RV Trip'N

Friday, February 7, 2014

Beautiful day but it's getting better

After the last two days it was great to see the sun again. 66 and sunny is about perfect as far as I’m concerned. But the forecast is for better yet, I think this is what we came to Arizona for.

We started the day with our fresh brewed French roast coffee as always, except having it out doors was a special treat. Then we jumped in the car and went to explore. Not very far from Florence we discovered Anthem Arizona a resort community developed by Del Web. This area was started in 2006 and has turned into a beautiful community comprised of two areas. One area is for families and people of all ages, the other area is for folks 55 and older. We drove through the 55 and older section and what a beautiful community it was. It surrounds a beautiful golf course and community center that contains everything you would expect from a major resort. We stopped at an open house and visited for awhile with the realtor and learned a lot about community.

We then ventured on to Poston’s Butte. Named after Arizonian Charles Poston who after a trip to India, in which he became a fire worshipper, built a continuous fire, a sort of temple of the sun, atop a hill and naming it Parsee Hill. The flames died out after of couple months and it became known as Poston’s folly and Poston’s Butte. It was a great hike up the hill with beautiful views once on top.

We had heard from folks in the campground about a drive that went out into the desert, which is full of saguro cactus, and continued through hills and valleys while passing through the small towns of Kelvin, Kearny, Hayden, Winkelman, Dudleyville, Mammonth, San Manuel and Oracle finally returning us back to our campground in time to BBQ some supper.

Looking forward to more of the same……..

How is this for a ten day forecast

A hike to the top of Poston's Butte

Hiking on up

Atop Polson's Butte

View from the top

Florence Kelvin Drive a desert loop drive

Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Cool Day In the Desert

What a difference when the sun does not shine. It’s normal in the desert for the evenings to have temperatures in the 40’s this time of year but it warms up quickly once the sun is up, which it normally is. Today however we woke to cloudy grey skies and it is not warming up much. Long pants and a light jacket are the uniform of the day.

One thing they don’t tell you when you sign up for unlimited call, text and data with your cell provider, at least with T-Mobile, is that you are limited to 2GB if using your phone as a wireless hotspot. We seem to use the 2GB up well before our month is up. Such was the case last night when I tried to post the blog. So first thing this morning I was off to find a McDonalds to connect. This resort offers WIFI but you have to subscribe and it’s not secure. I do have a wireless MIFI which I reactivated for a month, so we should be OK for a while. It’s a little bit more expensive than what is offered here but it is secure and probably much faster.

The sun finally managed to make its appearance around 3:00 this afternoon which made for a beautiful remainder of the day. With broken clouds still in the sky I knew that I had another sunset photo op.

Desert Walk, Chili Cook Off and Cribbage

I took this video at the start of my walk today; it’s so peaceful and quiet. It’s been cooler than normal here and will be so until Sunday when the temperature will be mid to high 70’s for a while. I hope that will be the new norm.

The resort sponsored a hot dog and chili cook off tonight that I went to. There were at least a dozen people vying for title of best made chili. They were all lined up along a long table with their entry from mild to hot. I like hot spicy food so I headed directly to the end of the line where I had a choice of four different kinds of “hot “chili. After asking how they rated their chili on a scale of one to ten I went with Mike’s Texas style that he said was a 4 on the hot scale. His chili was very good but it was an 8 on my scale. As it turned out Mike‘s chili won first place in the cook off.

After supper I stuck around for the weekly cribbage tournament. I enjoy cribbage and it was a lot of fun. Even though I didn't win any money my score was respectable.

The sunsets here have been incredible every night so far, pictures do not capture the colors that the sky becomes when the sun sets. Maybe I need to work on my photo skills a bit and see if I can do a better job of showing the colors as they are. I’ll work on it. (the photos were taken with my cell phone)

Sunday, February 2, 2014

Super Bowl Sunday and a Cool Evening

We started the day off with a 2 ½ mile hike that went out into the desert; it was a great hike and a beautiful morning. We then went and found the various facilities that the resort offers. We met some nice people that were busy doing their stain glass projects in a well equipped studio. We spent time in the fitness center trying things out and deciding which piece of equipment we were going to master while we are here. Next we went to the pool and spa. The spa was opened but the pool covered and remains covered (unless you want to use it) until there has been three consecutive days of 70 plus degrees. By now it was time to attend the ice cream social which is a Sunday afternoon event. People we meet in these campgrounds are all so nice and we all have so much in common, we get so many recommendations and suggestions of things to do and place’s to see. After visiting and ice cream it was off to A&M Pizza for their famous New York style pie. We ordered it to go and brought it home in time for the kick off.

Tomorrow we head back to Phoenix to drop Chris off at the airport. She will be gone until Thursday.

Some pictures from the desert walk....

Office building

Office building area

Outside of the activity building

Lounge area

More lounge area

Patio

Saturday, February 1, 2014

Our Home for February

We have moved to what will be our home location for the next month. Desert Gardens RV Park is located south of Florence AZ approximately 45 miles south of Mesa. I downloaded the following information about the historic town of Florence.

The Town of Florence was founded in 1866 and is the sixth oldest European settlement in the state of Arizona. Florence is the county seat and is situated in the central portion of Pinal County, Arizona about 45 minutes away from the Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas. Three major transportation corridors that run through Florence, which include Highway 287, Highway 79 and Hunt Highway. These roadways provide connectivity to the region that is unrivaled by similar sized communities within the state.

The Town of Florence is a full-service municipality. The Town provides police, fire, library, senior center, parks, water, sewer, sanitation and many other services to the community. Town of Florence employees are pleased to provide quality services and a friendly attitude to all of our residents.

Florence, being one of the oldest towns in Arizona, is proud of its history and the designation of the historic downtown as a National Historic District. The town strives to strike a balance between preserving the past and preparing for the future so that an authentic sense of place is maintained and new growth and revitalization is encouraged.

There are three public schools within the Florence boundaries, which include two K-8 schools, and one high school. The main campus of Central Arizona College is also within close proximity of Florence. A satellite campus is also in Florence. Arizona State University's Polytechnic Campus is located in nearby Mesa. Arizona State University and the University of Arizona are located in Tempe and Tucson, respectively. An ASU Distance Learning Center is located within the Anthem area in Florence.

There are a number of major employers in Florence. Major employers include Pinal County, Town of Florence, Florence Unified School District, Safeway, and nine correctional operations. Florence has approximately 7,000 jobs.

There are many prominent recreational landmarks and areas of interest in and around Florence. The Gila River is a prominent landmark that runs through historic Florence. The Gila River served as the northern border in the Gadsden Purchase in 1854. In addition, Box Canyon, Martinez Canyon, old Silverbell Mine, Coke Ovens and many other sites to the east of Florence provide visitors with fantastic scenic views and an opportunity to hike, explore, off-road, or otherwise enjoy the Sonoran Dessert. Also in the area are the Casa Grande Ruins, Lost Dutchman State Park, Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park, Tom Mix Monument, and the Superstition Mountain Wilderness Area.

Florence is home to the McFarland State Park, Pinal County Historical Museum, Florence Aero Modeler Park, Charles Whitlow Rodeo Grounds, a quaint historic downtown, and the final resting place of Charles D. Poston, the Father of Arizona, at the summit of Poston Butte. Travel just a little further into Phoenix or Tucson you'll discover all of the cultural, recreational and entertainment you'd expect from a major metropolitan area.

Friday, January 31, 2014

A Very Sad Week

On Tuesday January 28^th Chris lost her Father and I lost a Father In-law and good friend. Our thoughts have been with the family during this difficult time. Chris will be flying home this Monday for the burial and returning on Thursday. This past week has been a very sad time for us.

We are staying at the Val Vista Resort, in Mesa Arizona, until tomorrow. This is a beautiful resort offering park models and RV sites. There are three outdoor pools and hot tubs and an indoor pool and spa. Each space has citrus trees that renters or owners are allowed to pick from. We were lucky to have our own grapefruit tree, and a lemon tree close by. We will be leaving here with some very fresh fruit.

Tomorrow we are heading to Florence AZ where we will be staying for the month of February.