Cottonwood

We are in Cottonwood, AZ.  It's halfway by altitude and Latitude between Phoenix and Flagstaff. The change is very evident. The temps are still warm but moderated.=, but not the coolness of Flagstaff.  The Big City is a distant memory as well.
   We are staying at Dead Horse Ranch State Park.  A family from Minnesota bought the ranch in the 1920s. They had looked at several places and when Mom and Dad asked the kids which ranch they liked, they said, "the one with the dead horse in the road".  Hence, the name.  When it was donated to the State of Arizona in the 1970s, the family insisted that the name of the ranch remain .  And so it does...

   There are many plants that we recognize from ORPI.  Mesquite, Prickly Pear, many wildflowers.  Walking with the boys yesterday, I saw 4 Christmas Cholla plants, which pleasantly surprised me.
   We explored locally yesterday, Tuzigoot National Monument. was interesting.  Some great artifacts.  Unfortunately most of them are in storage somewhere else.  Lunch and shopping followed in old town Cottonwood, which is filled with winery shops, restaurants and antique shops.  A good day.

   Today will will drive uphill to Jerome, a mining town on the side of the mountain.