Tombstone Territory RV Park

11/29/09

We are leaving Mountain View in Huachuca, AZ. and going to Tombstone Territories RV Park 8 miles west of where we are now. Entering park. The office to register. This park sits out in the middle of the desert just 10 miles from Tombstone. They offer a reasonable rate of $16.00 per day with free cable TV and you can stay for 7 days at that rate, but you have an electric meter at your site, so you are charged for all electricity you consume. This will be the first time we have paid extra for electricity, It will be interesting to see how much we use. (they charge .13 per kilowatt hour). Our site C-2- a corner lot. Picture taken from the east. View from our yard. We took a walk to view our new neighborhood. Picture from the far west side of the park. Very nice park. The only negative is that the interior roads are small gravel. Malley has a hard time walking on it. As we walk down the interior road I take a picture of our yard from the west. The office from our yard with a heated pool, hot tub and the putt greens. The park is very nice and has a huge clubhouse with a hot tub and heated swimming pool. They even have a 3 hole chip and putt golf course with some kind of natural grass that's more yellow than green. Our internet signal is weak but usable, so I think we will stay for the 7 day maximum. I know I will enjoy Cable TV in the mornings and evenings. Forecast calls for near freezing tonight and showers and cold temps tomorrow. Hard to believe for Arizona, but we are at 4000 ft elevation which makes a big difference. We walked up the road and took this shot from the far west looking east again at the office. Cactus plant that has a stem that grows very tall. I will have to find out the name of the cactus. This one is our yard but do not have the tall stem.This is the design on the cactus leaf. I think it very cool.And of course it has thorns like all cactus plants. Our cactus in our yard had babies. View out our front window. The structure with the red roof is the laundry. The laundry room. Very clean laundry. Very nice mural on the wall. Bay window to sit at, if you want to wait for laundry. I sit on the couch the most and this is my view from our couch. Mountains in the distance.

Benson,Huachuca, & Sierra Vista

11/22/09

We left Tuscon today and drove south to Benson AZ. To save some money we are staying at the Wal-Mart in Benson. We did our grocery shopping and settled in with the sounds of trains which go through Benson many times a day.

Entering into Benson at a elevation of 3,586 from 2,643 at Tucson. Great road from Tucson to Benson.
Malley carrying her blanket on her back, guess she thinks its too cold this morning. We have been experiencing cool 40 degree mornings lately. Today the 23rd we leave Wal-Mart and drive 2 miles to our next RV park, called Red Barn RV. I found this cheap ($12 per day) park in our Passport America Book; we can stay for two days at this rate. The place is a little run down but not scary. No Cable, and only one local channel on the TV. The next day (24Th) I am sent on an errand to find out where we are going to spend Thanksgiving. Last year we enjoyed a nice pot-luck at a campground in Tybee Island in Georgia. We would like to do the same here. The Red Barn RV in not really big enough and doesn't have anything planned. So I went to another RV park that is just down the road, I inquired at their office as too their prices and Thanksgiving plans. They say that they will give me the Passport America discount for two days and they have free cable TV. (Cost will be 14.50 per day, not bad at all). I ask about Thanksgiving. They say I should talk to a couple who are staying in the park for the winter. They are from Canada and are serving dinner for a few people in the park who have no Thanksgiving plans. I drive over to their site and spoke to a very nice lady in a wheel chair who says she wants to do the dinner for some single men in the park who are alone for the Holiday. I made arrangements to move to this park tomorrow.

11/25/09

We move to the park (called I-10 RV Park, because its right next to Interstate I-10) After getting set up, we drive about 10 miles to Kartchner Caverns State Park and use the coupon book we purchased back in Tucson, and use one of the coupons for the Cavern Tour for half price ($18.50). The Cavern is a guided tour with a park ranger who leads our group of about 15 people in past air lock doors which keep the air temp and humidity at the constant level it has been for years before the cave was discovered. It is about 70-75 degrees with near 100 percent humidity inside. This along with dim lighting helps keep the stalactites and stalagmites growing. We were not allowed to bring cameras so we have no pictures to share. It was interesting, but I'm not sure I would do it again?

11/26/09

In the morning I go over to the RV Park's small club house to see if I can help the couple who are fixing Thanksgiving Dinner to be served at 2pm. The lady says I can peel the potatoes, which I gladly do. She then says If I come back at 1:30pm I can help serve. Diane and I return at 1:30pm and I get the bird out of the oven and proceed to cut myself in the thumb as I prepare to carve the turkey. After being attended to by my wife, I resume with my chores. In addition to the turkey, she has prepared coleslaw, peas, stuffing, potatoes, jello, deviled eggs, gravy, and store bought pumpkin pies. The turkey was good but in all honesty the rest of the dishes were not like Diane and I are used to. There were only about 10 people who showed up in addition to us. We helped with the cleanup after wards. That evening Diane talked me into walking up the road to a Denny's restaurant where we shared a thanksgiving dinner that was better, but still not like home.

11/27/09

Today we leave Benson and drive 20 miles to Huachuca, AZ. The park we will be staying at is one I found in our Camp Club USA book. It is another bargain ($11.00 per day for two days, no cable TV and only one local channel, they do have a big selection of old movies that you can check out).
Our next neighborhood in Huachuca, AZ. at Mountain View RV Park at a little higher elevation at 3,934. It is a nice park with paved streets which are great for walking Malley whose feet often suffer on gravel roads which are found in some parks.
View of our ''nest" and the park
Park office.

View out our front window with me walking by.


11/28/09
Today we take the Honda into the town of Huachuca, which is nothing to talk about. Very small and not much there.
Shot from Huachuca, Az. We continued on south to the next town call Sierra Vista. This is a very nice town with lots of stores and shopping places. We spent the day at a Mall, (Diane needed some things that you can't get at Wal-Mart) We had lunch and picked up some groceries before heading back home.
Heading back home from Sierra Vista, AZ. Sierra Vista is at 4,633 elevation.
On our evening walk with beautiful cloud coverage.
Sunsets as we finish our walk.

11/29/09

Early morning shower. First rain since, we don't remember. It never rains in AZ.

Shot on morning walk from our neighborhood. After our walk it is time to pack up and head down the road to our next park, (two days go by very quickly). Our next destination is just 10 miles towards the town of Tombstone, AZ.

Down Town Tucson/ El Charro

11/21/09


I took Joe out for lunch at El Charro Cafe. I bought a book that tells where great food is as you travel the USA. Our nacho's and red and green hot sauce. The red was the hottest. We had a window seat.( brought my tea in my plastic water bottle also) Menu of El Charro Cafe which has been in business since 1922. There were two The Famous Plates. I pointed to the wrong one and we ended up with not what we expected. Our horedorve's, Cheese Crisp We shared a margarita-Coco-Lime Fresa ( coconut, lime - tequila). I thought I had order a chimichanga. This is not a chimichanga. Next time I will pay more attention to what I point at. It was good anyway (especially the 2nd and third time warmed up at home). We shared one meal, but with what was left we still had 2 more meals at home with the left overs:) The building use to be a house. After lunch I spied a Art Fare going on down town so I talked Joe into stopping. While looking around, Joe and I got separated while we brossed. My phone rang and Joe said, " I'm screwed". I asked why. When we first walked into the art fare it looked very small. Joe told me that he realized that the fare was 5 to 6 times larger than we thought, because he found that there were many more vendors inside and at the rate I was looking we were going to be here all day. He told me where he was and than showed me the entrance into where more vendors were. I decided I would have to pick up the pace to view everything. Down town central park with fountain in Tucson. Old capitol building in foreground. Because I know how much Joe hates to shop I made it through the art fare in a record time and only found one item to buy. Joe even told me how impressed he was that I went through the fare so fast.i Another angle of park. Joe waiting for me in the park. Can we go home now!

Arizona - Sonora Desert Museum

11/19/09

Today we spent the day just running around. While out, we stopped, and checked out La Enchanted Mall (I think that was the name). It was in a very upper class park of Tucson. They had a lot of stores you don't normally see in every mall. At least not where I am from. There was a Tiffany's, so I talked Joe into going in. I looked at their rings and then ask Joe if he were to pick out a ring for me again which one who he pick out. He picked out my second choice, so he did pretty good for a case full of rings. The salesman came over, as I was pointing out my choice and pull the ring out from under the glass. He asked if I wanted to try it on, so I said sure. He told us how much it was and it's carat size and clarity. After a while Joe asked the salesman what the price was again and he repeated it to Joe. I told him that after maybe 20 years of marriage Joe could get it for me, and we walked out of the store. Joe told me, after we were out of the store, that was a $37, 000.00 ring I had on my finger. I couldn't believe it, I thought he had said $3,700.00. Joe said he thought that 3,700.00 was what the salesman had said when he first pulled the ring out of the case, but after he had told us it was 1.7 carat and at almost the top of the clarity chart, he figured it had to be much more, but not that much. Oh well, so much for that pretty ring.

After a day of running around we decided to take a walk in the desert again. Here is another Cholla cactus.

Close up of the Cholla Yes I just had to get these shoes for Mallery so she could go with us in the desert. She was so funny when I first put them on her. She was galloping like a horse trying to kick them off. The whole time we were in the desert she ran way ahead of us on the trails. I think she was trying to out run the shoes. It was nice and cool so she loves to walk or run this time of day This is why she needs shoes out there. Those Cholla cactus have what you call jumping cholla's. They are balls of cholla that are all over the ground. If they get on a trails they attack you ( just kidding) and get attached to your shoes. I had one on my shoe, so I found a stick and managed to knock it off only to find it on my other shoe. I had quite a time getting it off my other shoe.

11/20/09

Today we are going to the Arizona - Sonora Desert Museum. The cost to get in is $13.50 per person, but because we bought a coupon book at Old Tucson for $15, we used the coupon buy one ticket into the museum and the 2nd person gets in free.

We first went to a program on animals that are around here and are within a days drive from here. When we arrived we sat in the very first row and this bird was sitting on a rock right in front of us. We were early, so we had to wait for 15 minutes till the program started. The bird just sat there the entire time. I think they called it a Violet Head Macaw. When the show started ,after the speaker talked for a bit, this porcupine came running out from behind a curtain, and walked along the table eating food that was laid out for him. Then he proceeded off behind the curtain on the other side of the stage. They also had a skunk and a few other animals walk the stage in front of us. Next we went to a program on snakes. We sat in the second row, because we did not get to the auditorium in time to get front row seats. We learned a lot about snakes and who gets bit the most by rattlers. Drunk males with tattoo's and bird watchers ()because they are always looking up) ( watch out Dawn and Jeff) This is a Black Tail Rattler. After the show, I went up and zoomed in on the snake. Next we went to a program called Raptor Free Flight. They let go of the birds to show us how the are in their natural habitat. I think they said this was a Harrison Hawk. They had 4 hawks ( all the same kind) flying above and around us. Can you see the one at the top of the saguaro. The hawks would fly from the trees, saguaro, and from other handlers, right over our heads. See the white tipped tail on the hawk. And rust color on the wings. One in fight. This one flew right over my head. With my slow point and click I was lucky to get this shot. Once a hawk flew over Joe and he felt it hit his hat. Next we walk ed to a walk in Aviary. There were over 40 different species of birds there. I think we were lucky to find about 5 or 6. The park is so big, so we needed to keep moving and I wanted to see it all. ( As Joe would say, that's Diane) I am not sure what kind of bird this is, but it is cute. Close up. Next to the Bighorn Sheep. And here it a Coati. I have never seen one and didn't know they existed. This little guy was very busy digging, so it was hard to get a good picture of him. We saw this otter swimming below in the underground tank and then he came up to take a nap and dry off. The museum has a cactus garden with over 100 cactus and other desert plants. Pincushion Bobcats. Raccoon Skunk. the park had a display where you could see the animals as if they were down in their underground tunnels. A piece of glass between us. I am face to face with him. I think he is thinking, can I ever get any privacy around here please. Another underground tunnel with glass in front of it. Up close and personal. This is another animal I have never see or heard of. A javelina. They are like wild pigs. Close up of it's face. You can hear them before you see them, a snorting sound. A neat shot at the vista ramada overlook. Mountain lions. Another place where you can get up close and face to face. Some kind of bird nest in a cactus at the park. The biggest saguaro in this pot is eight years old. Face to face with another rattler. Look at those eyes. We had a great time at the Desert Museum and highly recommend it. There was much more than I could tell you about. On the way home the sun was setting casting the rays on the mountains and turning it red.