MERRY CHRISTMAS

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Wishing a blessed Christmas to our family and friends.

Yesterday, we went on a 40 mile tour of the surrounding desert on ATV's.  There were nine of us and Patches, Ernie's dog, on six ATV's.  It's amazing how Patches manages to stay on the back of the quad while it's going 30-40 mph and bouncing over rocks. 

That's me talking to Patches

Our ATV isn't designed for two riders so I rode in a side-by-side with Effie.  She's from Montana and drives her 35 ft motorhome towing her ATV.  A fascinating woman; we had a lot of time to get to know each other on the ride. 

Effie

We covered some rough terrain but the views were amazing.  Our tour took us through the rocky "Tank Pass".  The story is that General Patton was doing tank training in the area.  Some of his men used this pass to go into Salome for whisky and women.  When Patton found out about it, he blew up the pass.  

We stopped for lunch at an area where there were huge granite boulders.  The granite was used to build the Yuma prison around 1876 and they say that the prisoners were used to mine the granite.  There was a hollowed out area in the boulders where the prisoners were kept at night. 

It's nice that some of the other campers have been coming here for several years and are knowledgeable of the area.





The last place we stopped was a place they call "the motel."  It was a home carved out of the rock by a miner and his son.

If you think the camper is close quarters, you don't want to live here

After we returned and washed the 'dust' off, we got together with Rod and Ellen for cocktails and dinner. It was still warm so we were able to sit outside for awhile.

After dinner, we watched "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation"...a good day!

Today's another sunny day; it got into the 70's.  It's been cooler for the past couple of weeks so this feels good.  This afternoon, we joined several couples for a potluck dinner. 

Keith's ATV -- all-terrain vehicle

Keith's new toy...they call them 'quads' here.

Picking it up in Lake Havasu City

                                                                                                     The guys ride out in the desert a couple of times a week.  Sometimes, the women go along  (I've got my helmet but haven't gone out yet).  I'll let him get the hang of it first.

Now that's a happy camper!

It's 'Bill Elliott' red...his favorite color

Hiking in the Desert

Friday Hiking Group

We've joined the hiking group on three hikes this month.  We pack a lunch and stop along the way to rest and enjoy the scenery.  The first hike was to Mushroom Rock.

The second week, we hiked to Campbell Claim.  There's a shack barely standing to mark the spot.

This past Friday, we hiked to Ramsey Mine.  It was closed back in the 60's.  It's hard to imagine going down into the darkness.

View of the surrounding mountains

Scenes of Arizona desert

Monday, December 4, 2011

We've been traveling around the area, checking out the nearby towns.  Quratzsite - 37 mi, Wickenberg - 54 mi, Parker - 56 mi, Buckeye - 70 mi, Surprise - 89 mi.  Unfortunately, the furtherest towns are the largest ones with the most stores.  Wickenberg has a Safeway and Buckeye has the closest Walmart Superstore. 

The scenery between Salome and these towns is becoming familiar but still fascinates us. 

Rows of huge cotton bales

Pistachio grove

 
















On the road to Wickenberg, we saw this cactus that I've named Cactus Man.

One day after a storm, the clouds  were so low that they appeared to be touching the desert.

Clouds cast shadows over the mountains