December 11. 2011

We’ve been at Roper Lake for 6 weeks with two more to go!  Time flies so fast.  Weather has been “unusual” with it ranging 10 to 15 degrees cooler than “normal.”  We’ve had a couple rainy weeks and this week looks the same but we have been loving it here!  We see ducks and egrets on the lake and even had a turtle come up to the motor home.

Quick Facts:

·         Roper Lake is a small 30 acre lake fed by natural springs.

o   Created by a miner (WinifredRoper) in 1920 who did well in silver and copper and loved lakes so built one for himself.

o   Stocked with Large Mouth Bass, Blue Gills, Trout and Crappie

o   Wide variety of birds and water foul

o   Mineral hot springs

o   Nestled near the foot of Mount Graham (10,780 ft) which is known for its International Observatory - Access to the top is closed  November 15^th for the winter due to snow and ice and reopens April 15.

o   Dankworth Pond – undeveloped hot spring is usually maintained by Roper Lake but is currently closed for cattail removal (hot springs open to those of us who have keys!)

Commuter Vehicles

Local Wildlife



Dressed for Success at the Gate House

We took a day trip to the Christmas Festival at the St. David Monastery in St. David, AZ.  The buildings and grounds were interesting and the peacocks spectacular!

Last week we traveled 13 miles from camp and to the 6k elevation of the 10,780 ft Mt. Graham.  The photos will reflect why we were only able to go up that far.  Snow!   A beautiful, beautiful drive up the mountain to a bridge built in 1937 by the 3C’s

More in a couple of weeks!

J & L

On Our Way October 28, 2011

October  28, 2011

Left home around 11 a.m., ate lunch at Nedra’s Too in Kanab and spent the night on Lake Powell in a National Forest Service campground for $11.50.   Gotta love that senior parks pass.  The lake was eerily calm, vast and beautiful; coyotes sang right outside our motorhome in the middle of the night.

Spent the next two nights in Sedona which we had not done before and we  hadn’t  realized what a wonderful place it is.  Listened to a time-share spiel Sunday morning and received lunch and two nights free at the Sedona Pines Resort!  While in Sedona we visited the Bell Rock Vortex. Holy Cross Church and Tlaquepaque.  Tlaquepaque was decorated for Dia de los Muertos as you’ll see in the photos. 

Had a little trouble with lighting and Jerry's camera at Tlaquepaque so the photos aren't the best but you get the idea of the place.

On to Roper Lake via Payson, Pine, Strawberry and Globe:   We spent Monday night at a campground on Roosevelt Lake; visited an ancient cliff dwelling in the morning and drove thru so many trees in the mountains that we thought we were in Oregon – Arizona is a beautiful, diverse state!

Arrived at Roper Lake State Park around noon on Tuesday - only two campers in the park – the rest are all hosts!  Reported to work and were told that the Ranger wouldn't  be in until Thursday so we should take the two days to get settled in.....Reported to work Thursday but the ranger told us our days off are Thursday and Friday and we should come back Saturday!  We are liking this job!!   Dinner last night at Casa Manana on Hwy 70 which is also known as the Arizona Salsa Trail for all of its Mexican Restaurants.  Last night's dinner was pretty authentic - frijoles made with lots of lard and yummy!

Note:  We were sad to learn this morning that our friend, Floyd, passed away the day we left.  We would have liked to have been home to say our final farewell with the rest of Kayenta.  Floyd was a real presence in Kayenta and we will miss him and not forget him.  Rest peacefully our friend.

March 26, 2011

When observing a large flock of Yellow Headed Black Birds flying overhead, be sure to wear a hat and glasses if you plan on following the birds.

After being in New Mexico near where UFO’s reportedly have been seen, we started hearing voices.  If you have a radio on the exterior of your RV (yes, we have a radio/cd player outside inside its own cubby) and you have it tuned to a talk show, be sure to turn it off before going to bed.  We left ours on for over two weeks and kept hearing voices.  We would go to the door and no one was there.  As it turned out, the station would fade in and out hence the voices.  AND, now I know why the house batteries were not holding a charge for long periods.

Hilary flew out March 19 from LAX.  We dropped her car and a number of her things at Courtney's for storage in St. George on the 23 of March.  We are currently hunkered down in Zion National Park for the rainy weekend but since it is predicted to be sunny and warm by Monday we plan to spend all next week hiking and really getting to know the park.   

We'll be back in Kayenta the afternoon of the 24th.  Can't imagine what we are going to do in that huge house!

March 12, 2011

March 13, 2011 (according to the calendar it is Sunday, we thought it was Monday….

8:20 am.   Slides are in, leveling jacks are up, motor’s running and we are about to take off – on the road again.  We are leaving Roper State Park which is about 100 miles southeast of Phoenix and hope to make it to the west side of Phoenix for tonight’s stop  - probably a free night @ the local Flying J.  Seems as tho the trip is on its downward side.  We will probably be in Pasadena March 17 to leave the motor home at Jerry's brother's house.  Then drive to Santa Monica to load the pick up with Hilary's things and off to the airport on Saturday the 19th. Hope to check out Mohave Desert on the way home and then roll in around April 4.  Will   be good to see you all.

Lessons Learned:

Next time we will have t.v. recption to keep up on world disasters.

Always wear a hat when a flock of yellow headed blackbirds fly over.

March 4, 2011

We have spent the last 3 nights free in the Walmart Parking lot in Las Cruces.  We have found that when we are exploring a town, we might as well leave the RV in a parking lot.

Drove down to El Paso, TX to pick up a few more Satillo tile so Jerry could do some repairs on the originals….Once there he called the company to see what their address is…they are NOT located in El Paso but rather near Austin an 8 hour drive.  Needless to say drove back w/o additional tile.  Other than that, El Paso is not worth visiting!

Spent yesterday (Saturday) attending the rather large Las Cruces Farmer’s Market and then toured the town looking for the nice housing around the University – NONE.  We then drove over to La Mesilla, the 1800’s village with original buildings that are now artsy shops, etc.  A fun day all in all.  On to Caballo State Park which is about 60 miles north of Las Cruces to camp a few nights.  We have to start planning our route back.  Had hoped to go to LA to take Hilary to the Airport but she doesn’t haven’t a definite date yet so we will head home planning to be there April 4^th or 5^th.

Jerry’s Lessons Learned:

When baking cinnamon rolls (ah come on, we are roughing it), close the screen door.    Bees love to come in and see what’s cooking.

Our generator shares the gas tank.  To ensure the generator does not drain the tank, the system shuts down when the fuel drops to ¼ of a tank.   NEVER EVER let the gas level drop to ¼ of a tank on the day your wife wants to watch American Idol.

If you eat a lot of Mexican food, you will begin to develop an accent.  Si?

When you are out walking after a day on the road and HAPPEN TO SEE A LUG NUT ON THE ROAD,  pick it up and check your rig.  I panicked when the lug nut was actually from our rig and a second was missing.  Images of the rear tire passing me on the highway and running over a senior citizen flashed through my mind.  It’s enough to make you want to run out and eat Mexican food.   As it turned out, the lugs held only the chrome cover and we were never in danger of loosing a tire.  Phew!

Who ever said a box of Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies would last more than a day was wrong!

February 28, 2011

Gilbert Ray Park – Saguaro Natl Park

Feb 22, 2011

Feb 21 – Monday  We’ve moved to SW Tucson and are in Gilbert Ray Park.  We hiked 3 miles today over the mountains and thru the saguaro to the Desert Museum and  had a gourmet lunch on the patio of the Ocotillo Café within the museum.  Think “Blue Corn Pumpkin Chicken” -- breaded chicken breast with chipotle sauce and pumpkin seeds, green chile polenta, and orange jicama salad!  We have splurged the few times we have eaten out and have had some fantastically good food in Tucson.

Most meals we cook in the motor home or on the grill, a $15 wonder (wonder why we paid $15) that Jerry splurged on at Walmart.  He now has his eye on one called the Big Green Egg.  Besides being a beautiful green hammered enameled  metal on the exterior, it has a 1 ½ inch thick stone/ceramic liner for the interior.  Uses charcoal and retails for $1,000!  We saw it in a Patio Store when we were looking for a couple of fold up lounge chairs.  Didn’t take us long to realize we might have to go back to work!

Feb 24 - We hiked for three hours thru Saguaro Natl Park.  What beauty!  Our friends took us up to an area where we found flint and pottery pieces.

Feb 26 – Saturday.  Parted with our friends that we have been traveling with for the last two weeks – they are headed towards home in Humboldt and we continue on towards Bisbee.  It was our intention to stay there tonight BUT we hit the JACKPOT!  While in the Walmart parking lot someone put a flyer under our windshield wiper..  4 days and 3 nights FREE at the St. David RV Resort.  We just have to listen to their 90 minute sales talk on Monday afternoon.  We also got free dinner tonight!  Whoo Hoo!  Laundromat on site, pancake breakfast in the morning, swimming pool and two small lakes!  What more could you ask for??  We’ll take the 90 minute sales pitch.