Railroaded in Arizona, A very good time. 2013

Yesterday I got the news that our mail scheduled for 5/30 would arrive on 5/31, when we were scheduled to be 200 miles North at The Grand Canyon.  So, I sojourn to the camp office and extend our stay until Saturday.  I do not like to travel on Saturday as the roads are full of weekenders trying to escape the oncoming reality of Blue Monday.

This morning I got an email notifying me that our mail was at the local Cottonwood, Az post office ready for pick-up!

 

We had a wonderful day on an excursion with the Verde Valley Railroad.  Of course there was some confusion in my mind when I saw this sign.  I waited in this lot for about a half hour until I realized that they did not in fact park trains here, there were no rails.  Was I wrong to assume so?

I took to many pictures to show here.  Please click on the link below to see them.  The ride was 4 hours, there was good A/C in the inside cars and each car was followed by an open car for sight seeing.  Light snack and Adult Beverages were served, the crowd was fun.  The Experienced citizens of $49 was fair when you realized this was the only revenue this line makes.

Arnold’s Train Ride VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

 We had dinner at the local Moose Lodge which was having their weekly ‘Family Dinner’ which consisted of roast chicken, a potato casserole, veggie, desert and coffee for $7.  Add up 2 Shiners for me and it was only $25 if you count all the lottery tickets we bought.

As you can see they had (and always have) a large crowd.  Friday night is steak fry, how can I miss it!

Last minute change, we got our mail!  Being afraid the bill collectors will catch us, we will move to The Grand Canyon tomorrow.

Jerome, Az. Where the Hippies Went! 2013

 

It’s got to be said:  Jerome, AZ is weird, you will like it or hate it.  Founded at the turn of the century, it was a mining town in the purest sense.  It’s at about 5,200 feet clinging to the side of a mountain, often times unsuccessfully.   It has been ravaged by fires several time, they are difficult to fight and often rehabilitated 25% of the town in one night!

The mine honey combs the hill side under the town.  That same mine was a very productive source of Copper, Silver and Gold.  It played out in the 1950’s and the town went to !sleep.

The Hippies came in the ‘70s, seems that the local gave no nevermind to what they smoked.  They decided to stay when they couldn’t find any gas for their bus. 

They have gotten old now, but you will recognize them by the goods in there shops which lean heavily on very nice arts and crafts, Jewelry and smoking supplies. 

Several very nice grills line the hill side serving up ‘Bar Food’ and cold adult beverages.  Anne-Marie is seen here entering The English Kitchen, a fixture that has great food and beer.  Note to car guys, Charger was a big block x 4.

 

 

 

 

 

Having a little trouble with post office, the holiday has screwed up our mail expectations.   Stay Tunned

Memorial Day Weekend 2013

 

On Thursday we repositioned from Benson, AZ to Cottonwood, AZ.  About 50 miles N/West of Tucson the desperately flat landscape offered up what can only be described as an aircraft junk yard.  This photo is taken from about 3 miles away, there are hundreds of air liners there.

 

 

I’ve mentioned the unique Arizona Bridge Art, I suggest you follow this link to see much better photos than I can take.  They are a very welcome diversion while on the long distance trips we make out here.

 

 

We had about 150 miles of seriously hills before we arrived at our Thousand Trails destination of Verde Valley Campground.  We will stay here until May 30th when we will move to a Federal Park adjacent to The Grand Canyon.

On Friday we drove up to Sedona, Az.  At first look it was impressive due to the fact it overlooks Red Rock State Park.

The ‘Loop Road’ is as it’s name implies a 5 mile loop with about the best views.  Lots of folks have built very nice homes to take advantage of the views.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We did not take a ‘Jeep Trip’.  The anticipated compressive forces would not taken kindly by the old spines we have been abusing for several years.  About 10 years ago, we were given a ride on a water tube pulled by a power boat on Lake Winnipesauke, took us 6 months to recover!

Tuzigoot National Monument, is a reconstruction of an ancient pueblo. At 90° and 5,000’ of altitude, I found it a struggle to get to the top.  I’m betting there were damn few 67 year old fat guys helping when they built it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow, I’ll take you to Jerome, AZ a born again Ghost Town.

 

Moving to Flagstaff 2013

We are not too old not to learn from our experiences. In the past few months we have discovered the wisdom of staying put for a week of so.

• Cost savings:  Camp sites are much cheaper when you ask for a weekly/monthly rate.  We pay $295/month in Texas In season.  Compare that to $25/nite.  Fuel:  It cost us about $120/day when traveling 300 miles.  It is best to run 300 miles and stop for a week while smelling the roses.
• Meet & Greet:  When we stay o/nite for one day, it is uncommon for us to meet folks in the area.
• Random Serendipity Attacks:  You have to give the opportunities a chance to find you.  Last weeks trip to Kartchner Caverns would not have happened had it not been made known to us by folks who found out we were in the area.
• Scheduling:  We rarely have a destination planned a month ahead.  That being said, it’s much wiser for us to plan a next location 300 miles from our present location.

Photo Opportunities:  You have to wait for a prime one as you see here.

Time:  It takes us about 1 hour to set up and than break down our 5th wheel.  It takes Anne-Marie about 1 hour to build her nest and 1 hour to de-nest regardless of the length of stay.  OK Guys, you know this is somewhat flexible due to the ‘I have to wash my hair’ factor.

Fuel:  If I have the opportunity to use the Gas Buddy application on my I-phone, I will save considerable on the diesel cost.  If you do not have an I-phone, you can use the app from you pc at home with the link above.

 

Here is a screen capture from 11:15 this morning using Benson, Az as a home base.  $.44 gallon spread is significant when considering the amount of fuel we use!

 

 

 

Time to get to the Laundry, check the post Office, replenish the liquor supply, etc.

New Texas Ambulance

Just saw this new ambulance parked in over 55 housing project. 

Visit to King Solomon Lodge #5 in Tombstone 2013

Monday morning started with a visit to The Benson Dental Group where I had my pesky #5 molar extracted.  not the best way to start the day but 24 hours later I already feel much better.

Last evening, I had a great time visiting King Solomon Lodge #5 in Tombstone.  The meeting was preceded by a Past Master’s dinner at The Longhorn Restaurant.  We had a good time, I do prefer Big Nose Kate’s as they have  a great draft selection.

 

 

 

Below are a few photos of their Ladies Night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

W.B.Kenn Barrett bears a striking resemblance to Wyatt Earp, who he portrays during the street reenactments of the gunfight at OK Corral.

The Past Masters initiated a new E.A. in fine form.  At the last moment I was asked to Tile the Lodge, a position where my ignorance of their ritual could do no harm!

 

 

 

W.B. Barrett asked me to explain my Lewis Jewel.   This was gifted to me by Hartford Evergreen Lodge #88, it is great source of pride to me.

 With temperatures in the mid 90’s in the afternoon it is time to move on.  Tomorrow we will move about 250 miles North to Flagstaff, Az where we have reservations at Verde Valley, a Thousand Trails Resort.  We will stay there a week before continuing north.

Hot Rod Reunion 2013

Car Guys take note.  Last Saturday evening, we went to a Hot Rod Reunion at the Yuma Drag strip.  If this picture of a mid-60’s A/Gas coupe moves your heart to the same beat as mine, you want to click {or Cut & Paste to your browser} the link below which will direct you to my Google+ account.  Most of the pictures are decent quality, the few I took of the action on the drag strip are not as I am camera limited to a snapshot format.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/105455385885984006154/posts/bpyXMVtrWeu

This is my 1st attempt at using Google+, please advise if you have problems.

Charlie & Sue Schaffer sent us an e-mail advising that we visit the Kratchner Caverns.  This is a local tourist stop that we would have overlook with out their prodding. 

It never ceases to amaze me how often we find out that we are very close to a surreal Serendipity find and don’t know it.  This is most evident with regards to public domains that have very small advertising budgets.

You may remember that last July we visited the Mammoth in Kentucky which was explored in the late 1800’s.  The major difference between the two is that the Kratchner Cavern were 1st discovered in 1974 by 2 private cavers who realized it’s significance.  It took them {and the property owners, The Kratchner} 14 years to have the State of Arizona assume the responsibility for the development of this site.  I post no pictures as cameras and phones are denied access.

Please Click onto the link above where you will see the story and many professional pictures.

We were attacked by a giant sloth, I gave it a few dog cookies so he left Anne-Marie alone.  Another close call during our journey.

Access to the cavern is made by a 1/2 mile tram ride to the engineered opening in the side of the mountain.  Once inside, you must stay in a walkway which winds about 1/2 mile.

 

I wish I could show you a picture of the floor of the mail room.  It covers about 2 acres in size, it is a mud pond that is thousands of years old.  The 2 explorers (Gary Tenen and Randy Tufts) had no choice but to traverse it in 1974.  They left 1 set of tracks which are the only sign of their trip to this day.

3 hours ago I had a pesky #5 tooth yanked, it has been terrorizing me for several years, already I’m feeling well enough to travel to Tombsone for a Past Master’s meeting at their Lodge, King Solomon #5.

Late news to follow….

Bisbee Wandering Back to the 60’s 2013

 

BisBee, AZ is about 50 miles and 50 years south of here.  A small copper and silver mining town, it was founded in 1880 and hasn’t advanced too far in the it’s 1st hundred years.  We arrived around noontime, a mistake in early summer as it was about 88° with full sun.

We were unable to take the mine tour as it was 47° down there and we were dressed for 90° with t-shirts and shorts.

Down in town we started to wander through the streets that had about 2 miles of store fronts.  Pictures are worth a thousand words they say:

Eclectic doesn’t do it justice.  The restorations and rehabilitations move forward, MANY of the store fronts are 100% solar powered.  The shop owners are friendly and engaging, encouraging you to peruse their antiques, arts and crafts.

A great many places in the deep south west use swamp coolers.  They are only useful in very dry climates as they cool by evaporating water into the air supply and thereby increasing the humidity.  Their primary benefit is that they are very cheap to buy and run as compared to A/C.   When  used you have to use the cooler on one end of the structure and open windows/doors on the other end to make the cool air flow through.

Mine equipment is displayed in several areas.  The Philips-Dodge company ruled the miners with an iron hand in the early 1900’s.  Ruthless?  Read about the time the company in collusion with the railroad Deported over 1,186 miners to Mexico.  Our government did nothing to it’s citizens!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This 180 steps goes up 3 street level.  Not having nitro with me, I passed!

There is a hearse tour, again I passed as I was feeling quite well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This may be the only pink Masonic I’ve found on this tour.  I’m think the ladies of The Eastern Star supplied the paint.  Yes, It still meets

On the way home, we went through a ‘Hole in the Wall’ which symbolically brought us back to modern times.

7 Miles south of Sargasso CO-op, we found a Benedictine Monastery buried in the woods.  The cross was barely visible from the road. We drove in {sometimes you have to Search for Serendipity} and discovered a very pleasant setting.  The Brothers support themselves in part with a small campground.

 

 

 

 

We had a very pleasing 48th Anniversary dinner in town at the Horse Shoe restaurant where the kind lady mixed me up a batch of homemade ginger ale.  What’s that?  Sprite with a dash of cola.  Close but no cigar, the bourbon masked the taste.