Saturday in the Ajo Mts

Spent Saturday on the Ajo Mountain Drive.  That, in itself, is a pleasurable experience.  But yesterday it was made better by several experiences.  The wildflowers are beginning to appear.  The Poppies being the most prevalent.

 On the way from Arch Canyon to Estes Canyon the road passes a Saguaro that has an unusual growth on the end of an arm.  It appears to be many growths varying in size from a golf ball to a softball all clumped together.  I wonder what caused this to happen?

 At Estes Canyon I went for a walk to find some Petroglyphs that I had heard about.  This lone Poppy was along my path.  After a ten minute stroll up a wash I found what I was looking for.  The culmination of our day was when we spotted five Desert Bighorn Sheep high up in the Ajo Mountains walking along a ridge.    It was a good day!

Did you know?

While doing the laundry I came up with a theory.  All socks lost in the wash process are right ones.  I know that because the single socks that show up in the dryer are the ones from the pair that are left.


😊

Rain

The forecast yesterday was for rain.  80% to 100% depending on which weather app was opened.  The morning was cloudy but only sprinkles.  But

then as the day went along it got darker.  When I came home to switch with R, it was raining lightly.  That afternoon, as I watched a little TV the slight rain started to be less slight and by the time R got home from the VC, it was well past slight and nearing spirited. Usually the volunteers walk their dogs at 5:30, but  I took the boys early because I wanted to get it done before it got too wet.  By the time we were finished we were well washed.
   The rest of the night was spent inside listening to the rain pound the roof of the trailer.  By 8:30 we were thinking of getting in bed and watching a movie, but I still had to take the boys out.  I waited for over an hour listening for an abatement in the deluge, but to no avail.  Having no choice, I slipped on my Gore Tex parka and we wandered around in the dark looking for the right spot to pee.   They found it but not before we all got extremely wet.
   I heard that we received 2.6 inches yesterday.  That is a bunch.  The wildflowers may be fabulous this year.!

Mesa

Saturday evening after work and supper, we drove to Mesa.  Three hours and twenty minutes.  An old friend of the family lives there.  R has called her Aunt Gerry since she was six years old.  Gerry thinks of us as her kids.  Sunday was spent relaxing and visiting.  Monday I had my appointment with my cardiologist.  ( "See you next year.") and R saw a Physical Therapist (PT) nearby.  We will be driving to Mesa for 5 more weeks so that R can continue to work her knee.  I hope all the pain and time spent is worth it in the end for her.  She's working like a trooper to get a good result.
   Mesa.  One of many towns that is part of the Phoenix metro area.  Lots of people. Lots of things to do.  Lots of stores surrounded with housing areas and mobile home parks and RV parks.  Each one has a name like "Palm Acres", or "Sun City", or "Fountain of the Sun" so they sound unique, but are pretty much the same.  The roads are full of vehicles with license plates from north states and provinces.  People are happy to be there.  Happy to be away from the cold, the rain, the snow.
   But it is the city.  Traffic, stop lights, congestion (mostly from locals going to and from work).  Also, country is some distance away.   It is not real desert.  Most of the cacti and other plants have been planted.  The environment is artificial.  The three hours we drove from ORPI puts us in a totally different world.

Free Fuel

Sounds like a scam doesn't it?
   
  I was working in the Visitor Center yesterday when a guy comes in the starts talking to one of the volunteers.  He and his wife were staying at an RV park in Puerto Penasco Mexico about 70 miles south of here.  They left their trailer there and drove to Phoenix to pick up their grown kids at the airport.  Well they filled up the truck before crossing the border because diesel fuel in Mexico is not low sulfur and does not run very well in new trucks.
   When they and the family members got to the border crossing, they were not allowed to cross because the external tank in the box.was full.  We speculated that it was an issue because of the recent fuel price protest in Mexico.  So the gentleman was looking for a way to empty his tank.  Three of us volunteers were more than happy to receive his diesel fuel.  I was proud to be able to do my part to help this visitor.  

Saguaro

Friday

It's Friday 2/10/17.  I'm writing this in the morning.  R is driving the Van Tour today.  Driving the van is one of the few things we get to do as volunteers so I like her to have the opportunity to do something other than working in the visitor center, so she works this morning and I will be on duty this afternoon.  I prefer mornings because I am a morning person, but I did get a few things done today.  I made a batch of ice cream for tonight's supper with the volunteer group, got a few bills paid, and checked email.  I can do email on my phone but sometimes it's fun to get on the computer.
   Now it's time to go back to the trailer (I'm in the Sonora Building {volunteer building} and make lunch and get my uniform on.  I will relieve R about 12:30.
   Warm and sunny today.  They say 90, but we'll see.  However, cooling to the 60's by Sunday.  Better than at home.  😊

Visitor Day3

We went to Tucson.  More specifically,  the Sonoran Desert Museum.  This is more than a museum.  much more.  It's a zoo, but it's much more than a zoo.  First of all, it is out in the country west of Tucson, not far from the western section of Saguaro National Park.  I don't know how many acres it is but it's huge!  When you go, plan on spending most of the day.  We arrive d about 10 and left after 3:30 and covered only about half of the area.  Lots of exhibits, lots of animals.  There is a reptile area, a Hummingbird aviary, a bird aviary, Desert Bighorn area,

 The showstopper was the free flight show where they release birds to fly around the area to the delight of the crowd.  They first released a Grey Hawk, then a Perrigine Falcon, a Barn Owl and lastly, a family of Harris's Hawks.  They a marvelous birds who have a unique family unit.  It is a matriarchal family with only one female and the father bird and several junior males.  They hunt and kill their prey, (squirrels, mice, lizards, etc.) and the female decides how the food is distributed.
  You can see the glove of one of handlers.  There were five birds and about 7 handlers scattered around the area.  The birds flew from perch to perch and cameras were kept very busy.  It was great!

Our favorite area was dedicated to our favorite birds, the Vultures.  There was much good information about these important animals.

Visitor Day 2

Day 2    We went into Ajo.  Spent a couple of hours at the Ajo Historical Museum , Then we visited the Cabesa Prieta Wildlife Refuge headquarters.  After watching a informational video, we were given passes that allowed us passage unto the refuge.  I think all the paperwork is required because part of the refuge is on and borders the Barry Goldwater Gunnery Range and they want us visitors to understand that Air Force ordinance lying around on the ground is not to be handled.   DUH !
   Anyway we drove west out Rassmusson Road unto the refuge, 13 miles of marginal dirt road until we felt it was getting more marginal.  ( Our vehicle was a 2017 Ford Explorer 2WD so we had to be careful.  Note:  2WD Explorers are FWD not RWD,  I was surprised.

    Even with the road conditions, we had a great time and saw some country that not many people venture into.  Found many Pencil Cholla, a few Christmas Cholla, and even a pair of Desert Slippers ,used by smugglers to travel on the desert without making footprints.

 The slippers lace over regular shoes, have carpet souls and leave no tracks.  These were even camo so I have to think that maybe they were commercially made.

   

Visitor Day 1

Our friend from Phoenix was here for three days.  Although he stayed at a B & B in Ajo, he was with us most of those three days.  He likes to go places and he likes to drive.  So we did and he did.
   Day 1.  We drove down the South Puerto Blanco Road,  Stopped at Quitobaquito.  Walked around the pond.  It looks very different without the Cottonwood tree that was there for many decades.

 The Wolf Berries were starting to bloom but most of the vegetation has not acknowledged that spring is here.

  The other half of our day was spent at the Seneta Basin.  It is an area tucked into a valley that sports Saguaro, Organ Pipe, and Senetas plus other cacti all in the same area.  It was fun to just wander around and see what we could find.