November 5, 2021

Naked Dates

Riverfront RV Park Yuma, Arizona Day 11

After morning exercise and walking, we took our bikes and pedaled through West Wetlands and into East Wetlands all the way to the river. 

We had seen this red bird the other day and I was hoping to spot it again.  I believe that it is a vermillion flycatcher.  As it flew, it was a brilliant scarlet flash among the trees.  He was kind enough to pose for pictures.

We cycled to the athletic complex and had breakfast by the pond. 

Tim has a special breakfast concoction that he prepares each day.  It contains muesli, almond milk, vanilla protein powder, blueberries, cinnamon, nutmeg, turmeric, chia seeds, and raw sunflower seeds with a drizzle of agave syrup.  Lots of healthy stuff!

He loves it!

The lettuce, red and green is just beginning to grow.

This afternoon, we drove to Wellton to Naked Dates for a late lunch.  Tim chose the Carnitas Street Tacos with slow smoked, shredded pork, cilantro, onions, date salsa verde, and chipotle cream.  I had the Sweet and Savory Flatbread with date spread, bacon, and melted cheeses…both so yummy!!  For dessert, we split a date shake.  It is date season here and the harvest continues through December.

Old trucks on the property.

The owner at the restaurant told us about a nearby 4WD trail called Woodcutters Pass.  The route is more than 20 miles long and traverses up and through the Gila Mountains into the Fortuna Foothills in Yuma.  We scoped it out, driving through the desert and toward the mountains.  This would be a full day adventure  or an overnight adventure for another day!

November 4, 2021

East Canal Bike Trail

Riverfront RV Park Yuma, Arizona Day 10

I started my day with a 3.5-mile walk.  Later in the morning, we packed our bike bags with ice water and set out to cycle the East Canal Trail.  When we left the RV Park, there was no wind.  As we pedaled, the wind began to blow.  I could feel the push from behind and we easily made it to the southern end. 

When we headed back, we had the slightest headwind and it didn’t hinder us at all.  We did 14.25 miles.  We felt strong and good when we got back!  Unfortunately, when you are riding a bike, it is really hard to take pictures.  I did get one.

This evening, we went to downtown Yuma to the Pint House.  I tried a really nice mango cider and Tim had a peanut butter stout.  The beverages were great and dinner was okay.

After eating we went for a joy ride across the farm fields and down by the border wall.  There is still a large section left unfinished.  The wall makes me feel sad.  I understand the need to do something…Tim calls it a necessary evil.  We realize how fortunate we are to be living on this side. 

November 2-3, 2021

Camping At Ferguson Lake

Riverfront RV Park Yuma, Arizona Day 8 and 9

On Tuesday, a pleasant morning walk!

We loaded our gear into the Jeep for another overnight tent camping trip.  We drove through farm country and past the Cloud Museum.  It boasts the largest collection of Model T’s in the world! 

We stopped at Imperial Date Gardens.  We got fresh dates, fresh date nut bread and a date milkshake to share.  We were fighting over the shake…we both wished we had more when it was done.  It was sooooo good!!

We took the rough road about 10 miles to our campsite. 

We were perched on the edge of a canyon about 200 feet above Ferguson Lake.  We camped here once last year.  I love it when the memory of a place is just as beautiful when you go back a second time. 

Tim’s video!

We passed the evening with a campfire, for ambiance, we didn’t need it to stay warm!  We cooked omelets and ate them with the delicious date nut bread. 

We watched the blue sky turn orange and then black.  The stars erupted all at once in the great whitewash of the Milky Way. I saw 4 shooting stars.  During the night we could hear the hooting of owls, the braying of feral burros, and the howling of coyotes.  Other than that, it was silent and dark.  We don’t realize how noisy and bright our world is until we are in true solitude.

This morning we were awake to watch the sunrise…yet again.  On these camping trips, we allow ourselves the pleasure of two cups of coffee…such a treat because we have whittled ourselves down to one cup on an ordinary day. I never get tired of it…all those things, sunrises, sunsets, shooting stars…they all happen whether we look or not.  I am so grateful for the opportunity to be able to stop and notice. 

Military jets flying overhead.

We drove down the hill and to the lake.  We could hear the coots calling.

We are not all alone here…

We hiked into the canyon. 

Just as we were driving out of the wilderness area, we saw pair of burros.

Per usual, the day after a night out, we were pretty low key.

And

November 1, 2021

Sunset In The Foothills

Riverfront RV Park Yuma, Arizona Day 7

We started the morning in the usual way…with exercise and walking.

Tim wanted to take a long 14-mile bike ride to the nearby town of Somerton.  I agreed to go and fetch him with the Jeep.  His ride took him parallel to the wall and then entirely through farming country.  He thoroughly enjoyed the scenery and the effort that it took to get there. 

I was going to run to the grocery store for dinner stuff for this evening.  I jumped out of the car and immediately realized that I had locked the keys inside…what to do???  Uber of course…what a lifesaver.  Enrique picked me up within 4 minutes and took me back to the RV where I was able to retrieve the extra Jeep keys and then Enrique drove me back to the store…crisis averted/managed!  I grabbed groceries and hurried off to Somerton to meet Tim. 

We had a picnic lunch in the park under the water tower, watching the hummingbirds flit about.

This evening we packed the cooler with roasted chicken and Havarti and raw veggies and grapes and an herb and garlic bread and we set off.  We drove to the Fortuna Foothills, arriving just as the light began to change. 

We watched the sunset as we feasted.  This was the best part of today!

October 30-31, 2021

Quiet Weekend

Riverfront RV Park Yuma, Arizona Day 5 and 6

Morning walks along the Colorado River.  The best thing about this campground is its proximity to the Wetlands Park and the river.   Such a beautiful place to begin each day.

We spent this weekend quietly.  We got chores done, I cleaned, Tim enjoyed baseball and NASCAR and football.

The highlight of me weekend was achieving my October goal in my Apple Watch competition.  Tim bought this watch for me in June.  I have worked hard for the past 144 days to close all three circles each day, meeting goals for standing, exercise, and activity.  Each month a new challenge is introduced.  In July I had to walk 125.8 miles…done!  In August I had to burn 24,302 calories…done!  In September I had to do 1,550 minutes of exercise.  Exercise means getting your heartrate up and over 100 bpm.  This was more challenging and I did it.  This month I had to walk 200.9 miles.  That’s a lot of miles.  I became determined and today, the very last day of the month, I accomplished this goal.  Mom and Tim have already asked what November’s goal is…I won’t know until tomorrow…but I am going to continue to do my best to reach higher and loftier goals.  Some days, the watch feels like a home detention anklet…it holds me accountable though and I really believe it helps me stay focused on being stronger and healthier.

October 28-29, 2021

Kofa

Riverfront RV Park Yuma, Arizona Day 3 and 4

As usual, we began our day with exercise. I walked a little more than 4 miles, Tim did his stretching and then took a long bike ride.

At 10am Jose and his wife, Norma, were there to install our new slidout covers. We were happy with the quality of the work and the customer service was outstanding!

We packed the Jeep for another overnight tent camping trip.

We drove the 60 miles to Kofa Wildlife Refuge.  Maybe because this was one of the first places that we really explored the desert in the Jeep or maybe because it is truly so beautiful…but this is one of my favorite places to be here in southern Arizona.

We took the spur road from Palm Canyon Road to Queen’s Canyon. 

We were able to choose the prettiest site, one with an open view of the valley below and surrounded by rock formations. 

Tim’s Nightly Nature Talk!

Before dinner I decided to take a walk.  I hiked down the center of the rough road.  When we are out in the desert, it is important to be mindful.  You never put feet or hands where you cannot see them…not under rocks or bushes.  The critters that live here own this place!  I watch every footfall.  I wanted to walk about a half mile and then I was going to turn back.  I was fairly close to the mark when I noticed movement in the path up ahead. 

I believe that this is a desert tarantula.  They are not deadly though if they bite…it hurts!  Their fangs are 1 cm long.  From May until October, the males traverse the desert looking for a mate.  They become active around sunset and are nocturnal.  I was far enough away to be completely safe.  I used the zoom on my cell and took the first picture.

Fortunately, I also had my camera.  I was able to use the zoom to capture these images.  I wish that I had thought to take a video.  I was mesmerized watching this guy traipse across the gravel. When he stopped moving, I knew that I had worn out my welcome.  I did not want to further aggravate him and so I stepped away.  What a thrill to see this spider in his own habitat!

Tarantulas and rattlesnakes and scorpions are the reason we bought a roof top tent.  I am not going to lie…I was a little creeped out when I got back to the campsite.  I was checking the area for crawling creatures all evening.  I preferred to sit with my feet up off the ground! 

The sunset was again lovely.

The night sky was dazzling.  We were far enough away from the city and the moon had not yet risen.  The whitewash of the Milky Way, the glittering stars were wondrous.  I never want to lose that sense of awe.  I always want to be caught breathless by spiders, sunsets, and stars.

We enjoyed our morning coffee by the fire and then decided to drive the Jeep into Queen’s Canyon.  We have been here before with Kyle and Allison and being here brought back lots of fun memories.

The skull.

We got back to the RV around lunchtime and spent most of the day being lazy.  Tim did take a 10-mile bike ride all the way to the corner where Arizona and California meet Mexico.

I didn’t go and walk until this evening when the sun was less severe.  I really do much better when I get my walking done first thing. 

October 27, 2021

Baseball Tonight

Riverfront RV Park Yuma, Arizona Day 2

I walked in the West Wetlands this morning…simply lovely.

Old trucks displayed in the campground.

Jose from Mono Awnings came out to see us at the campground.  He was able to give us an estimate and will return tomorrow to fix the wind damaged slideout toppers.

Today we cycled west on Levee Road.  We rode in agricultural country among the farm fields, and we shared the road with tractors.

This afternoon we went to Sprouts, a really nice store with lots of healthy options.

We took a picnic dinner to a nearby park.  We had seen kids playing last evening and we wanted to catch part of a game.  We watched six-year-old girls playing softball for the first time.  It was fun to sit with the families who were cheering for the excited players…the girls so delighted when they pitched a strike, hit the ball, or fielded a play! They were just too cute!

Then we watched the second game of the World Series…go Braves!!

October 26, 2021

Back In Yuma

Riverfront RV Park Yuma, Arizona

I did visit the petroglyph site this morning as part of my walk.

We made the two hour trip to Yuma. I was in the queen’s chair working on the blog.

We did something today that we have never done before…we paid for a full month at the Riverfront RV Park. We do like it in Yuma, we have been here before. It is kind of nice to come back to someplace familiar. We know the stores and the restaurants and the parks and the bike paths. It is warm and sunny here. Yuma is a good place from which to launch some 4WD and tent adventures. Whether or not we stay for the whole month, it was the same price for 2 weeks…so, we can go when we feel like it is time to move along.

We jumped on our bikes and rode the Levee Bike Trail.

We are accustomed to being here in the winter when all the farm fields are green and full and being harvested. Some of the fields now lie fallow while others have a little green. This field has just been planted.

This evening, we went into Old Yuma nd went to Prison Hill Brewing Company for dinner. We had excellent salads. I chose a cherry cider, tart and thirst quenching and Tim had a Malo Coconut Stout, thick and rich.

We enjoyed an evening walk in town.

Tim watched the first game of the World Series…I guess we are Braves fans now!

October 25, 2021

Life Is Better With You

Picture Rock Petroglyph Site Gila Bend, Arizona

Happy birthday Kyle.  We love you and we are so very proud of you!

One last walk to town square and back.  It was nice to spend some time in one place but it is time to move on.  We shared coffee before we left.

We stopped for breakfast at a Barry Goldwater wayside but there were no aviation tactical maneuvers to watch this morning.

We arrived at Painted Rock before noon. 

After lunch and quiet time, we were ready for today’s adventure.  We had heard that there were 4WD trails near the Painted Rock Dam and Reservoir.  When we got there, a gate blocked the road…ROAD CLOSED…AUTHORIZED VEHICLES ONLY…well shoot…that was our plan for the afternoon!!

There was nowhere to go but back to the RV.  It was a little disappointing but I was happy enough to spend the day reading.

We grilled fish tacos for dinner and then took a twilight walk around the campground.

We sat outside until it was very dark.  The stars were bright and seemingly infinite in the inky sky.  I saw a shooting star.  Even though the day did not turn out as we expected…it was still a very good day!

October 23-24, 2021

8112

Ajo Heights RV Park Ajo, Arizona

On Saturday, we got our workouts done and then had a quiet day.  

Tim saw this javelina in town by the Family Dollar Store…in fact all of the wildlife we have seen this past week has been in town!

After lunch, we packed the Jeep for one more overnight tent camping trip in Ajo.  We wound our way through the labyrinth of trails off Rasmussen Road, trying to find our way back to a campsite we spotted the other day.  Lucky us…we found it easily and no one else found it first!

We set up and relaxed into the evening with a nice bottle of red wine. 

Another glorious sunset.

The moon didn’t rise until around 9pm.  The night sky was so dark and there were millions of stars, another dazzling evening. The Orionid meteor showers peak this week and we were hoping to see them but the moon was just too bright.

We slept well and enjoyed our morning, slowly packing gear.  It was a short ride to get back to the RV park. 

Tim spent his day watching NASCAR and football and I got caught up with laundry and life stuff. We had grilled venison burgers for our dinner…thanks Kyle!! We went into town to walk around the square; a nice ending to a very good day!