February 7, 2021 Ford Canyon Trail

I enjoyed the morning outside in the fresh air.  No humidity, warmth, sunshine again…it is snowing at home…

We decided to go for a really good hike.  We had FaceTime with the grandkids this morning and we were talking to them about cacti.  We took some pictures to send to Ollie so he could see.

This hike was listed as a moderate hike.  There were long sections of fairly flat and smooth trail mixed with patches of rockier terrain.  Even so, we had no trouble negotiating our way.  We made it to the portion of the trail that gets more difficult…two diamond difficult.  At that point we had hiked for 3 miles.  We both felt good enough to keep walking but we also knew that we had to walk all the way back.  Something I read yesterday about trail hiking that I had never seen written before made a whole lot of sense; “When half you water is gone, turn around.” 

What a truly nice day to be outside.

Because we were not on our home network…we were not abe to stream the game as we had hoped. Tim watched live highlights and the score of the Super Bowl as it was played.

I fixed grilled shrimp and little sweet peppers stuffed with feta and fig and cheddar and bacon. Our fancy feast made it seem a little festive.

The sun had already gone down by the time I thought to take a picture.

It’s getting dark now and we can see the lights of Phoenix twinkling in the distance. I love that this park feels really wild and remote but the city is just a few miles away.

February 6, 2021 Ironwood Trail

White Tank Mountain Regional Park Surprise, Arizona

After we completed our morning exercise, we packed up the RV and left on 10E. 

We camped at White Tank Mountain. 

We have stayed here once before but only for an overnight.  We didn’t really get to explore or enjoy the park.  This is a beautiful place with lots of cactus varieties.  It is green and lush compared to the desert in southern Arizona and southern California. 

We sat out in the sunshine for a short time this afternoon.  It was 71 degrees.  Not too bad for February!

We went for a nice hike this afternoon.

Curly spined California fire barrel

Teddy bear cholla

Strawberry hedgehog cactus

This evening, the city of Phoenix, below us in the valley, was bathed in pink light.  The skyscrapers were gleaming. 

Home Sweet Home…

February 5, 2021 Chuckwalla Mountains

Mayflower Regional Park Blythe, California Day 4

I was going to do my usual routine this morning when I saw a woman walking her dog out across the fields.  I decided that instead of walking the neighborhood streets, I would walk that way as well. 

I walked for a long time and had just decided to turn around when I saw another woman walking with a baby in a carrier.  She was coming from an area that I thought would be along the river.  As I walked down over the hill. There was a sign indicating that I had entered an Ecological Reserve. 

It was a lovely, peaceful walk.  I saw lots of birds including quail, roadrunners, hawks, ducks, a variety of wading birds, and maybe a golden eagle.  There were all kinds of scat, paw prints, claw prints, and hoof prints.  I wished that I could just sit there for a while and watch the happenings, especially by the marsh.

Before I knew it, I had walked more than 2 miles and so it was time to go back. 

We had to stop at the diner this morning to get a picture of this old Chevy truck.

We took the Jeep on 10W and got off on Ford Dry Lake Road. 

The gravel road took us through Government Pass in the Chuckwalla Mountains and then down behind the mountains and through a second pass, Graham Pass, then back to the highway.

Driving through the passes was stunning!  It was 75 and sunny with no clouds.  We were surrounded by jagged peaks and desert. 

This evening we went to get a carryout order from Garcia’s.  The authentic Mexican food was good.

February 4, 2021 Dinner Reservations On The River

Mayflower Regional Park Blythe, California

Today was a good chore day.  It was sunny and it was warm but it was WINDY! 

We went to town and threw clothes in at the laundromat.  Then, because the Starbucks was across the street, we treated ourselves to another cup of coffee.  We filled our gallon jugs with purified water and went to the carwash.  When we got back to the laundromat, it was time to switch the clothes to the dryer.  Everything was dry in 25 minutes!  That is one good thing about a nice laundromat…you can be in and out with lots of stuff in a really short time!  We went to get groceries and got back to the RV by lunchtime.  We spent a quiet afternoon. 

This evening we packed our dinner and went to find a place along the river.  We thought we might go to the Palo Verde Diversion Dam but the area was closed because of COVID.

We had fire and enjoyed the setting sun as it cast light on the mountains on the Arizona side.  The coyotes were carousing and serenading us tonight!

February 3, 2021 Ghost Towns

Mayflower Regional Park Blythe, California

Last night as we lay in bed, we could hear the coyotes calling to one another.  Yesterday as we were driving from Palo Verde, we saw a pack of four coyotes crossing the road in front of the RV.

I started the day with a walk by the river. 

Last time we were here, an owl was nesting in this tree. Supposedly, she still lives here. I have looked for her every day but haven’t seen her yet…though Tim heard an owl during the night.

We drove across farmland on our way to today’s adventure.  We saw more than 100 sandhill cranes grazing in the alfalfa fields.

Tim found a Jeep trail that would take us to a little town of Midway.  We traveled 20 miles across the Colorado Desert.  We were always surrounded by mountains.  It was a warm and sunny day, perfect for a long ride.

We turned onto an old railbed.

We had to cross the railroad bridge or turn around and go back.  Tim walked it, tested it, and declared it safe for passage.  I didn’t even like walking on it!

A video.

The little road took us into Midland.  This is a ghost town.  From 1925 and into the 60’s, this area was mined for gypsum.  There certainly isn’t much there now.

From Midland, we had to drive 20 more miles to the town of Rice and Highway 62.  We stopped for lunch.

As we approached Rice, I took over and drove the rest of the way.  Rice is also a ghost town. In Rice there is some unusual art…you never know what you are going to find in the desert…thousands of pairs of tennis shoes draped from the fencing.  The tradition began as an underwear tree.  People traveling along Route 62 would toss underwear from their cars onto the tree.  The tree caught fire at one point and people started throwing shoes onto the tree.  Then, a fence was built and the shoe garden was born.

We rode our bikes out to the end of the road again this evening.

More coyotes making noise!

February 2, 2021 Blythe

Mayflower Regional Park Blythe, California

Good Morning!  I group of gambel quails scuttled away as I opened the door.

This morning I chose to walk along the river on the California side.  There had been a few brief rain showers.  The sky was brightening and the day was already mild.

We traveled only about 30 miles to Blythe, California.  We have stayed at Mayflower Regional Park before.  It is a pretty park, also on the Colorado River.  The view from our front door.

When we arrived, this crop-duster was working the nearby fields.

We took a 6-mile bike ride to the end of the road.  We passed acres of alfalfa fields.

There were stacks of hay bales.

Southern California snowman.

Later, we walked down to the river’s edge.

This evening, we listened to a local radio station called the “Badass Blues 101.7”.

We watched a glorious sunset.

We ate fish tacos with slaw and pinto beans.

It was a nice stay at home kind of day.

February 1, 2021 Another Road Less Traveled

Oxbow Campground Palo Verde, California Day 2

I began my day with a walk.  This is the view from our front door. 

The heron in this picture is eating something…maybe a fish…

Our campsite.

I walked from California, across the Colorado River and into Arizona. 

I saw this loggerhead shrike in the top of a tree.  This little bird is a fierce predator.  They have been known to kill animals larger than themselves by stabbing prey with their beak and twisting very quickly to cause whiplash.  They are quite aggressive and are also known as butcherbirds.

Later this morning we packed the car for a Jeep adventure.  We spent the day exploring Trigo Mountain Wilderness.  This is a stark, severe environment.  There isn’t much vegetation and there is very little water.  The rocks are sharp and jagged.  The austerity though is also very lovely.  The first pass was up into a mining region.

We drove further south, crossing the desert and then descending into a deep wash, Clip Wash.

We climbed out of the wash and had lunch.  There was burro poop everywhere!  Tim decided to use it as firestarter and so we enjoyed a small fire as we ate. 

We climbed up out of the wash and into the mountains.  The road was very rough.  In some spots the gravel bed in the wash was very deep, causing the Jeep to rock and pitch as we drove.  Later the road got even more interesting. 

Enjoy this video…though it truly doesn’t show how bumpy and rocky the road was!

There was some water pooled in the crevices of some of the boulders.

Big craggy mountains.

We never made it to the end of the trail.  After we turned to go back, Tim drove the toughest part and then I took over and drove the rest of the way.

Tim spotted this trio of burros.

January 31, 2021 Cibola NWR

Oxbow Campground Palo Verde, California

I took my morning walk in the desert.  I walked about a mile and decided to turn back because I could no longer see the RV. 

I walked in the other direction and started to see lots of animal prints in the areas with thick vegetation, the areas that get more moisture because they are depressed in the desert floor, washes and other low-lying areas.  I think that the majority of the critters live here where water and food are a little more available.

We had a short ride today. 

We were looking for another site in the desert but we didn’t see anything ideal.  We drove on to Oxbow Campground.  It is part of the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge.  We found a spot on the Colorado River.  We saw a roadrunner and gambel quail in our campsite.  Later in the day, a hummingbird was peering at his reflection in the RV mirror.  He kept coming back.  He even stopped to admire our US map.

After lunch and quiet time, we took the Jeep to explore.  We have been here before but it is a nice ride on the riverside. 

We took a Jeep trail or two.

We drove to the Cibola Lake Overlook.

Access to Cibola Lake is closed from September to March. This is an important habitat for migratory birds. Today we saw a flock of white pelicans.

On the way back to the RV we saw this small raptor. We were not sure what it was though Tim guessed it might be a kestrel. The American kestrel is the most common small falcon in North America. I am not sure that I have ever seen one! It is a beautitful little bird….the picture is inadequate!

We prepared spaghetti squash with onions and mushrooms and tomatoes and ground turkey in a savory marinara. 

January 30, 2021 Deserted In The Desert

Somewhere on BLM EC633 Winterhaven, California

One last morning walk in the neighborhood around the campground.  The sky was crystal clear.  There was a bunch of activity coming from the Air Station.  I captured this C130 as it passed overhead with a deafening roar.

I did almost 4.5 miles today because today is a travel day and I wasn’t sure I would get a chance later. 

We have stayed in Yuma for more than 2 weeks…that is a really long time for us to stay in one place.  It is noisy here with trains and jets and sirens.  But it has also been relatively warm and Yuma is a great springboard for adventures.  We really liked going to the remote date farm for lunch.  We also had several terrific bike rides on the canal roads and along the Colorado River.  We had wonderful drives in the foothills and a couple of nice sunsets there as well.  Our favorite adventure was the long gravel road to Picacho.  It is though, time to move on.  We get restless and curious and eager to see new places and so we must go.

We had talked about going into southern California.  The stay-at-home orders had been lifted and the campground in Blythe is open.  There is also lots of BLM land where dispersed camping is allowed.  We took 8W to S34, a rough but paved road, into the desert.  After about 15 miles, Tim started to look for a BLM road that we could take to create our own campsite.  This is what he came up with…

Oh, the places he takes me!  Enjoy his video!

Someone before us left behind a pile of firewood.  We got set up and built a fire ring.

We walked around, exploring, soaking in the solitude and the silence.  Tim found an area about ten feet wide with 6 large holes with large openings…

I went in search of these holes, to see for myself but never found them.  I did find several creosote bushes with burrows beneath with 8-inch holes.  We wonder what will come out tonight!!

We spent the afternoon quietly.  Tim started a fire in early evening and we sat and watched the desert and drank wine.

I fixed grilled tuna steaks with teriyaki glaze, a salad of spring mix with blackberries and goat cheese and walnuts and basalmic dressing, grilled baby potatoes with garlic and cheddar cheese, and fresh papaya for dessert.  Doesn’t that sound like a good dinner?

We watched the sunset and then stayed to see the stars come out.  I saw another shooting star.  We could see the haze of the Milky Way.  A pack of coyotes howled not too far away.

January 29, 2021 Last Day In Yuma

Arizona West RV Park Day 16

Morning walk under cloudy skies with a tiny peek of sun.

After morning exercises, it was time to get stuff done. We rapidly checked off things on our list and then this afternoon, we had some time to play. We decided to take one more bike ride in West Wetlands Park. We ate our lunch along the river. We biked about 8 miles today. The way back was harder with the wind but it was totally worth it!

More chores when we got back and now we are ready to roll but, for a few last minute things.

Friday night…date night…Chipotle chicken salads…hit the spot!