Coyote, Vultures and RC Airplanes

Today we took a drive down a country road to see what we could find. It didn’t take long before something crossed in front of us, at first we weren’t sure what it was but then saw that it was a coyote and it appeared to be injured. When we arrived at the spot we had seen him cross I stopped the car and began looking around for him. I spotted him under a shade tree, I didn’t know if he would stay long enough for me to get my camera and telephoto lens from the back seat. If it had not been for his injury he would have been long gone, as it was I was able to get a couple of pictures.

A short time later we saw a couple of vulture’s sitting on the power lines, again I was fortunate enough to get them camera from the back. I should keep the camera up front and ready.

Then we drove backup to Sun City to see our dream house again and to have lunch at a great Chinese restaurant. On the way back from the restaurant we saw a group of radio controlled airplane hobbyists flying their planes and we decided to stop and watch a bit. It was really interesting we had no idea the planes were that large. The young guy controlling the plane had absolute control over it, the tricks he did were amazing. Last but not least was a guy with a drone equipped with a camera that was filming the event from the air.

A Day Dedicated to Retirement

We decided to dedicate today to do nothing but retirement duties. So it was coffee outdoors, a walk in the desert, reading and sleeping in the sun, cocktails with the neighbors, steaks on the grill and a little TV before calling it a day. A very good day.  

I took some pictures of some of the old giant saguaro cactus in the park, we are lucky to be in an area that has saguaros as they aren’t found everywhere in the desert.

Another beautiful Arizona day

No Big plans today just hang around and enjoy the warm weather. We did manage a desert walk this morning and then had our second and third cups of coffee while sitting outdoors.

We decided to drive into town to pick up our mail and while there we decided to celebrate valentines with a nice lunch. The nicest restaurant in town is a Greek place that had some favorable reviews. We were ready to post a negative review because of the slow service then the food came and everything was fine. It was worth the wait. After lunch we stopped at the post office to pick up our mail that is being forwarded to us and then to the fudge store to get some delicious desert.

While in town I took a few pictures and then it was off to the campground again to do some laundry. While waiting for the laundry we played a couple games of Foosball. Believe it or not I actually worked up a sweat playing.

We had planned on BBQ’ing some steaks tonight but with the big lunch we had we decided to wait with the steaks for another time. We sat outside tonight under the full moon and shared a bottle of wine, what a perfect night.

Hard core Viking fan from California

Valentines lunch in town at a nice Greek restaurant

 Main street of Florence Az

 The old motel

Fudge and coffee shop

Florence City Hall (I like the Palm tree)

Interesting cactus in some one's yard

Hiking The Superstistion Mountains

This morning we drove to Apache Junction to hike in the Superstition Mountains. What a beautiful morning for a hike. The sky was so blue and the sun was warm. By the time we arrived at the trail head the parking lot was already full, we managed to get the last spot. I haven’t built up my hiking tolerance yet and today’s hike was about as much as I could handle. I feel sorry for Chris because she could have gone further but we had already spent an hour going practically straight up and I was toast. The scenery we saw was beautiful but we missed the best because we turned around when we did.

It felt so good getting back to the RV and just sitting in the Sun, having a beer to replenish the fluids we lost. Again this evening we had a BBQ and watched another spectacular sunset.

This evening we walked around the campground which would not be possible if the moon was not as full and bright as it was. Earlier the coyotes were so loud that it sounded like they were right next to us. Then just as quick as they started they were gone. I’m sure they will be back sometime this evening.

Our trail took us up and over this first ridge

Parking lot and start of the trail

Police, Bikers, Ruins and Warm Weather

Sunday Feb. 9th

We're hoping for mid 70's today and by the looks and feel of it now we will have no problem making that. The sky is clear and the sun is out and warming quickly.

Today was the Hells Angles Prison Run to honor their brothers who are incarcerated in the prison here. The place was crawling with bikes and police. We are situated on the road that held the rally and we were pretty much restricted to our campground unless we took a major detour. It was like a mini Sturges.

Monday Feb. 10th

Today we went to the town of Coolidge AZ where the Casa Grande National Monument is located. We saw a informative movie and a guided tour of the monument. The tour was very informative in that we learned how the ancient people built their homes and in this case the grand building (Casa Grande) that no one is sure of it's actual purpose but only speculation.

While so much of the nation is facing another artic blast they are calling for record heat here by the weeks end. Again I'm only reporting, don't shoot the messenger.

 Early bloom

 Casa Grande (the grand house)

 Part of the tour

Retirement Living to the Max

After morning coffee it was off to do laundry. While there Chris was talking to a lady from Minnesota that was spending the winter here at Desert Gardens  It turns out that this lady was from the Brainerd area but grew up in St Paul. When asked where in St Paul she said that she grew up on Rice street and went to St Bernard’s, small world.

After laundry we decided to go back to Anthem Sun City retirement community that we had visited yesterday. They were having an open house today where you could visit all the houses for sale as well as the new models. We were very impressed at what we saw. Living here is so different to what we are use to in Minnesota. I kept wanting to close the doors that they all leave open, leaving windows and door opened without a screen is something very foreign to me. But down here a good portion of your time is spend outside and they make the outside area a part of the living experience. The patios on these homes are fantastic. It was fun going through the homes and talking to the people that live here. I have included pictures mainly of the patio areas because I would spend the majority of my time outside if I lived here.

We then headed back to the campground where we were immediately invited over to the neighbors for “happy hour”, I think I could get use to this lifestyle. A quick supper and we settled down to watch the Olympics.   

The view outside our laundry 

 Indoor lap pool at the community center at Sun City

 Outdoor pool

 Outdoor pool

 Outdoor pool and golf course in the background 

 More of the outdoor pool

Fantastic fitness center

 This model had a pool in the back

 This model had a putting green

Look at the size of the patio door, no screens

 How would you like this back yard

I love how the entire room opens to the outside 

                                                                           Fire place

                                                                        Covered patio area