Cross Country Adventures

May 2, 2010

2010-05-03T08:22:00.002-04:00

I think we were both pretty anxious to get home. We were on the road by 7:30. There was a slight drizzle to start off but it remained pretty clear otherwise. We found a Tim Hortons for our morning coffee stop and this time no problems - I found a good place to park; it helps when it is a Sunday and a lot of roadside businesses are closed.

We sure weren't impressed with the quality of Hwy. 17 - it's supposed to be the Trans-Canada Hwy but it was probably the worst road we travelled on in the last six months!

We arrived in Rockland by noon and proceeded to fill up with fuel and we were fortunate to find a propane dealer open to top that off as well. It's easy to find propane tanks for your bbq at fuel stops but not so easy to have a big tank that has to be filled using different fittings. So now we are all set for our summer at Recreationland tent and trailer park.

We get the same feeling arriving here as when we arrive in our Apache Junction RV park; all our friends come by to say hello and we all get up to date on how our respective winters were spent. It's great.

We went over to our daughter Renee's last night for supper and I had my first chance to see my newest grandson - Kaelan. At 5 months he's growing big already and he looks to have the same outgoing personality as his brother Liam.

It's raining quite hard this morning and I decided to go out and wash the rig in the rain - it makes a perfect rinser. Put a good rainsuit on and wear sandals and you're all set. I must have motivated Lise 'cause she's out there right now, with my rainsuit on, washing our car. How about that :-)

May 1, 2010

2010-05-01T19:25:00.004-04:00

I was a little tardy in downloading my pictures onto the computer. Here's a few to look at.

Adam, Leah, Lise and the grandchildren as we're getting ready to leave Chilliwack

local artist at the campground in St. Regis, Montana carved these at various sites through the campground. Nice touch!

little bear doesn't seem too anxious being close to a human!

Today was our day to cross back into Canada so we were anxious to get an early start. We were packed and driving out of our camping spot by 7:30 am. We stopped to fill up with diesel before we crossed the border. The crossing was pretty uneventful - which is always a blessing. No lineup and two minutes after speaking to the customs official we were on our way - first stop Tim Horton's (of course).

Last night we had decided on a destination and possible campground for our end of day stopover. Morning Mist Campground near Deep River was scheduled to open on May 1st so that was our goal. The traffic on Hwy 17 was pretty light and everybody was keeping reasonably within the speed limits.

At lunch time we decided to look for a Tim Horton's in Sudbury. The GPS provided directions but the one it found for us was just a car drive-through and we wanted to sit down and have soup and sandwich. We found another one but there was no place to park the rig nearby. We turned down a side road thinking we could go around the block and find a place to park. Wrong!! It was a dead end. We had to unhook the toad, find a place to turn the rig around, rehook and head back up the road. After all that we decided it wasn't worth trying to get to Timmy's anymore and had a home made sandwich in the rig instead - which we probably should have done in the first place. As well, Sudbury has always been a nuisance place to drive through regardless of what vehicle we're driving. I should know better by now. Next time I'm staying on the bypass!

Anyway the campground we wanted was open and we had no trouble getting in and hooking up and getting our satellite dish up and running. One more day of travel and we will be home. Yaay.. I think it is about 300 kilometres (about 175 miles). We'll sure be glad to stay in one place for a while - at least until we start getting the itch to travel again :-)

April 29 to 30, 2010

2010-04-30T21:07:00.002-04:00

Thursday turned out to be a better day than the last few of wind-driven days - it rained most of the day :-). The good news in that is there was no wind to speak of. We trucked along at a fairly steady pace up to Fargo, ND and then took Hwy. 10 and 210 up to Duluth and ended up at Ashland, Wisconsin where we hoped to spend the night. Unfortunately there were no campgrounds open and the local Wal-Mart had a no overnight parking sign posted. Rather than take a chance with that we continued on Hwy. 2 to Salem where we found a campground that was open. It wasn't much but it got us off the road and I needed a break. We had too much tree coverage and couldn't deploy our satellite so couldn't get on the internet or watch tv. But we did get to spend a quiet evening reading, which we had gotten out of the habit of lately.

Today we made it all the way to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, arriving around 3:30 and found a nice campground on the river connecting Lake Huron with Lake Superior. We have a spot right on the edge of the river and have been able to sit and watch the big ships go by as they travel through the locks between the lakes.

Tomorrow we'll be back in Canada. And, it is only 500 miles remaining to our campground near Ottawa. I thought it would be farther than that. In any event, we'll travel to Deep River to a campground we found there and then take a leisurely drive into Ottawa on Sunday. We're really looking forward to getting back and seeing all the rest of the family. This trip has been a great opportunity to drop in on our spread out family. Well, that's one reason why we adopted this lifestyle. I'm sure we'll be getting another early start tomorrow, now that we're on the last leg.

April 14 to 28, 2010

2010-04-28T20:10:00.003-04:00

We golfed with our grandson David on the 14th. The weather was pretty wet and David's shoes and socks got soaked. We almost took him home to change his footwear but the weather improved a bit so we all toughed it out.

We babysat the kids from Friday to Sunday while Adam and Leah went to Vegas and everything went fine (for Adam and Leah, and for us :-) ). I don't know what we were expecting but it's always nice when there are no problems.

On Tuesday we decided to go golfing with David again and this time he slept over in the motorhome. Unfortunately the weather was crappy again so we put the golf off 'til the next day. He got the chance to sleep over two nights in a row. He was happy about that. This time we managed to keep his feet dry!

We left Chilliwack on Sunday the 25th and travelled to Kelowna to visit with our daughter Kathy and her boyfriend, Mark. There was still water on the Coquihalla Hwy. through the pass and there was a residue of salt which found its way onto the rig and the car. I think there is a cleanup in my future! We had a great visit with Kath and met her boyfriend. They seem to be a good match and Kath seems happy. They made dinner and we spent a few hours afterwards socializing and getting up to date.

We crossed over into Washington state on Monday the 26th and we've been travelling east ever since. Yesterday we stayed at a Wal-Mart (in Miles City, Montana). It was so windy that the grocery carts were being blown around the parking lot and at least one hit our rig (no damage that I could see). We are currently at a campground on Highway I-94 at Jamestown, North Dakota. We would have gone farther today but it was so windy we had to find a place early and get off the road before we were blown off!! Here's hoping tomorrow brings more normal weather.

March 19 to April 13, 2010

2010-04-13T17:21:00.008-04:00

We spent our last two weeks in Arizona as usual, playing golf, hiking and bike riding. Since we were leaving on Friday April 2nd, we also had to get the rig and car ready for travel. That always makes the last couple three days very hectic.

The week before, on our last group hike, we finally saw our first Diamondback rattlesnake. We knew there was a chance of seeing one because the weather had warmed up. It was 4 to 5 feet long and we got pretty close to it as it crossed the ATV trail we were following. He's actually very pretty with its sand coloured diamond shapes and notice the black and white rings of his 'rattle'. We were as close as about 10 feet from him (or it could be a her). I don't know how you can tell the difference... I can't image you just lift up the tail like you would for a cat or dog. LOL Seriously though, I wouldn't want to make a habit of crossing snakes. We have some friends who have come across them on a hike and almost stepped on them. With their colour, they blend into the landscape.

We left the resort on Friday after saying our goodbyes to friends the night before. Leaving is always bittersweet though. We look forward to being on the road again and seeing our family but we always leave behind the great weather. Anyway, I don't think we could handle the hot weather experienced during the summers around Phoenix.

But we were not heading home yet. We were coming to British Columbia to spend time with our children who live in the western part of the country. So we travelled west until we got to Bakersfield California and then headed north along I-5, driving through northern California, Oregon then Washington. From Bellingham, Washington we followed a secondary highway to Sumas where we crossed the border into Abbotsford, only 20 miles from Chilliwack. The whole trip took only 4 days (3 nights). We spent 2 nights in Flying J Travel Plaza parking lots and the last night at an RV Park as the Flying J close by was too small to accommodate overnight parking for motorhomes. It helps the budget when we can stay in Flying J.

It was very interesting travelling through Grants Pass on the I-5 between California and Oregon. As we reached higher elevations it was snowing and it was white everywhere. The ground and trees were covered but luckily the accummulation of snow on the road was not bad... maybe a couple of inches of slush. This was our first time driving in snow with the motorhome. It's not bad by itself but while driving through the mountains where the downhill grades are 6 or 7 percent for 5 to 7 miles. Yikes! Traffic slowed down to about 35 mph; everyone was being careful - and traffic was light. After about three hours we were out of the mountain passes and back on reasonably level ground.

All of our trip planning was done with the help of our Microsoft Streets mapping, our Garmin GPS, our Rand-McNally travel map, and we downloaded Flying J locations onto our Microsoft Street maps. We didn't really need to use Woodall's website for camping ideas this time as we didn't really use any - the one campground we did find was recommended by the staff at the Flying J.

So we've been here now for a week and it has rained most of the days. And it's still cold enough to have to keep the heat on in the RV. We expected warmer weather here but no such luck.

We've been enjoying ourselves mostly by visiting with our son Adam and his wife Leah, and our adorable grandchildren David and Dylan. David definitely remembers us, but then he is old enough being 4 yrs old. Dylan is 18 months old so he didn't remember us but he warmed up to us pretty quick and we've settled right in here. Both boys have been coughing and now I have a pretty bad cold that I'm trying to shake. Adam and I managed to play 18 holes on Sunday at The Falls. It's a very nice but challenging golf course just outside of Chilliwack on the Trans-Canada Hwy.

We have baby sitting duties this weekend as Adam and Leah head to Las Vegas for a little R & R. We look forward to spending some quality time with the grandkids.

March 6 to 18, 2010

2010-03-18T17:20:00.002-04:00

Lise and I have been taking golf lessons here in the park and we're starting to see some improvements in our game. The lessons are done now but we'll have to incorporate the new stances and dynamics into our regular game so that we can be consistent with it. Seems like a worthwhile expense anyway.

Our friend Earle, from Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada arrived in Phoenix last week for a one week visit. He stayed with our friends Art and Linda, also from Whitehorse. Lise and I hadn't seen him since we left the Yukon in 2001. He looked just the same to us. We played a couple of games of golf with him. Most of the time Art and I found ourselves playing out of the left side or right side of the fairways (usually among the trees) while Earle was straight down the middle pretty well every time! At 83 he still does very well. It was great to spend time with him and we look forward to getting together again soon - maybe he'll spend some time here in the winters ?

Lise was in a softball tournament last weekend. They played 7 games over 2 days. Each game was about an hour long. Her team won 6 of the 7 games, losing only the last one, and came away with the silver medal. I saw the last two games and thought they played some pretty good baseball.

We finally got out on our bicycles yesterday and managed a 28 mile round trip. I now have so many sore muscles I can't keep track of them all. The temperature reached a high of 84 F so it was a beautiful day for riding. Earlier in the week we hiked the Peralta Trail again. Everyone likes to hike this trail and the view at the top is super. Here are some pictures.
Rest area before pushing onward and upward

View from the saddle - Weaver's Needle in the background

A beautiful oasis in the sky

February 21 to March 5, 2010

2010-03-05T12:19:00.004-05:00

We've had a great two weeks. Busy as usual - I won't bore you with the details but I did want to mention that I volunteered at the Waste Management Phoenix Open again this year and enjoyed that very much. This is the third year in a row for me; it's lots of fun and I get to see some great golf! I'm not sure that I'll do it next year though - maybe get an entry pass and watch the golf as a spectator instead.

We've finally reached that stage of the year when we have to think about returning home - which way we're going to go, when, what reservations we have to make, what RV maintenance issues we have to see to - the list goes on. In a way it's a bit depressing, that we have to temporarily give up this life style as we head back north and into the colder weather. Last year it was abysmal in Ottawa (pretty well anywhere in the northeast) and we were wearing long pants and coats right into July. But, the flip side is we get to see family again and that is always a real positive. This year we'll be heading to Chilliwack, B.C. to visit family there and, hopefully, visit with our daughter in Kelowna and son in Grande Prairie. We will have to work out the logistics of how we're going to get that all in.

When we're ready to leave B.C. we'll probably drop back down into the States and travel east and cross back into Canada at Sault Ste. Marie.

We don't have to leave here until near the end of the first week in April so lots more time to enjoy our various activities yet. Yesterday we hiked Flat Iron in the Superstition Mountains. We thought we had lost out on that opportunity this year as our hiking group did that hike on a day that Lise and I were both busy with other things that had been pre-booked. Fortunately a friend in the Resort was looking for someone to accompany them to the same destination so we jumped at the chance. Lise hadn't done this one before so she was pretty pumped about it. It went really well. We left at 8:00 in the morning and arrived back home at 4:00 pm. A very exhilerating climb (and tiring - we dragged our limp bodies to bed at 9:00, which is a bit early for us). This hike is considered moderately difficult and, in the upper elevations, the trail is steep and difficult to follow. Total elevation change is about 2,800 feet as we went to the top of the mountain which is above Flat Iron. Hope you enjoy the pictures.
stopped for a rest along the trail - what trail!

February 11 to 20, 2010

2010-02-20T22:03:00.003-05:00

I don't know if I can do this without taking up too much space but, this is what we've been up to over the last 10 days:

11th - visit to Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson; with friends Art and Linda

12th - We hiked the West Pinto Trail with friends from the Resort (lots of water!)

13th - Lise and I both got haircuts; we joined Art in a 9 hole golf game at Apache Sun

14th - I had my first golf lesson to work on some of my problem areas; we have a golf instructor that has just moved into the Resort and was offering lessons; We attended the Valentine Dinner put on by Meridian ($28.00 for 2 - included performance by a rock and roll band (pretty good band too)

15th - Lise had a double header with her softball team and I went to watch and offer fan enthusiasm :-)

16th - we both had our usual Tuesday golf (9 holes), and followed that up with darts from 6:00 to 8:00 that evening

17th - Lise had a softball game and I went on a hike to Picket Post mountain along the Arizona Trail

18th - I organized a foursome for golf at Toka Sticks (18 holes); Lise stayed home and did laundry

19th - Lise had another double header softball day and I went to cheer her on again; she's doing real well and enjoys playing even more now than in the past; later we bought a new GPS to play with - the old one was becoming outdated and it was cheaper to buy a new one than download new maps

20th - Lise went to Curves today and did some shopping after; I went out golfing - it started to rain but some of us persevered and put in our 9 holes; by the time we finished the skies had cleared and we decided to play another 9 - why not :-)

In amongst all that we have still found time to watch the Olympics and have enjoyed watching our athletes perform.

So that is it in a nutshell. Every day has been great and we are enjoying this life immensely.

Lockheed SR71-A Blackbird

example of some of the planes in the graveyard - some of these can be refurbished and fly again

I think this is a B-17 Bomber - Flying Fortress

This is our West Pinto Trail hike - we crossed this stream 5 times!

Feb 5 to 10,2010

2010-02-10T21:11:00.007-05:00

Friday, Feb. 5 we were up early for a 7:00 departure to Picacho Peak which is about 100 miles from Apache Junction. This is a special hike set up for Friday for the hike enthusiasts that like a real challenge. The hike was certainly more challenging than I remembered - or maybe I'm older - and it was a very fun day. Some of the hikers hadn't climbed here before and were very excited to be challenging themselves this way. By the time we got back in mid afternoon I was ready for a quick nap. Lise must have quicker recovery skills :-)
We're at the first saddle - now it gets interesting

some cable climbing

lots of cable work near the top
Who said it was easier going down?

The Phoenix area puts on a Renaissance Festival each year east of Apache Junction. It takes place in a medieval town set up just like a movie set. There are lots of performers and events taking place and it is open Fridays Saturdays and Sundays for six weeks each year. The first day was Saturday, February 6 and we decided to go with friends from the park. What a rush. It was great!! and we were just blown away by the pageantry. The real stars were the people who came to the show all dressed up as though they were in a real medieval setting. Their costumes were very authentic - what an enjoyable day!
costumed locals waiting to get in

There's a person inside that tree!
Very realistic costumes!
two potential knights or squires?

Lise had two softball games on Monday that I attended and one today (I went hiking). She has been battling tight muscles in here thighs and had to have someone run for her in the second game on Monday. Today was a bit better and we're hopeful that she'll be feeling better by the next double header on Monday. She's still enjoying it though.

January 25 to February 4, 2010

2010-02-04T11:00:00.004-05:00

Time just flies when you're having fun and certainly the last 10 or 11 days have been that. We are pretty busy every day and by the time we settle down in the evenings I don't always feel like updating our blog. The weather has been great and we have been doing all the usual things and trying not to think that we only have two months left before we have to leave this beautiful area. Of course we do get to see family and the grandkids again. It's all good! Perhaps I'll let some pictures tell the story this week.

First off I thought I'd take a picture of part of our living area to give you a sense of where we spend most of our time - when we're not out having fun. With the two slides out we probably have about 13 to 14 feet of width here, and it's about 20 feet from the bathroom area to the driver and passenger chairs at the front. It has always seemed large enough for us.

Here are a couple of hot rods framing our motorhome in the background. The owner of the silver hot rod (who is staying in our park) got some of his friends together and showed off the vehicles they had purchased at the recent auctions around the Phoenix area. It brought out many of the residents of the park - as you can see.

I was out for a hike with a friend last week and we mainly bushwacked our way through the desert. This is a shot of the Superstition Mountains from a different view.
Same hike, different view. This type of hike is fun because it's more exploratory and not so much getting to a destination and returning.
Some young ladies out for a ride were kind enough to pose for us in front of the Superstition Mountains. Some of these trails are multi-use and it is not unusual to see riders out enjoying the scenery from horseback.

A few weeks ago I got to go on a great hike with our hiking group but Lise had to go to a softball game and couldn't make it. This hike is popular for many of the local residents, particularly the younger crowd, and is a short, steep climb to the top of Piestewa Peak It is 2.4 miles to the summit and back (1200 ft vertical gain). Piestewa Peak is named in honor of Army Spc. Lori Ann Piestewa , the first Native American woman to die in combat in the US military. Since Lise wasn't able to go on the hike earlier she and I decided to do it by ourselves last Friday. Normally we don't go hiking by ourselves but this route is well marked and with all those people on the hill we figured we'd do just fine. This picture should give you some idea of how steep this climb is.

Lise is resting here after a very aggressive push to the top. We used this hike as a test of our stamina and climbed this hill at a very good pace. Phoenix residential and industrial areas laid out below.

January 21 to 24, 2010

2010-01-24T22:43:00.004-05:00

After a few days of heavy rain and flooding in many parts of the greater Phoenix area the weather let up and people started to peak their heads out their doors. With the wind pushing the rain around and carrying all the sand with it our car and motorhome looked pretty dirty. It's not likely we'll get any rain anytime soon to clean it up a bit so I guess I'll be out there doing it myself one of these days. It's not high on my list of priorities though.

We went to a dinner and show in the Resort on Wednesday. The show was so - so but the dinner was great. I got George, the Activity Director, to wish Lise a happy birthday and everyone sang the birthday song. She doesn't care for the attention but it was fun anyway.

We've finally been able to get a bit of reading in and spent Thursday and Friday just relaxing. Saturday we went to see a movie at the theatre - Leap Year. We both enjoyed it.

When we got back we noticed this truck and trailer in the parking lot in front of the office and the driver offloaded a hand built vehicle. It looks like it was purchased by one of the people here in the Resort from the Barrett-Jackson Car Auction which is held here in the Phoenix area every year.

We went out for breakfast this morning. We're trying not to eat out too much but it is hard. I had sausage and eggs and Lise had toast with our coffee and she shared my multi-grain pancakes which they offer with the meal instead of toast. It was plenty for both of us and didn't break the piggy bank :-)

I booked a tee time for us for this afternoon at the Sunland Springs Golf Course and then some of our friends came by to see if we wanted to go hiking out in the hills. While I like hiking I like golf better and Lise was ok with my decision to stick with the golf game. Next week though I think I'll check with our friends early on so as not to conflict with another hiking opportunity.

January 17 to 20, 2010

2010-01-20T16:43:00.003-05:00

The forecast for this week was rain right through to the next weekend. We were wondering what we were going to do to keep busy. Lots of reading probably. Wrong! The weather has been wet, particularly last evening and into the night, but otherwise the days have been fine. Lise's baseball games for Monday were cancelled but we're pretty sure they could have gone ahead as there hadn't been enough rain to affect the field. On Sunday Lise and I decided to go golfing since it didn't look like our usual Tuesday game would be happening. Wrong again! Tuesday was quite nice out and most of us from the Resort decided to go ahead and golf anyway. So, I got an extra round of golf in :-)
We thought today would be too wet to go hiking - shall I say it - Wrong! But, we slept in and missed the hiking group's departure. Once we were able to confirm that Lise wouldn't be playing ball today we headed out on our own little hike. We located our friend's cars but didn't run across them. Regardless, we had a great hike and once the sun came out it was warm enough. It's only 59 F right now (3:00 pm) but it seems warm enough for us.

So, the moral of the story for this week is - to keep your options open and don't spend so much time worrying about the weather.

January 15 to 16, 2010

2010-01-16T11:31:00.003-05:00

It was our 33rd anniversary yesterday. Busy times continue so we were pretty much doing separate things for most of the day. I went on an impromptu hike with some of our friends for the day - and Lise played two games at her weekend ball tournament. But the evening was ours and once we got back together - after 5:00 pm, we headed out to Carrabba's Grill, our favourite italian eatery. We had to wait an hour for seating but the meal was fine and we were finally able to sit and talk and enjoy each others' company. We toasted for 33 more and, in this day and age, who knows, anything is possible.

The Desert Stars had one win and one loss, and most importantly, Lise's thigh was a little less tight and she was able to play her regular game. It's all for fun but it's always better when you think you're contributing somewhat. This morning she is off again - left about 7:15 for a game at 8:00 am and another one at 9:10 and then the tournament is over for them. After she gets back maybe we'll go out for a nice cup of coffee at Paradise Bakery or Kokobelli's cafe :-)

Yesterday's hike was on the Arizona Trail. The Arizona Trail goes all the way from Mexico to Utah and traverses the State of Arizona in a north/south direction. It's about 93% complete as of mid-2007, and is planned to be about 800 miles (1,300 km) long when completed. It is designed as a primitive trail for hiking, equestrians, mountain biking, and even cross country skiing. It showcases the wide variety of mountain ranges and ecosystems of Arizona. The idea for the trail was originally developed and promoted by Dale Shewalter, a Flagstaff, Arizona teacher in 1985. The portion of the trail we travelled yesterday took us to the foot of Montana mountain. We saw a few white-tailed deer and we could smell what may have been a lair for Javelina (a kind of wild pig). You don't want to get near them as they can be quite dangerous. Someone hiking on South Mountain last week was bitten twice by one and it was later determined that the animal had rabies - so, best to keep away.

The trail we were on required us to go in by jeep for about 6 miles off Highway 60. That was fun; most of the road was easy to traverse but the last mile or so was somewhat more difficult and is not something I would have attempted with my car.

nice valley near the start of the hike - Sycamore trees

This would be rattlesnake territory in warmer weather

more examples of indian archeology - corn was often ground into corn meal, using wooden mortars and pestles. The mortars were made of short logs which were turned upright and hollowed out on the top end. The corn was put into hollows in rocks and ground by pounding up and down with a long piece of wood which was rounded on both ends.
Agave Tree and Prickly Pear Cactus

January 9 to 14, 2010

2010-01-14T21:28:00.003-05:00

Lise played two softball games this week and her thighs are screaming for a break. She's been using ice packs to soothe her legs and can hardly run any more. I remember days like that when I was a teenager - who'd have thought people our age would be able to play so hard as to tie up muscles like that. We're not alone; I remember one of our friends playing softball last year and having the same problem. We all seem to have a hard time remembering we're not as young as we used to be :) They are doing well as a team though. They have 3 wins and 1 loss so far this season. Friday and Saturday is their first tournament - 4 games over 2 days; and then a double header on Monday :-( I'll probably have more to say next time :)

Batter Up!!

Another win in the books!!
We finally got around to booking our 5 month stay here for next winter. We'll be at the same Resort. There are so many people interested in getting into this Park that people that wanted to reserve their sites had to do so before February 1st. Because we are staying for at least 5 months we are able to keep our same site and we do like where we are so now we're confirmed.

Wednesday was a hike day and I joined our hiking group while Lise had to stick around for her softball as it wasn't likely we'd be back in time.
indian site used to mash corn into flour - found on our hike into the hills

Looking back at the canyon we walked through

There was a brilliant lightning storm last night and a fair amount of rain - only the second rainfall since we've been here. I wish I'd thought to get some pictures!

January 4 to 8, 2010

2010-01-08T20:45:00.005-05:00

In case you think we're not too busy here - here's a synopsis of the last 5 days: On Monday we both went out for our separate exercise routines, Lise had softball in the afternoon and, after an enjoyable coffee at Paradise Bakery we went over to the golf range so I could try out my new irons (yes, I bought a set of Pings); Tuesday we attended the Resort's weekly meeting, went out for coffee, and then went out for our weekly golf game with the resort; On Wednesday I went on a really great hike (for me - challenging, steep, and views at the summit) which Lise couldn't go on as she had baseball (2nd game - 2nd win :) ); we ate at home Wednesday night and went to bed early in preparation for our trip on Thursday; on Thursday we picked up Art and Linda at 7:00 am (alarm set for 6:15 am :-( ) and headed for Tucson; we had breakfast in Casa Grande (about halfway) and then continued on to Old Tucson which is the site of many old western movies (a little pricey for us - $17.00 each), after which we drove a half hour further south to see the Titan 2 Missile still standing in its silo; arrived home about 8:00 after stopping for supper at Cracker Barrel in Casa Grande on the way back; on Friday we had to set our alarm for 7:00 am so we could be ready for another hike into the wilderness north of the Sonoran Desert Valley - hikers headed out at 8:30 into the Four Peaks Wilderness. All this to say that we do seem to be fairly busy these days. I don't mind but I think we do want to have days off once in a while to recuperate and do nothing, or just read some good books.

some current and former Yukoners enjoying life in the 'Old West'

Movie Set in Old Tucson Four Peaks in the background - another favourite hiking destination

January 2 to 3, 2010

2010-01-03T21:10:00.003-05:00

We were up early for the omelette breakfast put on by the Resort. It is my favourite meal and they only charge $5.00 for omelette with your choice of ingredients, sausage, hash browns, orange juice and coffee. I don't think you can do any better anywhere else - except perhaps at home. Others must have felt the same way as us as there was a very large turnout for the breakfast and all the tables were full - of course it was outside, where else.

The weather forecast was for 70* F so shorts and t-shirt were definitely the order of the day. After breakfast I went hiking with five other friends on the Dutchman Trail. It is about 15 miles east of Apache Junction and then 7 miles up a very dusty, washboardy gravel road. Being a Saturday there were many hikers out and about and lots of families with children of all ages. The hike wasn't hard at all but it was almost 3 miles to the turnaround spot. On a previous visit to this area we had visited an old mine portal that mined turquoise. When I thought we were close to that spot I went climbing up the hill looking for the opening. It was the wrong spot so I started my descent back to the trail - I slipped and put my hand back to brace my fall and placed my hand right on a barrel cactus. Ouch!! Only about 10 or 12 of the needles stayed in my hand and I was able to pull them out pretty easily but it was definitely painful. You would think after the episode I reported in my last blog that I'd be a little more careful. Guess not :-) It didn't take long for the bleeding to stop and, even though my hand swelled up, I was able to continue the hike without much discomfort.

the view from the start of the hike after we reached the 'saddle' - the rock formation in the distance right in the middle of the picture, was our destination.

snack time - formation is called "Three Bears"
This is called Miner's Needle because of the hole in the rock - I'm not sure why

Picture as proof we made it
Lise wasn't on the hike as she was at softball practice. Her games start this coming week and some of them are on hike days so she won't be able to make many of them if it doesn't look like we wouldn't get back on time. If it is a good hike (and they all are) I am supposed to go out again on another day, with Lise, so she can experience it for herself. I hope my legs hold out!

December 30, 2009 to January 1, 2010

2010-01-01T21:00:00.005-05:00

If I thought things were slowing down during the holidays, boy was I mistaken. On Wednesday we went out for our usual hike, this week to the Broadway Cave. It is not far from the resort, maybe five miles to the trailhead but it is a stiff climb up once we get to the side of the mountain. There was a good turnout and the weather was comfortable, although some of us donned gloves on the way up as it was still pretty cool. Everyone had been reminded to bring flashlights so we could see into the cave - it didn't go in very far though. There was lots of evidence of it being used by bats, but not recently. On the way back down one of our hikers brushed against a Cholla cactus. A ball of the cactus stuck to her hand with a number of spikes, and another ball stuck to her leg. Fortunately one of our group had an 'afro comb' and was able to remove them. He just put the comb in between her hand and the cactus and gave a quick yank! It was obviously quite painful but there was no other way and once removed the pain subsided fairly quickly (or so I'm told). From now on I'm going to make sure I have one of those combs in my back pack. At any rate she was able to continue back to the trailhead without too much discomfort and we all made it back safely. This is a great reminder of how one has to be careful at all times when out in the wilderness hiking. Sometimes we get too complacent to our own detriment.

When we got back from the hike Lise had to head out right away for her two hour softball practice. While she was doing that I was emptying the gray and black water tanks and recharging the water softener.
After an early supper we joined out friends and hiking buddies - Dick and Jan - and drove over to the Mormon Temple to see the Christmas lights. We had heard about this since we first arrived in Arizona 3 years ago. Certainly the outside lights were spectacular. We took pictures but none of them turned out as they were too shaky so I had to settle for an inside picture of some nativity scenes in their Visitor Centre. The best part of the evening was when Dick and Jan treated us to some yogurt ice cream at the Golden Spoon, a local frozen yogurt store. Yumm!
the cave entrance is near the middle of the hill

cave entrance and snack break

trailhead parking area - next to some pretty expensive houses

nativity scenes from countries around the world

Christmas Eve morning was spent running around to various grocery stores to restock our larders. After lunch Lise and I decided to go golfing at our favourite course. It was quite windy and really effected our game. That is not to say we were looking for an excuse as we enjoyed ourselves and had good hits and missed hits, about a typical day for us.

That got us back in time for a quick snack in advance of the New Year's Eve Party. The Resort put on a great party with live musical entertainment and we stayed out until 1:00 am, very unusual for us!

We had talked about going bicycling on the 1st but decided against and spent a quiet day at home instead.

December 21 to 29, 2009

2009-12-29T23:44:00.003-05:00

Lise and I hope everybody had a wonderful Christmas. A special seasonal wish for all of you, including Murray and Myrna who sent their best wishes to us earlier. We still don't know how to answer people's comments properly in this blogger format.

Christmas was quiet for us. We opened a few presents and spent the day trying to phone family. The Resort put on a very nice Christmas dinner (although the meat was prime rib :-) ) and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. 198 people were served which is to say that there were a lot of people staying here over Christmas instead of going home.

We've been to see a couple of movies in the last few days - first we saw 'It's Complicated' with Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin; that was a pretty good movie - and then we went to 'Avatar' with our friends Art and Linda. I really liked that movie. The others thought it was pretty good. I thought it was awesome, but then it is quite up my alley as a sci-fi fantasy reader. I think I'd go to see it again for sure.

Yesterday a few of us decided to go out on a hike to try to find an arch at the top end of a canyon. Even though we didn't find the arch we still enjoyed the hike. I think everyone was pretty tired after this hike. It was 7.3 miles round trip and we had a bit of climbing to do while climbing up the canyon. After we got back we sat around in the motorhome of our hike leader, and enjoyed a nice glass of wine, some snacks, and of course, fellowship. I needed to spend a few minutes in the hot tub later in the evening to relax sore muscles :-).

stopping for lunch before heading further up the canyon

looking back at our highest point on the 'trail'

December 18 to 20, 2009

2009-12-20T20:20:00.002-05:00

We're finally starting to think about Christmas. Most of our christmas purchases were finished a long time ago but we have a few things left - mostly for each other. Even though we don't feel the need for receiving anything it is always nice to be able to open something on Christmas morning. Lise brought a few things back with her so we have something to open from the kids as well.
Lise has been drafted into an over 50 ladies baseball team. She had her first practice yesterday. It lasted about two hours and I played golf while I waited for her (tough life, eh?) Certain muscles are starting to tighten up on her this evening so it's a good thing she doesn't have another practice until Wednesday. I think she is looking forward to playing again. It's been at least 20 years since she's been involved in organized baseball.
Today Lise spent most of the day cleaning the motorhome. I thought it was pretty clean, but I guess not :-) I can certainly see the difference now that it's clean again. Maybe I should have noticed before she got back :-)
We met up with our friends Jim and Linda this afternoon. They dropped by to say hello. They introduced us to hiking, geocaching and golfing here in Apache Junction and were the first friends we made on our arrival here. Now we know which park they're staying in we'll have to drop by to visit them. I do have tentative plans to go golfing with him and other people we know sometime in the next few weeks. Should be fun.

December 14 to 17, 2009

2009-12-17T20:41:00.003-05:00

Lise arrived on schedule Tuesday evening. I've probably stated before how user friendly the airport is for picking up and dropping off passengers. Very efficient. It's nice to have her home; I feel complete again. Trent had it right and I'm sure many of you probably feel the same way.

We went out for supper at Village Inn; a late supper as it was almost 8:00. The staff and management there were very friendly and dropping by to see how we were doing every few minutes. Of course, we would probably have preferred a bit more privacy as we tried to get up to date on goings on but, no complaints.!~

The weather has started to warm up again and we headed out for a nice hike on Wednesday morning. This hike is special because it introduces a few different experiences other than just walking on trails. This hike is on South Mountain which is well known for its' views of Phoenix, and is a popular evening driving experience for star gazing, watching the sun set and seeing the lights of Phoenix playing out below. It is not something we've tried yet - but, some day.

Discussing worldly events during a brief break

Passing between rather large boulders - good thing I hadn't eaten lunch
Rather large pass through under some well-balanced boulders

Today I went with a group of 20 others to visit the Ping factory in Phoenix. It was very interesting and wetted my appetite for a set of fitted golf clubs :-) I think for me it'll be one club at a time!

December 10 to 13, 2009

2009-12-13T21:30:00.002-05:00

I've been busy enough over the last four days - visiting with friends, playing golf and doing lots of reading. But, mostly, I've been missing my wife and after three weeks away she's finally heading back home - on Tuesday. When your soul mate is not by your side it makes you feel incomplete. That has become more and more obvious as each day is ticked off. I must say, Tuesday can't come fast enough for me. And, I know Lise is looking forward to coming back as well.

I've also been watching lots of football - I'm starting to really enjoy the american teams. It's a little bit different game than we have in Canada but I'm starting to really like 4 down football :-)
Of course, once Lise comes back I don't foresee being able to watch too much of that (oh well). Don't think I'll complain too much :-)

December 9, 2009

2009-12-09T19:47:00.003-05:00

I woke to another beautiful day today. I have been watching the storm track through eastern US and Canada so I won't say too much about the weather here. I couldn't resist taking a picture of the sunrise, though. Usually we see the sunset, so when I saw George, the Activity Director, out with his camera I realized he was shooting the sunrise and I ran to back to get the camera before it was too late.

We had a good turnout for our hike today; 18 people showed up. Our Hike leader, Terry, wasn't able to make it as he was under the weather. (somehow when you say 'under the weather' around here I don't think it has the same impact :) ) Some of us knew the Saguaro Lake trail so off we went. It's about 35 minutes from the park but the travel time is worth it. I noticed on this trip that you don't always see just desert scenes so I tried to take pictures which represented that view.

Saguaro Lake and the boat dock across the lake

Sometimes I get an unexpected bonus and take a great picture :-)

marshy area in the lake - favourite spot for loons
When we arrived at the trailhead to start our hike we had forgotton that each vehicle needs a Recreation Area pass. We had five vehicles and nobody had any passes! In the past we always had enough passes to cover whatever vehicles we had with us. Not today. It was too late to go back to Apache Junction so we took a chance and headed out. Everybody was pretty anxious when we arrived back in the parking lot but, no problems, nobody had a ticket. Hopefully at this time of year they're not as conscientious in their visits to the parking lot. Anyway, we dodged a bullet this time. Next time we'll check on passes before we leave the RV park.

December 7 to 8, 2009

2009-12-08T22:27:00.002-05:00

Someone knocked on the door of the rig Sunday night during the football game. It turns out I won some of the pool from having the right score after the completion of the third quarter of the Arizona/Minnesota game. That was great. I haven't won anything for a long time.

Woke up bright and early on Monday, as usual. Of course it wasn't 'bright' but it was early. The rain that had been forecast was obviously on its way. By 10:00 in the morning it started to rain off and on, and the wind picked up as the afternoon progressed. It didn't stop people including me) from turning out for the ice cream social on the patio at the clubhouse :-)

I was invited out for supper with Terry and Tina Monday evening. We had a great meal and enjoyed a fun evening playing cribbage. Terry was happy to have a new player as Tina had been trouncing him lately and he needed somebody new to change the dynamics. It seemed to work as he won more than his fair share of the games. As I was heading home I noticed that people were putting their lawn chairs away and storing awnings, etc. I had already done that. When I went to bed I could hear and feel the rear bedroom slide awning flapping around. Not wanting to take a chance on damaging the awning I put one of the rear slides in. It cured the problem with the awning and also greatly diminished the sound so I had no trouble getting to sleep after that. It was a pretty wicked storm; we lost power at the park at midnight and didn't get it back til early morning.

By the time I got up this morning, about 7:00, the wind and rain had stopped and the sun was shining as though it had been out there all along! It was cool but with the sun out it's much easier to take.

We played golf this afternoon and the course was in pretty good shape; the ground was damp in parts which changed the game somewhat but there was no standing water. Afterwards I went out for dinner with Art and Linda to celebrate Art's 69th birthday. He liked the chinese restaurant we went to last week so we decided to try it again. No complaints all around. We did manage to limit ourselves to one plate of food this time :-)

After I got home it was time to get out my dart set and head for the dart game that starts at 6:00 every Tuesday. That was fun and then it was time to relax, finally, back at the rig and watch a little TV (So You Think You Can Dance). Did a little channel surfing and watched the Ottawa Senators lose to the Montreal Canadiens (Hockey).

December 6, 2009

2009-12-06T19:49:00.002-05:00

I managed to sleep in 'til 7:30 this morning. I had decided to be good and eat breakfast at home - save some money. But, wouldn't you know it, no cereal in the house. So, it was off to Village Inn for b and e.
I did a little 'house cleaning' before lunch and managed to make a big dent in my latest novel. I've been rereading the Terry Goodkind sci-fi/fantasy saga. I'm now on the last book. Reading the story over again has made me realize how much repitition and padding the author puts in the story. I get impatient with all the exterraneous material and usually jump ahead to the action sequences. The Sword of Truth series has eleven volumes. If you took out all the repitition it could have been condensed into six or seven novels. Oh well, I suppose it helps keep the story fresh in your mind.

This afternoon was the street party in the park, prior to the Minnesota Vikings vs Arizona Cardinals football game on the big screen in the clubhouse. The party was great with a real good turnout. The temperature was only 58*F but nobody looked too cold. Of course we all had long pants, sweaters and coats on :-). Unfortunately Mediacom, which provides phone, tv and internet services here, has been having trouble with their service today and it doesn't look like we'll be able to watch the game. Someone has one of those portable Cube satellite internet systems and they're going to try to hook it up to the big tv so we may get the game in yet. It'd be a shame if it doesn't happen as the afternoon get together was such a success. I have satellite tv service in my rig so I can get the game but I can't get 50 to 80 people in here! Hopefully it will still come together.

December 3 to 5, 2009

2009-12-05T19:41:00.003-05:00

I guess I'm losing track of the days. I thought it had only been two days since my last posting. Guess not :-)
The weather has been slowly changing to cooler and cloudy. Today I'm not even sure if it hit 60 F. Rain (showers) is expected by Monday.
Some people at the Resort built a float and entered it for the Christmas Parade. Apparently they won a prize for their efforts. I took the picture below as they were getting people into the float. With all the people going to the parade I didn't expect many people to attend happy hour this week but it was well attended. As usual I had a chance to meet some new people. Some of the people that stay here like to reserve tables for friends but Lise and I both prefer to just sit wherever there's room. It is a great way to meet people and find out what their stories are. It is always interesting.

Art and I went out looking for RV parts for his bus yesterday. The Garmin GPS I have is a great help for getting around a city that's not too familiar. We were able to find the places he wanted to visit and we came away with what he was looking for (his wallet was $500 lighter though). Of course we had started out in the morning and by the time we were done it was lunch time. We found a Paradise Bakery, again using the GPS, and had a quick meal before heading back home.

The Resort put on a French Toast breakfast this morning, which I attended, of course :-) Later on I went to the golf course to see if I could get on by myself for some twilight golf. As it turned out the course was not busy at all and I was able to play 9 holes. My game was quite a bit better than the other day so I'm all smiles again. Hopefully I can do as well during our team play next week.

December 1 to 2, 2009

2009-12-02T20:22:00.006-05:00

Tuesday, December 1: I attended the Tuesday meeting to see what was on the agenda for this month. Busy as usual - or at least, as busy as you want to be. There are Christmas type of activities this month that I'd really like to see - festival of boat lights in Tempe, the christmas lights and festivities of the Mormon Church, and others. Perhaps when Lise gets back we can take in some of those.
The main thing on Tuesday is golf. I had been golfing late last week and spent some time on the range on Sunday trying to improve my game. I felt I had made some gains and was anxious to try out my game on the course. I think I should have lowered my expectations. People always say - a good result on the range doesn't always translate to the course. I guess I'm the proof of that. Oh well, I always go back. I really love the game and I'll keep trying!
I didn't go to darts in the evening as my friends Art and Linda invited me out for dinner and we went to a chinese buffet type restaurant. Love it. I wouldn't want to go too often but once in a while is fine.

Wednesday, December 2: It was a little cool this morning but the sun was shining so it looked to be a great day for a hike. Terry is now managing the hikes and he had a nice easy hike of about 4 miles in the Hackaberry Trail area. There was a good turnout - 13 people, and the weather warmed up just fine - it always helps when there are no clouds in the sky and the wind is calm:-)
I decided to attend the dinner and dance that had been arranged in the park tonight. It was a 60s theme so there were a few people with no shame reliving their versions of what they thought the 60s looked like. I captured a few of the celebrants!
a look back at the terrain we travelled through today

today's group - and a few friends from last year joined us

Some of these folks would definitely be able to remember the 60s

Mike and Grandpa (the magician)

Jim and Shirley

November 30, 2009

2009-11-30T21:02:00.002-05:00

We did get a bit of rain. Not much, not that I'm complaining. I went out for a coffee after finishing yesterday's blog and when I came out there was a brilliant double rainbow. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera and by the time I got back to the rig the light show was just about over.
This is all I got

My daughter Renee sent along this picture of the new addition. This is his first trip outside (from hospital to home).
With this amount of sunshine coming into our lives guess we don't need to worry about what the weather brings today :-)

November 28 to 29, 2009

2009-11-29T16:19:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, Saturday we were supposed to get some rain but I decided to get out for a quick 9 holes of golf before the weather set in. I picked up Art just before 9 am and we got our golf in, no problem, in fact I never saw anything that looked like rain all day.

I am at loose ends right now. Last night I went to bed before 10:00! And I was up this morning by 5:30. After a quick shower I went to the Village Inn for breakfast and brought along a good book to read. It's amazing how quiet it is on the roads and in the restaurants at that time of morning :-) I was back home by 8:00 and didn't know what else to do with my day. I had a nap. for half an hour and finally decided I had to get out and do something. The weather didn't seem too bad, it was cool (56 F), so I got ready to go for a hike into the Superstition Mountain Range. It was certainly cooler in the hills but not too bad. I took my time and got a few pictures for posterity. Usually our pictures have lots of blue sky - not so much today. My goal was to hike part way up Siphon's Draw so I parked at the start of the Firstwater Trail Road and hiked in to the Jacob's Crosscut Trail which meanders around the bottom of Superstition Mountain. I made it up into Siphon's Draw but as I went higher I lost the sun behind the mountain and it got pretty cold. I wasn't really dressed for that so I decided to stop and have a bite to eat then head back. The elevation change was 700 feet and the total distance was 5 miles. I don't normally hike by myself but there were lots of people on the trails, being a Sunday, so I wasn't too worried.

It's a good thing I got back when I did because, as I'm writing this there's a lot of dark clouds over the mountains and it is clearly raining there. There are a few drops here as well. Looks like we are going to get some rain after all. Well, the desert definitely needs it.

start of my hike

It's not all just desert - there's lots of shrubbery and cactus here
This looks like the place used by Park Rangers during full moon nighttime hikes. No lights and no cameras allowed. I want to go on one one of these days (nights) :-)
Siphon's Draw coming up to the left
Flat Iron plateau - of the two peaks, the one on the right.

I hope to climb that again this year.

November 26 to 27, 2009

2009-11-27T19:59:00.004-05:00

Two hot days in a row. 82 F yesterday and 80 F today. I sat near the phone yesterday morning waiting for news on the baby. I hadn't heard anything so I called Lise in Ottawa and she hadn't heard either. But she did call back a few minutes later with the good news. We now have a new grandson, weighing in at 8 lbs. His name is Kaelan. I'm still waiting for pictures.

I went to the Thanksgiving Dinner laid out by the RV Park. As usual it was a grand feast; our chefs had proper chef hats and jackets and looked very professional. The meal was supplemented by dishes brought in by the rvers. I brought a pecan pie that I had baked at the Village Inn :-)
our venerable leader - George
some of the group enjoying the dinner
Today I tried to get away early on my bike ride to avoid the heat. It is Black Friday here and the highways were very quiet. There was hardly anyone heading to work as far as I could see. I took our usual ride through Tempe and Scottsdale, 14.5 miles each way. I think I overdid it somewhat as I was totally beat by the time I hit the 24 mile mark. I managed to limp back to the car and headed back home. As soon as I arrived back at the RV I headed straight to the back for a quick half hour nap. That helped :-)

a view from where we usually start our bike rides - the hill in the background is popular for hiking by the local university students; Arizona State University is nearby. Commercial airlines arriving and departing Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix always fly right overhead and can't be more than a few hundred feet over the hill, particularly on their approach.

November 22 to 25, 2009

2009-11-25T20:42:00.003-05:00

We've had some fairly windy days lately, possible bringing in colder weather from the north. But not for a few days yet :)

I drove Lise to the airport yesterday morning. She's going to Ottawa to be with our daughter and her family for the birth. She left at 8:30 in the morning and will be gone for three weeks. It's going to be lonely around here. Even though I had golf and darts yesterday I could already see how different it was to not have her around. It really does change the dynamics of your life.

Today I led a hike up Pass Mountain. It was 2 miles each way and was a pretty steady climb all the way to the pass. There was a good turnout and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Note all the smiles in the photo below. These pictures are partly to document the hike and partly to show the beautiful views - and partly to show Lise what she's missing :).

easy trail to follow

Our group posing under the pass

What a beautiful spot!

During the afternoon I had some work done on the brakes on our Saturn. Afterwards my friend Art and I went to another motorcycle shop in support of his desire to find an old Harley to refurbish. I think today was a reality check as he now has a good idea how much it is likely to cost to take this project on. Nowadays old Harleys are hard to find and if found are picked up pretty quick by collectors. Oh well, we had a good time. I'm sure he'll think of something else to fill his time with.

November 19 to 21, 2009

2009-11-21T20:52:00.002-05:00

We've had a couple of quiet days since our last post. I did put in 9 holes of golf on Thursday morning with my friend Art. It was one of my better golf days so was feeling pretty good about myself :-) On the way back to the park Art asked if I wanted to go look at some motorcycles at the motorcycle graveyard up towards Payson. It was a good hour outside of Apache Junction; it was a very scenic route, the same way Lise and I first came into Apache Junction two years ago. This time I got to look around a bit more since I wasn't the driver. You'd have to be a pretty serious mechanic to get some of those motorcycles back into working shape, even if you were able to find all the necessary parts. Not my cup of tea but no sweat for Art. He didn't find anything there so I'm sure he'll be looking around elsewhere to see if there is a motorcycle project he can get his hands on.

Lise and I went to our first happy hour on Friday. We met a couple of new people and got to know some others we hadn't really had an opportunity to sit down with yet. One couple works for a travelling circus setting up venues around the US so get lots of opportunity to see the whole country. What a gig!

This year the park isn't getting involved with recycling like they did last year. So today we carted our recycling materials over to bins in the Apache Junction Administration Building parking lot. It's hard to just stop recycling and throw everything out. I think we've been conditioned too well :-)

I wish now I had brought my camera to take a picture of the motorcycle graveyard. Oh well, you're not really missing anything - it's not exactly a memory you'd want to carry with you for long. ps. weather is still great - 75 F pretty well every day!

November 18, 2009

2009-11-18T21:15:00.002-05:00

We've been writing our story as we go but, really, we've also been living it. I can't help but think that spending our winters down here has been such a blessing. We just love what we're able to do here; and we're not alone - we hear similar sentiments from many of our friends here and from the new people we meet each day. I am sure there are better and nobler achievements we can aspire to, but for us at this time, this pause on the circle of life seems to fit just right.

Whew, where did that come from? Now, getting back to normal: I set the alarm last night to be sure I would be up in time to get ready for our Wednesday hike. It's a good thing I did because I didn't sleep well and I'm sure I would have slept late otherwise. We had a typical breakfast of cereal after which I dropped over to the activities building patio area to pick up a cup of coffee. There are a number of men from around the park that get together every weekday morning to discuss the latest news and socialize a bit and they always make pots of coffee for anybody that drops by. Although I've sat in a few times I'm not exactly a regular. But, I do like to get my morning coffee fix.

There was a good turnout for the hike, a moderate climb of about 600 feet over 1.4 miles. It is called the Hieroglyphic Trail and takes us to a nice area of boulders, streams and ponds in a canyon north of the Gold Canyon Subdivision. There are hieroglyphics on the rocks that date back a couple of hundred years. The pond this year was pretty empty as they haven't had much rain and the water table is quite low. There was another group from another park there ahead of us. I think I heard them say their group was about 23 people. This is typical of many of our hikes - that we run across other large groups making the same trip. It seems that the wilderness isn't really that big a place after all.

We headed left of this range
The rock formation here - in the middle of Gold Canyon Subdivision, is called Dinosaur Mtn.

taking a breather and looking at what's ahead

This was a fairly short hike and we were back at the park by 11:30 which was great as we were expecting a high of 78 degrees F today and it's always preferable to be out when it's a bit cooler.

After lunch Lise wanted to go to the library to get more reading material so we did that, picked up a coffee, and spent a quiet afternoon reading. Lise made a turkey meat loaf in the toaster-oven. It came out just fine and with some peas, corn and potatoes made a real nice dinner, with a nice glass of white wine, of course. We'll probably spend the rest of the evening watching TV. All I can say is: "It's all good!"

November 14 to 17, 2009

2009-11-17T21:48:00.002-05:00

Saturday was a pretty quiet day for us. Art and Linda invited us to have dinner on their patio as we all bid goodbye to our friends from New Zealand, Peter and Jeanette. It's nice to know that we can enjoy a good meal in the outdoors at this time of year. This is why we like being here so much.

Unfortunately, when we got home we didn't check our phone and forgot that it was our grandson Liam's birthday. Of course, he didn't let that go by unchallenged and called us the next morning. So, we did get to find out how his day went and he didn't seem put out. I'm sure we won't forget next time:-)

On Sunday we went to IHOP for breakfast, one of our favourite places. Later we stopped off at the driving range to hit a few golf balls. Lise is going to join the RV Resort's golf league so she wanted to get out and practice a bit before jumping in with both feet.

More of our friends have been arriving each day so the park is starting to fill up; it's like old home week around here.

On Monday we decided that a bike ride was in order. After getting our exercise regimens out of the way early on we packed a lunch and some goodies, put our bikes on the back of the SUV and headed out for our ride. Of course we went to Scottsdale and biked the multi-use trails that travel through a series of parks following the Hayden Road area in a north/south direction. We travelled 16 miles exactly, and that was quite enough, thankyou! We are still out of shape from not being able to get out as much as we wanted to this summer in Ottawa. On the way home we dropped our bicycles at the bicycle shop for some much needed maintenance. They'll be ready by Tuesday afternoon. I didn't expect they'd be done that quickly. Great!

This morning, Tuesday, after we attended the Activity mtg, we were able to get out and pick up some more groceries. We had a quick lunch and then headed out for our 9-hole golf game. This was the first time Lise has golfed with someone other than me. She did very well and I think she's quite happy with her ball striking today. Sounds like she'll put her name down as a regular member of the group now that she sees that she can keep up with the other players. There's always the fear that everyone will be too good; I know how she feels - I used to feel the same way. Anyway, I'm pleased that this is working out for her. Her positive outing seemed to give her a boost in her dart game tonight too, how cool is that?

November 12 and 13, 2009

2009-11-12T21:18:00.002-05:00

Thursday - Art and I booked an early tee time to enjoy a little golf. Our start time was only 8:23 am but it was a lot better than golfing in the early afternoon in the heat of the day. Lise took advantage of my absence by heading out to Curves for a workout.

We finally made it to the Apache Junction Library to find some books. We now have our source of reading material for the winter. We don't need Chapters or Borders book stores where we have to buy our reading entertainment:-)

We had invited friends over for a little social hour which went very well. We sat around talking until we couldn't even see each other any more. The sun sets here about 5:30 and we don't have any outside lights. It would be nice to buy a lamp of some sort and treat the patio as an outdoor living room. Anyway, I thought it went over pretty well and this is the first happy hour we've hosted since we started this life style two years ago. So, job well done.

Friday - Lise is trying to join a Yoga class. She has tried to attend twice now - first the instructor forgot the time; today it seems the session wasn't to start until next week. I think she thinks things are conspiring against her. Maybe the third time will be the charm!

It was a cool windy day today. The sun only came out long enough to set, and give us a nice sunset. I guess it's better than nothing.

November 11, 2009

2009-11-11T21:08:00.007-05:00

The day started out cloudy and with a slight breeze. For me, that is perfect for hiking, especially with the days still being so hot. There were 7 of us on the hike. Even though it wasn't difficult, most of us were feeling the strain during the uphill portion of the hike. After the snack break we headed downhill on the other half of the loop trail. I always find the downhill part much harder. It puts stress on my knees; and I don't think I was alone - others had similar complaints. Anyway, it's not too bad and recovery time is quick.

We were back at the RV in time for lunch. After lunch we had decided to check out the library but forgot that it would be closed for Remembrance Day. Oh well, it wasn't a one task trip as we had decided to do a little shopping so we could have a happy hour with some of our friends tomorrow. We're inviting Art and Linda from Whitehorse and their friends Peter and Jeanette from New Zealand over for some social time.

Same Saguaro as you saw the other day - different posers! A little hazy. This is the view from our snack stop

November 10, 2009

2009-11-10T22:07:00.002-05:00

Now that we are in the south we seem to be waking earlier every morning. I guess we anticipate a more active lifestyle down here and are anxious to be up and getting to it.

We attended the weekly activity meeting to find out what goodies were being planned for this year. We have a very full venue which ranges from golf, hiking, motorcycle riding groups, darts, card games, movie night...the list goes on. Last year a group of people chose books to read and then discuss at a social gathering. There really is something to do for everyone here.

A quick trip to Safeway to pick up a few items and then it was lunch time. After lunch a group of us went out for our weekly 9-hole golf game. There were 20 men and women and I expect there'll be more as the snowbird season progresses. It was hot but we had fun.

Lise decided to do the washing while I was out so when I got home it was all done! We had a quick supper and then went over to the games room to have a couple of games of darts. Also a good turnout. Unfortunately we missed So You Think You Can Dance but when we're down here it doesn't seem to important and there's so much else to do.

November 9, 2009

2009-11-09T18:15:00.004-05:00

Our routine is starting to come together. After breakfast I headed over to the gym to do some physio; Lise went to Curves for her exercise. Once we were both back we changed into bicycle gear and headed out for a ride right from the Resort. We only rode for 10.4 miles but it was quite a workout as it has been a while since we last had our bikes out. And the weather was hot so it was pretty draining with the sun beating down on us.

We were back by 11:30 and it felt like we'd done a lot already. After a quick lunch we drove to Camping World to see if they had any patio chairs. Of course it's a small world so we came across our friend Art, and Peter from New Zealand, who were also visiting Camping World. Peter and his wife Jeanette have been visiting Canada and the United States for a while now and will be heading to Los Angeles in a few days for their trip back to New Zealand. They make this trip frequently and will probably be back again soon. They have bought an RV and toad and use that to drive around the country. Then it is stored for use again when they return.

We did find some chairs so now we have enough on hand if we ever get somebody dropping by our rig. After that stop we headed over to Trader Joe's, a popular grocery store in this area. We picked up items we always get there, particularly Trail Mix for our hikes and biking trips, and then headed home to try out the new chairs.

gravel pad and concrete patio

We're the first RV in the row, site 02

Some of the people we hang out with during the winter haven't arrived yet so it was great to see Gary and Karen (formerly from Yellowknife, NWT) turn into the roadway at 5:00 this evening. They share similar interests so we end up spending lots of time with them over the winter.

I noticed that Dancing With The Stars was on tonight. I can't seem to get into that this year, especially since So You Think You Can Dance is also on (although on a different night). After watching SYTYCD for the last two years the DWTS seems pretty anemic. We do like House and Lie To Me so that'll keep us busy tonight.

November 7 and 8, 2009

2009-11-09T11:19:00.002-05:00

I can't say much about Saturday. We did go to the omelette breakfast at the Resort. They do such a great job with it and there are always a lot of volunteers cooking and serving and cleaning up after. The cost was only $4.00 each and included omelette (6 volunteer chefs cooking) cooked with your preferred ingredients plus hash browns, sausages, orange juice and coffee. Not bad, eh?

Later in the day we visited with Art and Linda in their bus for a while and then retired back to our Resort and our rig to indulge in a bit of reading (outside on the patio, of course). I'll have to take a picture of our site so you can all see what our setup is like.

On Sunday we picked up Art and Linda and headed out for a 'preview hike' of the hike I have planned for Wednesday. I needed to make sure that I wasn't going to get our hiking group lost on my first hike :-) We didn't do the whole hike, just the first part that goes up and down through gullies and washes; it's that part which would be easy to be diverted and end up 'lost'. Anyway, it went fine and I got a couple of pictures of Art and Linda for our friends in the Yukon.
All decked out in hiking gear.
We've got that saguaro surrounded:)

It's great to finally be out on the trails!

November 6, 2009

2009-11-06T22:19:00.003-05:00

We had our landline installed through Mediacom today. They arrived in the morning as promised. It's a relief to finally be able to call people and to have a number where we can be reached. Our cell phones don't have the north american long distance plan on them so we couldn't very well use them while travelling. We had a phone card that we bought over two years ago which still has minutes/units on it so we were able to use that for outgoing calls, and we could always be reached by e-mail. It's not perfect but it'll do for now.

It was a pretty relaxing day. Lise went to Curves in the morning and I -- relaxed (I said that already didn't I :-) We went out for coffee in the afternoon and then did some shopping at Safeway to fill up our cupboards and fridge. Last year we seemed to be going to the grocery stores just about every day. This time around we are planning ahead a little bit more so we can avoid a repeat of that.

George, the Activity Director asked me to look after the Wednesday trail hikes until the regular hiking leaders arrive at the park. Sounds like fun. At the start of the year the hikes will be fairly easy but will still take two or three hours to complete. I'm looking forward to getting out on the trails and getting some proper exercise again.

We decided to pass on the Happy Hour tonight and just stay home and have a quiet dinner. While I was out BBQing I noticed the sunset so took this picture for posterity.

November 5 and 6, 2009

2009-11-06T10:14:00.002-05:00

We were up very early yesterday morning. I think we were both excited to get things going. It's funny how easily you fall into your routines again. You'd think every day is always around 90 F with a calm wind and the sun shining.

Lise was busy on the inside of the coach getting it livable again. There was lots of cleaning and sweeping to do. I spent the morning setting up the satellite dish - which worked after making a small change to the frequency. We've had so many issues over the last few years that I wasn't too optimistic that this would be an easy fix. Thank goodness for that.

Then it was time to get the chairs and tables out, put the welcome mat down and set up our portable clothes line that we'd had made by one of our friends here a couple of years ago.

Lots of people dropped by to say hello and we got all the latest news on their summers and what's happening in the park this year. Just like getting reacquainted with family again.

On Wednesday we had found our friends Art and Linda, staying at an RV park on the Apache Trail less than two miles away. They drove their converted bus down from Whitehorse, Yukon to spend the winter here. While catching up on everybody's news we went to the Village Inn Restaurant which offers free fruit pies on Wednesday's. That, along with a good cup of coffee spent with friends was a great way to start off our time here.

I was lucky enough to get invited to be part of a golf foursome as one of the guys had been unable to make it. So I already have an 18-hole game under my belt. And the cost was only $12.95!! Too bad that special is now ended. It was 90 F out on the course and no shade to speak of so we were all pretty beat by the end of it. The good side of that? - I slept like a log last night. Yay.

November 4, 2009

2009-11-04T20:36:00.005-05:00

We woke up to a very cold morning yesterday, in Gallup, NM. I don't know the temperature but there was ice on most of the vehicle windshields in the park. During the night our heat pump was working a bit and in the early morning it was making a funny sound so I turned it off. I tried to turn on the propane furnace for the living room and it wasn't working either, although the one in the bedroom worked. Now what!:-) Anyway I checked out the furnace in the morning and found a wire had come loose. Once that was determined we were back to the races. And today, Wednesday, I was able to confirm that the heat pump/air conditioner was working again. So one more problem resolved. I like these easy fixes. The heat pump was probably trying to cycle down to propane which it does when it is too cold to work efficiently, and that's the wierd sound I heard.

We decided to head straight to Flagstaff on I-40 and then down I-17 to Phoenix; we were going to take another route through Show Low and Payson but decided this route would probably be faster and less work for the RV. We were right. We arrived at the Flying J in Phoenix at 3:00 and hung out there for a couple of hours, after gassing up and filling our propane tank. We wanted to arrive at Meridian RV Park late enough that we could just park in their entryway and pull into our site on Wednesday, which is just what we did.

The weather here has been great - I think it hit about 98 F yesterday and probably in the mid 90s today. Great!! It was worth getting here a day earlier after all.

Entering AZ on the I-40

a few different modes of transportation

seems a little smokey from forest fires; south of Flagstaff

brief stop at overlook near Sedona turnoff

November 2, 2009

2009-11-02T22:18:00.004-05:00

Today we decided to push on a little further than usual. Rather than taking another 4 days to get to Phoenix we've cut it down to two. So after putting in 421 miles today we have arrived at USA RV Park in Gallop, New Mexico. It is just 16 miles from the Arizona border so we'll be able to drive straight through to Apache Junction tomorrow. The plan is to go as far as Holbrook on I-40 and then south to Show Low, west to Payson and then a southerly run into the Phoenix area.

The weather was the same as yesterday - that's what we heard for most of last winter "today is sunny and warm":)

It felt good to put on the extra few miles. We have been talking about that for the last week now and next year we'll try to make the trip in 6 or 7 days rather than the 11 to 12 that we're doing now. It will also buy us more usable time to plan special trips at either end, such as going back to Utah again, but this time for a week.

Here are a couple of pictures from today's trip.

Our satellite dish is not working properly today so we had to hook into the campground wi-fi which was available for free, thank goodness. Now after posting this blog perhaps I can find out how my Yankees are doing. I never thought I'd hear myself saying that! But they are in the AL East so I at least have to root for that don't I?

November 1, 2009

2009-11-01T19:51:00.004-05:00

Today was a beautiful day for travelling. We saw many RVs on the road, most heading west, of course. The sky was totally blue from horizon to horizon. It was also warm, at least 71 F. I wore shorts for the first time too :)

Western Oklahoma and Northern Texas are fairly flat
Wind Turbines taking advantage of the windy conditions

We travelled 272 miles today. Our campground is Oasis RV Resort on the west side of Amarillo, Texas. It is spacious, has concrete pads for the RV, free laundry, is level and doesn't have any real trees. Some people prefer a treed area; we like open skies so we can make sure our internet and tv work properly. At this park we would have had free internet and cable if we wanted it so, all in all, a great park for a quick stopover. We met some people that will be spending the winter at that park so the winter weather must be bearable at this latitude.

Tomorrow we will travel to Albuquerque and probably stay at the Flying J.

October 31, 2009

2009-10-31T20:34:00.002-04:00

We decided to stay an extra day here since the weather was nice and we wanted to see the National Cowboy Museum again. We last visited it in 2005 when we were on our two-month motorcycle trip. The exhibits change frequently so we weren't worried about seeing all the same things over again.

We arrived at the museum at about 9:45; it was pretty quiet for a Saturday. We both spent a lot more time this time around reading all the little stories that accompanied the exhibits or art work. It was very fascinating. We wandered through a miriad of rooms - it was almost like a maze. At lunch time we had been there over two hours and still hadn't got out of the first two main rooms! We stopped for lunch at the Persimmon Hill Restaurant in the Museum. The food was very tasty, well-presented and reasonably priced.

We spent the next 3 hours seeing the rest of the museum and then headed back to our RV for a rest. That's a long time to spend on one's feet and I know I took lots of opportunities to sit on the benches provided.

Walter Brennan, of course:-)

Such a realistic statue!

The End of the Trail - 18 feet tall

Tomorrow we will be on the road again. We expect to be in a RV Park in Amarillo, Texas or, if we don't want to do that we might stay overnight at the Flying J in Amarillo. I don't think we would have a repeat of our experience a couple of nights ago, and our motorhome is set up to be self-sufficient, at least for a few days.

October 30, 2009

2009-10-30T18:52:00.003-04:00

The sun was shining all day today but it was frigid! At least we didn't have the full force of the cold front that Colorado and Utah experienced. But we still wore gloves and were layered up pretty good:-)

We left for the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum. It was less than 10 miles from the park and easy to drive to. We looked around at the outside memorial area for a short time but the weather was so cold it forced us into the museum right away. The museum was a very complete and well-presented depiction of the bombing of the Murrah building and the tragic loss of life and the stories of those who survived. It also dealt with the criminal investigation and the subsequent trials. We were very moved by the magnitude of the event, and by peoples' stories. It brings home the whole concept that this could happen anywhere on the globe. It puts it right in your own back yard. The images will be with us for a long time.

We took some pictures of the outside memorial.
This is the 9:01am gate (depicting when everything was normal)
chairs representing the 168 dead (the bomb went off at 9:02)

The 9:03 gate (everything is forever changed)

October 29, 2009

2009-10-29T19:44:00.002-04:00

We weren't in a hurry this morning but we were still on the road by 8:30. I think we wanted to get out of that park and on the road again. It was quite windy while we were travelling and we got into a couple of pretty heavy rainfalls with occasional lightning. At one point we had to pull into a gas station to wait out the rain.

At 1:00 we arrived at a very nice campground in the middle of Oklahoma City. The rates were pretty cheap at $29.00 per night. So we think we'll stay here for about 3 nights and use the time to see the sites. We're particularly interested in seeing the Oklahoma City Memorial and National Museum representing the 1995 terrorist bombing.

We went out for dinner tonight at Olive Garden. It was a nice change but I for one ate too much. I'm going to have to get used to the fact that I can eat better at home - and get smaller portions!

Today we travelled 189 miles.

October 27 to 28, 2009

2009-10-28T18:36:00.004-04:00

We have had to rethink our plans a little bit. The trip to Branson is off; we would have to dig too deep into our travelling money for that little side trip, especially if we attended a show. So, we decided to continue on Hwy 44 and to stay at Flying J at Joplin Missouri instead. -- What an experience that was!! We've been noticing that our Electrical Management System has been indicating 'low battery'. I should have paid more attention. It turns out our house batteries were nearly dead and wouldn't even provide enough power to activate the fridge while we were boondocking at the Flying J parking lot, even though we had the fridge on propane. We actually lost all our power and had to spend the evening without heat and light and we couldn't access our fresh water tank either. Fortunately the chassis batteries are separate from the house batteries and we had no problem starting the RV the next day. But even when we were driving down the highway we couldn't charge the batteries and we weren't even able to operate the radio after a while. I never knew the house batteries affected so much of the operation of the RV.

We found a Service Outlet at Cabin, Oklahoma, on Hwy 69. They were able to change the four batteries (they were fried) for us and we were on our way by mid afternoon. Fortunately our stop today was only about 90 miles from the Flying J gas station so it didn't matter that we spent a lot of time getting our service done. Actually we have been fairly fortunate in our dealings with service companies lately. I certainly have no complaints.

The Service Outlet had an RV Park in the back and let us plug in there until our appointment so that we could run the fridge and not risk spoiling our food.

This is a picture out the window of our view. (I think Lise wants to drive :) )

We made it to the Will Rogers RV Park, near Tulsa, OK, except it is now a KOA. We chose this stop on the advice of a friend and we had hoped to see some horse racing, but it turns out they only have the racing there from February to May. So, instead of staying here for two nights we'll be on the road again tomorrow morning. Next stop, Oklahoma City.

October 26, 2009 Indiana, Illinois and Missouri

2009-10-26T20:59:00.002-04:00

We didn't leave too early this morning so as not to get caught up in rush hour traffic heading into Indianapolis. I started out the day in shorts and then realized it was a little premature. It isn't that warm yet :-) No hurry; it'll be plenty warm soon enough.

The plan today was to drive to a park just west of St. Louis, Missouri. The weather was good and the traffic was quite light. We did have a bit of excitement going through St. Louis as I hadn't checked the maps well enough. We missed the turnoff for I-44 and headed up through St. Louis towards Kansas City before Lise was able to navigate us back on course. It probably added an extra half hour to our trip but it's not like we're on a schedule!

It looks like we'll make a little side trip to Branson, MO for a couple of days to check out the entertainment there. We visited Branson a few years ago on our motorcycle trip and have always wanted to go back.

We travelled 335 miles today.

October 23 to 25, 2009

2009-10-25T21:26:00.002-04:00

We spent two nights in Kingston, basically to kick back and do nothing. We've been so busy lately that I think both Lise and I needed to lose some of that stress and tension. We met our in-laws, Richard and Barb Salter, who were staying at the RV Park prior to heading back to Ottawa tomorrow or Tuesday.

On Saturday we drove through Toronto without too much trouble. It was quite windy but it didn't bother us too much. We actually arrived at the Flying J at London pretty early in the day and decided to continue on to an RV park in Wyoming, Ontario, just short of the US Border.

Today we had a fairly uneventful stop at the border. The customs agent came into the rig to look around and check out our cupboards and fridge. Otherwise, pretty straightforward and we were through the border in about 5 minutes.

We had planned to stop at Angola in Indiana, but again we were there too early. We had miscalculated the distance; so we kept on going and were lucky enough to find a campground just north of Indianapolis. We are at GloWood Campground at South Pendleton, Indiana. It is not always easy to find a campground if the one you have planned on is not available for some reason. The signage is pretty skimpy and even if you see a sign there is the possibility that they don't cater to big rigs. I would hate to drive into one of those places and have to try to turn around after. We always plan our stops ahead of time, using the internet, Microsoft Streets and Trails mapping, and Woodall's - which provides information on camping in North America (I rely on that a lot!). Anyway this place is just fine, the park management are friendly and we have our internet connection so we can get updated on things.

We might have to slow down a bit. We are going to get to our home park too early at this rate. We'll see how it goes over the next few days. We travelled 390 miles today.

October 22, 2009

2009-10-22T14:16:00.002-04:00

We're finally on the road! Over the last two weeks we've been quite busy doing all the things you have to do when preparing for a long trip. We make lists to help remind us what needs doing and then checking off once an item is complete. It seems like every time we completed a list a new one was started. Overall though, everything went pretty well and we were able to get on the road at 10:00 this morning.

It was drizzly for part of the trip but started drying out when we hit the 401. Our first day was short, just a 2 1/2 hour trip to Kingston for a two-day stay at Rideau Acres. We'll probably head to London, Ontario on Saturday and overnight at the Flying J before crossing the border at Sarnia on Sunday morning.

It's nice to finally have 50 amp service at a campground. Our campground near Rockland only has 30 amps for seasonals. It's not a big deal but now we can run the heater, microwave, hot water and vacuum cleaner at the same time:-)

It is a little warmer in Kingston, about 13 degrees celcius. I'm hoping for better than that though over the next two weeks!!

October 3 to 14, 2009

2009-10-14T19:41:00.003-04:00

We received some pictures from a photo session our son and daughter-in-law had done while we were still in Chilliwack. There are lots of great pictures and they will be great memories for us.

David and I sharing a quiet moment

Dylan seems to like being held by Grandma

Adam, Leah, David and Dylan

We've had a pretty good last two weeks. There has been lots to do getting ready for our big trip back to Arizona. We've had some issues with the car that have been fixed and we had an issue with the propane furnace in the motorhome that has also been fixed. Both times the fix was fairly easy so, in the end no big problem. The furnace issue turned out to be a fried control board and the RV repair shop happened to have the part and even though they were booked up for the next few weeks they managed to fit us in and make the repair on the same day I went in to see them. Of course it meant packing the motorhome up getting it ready for travel; whenever we have to move it requires a lot of work changing our house back into a vehicle - things have to be put away and properly stowed so they won't break or cause any other distractions. We're getting pretty good at it now.

There will be a big rush to do our food shopping over the next few days, picking up items we like that aren't available in the south. We'll also be getting our insurance in order, arranging our electrical hookup and phone connection in Arizona, and saying our final goodbye's to friends and family.

The campground is starting to empty. Most of the seasonals will be leaving next week, some going to Florida, some to Texas and some to Arizona. Hopefully the weather improves by then. It will be minus 5 celcius tonight; we are wondering why we're still here. Oh well, it won't be long now. The countdown has begun!

June 11 to October 2, 2009

2009-10-02T16:11:00.002-04:00

It has been quite a while since our last post! We are still at the same campground just outside of Ottawa, and will be here for a few more weeks - then it will be time to head back to Arizona again for the winter. :)

June, July and most of August was pretty depressing, weather wise. It rained for most of the month of July and that certainly put a damper on most of our outdoor activities. But September was a good month so that was ok.

June was spent visiting with family, seeing to doctor and dentist appointments and just settling into our daily routine.

On July 1st we visited Petrie Island at the east end of Ottawa for Canada Day activities. This is a picture of our grandson Liam on a ride at the Canada Day festival.

We also took the motorhome to Kingston for the weekend and our daughter Renee, her husband Marc and our grandson Liam came along with us. It was the first opportunity we have had to take them on a trip with us to enjoy the motorhome lifestyle. Marc and I also got some great golf in at a super golf course in Kingston.
Lise went to see the musical Grease at the NAC in Ottawa with her sisters. Sounds like it was entertaining. The American Idol winner from a couple of years ago - Taylor Hicks - had a part in it as well.
We went to Toronto twice in August - the first time to see a Toronto Blue Jays baseball game. Renee, Marc and Liam went as well. We stayed two nights and also went out for dinner with my brother and sister and their spouses. That was special as we don't get to see them very often. Our second visit was to attend the musical - Jersey Boys, the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. It was a great show and the music was brilliant. I find myself humming the songs all the time now, even a month later.

September we travelled to Chilliwack, BC by air and visited with our son Adam, his wife Leah and our grandchildren David and Dylan. The last time we had seem them was last year when we were parking our motorhome in Chilliwack prior to heading south for the winter.
Here is Adam holding Dylan at the pool. We are celebrating David's birthday.

Here is David, taking skating lessons.

And here is another one of Dylan I couldn't resist putting in. He's so outgoing and smiley. He's great to be around and we certainly had a geat time visiting with them over the two weeks we were there. We are thinking of visiting them again in the spring.

Now it is time to start making our lists of things to do before we head south. The first thing on my list was to get this blog updated. I'm happy to have one thing completed anyway. I think the next three weeks are going to go quickly. We will probably be heading to Kingston (Rideau Acres) for a few days before we cross the border on the 28th.

May 12 to June 10, 2009

2009-06-10T09:45:00.004-04:00

We haven't had much opportunity to update people on our activities lately. Since we have arrived back in the Ottawa area it has been like coming home and we've spent a lot of time with family. So, it is a fairly predictable routine and probably not worth writing about. I'll still try to give updates, just not as frequent. When it is time to head back south I'm sure we'll have more to write about :-)

We did go biking along the NCC Parkway early in May, in one of the few days with nice enough weather to really appreciate the experience. This is a picture along the trail, with the River in the background.

We thought it would be fun to take our grandson out on a geocaching experience. The weather wasn't the best but we dressed warmly, even wearing gloves to keep our hands warm - that was about the middle of May! Anyway, he really enjoyed himself. We travelled around to three or four caches and found every one. I'm sure we'll do that again before the summer is out.
Liam was responsible for the camera and carrying the GPS
Last week we drove our bikes along the path next to the Rideau River. We ended up at its confluence with the Ottawa River, just down the street from the Prime Minister's residence and the residence of the Governor General of Canada. The plaque in the picture is a three-dimensional representation of the Rideau and Ottawa River and nearby buildings, including the Parliament buildings. All in all it was a nice ride, about 14 miles round trip (from where we left the car). This is the same bicycle path that Lise used to travel on with her bicycle when she was a teenager. Must have brought back memories.

We moved from one site to another in the campground a couple of weeks ago. We weren't getting a very good TV signal on our satellite dish and we couldn't go knocking down trees. The site we are in now has perfect southern exposure for signal reception but is not as long and our motorhome barely fits on it. But we like it and the other day we built, with the help of friends and neighbours in the park, a floating deck 8' x 16' so we wouldn't have to have our chairs and bar-b-que on the grass. Since we expect to be coming back here every year we thought it was a good investment. It was fun to do too, since I haven't done much building and my friends in the park helped make it an enjoyable experience. My back is still sore though from all that bending over. We built it in two 8x8 sections and then fastened them together so that, if we ever decide to find a different site we can either move the deck with us, or sell it.

May 2 to 11, 2009

2009-05-11T17:14:00.004-04:00

Where does all the time go. Here we are, already at May 11th! We have hardly been at home since we arrived. We did briefly meet with Sandra and Gordon whose blogs we have been following for a couple of years now. I thought it would be nice to sit down with them and share stories, but there has been no time. Maybe sometime soon.

I did pick up my motorcycle so that was a super happy day. The weather has not been too cooperative recently so it has just sat there waiting to go out and play. I guess I'm just a warm and sunny weather kind of guy:-) I did take it for a spin today as it finally warmed up a bit. Tonight is supposed to go down to 1 degree celcius (34 F?). It's hard to imagine freezing temperatures at this time of year. I'm sure it won't last.

Tonight is only the second evening we are actually going to have dinner at home. We've gone out to dinner at restaurants so much lately I think we're getting sick of them (restaurants, that is!). There have been a lot of birthdays in the family and that usually means picking a favourite place for dinner. Also, we've spent quite a few nights at our daughter and son-in-laws for dinner and socializing. Of course we like to do that so I won't complain any further.

I played some golf the other day, my first time since leaving Apache Junction. I can't believe how much I've forgotten in just a few weeks. In addition, it rained for most of the last 9 holes and put quite a damper on our spirits. However, like one of my friends always likes to say - a bad day of golf is so much better than any day of work.

April 27 to May 1, 2009

2009-05-01T08:20:00.003-04:00

Tuesday was our travel day. We drove first to Sicard Holiday Trailers to get some minor work done on the rig. Our appointment was for 1:00 and by 4:00 we were on the road. Of course, that meant driving on the 401 during rush hour! Traffic moved fairly well so it was no worse than in previous years. Since we started travelling so late we decided to just travel to Napanee and stay in a Flying J overnight. We arrived there about 8:00 pm and there were lots of parking spaces for RVs so we were all set. Unfortunately we couldn't get our satellite dish to work properly so no blog :)

We were anxious to get to Ottawa so were on the road by 8:00 am. The weather was good and traffic was light. We stopped for coffee and bagel at a nice shop in an outside mall, across the street fromPlace D'Orleans, next to Hwy. 174. Kettleman's - nice place. We'll have to go there again. They make their bagels right there and they looked so good we bought some. They were :-).

We arrived at Recreationland around noon. Our site was available for us so we were able to park right away. Unfortunately somebody had been in that site earlier and got stuck when leaving and tore up the grassy area around our site pretty good. It looks awful. Not sure if that's going to get fixed any better. Will have to look into it further.

After spending the morning on Thursday cleaning the rig and setting things up on the outside, we went off to visit family. That will be a fulltime occupation for the next little while as we immerse ourselves back into quality family time.

Today is our laundry day so we won't feel like we're so rushed, for a little while anyway. I expect we'll be visiting family again before the day is over. Anyway, I have to pick up our motorcycle gear as I'm anxious to pick up my motorcycle. We've stored it at a Honda dealer in Embrun and they've already safety'd it, done an oil change and put on a new front tire. So, there are no excuses. I think I'll have it out by tomorrow if not by today.

Two days rest

2009-04-26T15:25:00.002-04:00

The storm passed through London, Ontario yesterday while we were there. The winds were pretty severe; made me glad we decided not to travel any farther than the Flying J because we had thought we'd go all the way to the campground south of Hamilton. We never would have made it in time and would have been caught up in the weather. Thank goodness!

There was a lightning strike right on top of us and it knocked the gas pumps out at the gas station. They still didn't have them fixed by the time we left the next morning. While we were there we started thinking about the cost of fuel and concluded that, with the cost of exchange, the price of diesel fuel in Canada was just about the same as the U.S. Last year there was a benefit to us while we were in the states as our dollar was closer to par so the cheaper (relatively) fuel there did save us some money.

Today we travelled to Fifty Point Campground. It only took about an hour and a half. What a treat after the last few days. Our mileage since getting past the Rockies has been very good, about 9.5 miles per gallon. For a 40 foot diesel pusher that's not bad.

We'll stay here now until Tuesday when we have an appointment at Sicard RV to get some work done. Then, if all goes well, it's off to Ottawa. Perhaps we will be there by Wednesday? Who knows.

April 20 to 25, 2009

2009-04-25T15:38:00.007-04:00

Finally, back on line! We got our satellite dish replaced which was nice. All because of a broken bushing! The guys worked on it all day Tuesday in Salt Lake City. We had spent the previous night in their parking lot so we could be ready for them without having to fight morning traffic. Once we had the dish working we then had to get back on the right satellite. The Moto Sat guys didn't do that; that would be our original installer. It was complicated by technical problems with our browser - Internet Explorer. It took a few days to figure out a fix and we finally got recommissioned on our satellite last night. So, here we are :-)

On Monday we travelled from St. George (we were sad to leave such a beautiful place) to Salt Lake City. We went from about 4300 feet elevation to over 7000 feet by the time we reached SLC. As a result our gas mileage was only about 6 1/2 miles per gallon. But the views were great, as usual, and we have some pictures as proof:-)

Still in the valley out of St. George

Starting to see some snow up high

Up in the high country

our rig with mountains as a backdrop

After we left Salt Lake City we travelled about 450 miles a day. Our first stop was Rock Springs, Wyoming. We stayed at a Flying J Travel Centre that night. No problem but trucks with motors running make for poor sleeping arrangements. On the way to Rock Springs we reached elevations over 10,000 feet before starting to drop down out of the Rocky Mountains.

This is a picture from the high country

We stopped at North Platte, Nebraska on Wednesday and stayed at a RV campground there. Not much to report - just a long day on the road. On Thursday we stopped at Newton, Iowa at a campground there (Rolling Acres Campground). After checking in we heard someone welcoming us Canadians to the park. We thought it was just someone else from Canada but it turned out to be Don and Lola Teater from our winter park in Apache Junction. What a coincidence! They are working there for the summer. We visited with them for a bit and got caught up on each others' news. It was great to see them. It is just amazing how often you can run across people you know in this life style.

Yesterday we stopped at Holland, Michigan. That is definitely a place we'd like to visit again. Lots of Dutch history and it seems to be a vacation paradise. We had to pass just south of Chicago. That was very stressful. Traffic was very busy and there were loads of trucks on the road. We needed a rest break after passing through that area.

Looks busy, doesn't it?We made it all the way to Canada today. We are spending the evening at a Flying J in London, Ontario. It is very windy and a storm is just about upon us. So I'll get this posted before we lose our signal.

April 19, 2009

2009-04-19T22:01:00.004-04:00

This is about the third day we have woken up around 7:30. We don't seem to have gotten used to the time change yet. Breakfast at Denny's today. We like to eat out about once a week and Denny's is pretty good. The weather is warm and sunny again, with a high in the low 80s. We took our bikes down to the Virgin River and found a trailhead where we could bike along the river. It was a paved path and didn't have too many people on it. We only biked about 15 miles but that was enough. After lunch we drove about a bit seeing the sites of St. George and then headed through Snow Valley State Park.

We headed back home at 4:00 and did our laundry for the week and had another light supper. Tomorrow we'll be heading to Salt Lake City, a distance of about 300 miles, where we hope to get our satellite dish repaired. I think we'd better set the alarm clock :-)

St. George has been a neat town to visit; it seems quite affluent and there don't seem to be many houses for sale - not like in other cities we've visited. There is lots to do here and in the surrounding area. We would like to come back this way again and take more time to explore the area, particularly the National Parks nearby.

Today is picture day

2009-04-18T22:35:00.002-04:00

Today we got up early and had a quick breakfast so we could head out to Zion National Park again. We thought we would beat the crowds but the parking lot was nearly full again, and we were at least an hour earlier. Must be because it's the weekend.

After perusing the information sheets and assessing the hiking possibilities for hikes we thought we could do, we decided on Angel's Landing - a strenuous hike, about 5 miles round trip and 4 hours walking time. We weren't too sure about it, especially when the writeup indicated: 'long drop-offs and narrow trail, and not for anyone fearful of heights. At any rate we decided to try it and go as far as we could. The elevation change was listed as 1488 feet.

The trail up to the Scout Lookout was wide and easy to walk up, but it was very steep and had many switch backs. When we got to the top of the first ridge we had a look at the next part, which was about .5 miles long and decided that was enough for us. There were a lot of people on this hike - some continued on but many decided as we did and made that their turnaround spot.

Looking back on the trail from part way up the mountain.

Looking south down Zion Canyon from our stopping point

A different angle! Does that give you a good idea of how high we were

This is the final leg up to Angel's Landing. It's pretty narrow

After our hike we took the shuttle back down to the Court of the Patriarchs. It is a mountain range consisting of three majestic white mountains given Old Testament names of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They best represent the majesty of the mountains we've been travelling through in the Park.

The Court of the Patriarchs

We took a little drive up Hwy 9 to see and drive through the mile-long tunnel we'd heard about. This feature looked a lot like a bridge.

By the time we'd done all this it was almost 4:00 and we had to head back home for supper. There's a grocery store close to the campground so we headed over to buy some items for supper and called it a day.

Zion Canyon

2009-04-17T21:58:00.003-04:00

Today has been another great day! We didn't get up early, as we had planned; I think it was because of the time change. So, after a leisurely breakfast and time spent making snacks for our trip, we headed out to Zion National Park. It was about 40 miles away. The scenery in this State is fantastic, a beautiful vista whichever way you look. We took pictures but we've only posted this first one. This was taken as we were driving down Highway 9 toward the Park.

We arrived at the Park a little after 10:00 am. For a Friday morning, and the fact that it is still early in the season, there were lots of people heading in the same direction as us. There were a lot of familes and every family seemed to have at least 4 kids. What's up with that? The parking lot was pretty well full when we arrived. The park entry fee is $25.00 per car and is good for 7 days. Naturally we'll be coming back at least once more before we head to Salt Lake City :-)

The Zion Canyon road can only be traversed by shuttle bus, but that's a great way to get around. We took the shuttle to the far end of the road, a distance of about 8 miles. The shuttle is free and you can get on and off at any of the designated stops, which are usually coordinated with trailheads or viewpoints.

The views were breathtaking and I hope some of our pictures can do it justice and give you a flavour of the size and variety of formations.
Underneath a waterfall on the way to the Emerald Pools

The upper Emerald Pool

I couldn't get a picture that would pan all the way up the rock face and still keep Lise in the picture - someday that slab will break away This is at a wider part of the Canyon
We went on two moderate hikes on this trip. We are planning on going back tomorrow and trying a harder hike - Angels Landing. It is 5 miles roundtrip and takes about 4 hours.

April 7 to 16, 2009

2009-04-16T23:18:00.003-04:00

Last week at this time we were happily getting ready for a leisurely trip back to Ottawa, following I-40 and heading in a fairly direct easterly routing. Unfortunately, that was not to be. We were having some problems with our satellite dish and found that the only way to get it fixed was to visit the head office of Moto Sat in Salt Lake City, Utah, directly north of Phoenix about 650 miles. So here we are tonight in St. George, Utah where we'll be spending the next 4 or 5 days as we can't get an appointment at the company until next Tuesday.

We spent last night at Sam's Town RV Park in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was a fairly windy day and the road had lots of elevation changes so I'm sure we didn't get great mileage. It was about 6:30 when we arrived. It's a good thing we got into town when we did as it got dark quickly after that. I don't like having to set up in a strange park at night. As it was it was too late to make supper in the rig so we visited the Casino next door and had supper there.

Today we only travelled 120 miles but we went through some pretty country. We passed through Virgin River Canyon as we travelled through Nevada, Arizona and Utah in about a 30 mile stretch. The Canyon was a remarkable combination of nature and engineering skill.

Really, this seems like a bit of a downer but we are actually pretty pleased how everything has worked out. We are about 30 miles from Zion National Park and expect to visit it at least two of the next four days. We had hoped to visit parts of Utah this winter and decided we couldn't afford it. Well, here we are! Also, there are great bike trails in St. George and we'll likely try those out as well. Every cloud has a silver lining :-)

This is a picture of the highway between Las Vegas, Nevada as we were heading towards St. George. There was some pretty extreme weather around Salt Lake City and this was the southern edge of that system.

When we were going through this Pass (Virgin River Canyon) it looked like we were heading right into the mountain.The view out of our front window at the RV park in St. George. A Mormon Temple framed by snow covered mountains.

March 30 to April 6, 2009

2009-04-06T22:46:00.004-04:00

We're still here. Our days are much quieter lately. We've been out biking, playing golf and Lise went out hiking one last time. They heard, but didn't see, a rattlesnake when they were on the way back so now, for sure, the hiking season is over - at least here! The following pictures are from the hike.
standing among typical Arizona desert vegetation
A motley crew (n'est-ce, pas?)

There was a well-attended happy hour in the north end of the park on Monday. There must have been over 60 people sitting in lawn chairs enjoying food and camaraderie in the last big event of the season. The food was great too, people really outdid themselves for this event.

We travelled to Payson on Sunday, about 70 miles north of Phoenix and the route we're going to be travelling when we leave next week. It was a nice day and we were just looking for something to do. There are lots of hills on this road; it reminds me of travelling in B.C. on some of the highways there, particularly north of Hope.

We keep looking for things to put away but it's really too early to do too much. I guess we're getting anxious to leave, since we've been watching all our friends leave over the last few weeks. Really, though, it's still too cold in the north so we just have to be patient. We'll be wearing long pants and sweaters or jackets before too long now :-)

March 25 to 29, 2009

2009-03-29T22:26:00.003-04:00

We've been out on a couple of bicycle rides since the last posting. We need to keep somewhat active as things are sure a lot quieter lately. Today we took a short ride toward Gold Canyon, east of Apache Junction. It was just the two of us and we took our time and enjoyed just being outside. The weather was warm enough, about 80 degrees farenheit, and the route was a mix of pavement and gravel on streets adjacent to the Superstition Mountains. Here are a couple of pictures from today:

cactus in bloom

Superstition Mountains in the background

There are starting to be a lot of flowers on the cactus. We should go out specifically to get some pictures before we leave the sunny south for the summer. You'll notice I use a lot of pictures of Lise as her pictures somehow always turn out better; not sure why that is :-)

We may be going on a hike next week. We'll see. It is supposed to be in the high hills and therefore not likely to involve interaction with snakes. Time to get our hiking boots back out, I guess.

The Mesa Market that has been open on weekends all winter is closing for the season. Today was the last day. There were a large number of people walking around the tents looking for bargains, us included. I just like going to people watch. We don't usually spend much money there.

There have been a couple of happy hours this week which we have attended. We basically decided not to go to too many this year as we end up eating too much and the ingredients are not always the healthiest. That doesn't mean it doesn't taste good, it's just that the food is inconsistent with our current dietary habits. But this week we have decided to attend them as it may be the last opportunity to see some of the friends we've made while we've been here. I think many others felt the same way as a lot of people showed up.

We've been tweaking our trip map a little bit and may decide to take a route that stays off the Interstate highways a bit more. We compare notes with friends in the park that travel in the same general direction as us and get ideas that way. Looks like we might be going through Dodge City, Kansas now. That should be fun. Hopefully we can stop long enough to look around a bit.

Got to sit down now and watch the rest of the Juno Awards (Canadian Music Awards). Will post again soon.

March 17 to 24, 2009

2009-03-24T16:17:00.003-04:00

Life is starting to slow down for us again. People are starting to leave the park and head home, at various speeds, to their summer locations. It's still pretty cold in some parts of the country. Two couples that we spent a lot of time with this winter have hit the road today and are heading back to their Canadian homes.

With everyone leaving, there are not as many organized activities to participate in. There is still lots to keep us busy, however. We attended a Chicago Cubs baseball game on Friday. It was very hot and our seats didn't have any shade. Then on Saturday we experienced the opposite end of the spectrum by attending a Phoenix Coyotes/Vancouver Canucks hockey game. We wore warm clothing and it was still cold! Some people actually went wearing shorts. Not this guy. The game was exciting though - if you like onesided games. Vancouver showed up on paper but that's all. Phoenix played very well and executed some pretty good playmaking. Plus, we saw that shot that's probably on all the highlight reels this week - when Phoenix was getting a penalty and Vancouver put the goal in their own net, from the blue line; and the goal scorer was the same person that got the penalty for Phoenix.

We've stopped hiking as there are too many snakes around; the weather this year has been anywhere from 10 to 20 degrees warmer than average, and as a result the snakes are out earlier. We will still bike though, and will find other things to keep us busy.

We've been planning our route home. So far it looks like we'll travel along the I-40 to Oklahoma City and then up I-44 and I-70 to Indianapolis, then northward towards Sarnia where we expect to cross into Canada. We'll visit Sicard in Hamilton (where we bought our motorhome) for some maintenance, and Tech Mobile in Lindsay to check out our satellite dish. After that we'll visit family in the Toronto area and then head to Ottawa for the summer. We'll be staying at Recreationland just outside of Rockland, Ontario. We'll finally get to meet Sandra and Gordon whose blog we've been following for a couple of years now. Sandra's blog is http://srmerrikinblog.blogspot.com/ .

A dear friend of ours, who we met and got to know in Whitehorse, Yukon, passed last week. Joyce Hayden was a remarkable woman, a strong women's rights activist, and a great person. She'll be missed. Our deepest sympathies go out to Earle and family members.

March 8 to 16, 2009

2009-03-16T12:47:00.004-04:00

This is like a 'set-aside some time to do necessary stuff ' day. Lise has been working on our taxes and on those of family members. It is amazing how we can do this while travelling far from our home base. The technical tools available make it so easy - as long as we get all our mail on time!

Lise and I golfed on Sunday, March 8th. I enjoy being able to golf together. It is certainly fun with my regular golfing buddies as well, but it's nice to see that Lise seems to be picking the game up and enjoying it. On Monday, I backed out of an impromptu hike up the Dutchman Trail, off the Peralta trailhead. I had a scheduled golf game with our group from the park and I didn't want to miss that. So, Lise enjoyed the hike - and provided some pictures, while I knocked that old ball around once again :-)

Tuesday was spent running from one thing to another. I golfed, Lise practiced her violin, and then went to her lesson, and after dinner we participated in a 'Canada/USA darts tournament made up of people in our park. That was a lot of fun! There were 12 people for each side so we made 3 groups of four per side and had a round-robin tournament. Canada ended up winning by capturing the last game to break a tie (3/3). Everyone enjoyed it and it's another example of the things we do here in the park to generate some fun!

Wednesday and Saturday we went for a bike ride along our usual bike path. It takes over half an hour to get there but it's well worth it. Our total for the two days was 52 miles. One thing is for sure, it helps you sleep well at night. We need the recovery time.

Thursday was another day of conflicting activities. I had golf, of course, and there was a hike scheduled along the Arizona Trail. Lise went on the hike, I golfed, and then drove the hour out to the trail and caught up with the hikers at the spot they stopped to have lunch. It's a little more nerve racking at this time of year, with the weather being so hot, as we have to watch out for rattle snakes. Lise and I had brought our walkie talkies so I was able to find out how far ahead they were and keep in touch since it's not a great idea to be out hiking by yourself. Some of our group did see a five foot diamond back rattlesnake on the way back. It was less than 3 feet from the trail when they noticed it (heard it's rattle), but it slithered away. Unfortunately (or fortunately :-) ) we didn't get to see it as we had already passed by that area and were quite a ways ahead. If it was up to Lise we wouldn't have any interest in getting anywhere near any snake, let alone a rattlesnake!

Nice view - Dutchman trail picture

The (Ocotillo)cactus is starting to bloom and the flowers are coming out

The Happy Hikers :-)

Taken from the base of the cactus (Saguaro)

February 21st to March 7, 2009

2009-03-07T21:29:00.007-05:00

Wow! I can hardly believe two weeks have passed already. Who has time to blog nowadays :-)

Our friends have concluded their visit in sunny, warm Arizona and returned to the cold climate of the far north. Did I mention 'warm'? I can't remember the last time it rained. It seems every day has been sunny and warm - but who's complaining? Not me!

I never did get a picture of them while they were here to prove to folks back home that they really were enjoying the sunny south. But, I'll bet that Alma's suntan will be proof enough, right Alma? I think overall that they had a good holiday and were able to experience firsthand what winter down here is like, and the vast array (that's for Kathy to look up in the Wickepedia) of things to do here. Lise and I can both vouch for how busy we can become. With all due regard to all you people still working and stressed about how time consuming and stressful your jobs are, we can truthfully say that we are busier now than when we were working.

We've both had our fair share of golf in the last two weeks. In fact, I think it's time to slow down a bit and just golf our regular rounds. Naturally we have been out hiking - Massacre grounds last week and South Mountain (Mormon Trail) this week. Both hikes were fun and just moderately challenging which, for us, was a bit of a relief after some of our recent hikes.

We also went to see the Dutton's one evening. They are a musical family and are known for being on America's Got Talent. I believe they made it into the top ten. It was a fun evening. We went with our friends from the Yukon - actually we were their guests as a bit of a thankyou for helping them with their arrangements at this end.

We've been out biking a little more frequently lately. You can't just live on one hike a week and expect to stay in shape - or lose weight. We also went to the Cubs/Dodgers game yesterday - love watching baseball but I'd rather it was the Blue Jays :-) We also went to the annual rodeo held in Apache Junction. It was impressive, and I think the pictures captured the flavour a little bit.

Today Lise played slowpitch baseball; a fun game set up as Canadians vs Americans. We won 17 to 3. Sounds like Lise was one of the stars of the game. Some women approached her afterward and were asking if she would play baseball for them next year. Who'd have thought it!

That's it for now. Sorry I was so late in getting this out. I'll just attach some photos from our last two weeks. Cheers.

This is one of the scenic stops on our bike route

He stayed on for the full 8 seconds!
I like this one!

Lise trying to decide whether she'll get claustrophobic or not

Guess not!

This is a " enough pictures of me already" look :-)

natural tunnel about 30 feet long, caused by these fallen rocks

Feb. 14 to 20, 2009

2009-02-21T15:58:00.003-05:00

Most of Sunday was spent at the Phoenix Sky Harbor airport picking up our Yukon friends. They came in on two separate planes, one early afternoon and one early evening. Naturally both planes were running late but with easy access to flight information over the internet there wasn't much problem that way. We did put on over 140 miles going back and forth though :-) Not a problem for us, just helped fill out the day. Art's golf clubs didn't arrive with him but the airline was able to retrieve them after they were routed through Chicago and then back to Phoenix. Not bad since they were shipped from the Yukon - Huh?

We've been out to the golf courses twice so far and expect a couple of more next week before he has to leave. I was hoping we'd have some pictures of them in front of their rental RV but I haven't managed it as yet. Maybe later.

They've been enjoying the beautiful weather and it has warmed up considerably over the last two days and is now in the 80s, with the same type of weather forecast for some time to come.

Wednesday's hike was up Picket Post Mountain. Lise and I have never been up before and we knew it was a tough hike; but it was much tougher than we thought. We made it to the top though and we found the famous mail box on the top of the mountain. It was filled with letters and notes, and a journal, placed there by previous hikers. We added out names and comments and are now part of that history! We liked the hike but it was pretty tough and somewhat dangerous in places and we don't think we'll be making that climb again. We're not getting paid to do this; and we don't want to fall off somewhere and do some permanent damage. In fact, I believe this hike was harder than Flat Iron and that's saying something!

Looking up the canyon we're going to be traversing

my beautiful wife silhouetted against an awesome backdrop

This picture represents a pretty good depiction of the kind

of climb this was!

View at the top

Our motley crew of hikers surrounding the mail box

On Thursday, while Art and I were out golfing and Alma was deep into shopping mode, Lise went out on a bicycle ride with our friends Terry and Tina from the park. They drove out to Tempe and biked on the paved bicycle paths up there. They biked about 24 miles in total and stopped up for lunch at a pizza place in Scottsdale. We'd been looking for that restaurant for some time now as we'd heard it was quite good. So, next time Lise and I head up there we'll have a good place to stop for a light lunch.

Friday was going to be our rest day as we'd had a pretty busy week, but our friends Claude and Marlane, also in the park, invited us out for a hike so naturally we accepted - being gluttons for punishment. It was a much easier hike among small rolling hills and was a good way to stretch out those muscles that had been tortured on the earlier hike. We brought sandwiches so were able to have lunch while sitting on some rocks looking out over the surrounding vista. The weather was perfect, about 74 F and the hike was thoroughly enjoyable.

That's our week so far; I'm sure we'll have lots to report next time. Be well - summer isn't far off :-)

February 7 to 13, 2009

2009-02-13T21:13:00.002-05:00

Well, since our last post the weather has gotten decidedly colder. We've been enjoying a rather long warm spell of weather in the high 70s to the low 80s, which I understand is warmer than usual for this time of year. Last weekend we had a significant amount of rain and the temperatures dropped down to a daily high of about 59 early in the week. It has been gradually warming up since and today we enjoyed a balmy 65 degree day.

In spite of the weather it didn't interfere with our usual activities for the week, so all is good. On Wednesday we had a hike up Usury Mtn. to the pass, a distance of about 1.8 miles, a fairly easy hike. We had 23 people out for this particular hike. We forgot our camera back at the RV so don't have any pictures. Once we reached the pass 5 of us continued around the mountain and came back to the parking lot from a different direction. It added about another mile and a half to our hike and we didn't get back til about 2 hours later than the main group which returned on the same trail we came up on. It was fun bushwacking a different route. It took us about half an hour of traversing the hillsides before we found the trail we were looking for.

Our friends, Michel and Micheline from la belle province (Quebec) left the park on Thursday. They were heading to Texas to spend some time before continuing east. We enjoyed meeting them this year and have made new friends that we will probably meet again in the future. It's a small world when living this life style.

Our hike coordinator arranged for a late afternoon hike up Silly Mountain, just southeast of Apache Junction. It is an easy hike, offers great sunset views, and we cap it off with pizza and beer (or soda) at the Garage Restaurant - a very popular watering hole. Unfortunately the restaurant was full to overflowing so we decided to go to the pizza place across the street. They didn't sell beer but two of our group went up the road to bring back two cases of 24 for those that wanted some. Apparently the pizza place didn't have a problem with this arrangement and we had a great time before heading back to the park. There were 33 people on this hike; it was popular last year as well. I wonder why :-)

Silly Mountain as seen from the parking lot

It's an easy hike but has some steep parts

as the sun was setting behind me it cast the mountains

in a reddish hue; love these views

some of our hikers, on top of Silly Mtn.; note Superstition Mtn in background

February 2 to 6, 2009

2009-02-07T20:31:00.004-05:00

On Wednesday Lise joined the hiking group to hike up Fish Creek Canyon. It was about 3 miles round trip and considered a fairly difficult climb. But, as you can tell from these pictures, greater risk equals greater reward. The small waterfalls and the pond are like an oasis in the desert; and the mountain sheep across the pond, are all worth the effort. Naturally I was very disappointed not to have gone on that hike. But we are apparently going to try it again later in the year, so all is not lost ;-).

how great a place is this to stop for lunch -

and with uninvited, but welcome guests across the pond;
(or perhaps we're the ones that were uninvited)!

hiking isn't just walking on a trail :-)

the hiking group (they're all from our park)

I didn't go on the hike as my knee was still stiff and sore from the previous two hikes so I thought I'd rest it. So, while they were out enjoying themselves in the canyon, I rode my bicycle over 20 miles on the city streets of Apache Junction and Mesa. It was quite a bit longer than I intended to ride and I got a bit carried away. However, after I limped back to the park my recovery time was quite short so I was wimping out for nothing :-).

I think Lise had the best of it this time and I can't wait to experience that trip for myself.

On Friday, we decided to visit the Arizona - Sonora Desert Museum, near Tucson, Arizona. It was about a two hour drive, and apparently an all day event so we left fairly early. It is a zoo, natural history museum and botanical garden, all in one place. There were animals native to the area placed in enclosed, but natural desert settings. It was an enjoyable day spent walking around this 21 acre site. The highlight was a demonstration of free flight by a covy of Harris' Hawks. If I hadn't been so caught up in the demonstration, particularly when the hawks would fly right over my head, or between Lise and I at shoulder level, I would have gotten some great pictures. Can you imagine a picture of a hawk heading right toward you and about 5 feet away. What a picture that would make!!

Anyway, it was a great day and we capped it off by visiting Grimaldi's Pizza when we arrived back in the Phoenix area. They make their pizzas in coal fired brick ovens. Great pizza.

We heard from some Yukon friends yesterday (Friday). They are flying down to Phoenix next Sunday and will be renting a Class C RV for about two weeks and staying in our park. I don't know what the others will be doing but I do know there'll be lots of golf for me in the near future. Art said he hadn't been golfing since he was down visiting us last year. And, as you know, I'm not one to turn down an opportunity to get a little golf in. We're looking forward to seeing them and they're using this trip as a dry run to see if they want to spend their winters down here or in the Yukon - this needs a decision? Actually, spending winters in the Yukon isn't so bad. We've certainly spent many winters there.

Pictures from previous hike

2009-02-05T23:34:00.004-05:00

When we climbed up to the 'Flat Iron' on January 14th we didn't have any pictures from the top. Here are some pictures received from one of our friends who also hiked with us. The first picture will give you some idea of how far we climbed because the town below, Apache Junction, is where we started from - at least at that same elevation.

This is just a great picture of the area from the top. Note the hikers walking along the edge of the cliff.

This is the start of the second part of the hike. The first half of the hike is more moderate and takes us to Siphon's Draw, which is the bowl we are walking in. The hazy peak in the upper part of the picture is Flat Iron! Doesn't this look like fun :-)

Back to Normal

2009-02-02T20:34:00.002-05:00

There were 10 of us volunteered for the FBR on Sunday. We were positioned at the 16th hole and had good views of the 11th and 15th holes as well. The golf was very good but there were not a lot of well-known names left by the time Saturday and Sunday rolled around. Kenny Perry won in a playoff. We watched the finish of regulation play but then had to head back to the park to watch the Super Bowl. The Arizona Cardinals didn't look like they were going to make a game of it for a while but in the end it was a 'super' game and even though the Cardinals didn't win they definitely came to play and certainly stood a chance of pulling off a great upset.

Now that the FBR is done for this year things should get back to normal. Today was our usual Monday - golf for me, water aerobics and a 40-minute walk around the park for Lise. The weather is the same every day here. It seems to get a little bit warmer each week. The high for today was 77 F. and we're loving it.

Volunteering at the FBR

2009-01-30T23:09:00.002-05:00

On Thursday over 60 people from the Park left at 6:00 am for a 45 minute trip to the FBR Open in Scottsdale in order to volunteer for security duty at the PGA Golf Tournament. We normally work at the famous 16th hole each year, and this year was no different. There were too many of us, however, so we had to be split up for duty elsewhere. I ended up at the golf range which was rather neat as I was able to watch people like Villegas, Perez, Holmes, Weir and Couples to name just a few. It was really something to see these guys finish off their 18 hole game and go straight to the range to work on their technical elements for an hour or longer. Many of them had coaches there to help with the mechanics.

It was a good day and the crowds seemed large although the tv stations indicated that the daily crowds were down about 10,000 from last year. The weather was perfect, about 73 F with a slight breeze. I found it rather hot as I was standing out in the sun all day; there was no shade to be found where I was assigned. But, hey, who's complaining. It's not often you get an opportunity like this. A couple of us are going back on Sunday to volunteer again. This time we're assured that we will be working at the 16th. We're all hoping our day is finished early enough so we can get back to our park to catch some of the Super Bowl. Go Arizona!! :-)

Today, Friday we went to a few stores with our friends Gary and Karen. They were going to Costco and we needed some things so they kindly offered to take us as we don't have a membership. We made an obligatory stop at Camping World since we were in the neighborhood. For once we came out with only what we went for - talk about discipline!

Later on we visited a dart shop to purchase some darts. Who knew how many types there were - from soft tipped to steel tipped; different weights, different widths, many lengths of shafts, and of course the flights on the end that provide the aerodynamics. We settled for two sets at $23.00 each. There were sets that cost as much as $150 and probably more. I was starting to go cross-eyed looking at all the hardware available so figured it made more sense to get something not too expensive and see just how much we really liked this new pasttime.:-)

a friend remembered

2009-01-28T21:29:00.005-05:00

I'd like to take a moment to talk about a friend of ours, from this RV lifestyle, who passed away last week. Gerry Gnabah was just 71 years old and left behind his wife Joan of 50 years. He had developed a cold since arriving in Arizona which he couldn't shake. He went to the hospital and they diagnosed him with lung cancer. He and Joan decided he should head back to Ohio to get local medical help. Some family members flew down to help them drive their truck and 5th wheel back. While in northern Arizona Gerry had difficulty breathing and it was decided to arrange for an air ambulance to get him home. The family was required to put up $23,000 before he could be transported. Once back home the doctors determined that he had invasive cancer throughout his body and he died a few days later. It is a sad time for all, but what struck me is the unexpected costs that one can incur while enjoying this lifestyle. I thought it was important to put this down for those of you who read this blog because of an interest in traveling around the country as we do. This may be an unusual occurrence but it's certainly not unique. For Canadians, good medical coverage is imperative if we intend to travel, particularly in the States where medical costs can be excessive when compared to Canadian fee structures. Gerry will be missed.

We tried something new yesterday. A group of people in the park have started up a darts night. We tried it out for the first time last night and thoroughly enjoyed it. So I expect we'll be at the local darts store buying the necessary equipment. Apparently you can spend quite a bit of money on buying sets of darts. We hope to keep the damages to about $20.00 each. Time will tell. It will be interesting to see how practical my estimate is. I'll let you know later :-)

We've decided not to attend so many happy hours and pot lucks at the park this year. There is a tendency to eat too much, and sometimes the food choices are not the same as we would pick for ourselves if we were eating at home (our rv). We could always go out for the social aspect of it by turning up after everyone has eaten. We've had many great times sitting around the gas fireplace next to the pool area of an evening, talking with old and new friends about a wide range of topics. It's a fun time. Our son-in-laws' parents are enjoying a similar lifestyle in Florida this winter and they also really enjoy the social aspect. We're looking forward to hearing how their winter was.

Our hike today was to Hackaberry Springs, a five mile walk that was not too challenging but was picturesque. Because this was an easy hike we had 28 people show up. At times we were spread out over about a half mile. We had some new hikers that had never been out before and I think some of them found it pretty challenging; but everyone completed it and there is always a sense of fulfillment for newbies when they stretch themselves to accomplish more than they thought they were capable of.

Hackaberry Springs is at the foot of this cliff.

The views are always great as we get higher and higher

Another busy week in the Valley of the Sun

2009-01-26T20:39:00.004-05:00

We have been quite busy this week, with golf, hiking and attending other events with friends in the campground. I golfed three times this week. It sometimes seems like I can't get enough of it. The only thing that slows me down is the cost. :-) Lise started water aerobics again. She doesn't go in the pool when it is cooler but it has been in the low to mid-70s all week so it was the perfect time to get back into the routine. Even today, Tuesday, although quite a bit colder (53-55 F) she was still able to go in the pool (as long as it is not in the 40s). Also she bought a new bathing suit so that acts a bit like an incentive.

Our hike this week was up the Peralta Trail to Freemont Saddle from where you can see Weaver's Needle. This is part of the group on the way up to the saddle. We are averaging about 20 hikers on each hike.

This is a view from the saddle looking back the way we climbed.

Our hiking group with Weaver's Needle in background.

Lise has started taking violin lessons again. She was learning the fiddle when we were in New Brunswick but hasn't practiced at all since we left two years ago. A friend in the park gave her the name of a teacher in the Valley and she has had two lessons so far. I think she is glad to be back at it. It is something she really enjoys.

About 50 people from the park went to a play last week, us included. It was called The Best Little *****house in Texas - same as the movie with Dolly Parton and Burt Reynolds. It was fun and included dinner. Everyone seemed to have a good time. It played at Broadway Palms Dinner Theater.

Some of our friends wanted to check out the new light rail transit that has just started running through Phoenix and the local communities. We went along as 10 of us hopped aboard the train for a ride into the downtown core and had lunch. This is just an example of the things we come up with to keep busy around here.

Some of our friends next to the train

This is just a quick synopsis of the things that keep us busy down here. There's a lot of repetition but it's always fun to be doing things with friends - and that is the real fun of being down here (after the weather, of course).

Taking it easy today.

2009-01-16T22:51:00.002-05:00

When we got up this morning, we decided that we wouldn't do anything to strenuous today. After breakfast, David tested our water and decided it was time to add more salt to the water softener. During that time I went for a 45-minute walk around the park. Later we went out for lunch. When we got back, David headed to the pool for a short swim then stayed out by the pool to read. I sat outside on our own patio and read my book. We spent the rest of the day around the motorhome until we came in for supper.

We had another gorgeous sunny day with a high of 74F (23C) today.

We visit Kartcher Caverns.

2009-01-15T22:19:00.004-05:00

We were up at 4:45 am this morning because we were leaving at 5:30 am. We were 22 people in four vehicles heading to Kartcher Caverns State Park near Benson (south of Tucson). This is a live cavern and it is beautiful. It's Mother Nature's art gallery underground. There are stalagmites, stalactites, and other amazing formations that have taken millions of years to be created. These caverns are very much protected so that visitors do not create a lot of damage. Visitors are not allowed to bring any kind of bag, purse or camera inside the cavern.

After our tour, we headed to the town of Tombstone. By now we were about 200 miles south of Apache Junction. David and I were there in June 2005 and it hasn't changed. The main street is closed to motor vehicle traffic and all the store fronts look exactly the way you think it would have looked in the 1800s. There are a few restaurants and a lot of gift shops. Of course, this is the town where the famous 'Gunfight at the OK corral" took place. We ate lunch at one of the restaurants then headed back to Apache Junction.

Some people from our group on the boardwalk.

I think this cowboy is looking for his horse.

You can take a tour of the town in a stagecoach.

I tried to pick up this handsome cowboy...

Here we are having lunch.

A great day for hiking.

2009-01-14T21:12:00.000-05:00

We woke up to another beautiful sunny day with a forecast high of 70F (21C). Today we were hiking Siphon Draw trail in the Superstition Mountains starting from the Lost Dutchman State Park parking lot. It's only a 10-minute drive from here. A group of 22 people headed out from the park at 9:30 am. Siphon Draw trail is a 2-mile hike (one way) with a big change in elevation. Nine of us including myself went to the end of the trail and came back. The other 13 people went one mile further to the top of the mountain which is called Flat Iron. This last mile is very challenging and very risky. David was one of the 13 who climbed up. I hadn't come prepared to try it so I didn't. The elevation at the start of the trail is 2,084 feet and at the top on Flat Iron, the elevation is 4,684 feet.. a change of 2,600 feet in elevation in a distance of three miles. David forgot to take the camera with him so I don't have any pictures but we are expecting pictures from a fellow climber. I will post them when I get them.

Stopping for a short breather about 1/3 of the way up the trail.

A great view of Apache Junction and beyond.

The end of the Siphon Draw trail. Keep going straight up another mile to reach Flat Iron.

The start of the Trail (trailhead). The arrow points to Flat Iron.

It was around 2:30 pm when the group of nine were back at the parking lot. The group of 13 were back at the bottom around 5:30 pm. The resort was hosting a BBQ chicken dinner at 5 pm for which we had bought tickets. I went ahead to the dinner and it was 5:55 pm when David showed up for the dinner. He had just arrived home. After dinner, he went and sat in the hot tub. He was pretty tired.

Getting new strings.

2009-01-13T22:37:00.003-05:00

After breakfast, we went over to the clubhouse for the 9 o'clock weekly activities meeting which last an hour. David and I then got in the car and drove to Buchanan Music store on Brown Street in Mesa to have my fiddle restrung. It wasn't as expensive as I expected. That was good. On to the next stop... a sporting goods store which didn't have much in the way of running shoes. So we had to make a second stop at the Sports Authority store. Bingo! David was looking to buy a new pair of running shoes because his old shoes are a few years old and after spending two weeks in an Ottawa winter, they now had 'salt' stains on them. They looked pretty sad.

David was leaving at 2 o'oclock to play golf so when we got back home, around 1:30 pm he made himself some lunch while I went to listen to the 'jam session' on the pool patio. Every Tuesday, several people in the park who play musical instruments get together for a two-hour jam session. Don't get any ideas. I will not be attending with my fiddle. Not for a few years anyway. LOL

I came back to the motorhome around 3 pm, and although I was very tempted to take up my fiddle or just read a book, I had a few other chores to do which I did. When I was done with that, David wasn't back yet so I went for my daily walk around the park. I finished my walk around the same time David got back. We had supper then settled down to an evening of TV. We had another beautiful sunny day, same temperature as yesterday. It must be very easy to be a meterologist around here. "Today will be sunny, tomorrow will be sunny, after tomorrow will be sunny, etc. etc." LOL

Appointment in Tempe and fiddling around.

2009-01-12T17:54:00.004-05:00

David left early for golf (took the car) and as usual, I took my time getting up. I had intended to start water aerobics today but I talked myself out of it... again. So after eating breakfast I went for my daily walk around the park. I met up with my friend Micheline who was also out walking so we walked together. Micheline is from the province of Quebec. She wanted to practice her English so we walked around together talking in English... two French-speaking people. Kind of felt weird but I don't mind helping out.

When David got home it was almost lunch time. I had to go to the library but first we went to the restaurant to eat lunch then we went to the Apache Junction library to renew some books. David had a 2 o'clock appointment for the car with Tempe Saturn so he dropped me off at home after. He was getting a diagnostic test done, under warranty of course to make sure everything is working fine. I mentioned earlier that when we came home after being away for two weeks, the car battery was dead.

I was sitting outside reading when Micheline came over to let me know that the 3 o'clock exercise class had been rescheduled to 2 o'clock. She knew I wanted to go and realized I probably didn't know about the time change... which I didn't. So I quickly changed into some shorts and went over to the clubhouse for another hour of exercise. David came home around 4 pm with a clean bill of health for the car. Good.. at least it gives us peace of mind.

Around 4:30 we still didn't have any idea what we were having for supper so we jumped in the car and headed to the grocery store. We ended up having chicken on the barbeque. We are still looking for a place where we can buy fresh wild fish; I don't want farmed. We do buy frozen but the last time we bought frozen tilapia (about one month ago), the ingredients on the package said "tilapia and carbon monoxide"... what is that about?? Isn't that poisonous?? We actually ate two pieces but threw out the third piece. It just didn't seem right to eat 'carbon monoxide'... and it was from China... humans might be high on the food chain but our governments are the dumbest animal around when it comes to protecting the rest of the flock. Just because they were selling it didn't mean it was okay to eat it.

So I took my fiddle out of mothballs today. I want to start taking lessons again. I hope I can find a place close by that gives lessons. I took fiddling lessons about five years ago in New Brunswick but I haven't touched the fiddle for 3 1/2 years. I tried to tune it up so I could start practising (I still have all my sheets from my previous lessons) but a string broke. I think I will get them all replaced. It's better to start with a fresh set. We had a beautiful sunny day again today. The weather is getting warmer too. It was about 70F (21C) today.

Good friends and a little bit of golf makes for a great day.

2009-01-11T23:18:00.005-05:00

Have I mentioned already how great it is to be back where the sun shines every day. Today is my older sister's birthday. Happy Birthday Paulette. Hope you have a great day! Love u lots!

Before Christmas, we started golfing every Sunday morning for fun with our friends Jim & Linda. So this morning, we were also joined by our friends Gary & Karen and made a 'sixsome'... as opposed to a 'foursome'. We went to our usual hang out Fiesta Lakes golf course; it's a 9 hole executive course. Having new clubs sure seemed to make a difference. I had quite a few nice tee offs. I only just started to golf this past summer so I'm not a very good player. But I felt like I had a good game and I enjoyed myself. And it's a nice way to spend a few hours with good friends. There's no pressure and no competition. After golf, we headed to Applebees Restaurant for a well-earned lunch and then we came back home again.

Gary, Karen, David, Lise, Linda, Jim (the Sixsome)

We spent the rest of the afternoon sitting outside reading and relaxing. The temperature was up to about 69F (20C) today. Another great day in Arizona.

We hit the trail and the driving range.

2009-01-10T23:19:00.003-05:00

David and I left home around 10 this morning and headed for Superstition Mountain. It's only about a 10-minute drive from here. We were going hiking... just the two of us. We drove up Apache Trail Road to get to the Crosscut trail head parking lot. It was sunny but there was a very cool wind this morning. The temperature was only around 53F (12C). We took it easy as I'm still coughing my fool head off. The trail starts out easy and is pretty much level for the first mile. Then over the next mile, the elevation constantly increases. Once you are at the two-mile point, you have a choice of taking another trail which cuts across the desert in a different direction or stay on the loop we are on which will take us back to where the car is parked. And that's what we did. So the total distance for this hike was 3.6 miles. It was a good way to get back into hiking before we join our regular Wednesday hiking group next week.

The Trailhead..

It's always a great view from wherever we are..

On the Treasure Loop trail.

We were back home around 1 o'clock and ate lunch. David asked if I felt like going to the driving range so I could try out the new clubs. We are supposed to go golfing with Jim and Linda on Sunday so I should get familiar with the clubs before I get on a golf course. I'm glad he suggested it because it was a good idea. After a few practice shots, the clubs felt really comfortable. I'm not saying I will golf better but they did feel very nice. It's a shame to get that shiny chrome all scratched up though.

After we got home, we sat outside for a while but the wind was still cool. So we went in and watched some curling on TV. After supper, I spent a few hours on the computer catching up on my banking stuff and my blog while David watched TV. Life is good!

New golf clubs and golf cart.

2009-01-09T22:56:00.004-05:00

David has been trying to get me to buy a new set of golf clubs for the past six months or so. The set I have is a hand-me-down from my sister-in-law which was good enough for me. Anyway, I wasn't sure if I really wanted to get into golf and I didn't want to spend money for nothing. Well today I let him talk me into it. Around mid-morning, we went to the Kokabelli Cafe for coffee and bagel, then we went to the Sports Authority and I got a nice set of clubs on sale. Regular price was $399 and we paid $249. The advertised price was $299 (a reduction of $100) but there was a price of $249 on one of the clubs so we got that price. The price included a black and pink golf bag. David has been wanting a new golf cart for a while and he got a nice one which was also on sale. His old one has two wheels and this new one is a three-wheeler... and I get to use the old one... so it works out for both of us.

I didn't have a great night last night. I spent a lot of time coughing even though I had an extra pillow under my pillow to elevate me. It didn't seem to help much and I was awake quite a bit. All this to say that we both laid down for a nap this afternoon... David on the bed and me on the couch. I was just starting to fall asleep (I don't nap very well) when there was a knock on the door. It was a couple who are staying in the park for a week and had noticed that our name sign says we are from New Brunswick. As they are originally from New Brunswick, they just came to say hi. David woke up from his nap and came out while I was talking to them. They were very nice people.

Today being Friday, it was Happy Hour at 5 o'clock so this afternoon, I made some egg salad sandwiches to share. It was pretty quiet as a lot of the people were on a three-day Las Vegas tour and we only due back later tonight. We were back home by about 7:30 pm and spent the rest of the evening watching TV.

Time to unpack.

2009-01-08T22:29:00.002-05:00

This morning David left around 7:30 to go golfing and I stayed in bed until 8:15. My throat started feeling itchy on Tuesday. On Wednesday, our traveling day, I started coughing. Today my voice is raspy and I'm still coughing a lot. I hope it doesn't get too much worse. After eating breakfast, I went for a 45-minute walk around the park but at a very much slower pace than usual. I didn't want to drain all my energy. Then I thought I better unpack my suitcase. I don't know why but I hate unpacking my suitcase. Always have and probably always will. And I rarely unpack the same day I return so I'm unpacking today. Of course, I have no choice if I want to wear those clothes again.

After lunch David and I went to the bank then we went grocery shopping. We spent the rest of the day just enjoying the sunny weather and relaxing.

We love this sunny weather.

2009-01-07T21:59:00.004-05:00

David and I wish everyone a very Happy New Year! We had a fabulous Christmas and New Years. I hope yours was too.

We arrived back to Apache Junction from Canada today around lunch time. We spent a very nice two weeks visiting with our daughter Renee and family plus visiting other extended family members. By keeping up with our three-year-old grandson Liam, we managed to still put in a daily 30-minute... or more... workout. He had us playing cars, hockey and anything else his little heart desired. He doesn't stop for a minute, all the while talking away and not letting anyone else have a say. I'm exaggerating some but not by much. It all made enduring the cold weather worthwhile but once we got back, I realized how depressing the cold weather is up there.

As you will have noticed, I couldn't find the time nor did I have the inclination to blog during those two weeks. I was too busy playing...

After opening up the motorhome and unpacking, we had to go out for food so we get into the car and it's dead as a doornail. Couldn't even unlock the doors with the fob... just nothing. David got a friend to bring his pickup over so we could get a boost. That got the car started. There is no reason for the battery to have died. The car only sat for two weeks and we didn't leave anything "ON" in there. So we are taking it in to Saturn on Monday to get a diagnostic test. It's a hybrid so we feel it's better to get it checked out.

Other than that, it's nice to be 'home'.

On the eve of Christmas Eve.

2008-12-23T23:53:00.002-05:00

It rained a lot overnight but by morning the rain had stopped. The sun came out from behind the clouds periodically during the day. We attended the resort's weekly activities meeting, then went for our daily morning walk around the park. After lunch, David went looking for three people to make a foursome for golf. I took the suitcases out of the basement and did some laundry to get ready for our trip. We did most of our packing tonight and just have the last minute stuff to pack tomorrow. Only two more sleeps left before we see Liam as he will be fast asleep when we arrive tomorrow night.

We are very excited! It will be fun to again see Christmas through the eyes of a child.

Have a safe and happy Christmas everyone! Please, don't drink and drive!

Only three more sleeps to Christmas..

2008-12-22T23:58:00.000-05:00

I can't believe how quickly Christmas has come. It might have something to do with the fact that we didn't have any Christmas shopping to do because we did it all in Chilliwack. You don't think about it so it just sneeks up on you.

David left around 8 am to go golfing and about an hour later, I went for my daily walk around the park. After that I got on the computer until he came home around 11:15 am. We ate lunch then we drove to the mall to pick up a little special something for our grandson. That took a while because I couldn't make up my mind about what to get. I'm not a very good shopper when I don't have something specific in mind. Then we went for supper at a restaurant close to the mall.

We are very excited because we are going home for Christmas and we get to see our little Liam whom we haven't seen since July. And of course we also get to spend Christmas with our daughter Renee and son-in-law Marc and our extended family. Tomorrow is laundry and packing day. Only two more sleeps before we leave...

I'm cheating. This picture was taken last year and the Santa hats were borrowed so we couldn't repeat it this year. Maybe we should buy our own hats...

David and I would like to wish everyone, family, friends and our readers, a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year!

Didn't do much of anything.

2008-12-21T23:34:00.000-05:00

We thought we might go for an easy hike today so we looked through our book on hikes around Superstition Mountain and picked a trail. But then I decided that since we had spent a lot of time in the car yesterday, I would rather stay home and do nothing today. But first, we took a 30-minute walk around the park to get in our daily exercise. It was a beautiful sunny day although it was a little on the cool side. I think the temperature went up to 64F (18C). We sat outside anyway to read and to just enjoy being.

A drive to Casa Grande.

2008-12-20T22:47:00.000-05:00

We decided to go for a drive this morning so after breakfast, we jumped in the car and headed for Casa Grande. We always take East US60 then south on N. Pinal Pkwy (AZ-79) which goes through Florence. It's a more scenic route than the alternative which is to go west on US60 to I-10. From Florence we follow highway 287 which goes through Coolidge and brings us directly into Casa Grande. We had no other plans than to eat lunch there, walk around some of the stores and drive back home.

Florence is home to a State prison which opened in 1908 after being built by the inmates. You can see this very large complex from the road. We didn't stop... but we did take a drive down main street and there are a lot of empty old buildings. I would say business is not booming there.

We had to get home early enough to get ready for our night out on the town. We had tickets to Barleen's Arizona Opry for dinner and a show. This is a family-owned theatre and they provide a very good meal and a great musical show afterwards. This is the second year in a row that we have attended their "Christmas" show and we were not disappointed. There were a few Christmas songs and even an appearance from Willie Nelson and Elvis. It was great for an evening of entertainment. We were home by 10 pm.

Hiking day!!!

2008-12-19T22:05:00.000-05:00

Because of rain, Wednesday's hike was rescheduled to Friday so today was hiking day. Our hike today took us to Camelback Mountain in Phoenix. It's a bit of a drive to get there but well worth it. David had hiked Camelback Mountain trail last year but this was my first time. This hike is only 1.2 miles but it's all uphill with an elevation of approx. 1,300 feet from the bottom to the top. It's very challenging but also very exciting to climb. It made me feel like a kid climbing a play structure only a lot more fun.

The hike begins with these steps...

Looking back towards the parking lot and view of Phoenix.

Then it's just rocks... step carefully!

This is almost like a rock wall... they added a railing so you can pull yourself up.

Those dots down there in the middle of the picture.. are people working their way up.

Challenging but a lot of fun.

The view looking back & down.

And we made it to the top.

This is a real Christmas tree someone brought to the top... and decorated it.

We found this 'cave' off the trail. It has two openings.

Inside of the cave - very roomy and what a view.

Sign at the beginning of the trail.

If you like a challenging hike and you're ever in the Phoenix area, I recommend you do this one. It's a lot of fun even if you're legs feel like jello when you get back to the bottom. We were back home by mid afternoon but what a great day!

Golf for David and housework for me...

2008-12-18T23:51:00.000-05:00

Doesn't seem fair does it? We had more rain overnight but we woke up to sunny skies and it was warmer today. Thursday is David's normal golf day so he was out the door just as I was sitting down to eat breakfast. After breakfast, I decided to clean the bathroom and wash the floors before going out for my walk. After my 45-minute walk, I got on the computer and paid some bills; David came home and we went to the restaurant for lunch. We are getting into the very bad habit of eating out. It just seems so much easier. At 2:00 pm he went golfing for the second time today; this time to a different golf course and with a different bunch of guys. I grabbed a couple loads of laundry and headed to the laundry room. That only took about 1 hour & 1/2. I spent the rest of the afternoon reading my book and put more time on the computer. David came home around 5 pm and we had supper at home.

After supper, I called Renee and talked on the phone for about an hour. It sure is nice having this land line with unlimited long distance calling to Canada. Unlike the cell phone, I don't have to worry about 'using' too many minutes on one call and I have a nice relaxing conversation. Then I called Adam and we got on the webcam and talked to our little grandson David. He was pretty excited because he's been opening Christmas presents for the past two days. They will be out of town for Christmas so they have been having an early Christmas with family and friends at home before they leave. We also got to see the baby, Dylan. He has changed a lot. He has lost that 'newborn look' and is starting to look more like his big brother. He just kept staring into the camera. There must have been something on the computer that was interesting to him. Us. LOL Thank goodness for webcams.

Good food and good friends.

2008-12-17T23:20:00.000-05:00

It rained all through the night so when we got up this morning, the ground was wet and the sky was cloudy. The sun did come out most of the day but the temperature was only as high as the mid-50s. After breakfast, David and I went for a walk around the park. After about 25 minutes David went home and I caught up with my friend Micheline who was also out walking. We finally realized that we had been walking around for an hour & a half; I think we were starting to wear out the pavement... LOL.. so we both headed home. Just before lunch, David and I decided to go to the bookstore. There was a book that I wanted to check out for our grandson Liam. Since it was close to lunch time, our first stop was the Kokobelli Cafe on Power Road for a bagel sandwich and coffee. Then we went to Borders, the bookstore at the mall also on Power Road. The book wasn't what I was looking for so we left empty-handed. Unfortunately, this seemed to be one of those days where you go store to store like you are on a milk-run. We stopped at Sprouts for licorice for David and a dessert for the potluck supper tonight. Then we stopped at Goodwill as I'm looking for a used tennis racket. I'm hoping to join a couple of ladies to play tennis (for fun & exercise). They had an old wooden racket which was in good shape but I think that would be too heavy. So we left empty-handed there too. Then we stopped at Safeway for a couple of grocery items that we couldn't get a Sprouts... and finally headed home. As I mentioned, tonight was family potluck on the patio so we headed there around 4:30 pm. and enjoyed good food and good company. Our friends Gary & Karen from the Northwest Territories who had just arrived the day before invited us over to their rig for a nightcap which topped off a very nice evening.

A rainy day and a movie.

2008-12-16T17:50:00.000-05:00

Well we had a light rain falling most of the day. It started after lunch but it was cold and windy all day. I don't think the temperature went much above 50F (10C). Our morning started with the weekly activities meeting at 9 am. Hey.. I won first prize for my colouring of the Christmas stocking. The prize... a 2 inch high silver cup (not real silver of course) with a green crayon in it. I wonder how much I can hawk that for at the pawn shop. LOL After the meeting, David and I walked around the park for our daily exercise. We had lunch early, just after 11 am. He was supposed to play golf at 2:00 pm but with the rain, that didn't happen. A bunch of us ladies were going to the theatre to see "The Secret Life of Bees" and we were leaving at noon. We were 15 who carpooled to the theatre. After the movie, we went to the Paradise Bakery & Cafe at the Gateway Plaza for coffee, goodies and to discuss the movie. Their 'cream cheese brownie' is to die for. I liked the movie. It was sad it some places but it is well presented. It was about 4 pm when I got back. and since neither one of us felt like cooking, we went out for pizza for supper. The rest of the evening was spent reading and watching TV.

Golf and doing nothing.

2008-12-15T21:47:00.000-05:00

It was cold again when we got up this morning. But not too cold for David to go play golf. I ate breakfast then I went for a one hour walk, starting in the park, then walked to a residential area outside the park. At the start, I could have used gloves but I was too lazy to look for them in the basement. By the time I got back, I was carrying my jacket but still felt hot with my fleece on. It's not that the temperature was warmer, I was just hot after all that walking.

Other than going out for coffee, we just spent the rest of the day at home. We spent a bit of time on the computer answering emails, read our books and watched TV.

Weather is getting colder.

2008-12-14T21:31:00.000-05:00

We woke up to a temperature of 48F (13C) and a cloudy sky this morning. This weather is supposed to stay this cold for a few days with a 50% chance of rain for three days. David noticed his watch had stopped last night and it still wasn't working this morning. He thought it needed a new battery so after breakfast, we went to the Superstition Springs mall up on Power Road. It's about a 20-minute drive. We left the watch at a watch repair store and walked around the mall for about half an hour until the watch was ready. I expected the mall to be much more busy since we are only two weeks away from Christmas. But it wasn't much busier than a normal weekend. I expect the recession has something to do with it. After picking up David's watch, we stopped for coffee before heading back home. We didn't get any rain so we were able to barbeque some chicken for supper. Then we spent a decadent evening of TV watching. LOL

Flea market.

2008-12-13T21:13:00.000-05:00

We went out for breakfast again then came back home. About an hour later, we decided to check out the Mesa flea market for waist packs and a suitcase. We are going to Ottawa for Christmas and as we only have one suitcase, we had to buy another one. Bingo... we found the waist pack with water bottles that we were looking for and the price of $11.99 was perfect. We also bought a really nice quality suitcase for $36.99. We had what we came for so we left the flea market and stopped at Paradise Bakery & Café in the mall next door where we had a coffee and shared a very good chicken & walnut sandwich for lunch.

A few hours later, David and I went for a walk around the park. We came across Tina & Terry who were going for a walk outside of the park. Tina had mentioned to me earlier about her walks in a nearby residential area so I tagged along because I wanted to know where she went. Somewhere else to walk if I got bored walking around the park. David's knee was acting up so he just went home.

Didn't do much for the rest of the day except stay home, read and watch TV.

The driving range and Happy Hour!

2008-12-12T20:44:00.000-05:00

Friday morning after breakfast David and I both walked around the park for our 45 minutes of exercise. At 10 am, I went to the activities room where a bunch of ladies had gathered to colour. Yes, like you do in grade 1. We had a choice of three different pictures. I first coloured a Christmas stocking then I coloured an elf with a teddy bear. On Tuesday, during the activities meeting, we will find out which pictures get the prizes. It's all for fun and very silly and I guess that's why I participated. I like doing silly things sometimes plus I have to practice my colouring so I can keep up with my grandsons. While I was colouring, David checked out Walmart for those waist packs we are still looking for. Although they had some, he didn't buy them. They were not quite the quality we were looking for.

After lunch, we went to the driving range to hit some golf balls. It was cloudy but there was no rain in the forecast. The afternoon temperature was again in the mid-60sF (around 18C). We shared a large bag of balls and the pain in my right elbow flared up again. I think I might has strained some muscles around the elbow using weight machines at the YMCA in Chilliwack back in October. And it just won't go away. It's not really bad pain but just enough to be a bother once in a while.

At 4:30 we went to Happy Hour on the park patio. Today the park was serving a homemade turkey soup and hot turkey sandwiches with gravy as a thank you to everyone for being there. I think it's the leftover turkey from Thanksgiving but it was all very good. There was also some live country music by J.R. & Diane, also provided courtesy of the park owner. After we had eaten a bunch of us sat around the gas fire pit listening to the music and chatting while some people were inside dancing. After a very enjoyable evening, we finally came home around 9 pm.

Not doing much these days.

2008-12-11T20:17:00.000-05:00

On Thursday, the temperature was still somewhat cool where it's around the mid 50sF (around 13C) in the morning and warms up to the mid-60sF (around 18C) by the afternoon. I haven't been to the water aerobics again this week. I'm just looking for a change in my routine. Don't want to be doing the same thing every day but I'm still going for my 45 minute walk around the park to exercise.

David left around 8 am to play golf; when he got back I was sitting outside on the patio reading my book. Last Monday, we went to the library so I could apply for a library card. I've finally realized that it's much cheaper to borrow books from the library then to always buy new. I was permitted to take out three books until I bring some correspondence with my name and Arizona address on it. In the meantime, the librarian kept my library card. When I take back the books we borrowed, I will bring our electrical bill from here and I will be given my library card.

We decided to go to Denny's restaurant for lunch then we went to Sports Authority, a store very similar to Sports Chek in Canada. We are looking for waist packs with bottle holders for hiking. We think they would be more comfortable for hiking than a back pack. Anyway, they didn't have the kind we were looking for so we came back home. We spent the rest of the day at home reading or watching TV.

Catching up on the last four days.

2008-12-10T23:02:00.000-05:00

On Sunday morning, we went golfing with friends Jim & Linda at Fiesta Lakes golf course. It’s the same golf course we went to last Sunday. We all enjoy this get-together so we are thinking of making this a weekly event. After the game, we went to Applebee’s restaurant for lunch.

David took a picture of the start of a beautiful sunset.

Monday morning is usually golf for David but it had rained overnight so golf was cancelled as it was thought that the grass would probably be too wet. So we spent the day around the motor home and the park, only going out for coffee in the afternoon.

Tuesday morning we woke up to a beautiful blue sky, and after attending the weekly activities meeting, we decided to go for a hike just the two of us. We drove north up Meridian Road to the Meridian trailhead. We wanted to go up Wind Cave trail, which David hadn’t been on yet. Only we didn’t realize that we should have driven to the Usery Mountain recreational park on Usery Pass Road. It would have saved us walking for an hour and a half on Meridian trail before coming to the Wind Cave trailhead. This trail has a steep elevation and is quite challenging. Once we went to the top of the trail and came back to the trailhead, we still had to walk an hour and half on the Meridian trail to get back to the car. We made it back to the car by 3:00 pm and we had started out from the car at 10:30 am. A long day and the feet were getting pretty tired! We went home to relax and since neither one of us felt like cooking, we went to Applebee’s restaurant for supper. That’s two days in a row; there goes our ‘dining out’ budget for the month. ;-)

We walked up to that patch of light colour you can see below the peak.

David coming up behind me.

The top of Wind Cave trail.

A great view on the way back down the trail.

Wednesday is hiking day and at 9:30 am, 16 people in four vehicles left the park and drove to the First Water trailhead on the Old West highway (US 88). We went from First Water up to Second Water trail and later branched off on the Black Mesa trail. The total distance we walked was 6 miles. It was a good day for hiking with the temperature up around 68F or 20C. David and I had been on Second Water trail last year but had never gone as far as the Black Mesa trail. There is some talk of adding a couple of extra hikes to the weekly hikes. We sure hope so because we love it. It really gives you a sense of accomplishment when you’re done. When we got home, we took off the hiking boots, strapped on our sandals and went for coffee. After we sat out on the patio to read and enjoy the rest of the sun before it started to go down. It was getting cool so we went inside and started to think about making supper. Ohhh… this life of leisure – is there anything else like it!

Some parts of the trail were challenging!

Stopping for a bite and some relaxation before going back.

Everyone up and ready to return.

The Black Mesa trail marker.

Lazy Saturday.

2008-12-06T22:03:00.000-05:00

We had nothing planned today. We got up and went out for breakfast. The park was hosting a yard and craft sale today so when we got back, we walked around the park to see what people were selling. But there wasn't anything of interest to us. We spent the rest of the day puttering around the motorhome and just relaxing. It was a beautiful sunny day and the temperature was 73F (23C) today.

Hiking day.

2008-12-05T23:34:00.000-05:00

After breakfast, I packed a lunch for both David and I. Around 9:15 am we went outside to meet up with the folks going hiking. We were 11 people so we drove had to take two vehicles. We drove to Saguaro Lake, about 30 minute drive which is off Bush highway in the Tonto National Forest. We hiked this trail three times last year. It's a nice hike but can be difficult for someone who is not in good shape. It's not a high elevation but it goes up and down a lot. There isn't much shade on this trail and it was warm today. The temperature went up to 75F (24C). When we got home, we threw some meatballs in the slow cooker to bring to the 5 o'clock Happy Hour. They were already cooked; we just had to warm them up. After everyone had eaten, there was music and a bunch of us sat around the fire pit (gas). We finally came home at 9 o'clock.

The group taking a break with Saguaro Lake in the background.

Looking back at the trail (it's only wide enough for one person).

The mountain in the background is called Four Peaks. In January, the peak will probably be white.

We went off the trail and went down to the lakeshore.