Last Week in Review

There wasn't much happening this last week because Ken was still in the rock shop on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday (will be for most of April too). But, we did attend a potluck with our neighbors late Monday afternoon. Bob, who lives behind us, hosted his yearly party and calls it his “Buzzard Soiree.” He supplies the Turkey (Buzzard) with all the fixings, and everyone else brings a salad, dessert, or snack. There was a huge turnout and lots of food to eat. Needless-to-say, it was a full lunch and dinner for us. The day was sunny and 87 degrees with a comfortable breeze and everyone had a great time eating and visiting. So many are leaving soon and this was probably the last time to visit before next season.

Then on Friday, another beautiful sunny day, we went on a long scenic drive. There were fourteen of us in four vehicles, and we drove to the small community of Pumpkin Center partly via a 27 mile back country road. To get there, we all left at 9 am and drove east 40 miles to the town of Globe. We then turned north on hwy 188 and drove almost to Roosevelt Lake, but turned off on the Globe/Young highway (S-288) just before the Lake. After several miles, we crossed the Salt River and stopped at a view point where we watched several rafts being taken out. These people put their rafts in the Salt River several miles east and take a couple days to float down to this site where they take them out. As you can see in the pictures below, there were several waiting to be taken out. It is especially popular right now because the Salt is running very full and fast.

After watching the rafting group for a while, we proceeded on to NF-60, a gravel/dirt road which goes north passing through many hills/mountains along the east side of Roosevelt Lake. Like I said earlier, this is only 27 miles, but it took a long time because it is gravel and rough in spots, plus there were so many things to stop and take pictures of along the way. The scenic views along the route were incredible. So many wild flowers were in bloom and the views from the summits were spectacular. The lead vehicle (Dave, Pat, Eldon, & Lavonne) even had a Badger running in front of them for a bit. We missed it because Ken forgot to put his CB in the Jeep, and they weren’t able to communicate with us until we stopped (he will hear about that for a while-LOL).

This is Salome Wash in Salome Canyon. That is the first two vehicles in our group going through before us.


The water really wasn't too deep. Here comes Denny driving through behind us.


This is Salome Canyon where we just come through. It sure is pretty!!


Of course, we had to stop and take pictures of flowers along the way. This is Pat taking a picture.

In this picture, you can see Four Peaks in the background, and it still has some snow in the shadows. The hill in the foreground is covered with Mica, which is shiny like glass, but it doesn't show up in the picture. We even picked up some.

The big hurdle on this whole drive was going through Tonto Creek. Normally it runs in two very narrow washes, which we usually cross, but today it was overflowing all together. It was still shallow enough to go through, but it seemed like we went forever.
Dave driving the first vehicle and Bob driving the second blazed the way through with us then Denny following behind. It was kinda fun, but nerve wracking too! We kept close watch on those first cars to make sure they didn't go deeper and get into trouble.


All went well and we got through the water and soon were out on the main highway (188) again. All we did was parallel 188 going north....just took us longer (fun).

Once we got to Pumpkin Center, everyone pulled in to the local restaurant for food……there is always food involved when we do anything here in AZ (grin). Eldon & Lavonne took a moment from eating to smile for the intrusive camera. I would post more of the group while eating, but not all was flattering. I thought this picture turned out nice!

After eating, it was time to head back to Queen Valley, but not before a few of us stopped in Superior at the local Dairy Queen for the “usual after drive treat.” (more food, but this was a MUST).

Here is Dave, Pat, Eldon, and Lavonne enjoying their ice cream.

We ended up getting back to the motorhome about 5:30 and noted we had traveled 177.5 miles. It really was a fun day with great friends.

On Saturday (yesterday) we spent the day at a geocaching event. The Apache Junction Area Caching Society (AJACS) does a yearly AJACS Campout Event and everyone for miles around attends. This was a three day camping and caching event, but we only went on Saturday because it was held within 20 miles of Queen Valley. The place where the event was held is along the Peralta Trail in Gold Canyon and is privately owned by the “Dons of Arizona.” The AJACS group was able to rent the site for the event with a “donation” from everyone who attended. It was not a charged fee for the attendees, but anyone could donate to help defray the cost. Of course, as usual, there was more food here too (lol).

This is the Don's Base Camp Sign. The site is behind locked gates and at the very base of the superstitions.

Once at the event, we are able to participate in many caching contests, and challenges. Plus the group hosting had hidden 17 new caches, not yet posted on-line that we were all able to go out and find. Ken & I opted not to participate in the challenges, but instead went in search of the new caches. These caches will be posted after the event is over for ALL geocachers to go out and enjoy. The caches were rated from 1 to 2.5 stars for difficulty and 1 to 3.5 stars for terrain, and several required high clearance or 4 wheel drive to reach (plus some steep up-hill climbs). We ended up finding 12 of the 17 before giving in to the heat of the day and just going back to the site and visit with other cachers that were there.

This is a couple shots of the grounds and camp sites.



This is the view from above the amphitheater.

Look at the sheer cliffs there.

The hamburgers, hot dogs, and chicken, plus an array of salads and desserts were served at 4 pm. I heard later there were about 155 people in line for dinner (wow).

Then at 5 there was a raffle for prizes. There were prizes for guessing how many tootsie rolls were in a jar and how many lifesavers there were in a jar. Then there were prizes for just the children in attendance. This is a huge family game and many kids have their own geocaching identity and totally are into finding these elusive treasures (keeps them out of trouble). Anyhow, after those prizes were awarded, it got to the good stuff and there were many.

The grand prize was a $100 gift certificate at Sportsman’s Warehouse (nice). No. we didn’t win that, but we did win a nice medicine kit for the Jeep and an AJACS sew on patch. I think everyone in attendance actually won something. There were a lot of prizes and it took a while for them to be handed out. It was 7:30 by the time we ended up leaving the event. We were tired and in need of a hot shower and some down time. Of course, my allergies were bothering me, so I had to pop some pills before typing this up and heading to bed.

HAPPY EASTER

It's been a while since the last post, but so much has been going on that I haven't had much time. It is nearing the end of the "season" here and many parties, potlucks, etc... are happening. The rock shop will remain open until we leave, but on limited hours. So many residents are leaving now and most will be gone by mid April. We, of course, will be here until May 10.....it should really be hot by then.

This week has been marvelous. The temps are in the high 80s and the wildflowers are in full bloom. The desert is green and very much alive!! The next few days will actually end up in the 90s (great).

Best of all, Don & Carol, (Ken's youngest brother and his wife) have been in the area for spring break. They brought their daughter Kelli and her friend Amanda with them to tour some sights in AZ that they haven't seen before. They stayed in Cave Creek about 83 miles from where we are, but we did go up and have dinner with them one night. On Friday Don & Carol (girls wanted to stay by the pool) drove to Apache Junction where we met to take them on a tour of the "Apache Trail."

The “Trail” is 78 miles long and starts at Apache Junction on SR88. It climbs past the Superstition Mountains through beautiful Fish Creek Canyon and travels by the southern edges of Apache, Saguaro, Canyon and Roosevelt Lakes and ends at the mining town of Globe. Twenty-five miles of the trail is narrow (sometimes one lane) and gravel. It is a very twisty/winding road which is not recommended for vehicles over 15 feet. We were fortunate by not seeing many sightseers, so had plenty of time to enjoy the various sights.

Our first stop on the "trail" was Tortilla Flats and the Dutchman's Inn. Jacob Waltz, famous for the Lost Dutchman Mine, is memorialized here. The place is quite rustic with saddles for seats on the bar stools and $1 bills lining the ceiling and ALL the walls (everywhere). They also serve great food!!


It was too early for us to eat lunch, so we just looked the place over and took some pictures then headed further east where we passed through Fish Creek Canyon. The canyon was alive with wildflowers.

The walls of the canyon rise approximately 2,000 feet and were very colorful in the morning sun.


Once we arrived at the top of the hills, we stopped at a viewpoint and took a short walk to stretch our legs and look back at the sights. This is one of many pictures of the view.

Here is Carol and Ken on the walk and Don in the background taking some close up shots of the many flowers along the way.

Once we were past the canyon, we traveled on to Roosevelt Lake and hwy 188 where we stopped at the Tonto National Monument to tour a Salado Indian Cliff Dwelling. There are two dwellings here, but we could only go to the lower one because the upper dwelling requires reservations and is only available for touring in the mornings.

The lower cliff dwelling is on a one-mile (round trip) path and climbs 350 feet.
It was warm by then, but we made good time and had a fabulous view of the valley below from the ruins. That is Roosevelt Lake in the distance.


Here is Ken, Don, & Carol, enjoying the tour.


Well, that is it for pictures, but we finished the day off by stopping near the town of Superior and looking at an open pit copper mine, then going on into Superior and having ice cream at the local Dairy Queen (yum). After that, it was another 36 miles back to Apache Junction where we said goodbye until we see them again in Salem.

It was a fun day and we loved getting together with family so far from our Oregon home!!

Geocaching

Today was a great geocaching day! We were out at 9:30 am and got back around 5:30 pm. After finding 25 caches, we still had time to stop and shop at Camping World and get a late lunch (early dinner) at Schlotzkys. Also took some very pretty pictures of flowers in a yard we were caching near.

Aren't they pretty!




Here is a picture of a small (but steep) hill called Silly Mountain in the Gold Canyon area. Look at all the flowers up there!


Hopefully, we can get out more often now that the season is slowing down. Today was in the low 80s but it is supposed to drop to 69 on Sunday and maybe have a bit of rain. That should keep the wildflowers around a little longer than normal.

Last Week

Last week sure went fast!! The sun was shining most of the time and it has finally warmed up and gone in the 80s. There were a couple days of very cool mornings and evenings, but when sitting in the sun, it was quite warm.

Last weekend, March 1 & 2, we didn't do much except enjoy the warm sun. Ken did do some cleaning on the coach before it got too warm, but he also found time to relax and get some sun.

Monday afternoon, we had a visit from Connie & Charlie who have been staying in Apache Junction for last couple months. The big surprise was they brought along some friends from Salem (Gary & Sharon) who were in town visiting for a couple weeks. They had some free time and decided to "finally" come to AZ and see what we all have been raving about for years. Connie was showing them QV because this is where she used to live when we first started coming here. It was fun vising with all of them, but they had dinner plans and had to leave before it got dark. I didn't get any pictures because their appearance was such a surprise, I forgot all about taking pictures.

Tuesday we didn't do much, but did go out to dinner on Wednesday with some friends from the park. Thursday the 6th was Ken's birthday, but we had to wait and celebrate later in the week. Ken is president of the rock hound club and they were putting on a chili dinner, raffle, and stage play Thursday evening. It was a busy day and evening, but all had fun and lots of money was raised for the club.

Friday, we drove into Glendale (long way from here) and attended the Sportsman's Expo that was being held at the University of Phoenix's new stadium (where the Super Bowl was held this year). After spending a few hours there, we went a few blocks away to Cabelas...Neat store, even managed to spend some money there. After that, we went to another huge store called "Total Wines" and bought some "spirits" for us and for some friends.

That Friday was becomeing a long day spent away from home, but it wasn't yet over. We still had to be back in Apache Junction at 7 pm for dinner to wish Charlie and Ken a happy birthday. We got there just a bit after 7 and were surprised to see Gary and Sharon were still in town...they decided to spend a few more days here enjoying the weather and do more hiking. Along with them there were several others there to help celebrate. It was a lot of fun visting with everyone, plus, the food was good (there was even cake to go around). Again, no camera because I wasn't expecting the need for it. I guess I will have to have it with me from now on. Oh well, I will make up for it later.

This last weekend, the temps were in the mid 80s, and all we did was sit out in the sun.....very nice, and we are finally getting a tan!!!

Today, after running our tax papers to the Post Office (for our CPA), Ken was back in the rock shop and I was cleaning up around the coach. We did take a little time out to enjoy an ice cream social at the rec hall. So nice on a warm day!! AND, it is only going to get warmer (yea!)

Flying in Arizona

The gorgeous 80 plus degree weather has allowed us to get out and do more. Yesterday, a friend here in the park took us flying. We took off from Chandler Airport in a Cessna 172 and flew out here over our park in the far east valley. We were up for over an hour and had no wind turbulance at all....it was fantastic!

This is the plane we were in.

This is the Chandler Airport from the air.

More of Chandler (lots of building going on).


Those nearest mountains (hills) toward right side of photo are the Superstition Mountains (site of the Lost Dutchman Mine). The west end of the Superstitions is called Flatiron because it looks like an old flat iron. The really far distant mountains are up around Scottsdale.

Look at the hills of gold. So many wild flowers are starting to bloom right now (so are allergies).

These next pictures are of a very large Copper mine east of us. It is called Ray Mine and encompasses several miles. In fact, they have moved a nearby town several times because of the growing mining area.



In the distance, you can see the town of Queen Valley. The QV RV Park is the to the left of the picture.

Here are some closer shots.




Last but not least of all the photos we took, is the gorgeous golf course in Queen Valley. In fact the town is built around this course. Note everyone, it is open 7 days a week!!


We did take many more pictures and will I upload them to our web album very soon (see link on left of page under favorite sites).