Last Day in Show Low

I am posting today's post this afternoon as we are heading out early tomorrow morning for southern CO. Yesterday, there wasn't anything interesting to post. Just went for a drive then played golf at Silver Creek Golf after we had lunch there. The golf was hot and dusty - boy did that beer taste good when we got back to the RV.

Today we took the beautiful drive to Greer. As we passed by the casino, the Lincoln just pulled right in and parked. We just felt obligated to get out and spend some time there. Another 20 minutes we walked out with our lunch money again of $26.

It's about 30-40 miles to Greer from the casino, but the elevation goes up to around 8000 ft. from 6500 ft. at Show Low. The temp was just perfect around 78 degrees. Stopped and walked to the little creek that runs along the side of the road through Greer.

With the $26 burning a hole my pocket, we stopped at a neat little diner in Greer.

 With such beautiful weather temp wise, how could you not sit outside to enjoy the beautiful trees and scenery.

We both had a mesquite hamburger that was absolutely delicious and filling - no dinner for me tonight. The bill came to $25.40 (another great

Now back at the RV, we are enjoying a quiet afternoon in the A/C thinking about getting things ready to pull out tomorrow a.m. heading north to Bayfield, CO.

The data signal for the internet is so slow this afternoon that it has taken me over an hour just to do this post. Hopefully it will be better where we are heading.

Memorial Day Drive

I'm a little late in getting this posted. We went for a drive up to Mt. Lemmon on Memorial Day. I believe everyone else in Tucson had the same idea. The road was quite busy both ways with holiday traffic, but it still was a pleasant drive - since we were not in any hurry and just enjoying the day. The weather was a beautiful 91 degrees at the bottom of the mountain and decreased to 69 degrees at the ski resort area. We made it just in time for lunch (boy was our timing good or what?), so stopped at the Iron Door at the ski resort for a tasty lunch of a salad and brats/german potato salad/red cabbage, which was quite tasty.

The inside the Iron Door restaurant is a rustic cabin feel. They also have a nice patio for eating outside, but we took an inside table so the wait was not as long.

 Here is a view of the ski slope from the front of the restaurant.

Then walking across the street you can take the ski lift up to the top of the mountain. We have done that in the past so didn't partake in this trip that day.

Then from the parking lot here is looking, I believe, east to the desert below.

Here is a view of driving back through Summerhaven. I was impressed with all the rebuilding after the fire up there several years ago where it took out the whole town and many homesites. The homes that they rebuilt are beautiful, big log cabins (if you could call them cabins). Plus in their rebuilding the town they added a few restaurants to draw more people up there.

Then we just followed all the traffic back down the mountain into 96 degree weather. All in all it was a very pleasant drive. Haven't been up to Mt. Lemmon since the fire and was pleasantly surprised what we found.

Bisbee on a Sunday Afternoon

Last Sunday was such a beautiful day, we thought a drive to Bisbee was in order. So off we went to enjoy the afternoon. Jim needed exercise after our drive there, so off to the flight of stairs he went (no he didn't do 1000 stairs, only 86).

Surprisingly there were few tourist in town. In fact it was pretty empty (well the shops were empty but the bars were quite busy).

Of course we went into the Copper Queen Hotel to have a look.

"One RingyDingy" Where's Ernestine?

Oh here she is!

I believe this is a Ford. It's in excellent shape, ran good also (we saw it later going past us).

Of course we had to take advantage of Brats & Chips for $5.00 (well maybe some beer to wash it down also).

It was a pleasant trip, but a long drive to spend only a couple of hours enjoying the town. Some shops were closed, but did enjoy a couple of art galleries.

AZ Winter Wonderland

Yesterday late afternoon we experienced our once a year snow storm.

It started out light snowflakes then built up to large snowflakes that stuck.

No, we didn't go out and build a snowman or throw snowballs - looking through the window in a warm house is much more comfortable.

Maybe because we so rarely see snow that I think it is just beautiful to look at and brings about a sense of peace.

A new dawn, the storm blown over and the snow began to melt.

Even though I think it is so pretty, I'll wait another year before wanting another cold snow storm.

Unwanted Guest

Our trip to San Diego came to an end on Sunday the 1st and we reluctantly drove back to the heat of Tucson. We did discover that while we were away, we had an unwanted guest move into our pool.

I believe this is a Sonoran Desert Toad. Don't ask me where it came from, I have no idea, it just decided to make our pool his new home. We have tossed it over the fence hoping it will go away, but it just shows back up at our pool. At night it sounds like someone snoring. And of course it is right outside our bedroom, so we get serenaded every night. The only way we will get rid of him is to catch the thing and transport it far away from our backyard.

I just finished another oil painting, so just wanted to share with everyone. It's actually 3 canvas' to make one painting with each panel being 15"x30".  I don't profess to be a professional artist, but I do enjoy dabbling.

It's too hot for hiking so haven't had much to post. So until our next trip my blogging might be a little thin. Hopefully our next trip in the RV will be happening soon.

Nature Siteseeing

Monday brought a beautiful day, so Carol, Joyce and Linda took a trip over to the west side to discover the Desert Museum. Many beautiful cactus flowers were in blossom, but we were a little disappointed because most the animals were in hiding. I did get a peak at a gila monster before he slithered away

A hummingbird was kind enough to pose for a picture.

We took a break half way through to rest (of course the resting spot happened to be the snack bar that served ice cream).  Later that afternoon, Jamie joined us at home for a round of skipbo (the card sharks were so engrossed in their game that dinner wasn't even on their minds and needed to be interrupted).

Tuesday brought another beautiful day so off to Sabino Canyon. We took the tram to the end where we disembarked for a photo shoot.

On the return trip we got off the tram at two stops to take more pictures.

We found a nice resting spot next to the creek under some trees with a cool breeze. It just doesn't get any better than this.

This evening will be rounded out with cards and dinner. Tomorrow we will keep it simple with taking Joyce and Carol to see the motorhome, visit Jim's business, go by Chris' gravesite, then dinner at Chuck and Kim's place.

Family Visit

Jim's mother, Joyce and sister, Carol are visiting us from Wisconsin this week. They flew in on Saturday, one of our coldest days of the past month, only in the 50s. It felt like home to them. But this week promises to become quite nice and hot. We'll give them a sample of good ole' Tucson weather. We got the whole family together at our house on Sunday, all 20 of us.

We all gather in the house visiting with Joyce and Carol.

The children finally found their way outside to play. This is Semira, Jim's great-granddaughter. She doesn't mind the cool weather.

The grillmaster hard at work with grilling hamburgers and hot dogs.

When the grilling started, several braved the cooler temperatures on the patio. But with the patio heaters, it was most pleasant.

Our group picture. When family gets together, there is always a photo time.

Here is Jim's mother with all her grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchild.

The five generations, from left to right, Sunday, Joyce, Brian, Semira and Jim.

It was so wonderful to have the whole family together at once, that happens so rarely because of everyone's busy schedules.

Monday, Linda will be tour guide and take Joyce and Carol to the Desert Museum for the day to enjoy our beautiful desert attraction, then Jamie will join us for dinner. Come back to find out what other interesting places we visit during this week.

Searching for Wildflowers

Brilliant sunshine, temperature in the 70s, what else would a person do on such a day except go hunting for wildflowers. Started my trek at Sabino Canyon, but it was so crowded that I was unable to find a parking spot after 10 minutes of driving around the parking lot, so off I drove to Ventana Canyon Trailhead just up the road from Ventana Canyon Golf Course. The trail goes back into the National Forest, into the beautiful canyon with stunning mountains, cliffs and rock outcroppings with the beautiful stately Saguaro throughout.

 My quest for wildflowers was successful as you can see by the following pictures. Unfortunately I do not know the names of the flowers, but this first flower might be a Bladderpod Mustard. 

This I also know is a Mexican Gold Poppy.

This little blossom was in the middle of the path being protected by a rock.

There were bees all throughout my hike taking advantage of the many blossoms, this bee was busy on this Blue Lupine. 

The hillsides were covered with yellow breaking through the rocks and cactus.

This time of year is spectacular for wildflowers in the desert. I will continue my quest over the next month or so to bring you (hopefully) the best pictures of the beautiful colors against the contrasting landscape. Wildflower season is just beginning and I'm excited to continue with hikes on new trails and of course trails I've visited before. You never know what will be around the next bend in the path. Until the next edition - "Happy Trails".