Looking For A Lull

Our time for this season is coming to a close and we're soon to leave AZ.  I don't want to leave, but I'm also excited to announce that we will be returning again this fall!  Our trip back to the frozen north will take us to a number of stops to visit friends and relatives and hopefully we'll see some new things and meet some new people along the way. I'd like to give special thanks to the folks at the KOA in Benson Arizona.  You guys made us feel welcome, helped us with any issues we had and made our experience a great one.  With all of the hard work you are putting into the campground so far and with your future plans, we look forward to coming back in the fall and seeing how much that work has paid off. We are leaving for Dallas, TX soon and I'll post some updates when we get there. Here is a random selection of photo's.  Goodbye AZ, I'll miss you.

What a great time the Tucson rodeo was!  It has been a while since I have been to a rodeo and the Tucson rodeo is a good one to attend.  We didn't make the parade this year, but we did attend both Saturday and Sunday.  Karen really enjoyed her first rodeo and especially liked watching the JR rodeo participants. Tuscon rodeo Stage Arena from our vantage point Great weather on Sunday.  Saturday had some rain, but was still awesome!

Karen and I thought we would find a hike that wouldn't be as much up and down hill as our hike at the Chiricahua national monument so we stopped at the visitor center and surveyed our options.  Then like gluttons for punishment we chose to hike to the top of the peak and see the view.  It was only .5 miles or so, so it wasn't that bad and the view's were definitely worth it! This picture looks back toward the visitor center.  That is the tiny road we drove Bodie up.  Glad there wasn't much traffic! Zooming in you can see the Mexico/US border. Karen smiles before we start the hike to the top. At the top there are 360 degree views and a little shelter to sit and reflect.  Be sure to write in the book while you are there.

South of Tucson and not far from San Xavier is the Titan II Missile Museum.  What a cool place!  We visited directly after coming from the mission and had plenty of time to spend and take the tour.  The tour is 1 hour long and does require that you can go up and down stairs.  It is the only remaining Titan II missile site as the remainder were destroyed as part of the treaty with the former soviet union. We had a great time and our guide Tony did an awesome job answering our questions and giving us a good overview of what the daily operations were like.  Karen even got to turn the key to simulate the missile launch. The front of the Museum Check out how thick the first blast door is!  There are 2 more behind this one. This is the missile control room.  It is separated from the missile by a long walkway.  It's said that those in the control room likely could not hear the missile launch because of the distance and internal noise of ...

We had a three day weekend last weekend due to the Presidents Day holiday.  I'm still getting used to having some different days off during the year.  We took this opportunity to visit a few places on our list and it was GREAT! The first place we visited was Mission San Xavier del Bac .  If you get the chance it is a beautiful mission located just south of Tucson and is the oldest European structure in Arizona.  It's free, doesn't take long to see, and well worth your time. Karen goes to church Inside the chapel.  I have a full video tour of the inside I may add later.

Another beautiful AZ weekend.  We took advantage and made a trip to Chiricahua national monument where we did a 3 mile hike. It was well worth the drive.  Entry into the park is free and I would suggest spending more than one day visiting if you can swing it.  We couldn't but we will definitely be back!   I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. After leaving the park, we drove another 20 miles or so and stopped at a little out of the way spot, the final resting place of Johnny Ringo.  Located on private property it is worth a quick visit if, like me, you are a lover of history and the stories of the old west.  Everyone familiar with the saga of Tombstone, Wyatt Earp, or even the character played by Val Kilmer in the movie of the same name, would enjoy this serene location.  Be sure to leave a donation for upkeep and appreciation for the private owners of this property that so generously allow the general public access to this bit of history....

No shadow means an early spring!  That is all well and good, but here in AZ it is about to get cold for a couple of days.  Below freezing overnight temps with highs in the 40s, but I'll take that over what is in store back up north. We only have a month left to enjoy AZ until we come back in late fall, and I'm not super excited about leaving.  It will be nice to see family on the way back though. We've got some plans for the summer that I'll share at a later date.  No huge trips at this time though because we're not sure how much time we will have for that and/or who would be interested in going with us.  I feel that many weekends this year will be spent working on/around the house.  We'll see.