January 11, 2021 Desert Drive

Rancho Sonora RV Park Florence, Arizona

The morning was chilly, clear, and blue.  I took my walk and I noticed the silence.  I strode along in quiet meditation.  I could hear a cactus wren calling from his perch on the top of a saguaro.  A covey of Gambel quail chortled warnings as I approached.  Suddenly there was an explosion of birds from the underbrush.  They flew low to safe cover on the steep side of the trail.  Woodpeckers were tapping and I spotted a pair roosting on the branches of a creosote tree.  All reminders to slow down, listen, and appreciate the gorgeous surroundings.

It was nice to have two nights in one place after traveling more than 1,500 miles this week.  Now our pace slows as we enjoy wandering in Arizona.  Today, we took Oracle Road out of Tucson to the Pinal Pioneer Parkway.  This is a scenic route through desert.  This is one of the oldest roads in the state.  It was first used by the Pinal tribe as a footpath.  Later, Spanish peoples used it as a stagecoach trail. 

As we approached Florence, we began to recognize familiar landmarks.  We had thought we were traveling through a new town…but we unknowingly ended up making a reservation in the same RV Park that we stayed in last time we passed this way…no matter…it is a really nice park!

We quickly set up and packed a lunch and took the Jeep for a drive in the desert.  We drove on a gravel road east of Florence.  It was a great afternoon.  I am always amazed at the amount of open space and we drove for several hours without seeing anyone at all.

When we got back to the RV, I got fascinated by the hummingbird traffic at the feeder next door.  I worked for about 30 minutes and took more than 50 pictures, trying to capture decent images of the flighty little things!

A woodpecker.