crystal Palace where the whiskey is good and the water tolerable.

Tombstone signs.

FUN TIMES AND THE ROOT CANAL

SOMETIMES WE JUST GET LUCKY, Eh? February 12 - 28
February 12th we arrived in Desert Hot Springs, just 6 miles from beautiful Palm Springs, CA. Our intention was to stay 4 days, see the sights, and move on to Arizona.  After spending 2 hours at the Sands RV and Golf Resort we decided to extend our stay and got the special for newcomers...pay for 7 days and get 2 free.  The RV park was beautifully landscaped, well maintained, and full of fun loving young retirees enjoying the 9-hole golf course, pickle ball and tennis courts, swimming pool, fitness center, game room, yoga, hiking club and other scheduled activities available throughout the day.  About 60% of the guests are from Canada, and our fun and crazy neighbors were from British Columbia, and one couple from Wausau, WI.  We lucked out to find this great park and camping neighbors.

View from our camping site.

THE LAST HURRAH 
The day after arriving in DHS, we saw the Fabulous Palm Springs Follies perform their show "The Last Hurrah" at the historic Plaza Theatre in downtown Palm Springs.  This is the 23rd year of the Follies, and it is also the last; the final performance will be May 18th.  All the talented cast members are between the ages of 55 and 84, and have backgrounds performing on Broadway, TV, movies, or in Las Vegas productions.  Their high kicking and dancing was pretty amazing; I want what they're drinking! The costumes included elaborate showgirl costumes with huge head pieces, feathers and sequins. Maureen McGovern was the special guest star and still sings beautifully at age 65.  Belting out her Grammy award winning hit "The Morning After" (theme from the movie "The Poseidon Adventure") gave me goose bumps.

Entrance to the Plaza Theatre

Restaurants and outdoor cafes surround the theatre.

AERIAL TRAMWAY
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway was another item we crossed off our bucket list.  The tram is unique in that the floor slowly rotated as it ascended the mountain and we were surrounded by the views of the Coachella Valley and San Jacinto mountains.  Panoramic views from the summit included Palm Springs, the Sultan Sea, and San Andres fault.

One of the two trams.

Each tram can hold 80 people. 

View from the tram. 

View from the mountain's summit.  Palm Springs can be seen the right side of the photo.
The San Andres fault is in the far distance.

JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK
Poor planning took us to the Joshua Tree National Park on Saturday.  We should know by now not to go to these attractions on weekends.  Anyway, we had packed a picnic lunch, water, and hiking shoes, and joined the rest of the crowd at the Park.

"Mormon immigrants named the Joshua Tree after the biblical figure, Joshua, seeing the limbs of the tree as outstretched in supplication, guiding the travelers westward."

Spiky, twisty Joshua trees and unique piles of rocks and boulders give this Park an interesting landscape.  These trees need well timed rains and a winter freeze to produce springtime flowers at the end of a branch.

This rock formation is known as Skull Rock.

We met a Cub Scout Troop on our hike in the Park.

ABOUT AS MUCH FUN AS A ROOT CANAL
Throughout the weekend I was trying to ignore and self medicate the pain from a tooth ache.  Tuesday morning I couldn't stand it anymore so instead of joining the hiking club for a hike over the San Andres fault, I got on the phone to find a dentist.  I made an appointment with a Palm Springs dentist in the afternoon and received the distressing news that I needed a root canal.  I was referred to an Endodontic Dentist and had to wait until Friday for the procedure.  Since we were supposed to leave on Friday, we extended our stay at the RV park for another week.

I never thought I would look so forward to a root canal, but by Friday I was about out of mind with the pain and couldn't wait for it to be gone.  We arrived at the dental office, my name was called, and as I settled into the chair I looked around for the "gas tank" and was horrified that there wasn't one.  The only anesthesia I would get were shots of Novocain.  Because I'm a dental phobic, I always have plenty of drugs for this type of procedure; i.e. a tranquilizer 1/2 hour before getting in the chair, gas when I get in the chair, and then shots of Novocain after I'm floating and totally relaxed.  This was going to be a white knuckle ride!  I barely survived the torture, but by the next day the trauma from the procedure was fading and the tooth ache was gone; I felt like a new woman and we were able to enjoy exploring more of the area.

Thousands of wind mills produce energy for the area.