First Week In Cottonwood

We have had a very nice first week here in Cottonwood where the temps have been hovering in the 90's during the day and then in the 60's at night (we love those cool nights with the windows open for a change).  However, today it's in the 70's with a breeze blowing and the perfect fall Sunday.  I also just saw that it is only 88 in Phoenix today, the official first day of fall, so I know our friends and family there are enjoying that.

We love this campground but the internet is terrible down here in the valley.  It has taken me almost two hours to get the pictures loaded.  That will be the only reason I'll be glad to leave here next Sunday as otherwise I love the peace and quiet.

Yours truly had a birthday this week so we enjoyed a day in Sedona to celebrate. We hadn't been to Red Rock State Park before so chose to stop there ($10 entrance fee).   It is a 286 acre nature preserve with stunning scenery and many trails, some easier than others. This is only a day-use park so no camping allowed and no dogs which we thought was interesting as many people like to hike with their dogs.  We weren't really prepared to hike for any length of time as it was still a warm day, so we took a very short trail called the Smoke Trail, part of which runs along Oak Creek Canyon. They had some pretty bad storms in that area a couple of weeks before so some of the trails and their footbridges were washed out and closed for repair.  They say wildlife is abundant within the park (mule deer, javelina, coyotes, & snakes) but we didn't see any.  There are many things to see and do in and around Sedona so it's a place we try and find something different each time we're in the area.  Probably one of our favorites was a Pink Jeep Tour (yes the jeeps are pink) and they have a variety of tours to choose from depending on how adventuresome you are.

Then we continued on with a drive on the Red Rock Loop Road into Sedona.  Wow, there are some beautiful homes on this route.  We had a nice casual lunch in downtown Sedona at a local barbecue restaurant with a great view.  I asked our waiter if he knew the names of the rock formations we could see out their big picture window but he only knew 'Snoopy' which I'll post a picture of below.  This restaurant was in a little strip mall off the main shopping street in Sedona and I saw a sign for 'going out of business' so, of course, had to check it out.  It was a typical touristy type place with t-shirts but also some very nice turquoise/silver jewelry.  In a conversation with the owner, he said the economy just hasn't come back for him and after 36 years, in the same location, he was closing the doors and I could tell he was very sad about it.   He said the hotels and restaurants in Sedona are all doing very well, but people just aren't spending money on other things such as 'souvenirs'.  Very sad!  We made a couple of other stops to do some shopping so it was a great birthday.

The rest of this week hasn't been anything special to write about.  We've met some nice people here at the park and enjoyed some good conversation including one man who is full timing with his beautiful black lab in a tent. We 'suspect' he's recently divorced as he told Dick that he was only able to buy a truck right now, and the trailer will come later this winter.  In the meantime, it's just the tent.    It's just been a week of housekeeping, Murphy getting a bath, some long phone conversations about insurance, you know the kind of weeks.

We have some friends (former neighbor from CA who now live in FL) that will be visiting this week as they make their way to NM.  We haven't seen them in about 8 years and are so glad they're going to stop as they've been in CA for a family wedding and now seeing other family/friends on their way back to FL.

We did learn today that the RV park in Lakewood, NM that was flooded a couple of weeks ago is coming back to life and they expect the folks to be able to return by 10/1 as they said earlier.  The RO water system has been repaired, power is back, and now it's a matter of cleaning up, getting the sites level again, and retrieving the items that had washed out into the desert (no RVs but some sheds and small yard items, tools, etc.)

We will leave here next Sunday and then be in Sun City in another 100 miles (another long driving day....LOL).  I will do another blog next Sunday and then will probably 'go on hiatus' for awhile.

Eagle's Nest (highest point within the park and a 300' climb)

One of the washed out footbridges along Smoke Trail

Oak Creek Canyon along Smoke Trail

Just some more Sedona beautiful red rock

This was the view from our window at lunch.  'Snoopy' is to the right
of the big red rocks in the center.  He's laying on his back.  We saw him right away
and hope you can too.

Happy Birthday Michael......we love you and wish you many many more!  We're also very glad to hear you're heels are doing better and we look forward to seeing you next week when we get to Sun City.

Happy Trails until we meet again.......

Hello from Cottonwood, AZ

We arrived here a couple of hours ago after a very easy drive from Williams.....a total of about 100 miles for today.  We'll 'hang out' here for a couple of weeks and I can tell already it is going to be much warmer here than we've seen for awhile.  We have the air conditioner on now as it's very still outside and in the 90's.  We like this Thousand Trails Park a lot as it's away from the main highways with NO railroad tracks close by.  We laugh sometimes and say that it must be a law somewhere that RV parks must be built near railroad tracks and interstates.  The town of Cottonwood, population 12,000,  is about 5 miles from the park and is a very nice little town with all the things we'll need for these two weeks.  We are only about 20 miles from Sedona, AZ which everyone has heard of I'm sure.

We feel very lucky and very blessed that we left Lakewood, NM when we did last Sunday.  Apparently, on Monday the rain started and on Thursday morning that little RV park that I talked about in my blog had to be evacuated via helicopter, three people at a time.  A total of about 70 people were airlifted out to a school in Carlsbad where a Red Cross Shelter had been set up. Most of these people were from the RV park but a few other folks were from a couple of houses in the Lakewood area.  It is really hard to imagine where all the flooding came from but the rising flood waters from nearby, normally dry arroyos forced the evacuation and the park is now closed from what we understand until at least the end of September.  The folks were allowed back in yesterday but within hours were asked to leave again because another storm is predicted for Monday & Tuesday and they don't want to face another evacuation.  Only one man stayed behind on Thursday, a guy named Bob, who Dick spent considerable time with the week we were there, because Bob was the guy who was/is instrumental in the park putting in their own RO water system a couple of years ago.  He gave Dick a tour of their system and picked his brain about what they still needed to do or not do, and he stayed behind to try and save what he could but from what we've been able to read and hear, the system was severely damaged and there is now no water at the park and no sewage system (thus the reason it is closed I'm sure).  Roads were washed out and it was only yesterday that they could come back and retrieve whatever they wanted/needed for the next few weeks.  One thing we know is that you had to keep your RVs licensed and 'mobile' so there were no RVs in there that couldn't be driven or pulled out (some probably hadn't left the park in years but they could if need be) so we're 'assuming' that people will go somewhere else only until the park reopens and then they'll be back to start putting their 'little slice of heaven' back together again.  This is quite the resilient group of people and we just know they want to return as soon as possible.   So our timing was good although we can't help but feel sorry for these people as they just love their park, who are their 'family', and our thoughts and prayers have been with them this week.

We spent the last few days in Williams, AZ, population 3200, west of Flagstaff about 30 miles.  This is beautiful 'tall pines' country, and known as the Gateway to the Grand Canyon. Williams is also along the historic Route 66, so is quite the touristy area with plenty of restaurants, motels, gas stations, etc.  There is a steam train that runs every day from Williams to the Canyon (about 130 miles round trip) and is a fun day trip.....or longer, if you choose to spend the night and come back in a day or two.  We did that trip a few years ago so we chose not to do it again.  It's a wonderful ride on restored rail cars, with a crew that tells you about the spectacular surroundings, even musicians who bring the Old West to life and also a train robbery at one point.

One day we did go to Bearizona, a drive-thru wildlife adventure just outside Williams.   We have been to their other park in Rapid City, SD and really enjoyed that so wondered if we'd enjoy this one as much.  Of course, the surroundings are beautiful but this park is only three years old so there isn't near the animals yet that Rapid City has.  You drive through the park, at your own pace, and then at the end there is what they call Ft. Bearizona, where you can stroll through the forest and get closer to the antics of baby and smaller animals.  We saw things like American Bison, White Bison, Rocky Mt. Bighorn sheep and wolves but not in big numbers yet.  We do believe that in a few years this park will be as amazing as the one in Rapid City.  In fact, we learned that these are the sons of the folks who operate the one in Rapid City, so they know exactly what needs to be done and it will all come with time.  As we were driving through, we noticed these old buses off to the side of the road in a yard so we asked at the gift shop what they were for and she told us that they spray them with whatever the cement material is to make them look like mountain-like homes or waterfalls in the animal habitats.  They look so real-like and what a great use of what normally would be no longer useful.  They also use old trailers, shuttles, and whatever else they can recycle.

Two of our granddaughters live in Flagstaff so we spent one day with Cassie, the youngest one who is a sophomore in college at NAU.  We got caught up over lunch, then took in some shopping, and then took her back to college for her evening class.  Amber, the oldest granddaughter, was working this week and then had plans to go to Phoenix on her days off, so we saw her and her new fiance' yesterday.  They were engaged this week so both are very excited and we are very happy for them.  We will see the middle granddaughter, Lauren, when we get back to Phoenix in a couple of weeks.  It's hard to believe they are all grown up now and have their own lives and all seem to be doing well.

We also spent a couple of days with a dear friend of mine and her husband.  Marjie and I worked together in CA for the same telephone company many years ago.  We have stayed in touch, and always felt like 'sisters' in many ways, even though we've been miles apart a lot of the time.  She was remarried about four years ago and her new husband loves horses so they moved to Williams about a year ago along with their 7 horses, and 6 dogs.  They have a beautiful home on 40 acres outside Williams and we enjoyed catching up over lunch as well as taking a long ride on some of the back roads of Williams hoping to see some elk or deer.  We didn't see any elk that day but did see some deer and all of us being non-hunters, we hoped they all got away because it is bow and arrow hunting time in AZ for deer right now.  And the hunters were definitely out there!!

We had beautiful weather while in Williams with a touch of fall in the air.  Trees were beginning to turn, cool mornings and 70's during the day.  Perfect!!  We had some rain but nothing as serious as New Mexico or Colorado.......wow, our thoughts and prayers go out to all of those folks and it looks like more is coming this week.

We will spend time here in Cottonwood with no definite plans.  I'm sure we'll drive in and around Sedona as you can never get tired of that red-rock scenery, and who know what else we'll find to do.

I will probably only do one more blog next Sunday as this summer's adventures are coming to a close and once we return to Phoenix there won't be anything really special to write about for awhile.  It has been fun to write this and has helped me keep track of where we've been and what we've done and when.

Until next Sunday........have a good week ahead.

Entrance to Bearizona

The old buses waiting to be used as a structure of some sort

Baby cubs having some fun in Ft. Bearizona

Train Station in Williams

Train leaving the station one morning 

The two cowboys riding off from the station to eventually rob the train

Gateway to the Grand Canyon when you enter Williams

Hello From Grants, NM

Tomorrow we'll be back in AZ where we'll spend a few days in Williams, AZ (north of Flagstaff) and then we'll go to Cottonwood, AZ, about 80 miles north of Phoenix before getting back to the valley at the end of the month for a couple of weeks to take care of some doctor appointments and dental work.

Sunrise at The Ranch one morning when
I was walking

We had a great relaxing week at "The Ranch' as they call the Escapee RV Park in Lakewood, NM.  These people are some of the friendliest we've encountered in our RVing days and I don't think this park is anywhere where we would consider 'leasing' a lot, at least in the near future, but everyone whom we met loves it there, loves the wide open spaces, and the fact that the closest convenient store is 15 miles away.  They did warn us of snakes and coyotes but fortunately we didn't see either.  Lakewood in its early day was quite the booming city and was known for its tomato cannery but when the artesian wells dried up so did the cannery, the people moved away, and the rest is history.  That's just the abbreviated version of what happened to Lakewood according to some old timers.

We enjoyed Carlsbad Caverns and will definitely go back in the future and take another tour.  Dick took the King's Palace 90 minute tour into the deepest portion of the cavern, about 830 feet beneath the deserts surface, and was very impressed.  By the description of his tour, I decided that it wasn't for me with the descend and then later climb an eight-story hill, so I did the self-guided Big Room tour while he did his.  Both were 90 minutes so it worked out well and when he got back he said I could have done his tour with no problem.  Bummer!!!!  Remember.....I'm not an 'underground' person so just me doing this self-guided tour on my own was a HUGE step for me..    So we'll go back plus there are other tours to choose from as well including the famous 'bat flight that happens at night during the spring and summer. We did some other walking around and it is just hard for us to believe that someone can stumble upon these caves almost by accident.  Obviously, I didn't see what he saw on his tour but I can't imagine any more spectacular views than the Big Room had to offer.  It's size alone is mind-boggling at 14 football fields, and is relatively level, and the well-lit trails make this a must see for everyone.  We both had many 'speleothems' or cave decorations including helictites, draperies, columns, and soda straws as they're referred to.  Our RV park was about 50 miles from the caverns so after our tour was finished we decided to have some lunch in Carlsbad on the way home and then get back as Murphy probably was ready to go out.

We had lunch at a local 'mom and pop' mexican restaurant in Carlsbad called Rojas that I had read about and it was very good.  HUGE portions, hot salsa (for Dick) and good service.  Since they make everything fresh it takes a bit longer to get your food but it was well worth the wait in our opinion.  By the time we got back to the RV, Murphy was definitely ready for a walk.  One thing we found out that morning was we could have taken Murphy to the caverns and they have a kennel there he could have stayed in.  I didn't investigate to know whether he was in a crate or just in a big playroom with other dogs, but kinda nice they offer that service if you have a pet with you during the hot weather.

Artesia, is a town of about 10,000+ population north of Lakewood.  This area is rich with oil and gas and seems to be booming right now.  It is also home to a Federal Law Enforcemnt Training Center.  There isn't much there in the way of shopping other than a WalMart, another local grocery store, and several convenience stores but they do have wonderful bronze sculptures throughout the downtown and a very nice Veterans Memorial near City Hall, as well as some very good local-type restaurants.  Dick heard from someone that Sam's Club is coming soon which will be a nice addition and you can tell that the oil/gas people are spending some money to improve things in this otherwise kinda 'dumpy' town.

Carlsbad, is a town of about 27,000 people, south of Lakewood, and best known for the caverns which are about 18 miles from town, and the Guadalupe Mountains National Park which is 40 miles away.  The Pecos River also runs through Carlsbad so they've done a very nice job of promoting cruises on the river, Christmas on the Pecos, a little beach area for swimming and, of course, boating.  They also have the Pecos River Flume, a modern aqueduct carrying irrigation water over the Pecos River.  The City of Carlsbad has reclaimed this flume and the surrounding area and are in the process of making it a tourist attraction with park improvements along the river and spot lights at night but when we were there in the daytime, it was pretty weed infested with no irrigation going on at that time.  Carlsbad also has a Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park which we'll catch next time.  We had planned to do the sightseeing cruise on the Pecos, however, it closes after Labor Day so that's on the list for next time too.

I must say that we have just enjoyed 'slowing down' a bit and enjoying the scenery around us as we know this summer's trip is coming to a close.  We have decided that we don't have to do it all.....we can come back.....so that said, we left 'The Ranch' this morning and drove about 330 miles to Grants.  This being the first 'official' day of football season and the Packers being on TV, we stopped in time for Dick to see them lose their first game.  Oh well........there's next week!

Calypso, a 20 year old Macaw, owned by a couple down
the row from us at The Ranch.  She walked with him every
morning & evening & he sat on her arm never making a
sound.  She said he talks up a storm at home but is very
shy when other people were around.  

The Flume in Carlsbad

Part of the Veterans Memorial in Artesia, NM, called Freedom's Fire

Caption underneath Veterans Memorial

One of the bronze sculptures in downtown Artesia 

Two 'bronze' oil men probably talking about how rich they are

The Big Room at Carlsbad Caverns

I have more pictures from the Caverns but you just need to go and see for yourself.

This guy was in the middle of the road as we were exiting the park.
There was another car in front of us & we both weren't sure what to do
so we stopped, took a couple of pictures & then he ambled off into the desert.  I'm
assuming it was a big-horned sheep but I don't know that for a fact.

Look who drives anytime Dick gets out of his seat!

Hello from Lakewood, NM

Entrance to the East View RV Park in
Georgetown, TX 

We have to laugh because we couldn't find Lakewood on the map and according to some of the folks we've met here at the RV park, Lakewood only has a post office and a community chapel and both are pretty much wholly supported by the folks here at this park.  I googled the population of Lakewood and the internet says 166 folks live here & that's probably about the population of this park.  We are members of an RV club called Escapees and they have parks across the country, this being one of them so we decided to check it out.  They advertise as the 'friendliest' Escapee park in the country and so far, in our several hours here, we can definitely say they welcome you with open arms.  When you register, they ring a big dinner bell and folks come out of their rigs or stop as they're walking by from the Rec Center and give you a hug and say 'welcome'.  I was starting to unhook the car as Dick was registering us and I think 4 people came by to say welcome and then they went in the office to say the same to Dick.  Wow!   At 4 p.m. every day they have 'social hour' and, of course, we were invited so we went and had to say a few words about ourselves, etc. etc. and got many more welcomes.  Lakewood is about 20 miles north of Carlsbad, NM and about 16 miles south of Artesia, NM both much more sizable towns.  We have never been to this part of NM so the obvious thing to do on our list this week is Carlsbad Caverns and I will tell you about that next week.  Caverns are NOT my thing but I think I'm going to put my 'big girl panties on' and try to enjoy this underground experience.

Courthouse Square in Georgetown

We had a great visit with our two friends while staying in Georgetown, TX earlier this week.  Both ladies are doing well and Becky, at 87, is having some hip issues right now and having to use a cane 'just for balance' she made sure to tell us.  Turns out she has a pinched nerve and the doc is trying to treat it with rest and meds with surgery being the last resort.  Nancy is very busy with her parents and their health issues but is beginning to find time to get acquainted and participate in some of the Sun City activities offered there.  It also turns out that Nancy knew another of Dick's friends from his Goulds days lives in Sun City so Chuck called Dick and we ended up going over to their home for a nice visit as well.

After leaving Georgetown on Wednesday, we took the state highways to Fredericksburg, TX in what's known as TX Hill Country.  We visited this part of TX in 2010 and really enjoy this very touristy town.  Fredericksburg is best known for the National Museum of the Pacific War and is one of the best museums we have visited (and I'm not a museum buff).  This entire museum is a six-acre property and includes the Admiral Nimitz Museum, the George HW Bush Gallery, Pacific Combat Zone, Plaza of the Presidents, Memorial Courtyard and the Japanese Garden of Peace.  There are stunning exhibits throughout the Bush Gallery describing the tensions between Japan, China and the U.S. and continues through to the attack on Pearl Harbor.  More exhibits including Midway, Tarawa, Iwo Jima and the Philippines and ending with the use of the Atomic Bomb, the Japanese Surrender, the release of the POWs, homecoming of the troops and the final exhibit shows the terrible cost of the war.  We did not do this museum again just because we had done it only 3 years ago.  Several times a year they do a re-enactment of some of the battles and we had planned to do that on Saturday afternoon, however, it was 100 degrees and we just decided we didn't want to sit outside for 90 minutes watching that.  We can only imagine how uncomfortable those folks were doing the re-enactment because those old uniforms are mighty heavy and warm.

There are a lot of wineries around Fredericksburg but not being wine drinkers we passed on those.  LBJ's National Historical Park is located outside of town and you can drive through there and the LBJ Ranch but Dick has some pretty strong thoughts about LBJ and his sending Dick and thousands of other men to Vietnam so that was not on our list of things to do while there.  Lots of good german food in this area and we did partake in that a couple of times.

We did take a day trip to Boerne, TX and check that area out.  There is a big RV dealer there and so we went to see some of the RVs we've been doing factory tours on.  No, we didn't buy one!

It was just a hot hot humid week in TX and we just couldn't get excited about some of the hikes and things we wanted to do outside because after about 9 a.m. it was HOT!  We did go to the Wildseed Farm which is the largest working wildflower farm in the U.S.  Acres of wildflowers are grown on the farm for seed production and one of the gentlemen said that April was the 'perfect' month to visit the farm as everything is in various stages of growth with some fields in bloom, some being planted and some ready for harvest. There were still some fields in bloom this week but definitely the hot summer weather isn't the prime time to see them at their best.  There is also a butterfly garden but they don't come out until late morning and we were there too early.  Still beautiful to walk through though as well as a nursery with all kinds of plants and trees for sale all grown for TX by local TX nurseries, as well as beautiful pottery, and yard art.

Another fun stop this week was Opa's Smoked Meat Market near the RV park.  Opa's has been producing the finest in smoked meats and cheeses for many years.  We stocked up with as much as our freezer could hold.  The TX hill country has a lot of fun and interesting places to visit and some good shopping so I know we'll be back.......maybe we'll make it a winter visit next time as they claim to have pretty mild winters.

Dick keeps some pretty extensive logs of our costs of full timing and one of the interesting tidbits he told me this week was that he calculated our RV park costs for the past year, including the dues we pay for two RV clubs we belong to.......Thousand Trails and Escapees, plus the parks where we have to pay our own electric, and the average cost per night is $18.60.  Pretty inexpensive we think.  Maybe next week he'll have our fuel costs calculated.

Happy Labor Day to all!

One of the many beautiful Methodist churches in Georgetown

Wildseed Farm outside Fredericksburg, TX

A field of Zinnas in bloom 

Cosmos Sensations

Cactus & Succulent Garden at Wildseed Farm