Hiking the Chiricahuas

We drove down to Benson, AZ from the campground at Davis-Monthan AFB and met up with Paul and Bobbi.

Then we drove down to Willcox, had lunch and continued on to Chiricahua National Monument.

The drive from Tucson was beautiful, even though it was mostly an overcast day.  It was a little cooler (especially at 6800+ feet) than it has been, but we brought plenty of clothes.  And the views were panoramic, sweeping vistas from one side of the valley to the other from Benson eastward.  I wished I had pulled out my camera for a few photos of the surrounding mountains in the distant.

The landscape changed quite a bit as we left the turnoff at Willcox and drove the remaining 35 miles to the National Monument.  It was more like grasslands than the Arizona desert we were used to in Tucson.

Once there, we took our standard approach to stop in the Visitor Center, take a look at the displays and view the video if they have one.

The video was narrated by Rex Allen, Sr and was a perfect mix of geology and history.  Allen was from Willcox, AZ and reached early fame as a singing cowboy in Westerns and later as the Voice of Disney films.

I liked the video and especially the displays at the Visitor Center.  They were small, but full information I found interesting.

This area was once Cochise and Geronimo country.

And the Civilian Conservation Corps were active in the area in the 1930's and early 1940s.

From there we drove up the canyon and took a couple of nice hikes:  first along the Massai Nature Trail and then over to the Echo Canyon Trail.

Columns, Pinnacles and Balanced Rocks really says it all.  The formations were quite different.

Similar in a way to the Organ Cactus National Monument, this area had a lot more green foliage and  on the rocks than we were expecting.  Paul and Bobbi had been here a couple of weeks ago and it had a quite different look.

If it looks a bit nippy, it is because it was.  Not quite too cold, just brisk enough for a couple of layers and a windbreaker.

And a hood and/or a second jacket at times.  But still it wasn't too cold.  More invigorating I guess.
After the Massai Trail, it was over to the Echo Canyon Trail Loop.

Another trail of beautiful rock formations and sights that were good just to stop and take in.  Just spectacular.

And we stopped for a few "We Were There" Shots

And more balancing rocks

And leaning rocks and a nice walk through the canyon

We noticed it was getting toward the middle of the afternoon and we had a two hour drive back to Tucson, so we turned around and went back to the trail head and parking lot.

It was another different kind of place and a memorable hike, once which we thoroughly enjoyed.  And it was even nicer to hike with Paul and Bobbi, and to spend the day with them!

Thanks for joining us today on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Until next time...

A Big Thanksgiving Weekend

We thoroughly enjoyed the weekend.  Adam rode the train down from DC and stayed with Kelly in Norfolk, and we were in Virginia Beach ~ so we were all nearby.

It was a beautiful weekend and I was able to take a couple of bike rides.  The Virginia Beach boardwalk is about 6.5 miles from our campground which makes it a good distance for a ride.

 Thanksgiving day, 'we' got down to business and prepared some food.

Since Adam is a vegan, he put together a granola-squash-honey thing that was delicious.  Pam cooked some potatoes mashed potatoes we took to the group pot luck.

At the pot luck, I got to carve a turkey and everyone put their dishes out for a big spread.

 Meanwhile, Ryan was deep frying three other turkeys in the back yard.

They turned out great and was one of the favorites of the day.

One Friday, quite a few of the same group got together to do some decorating at the church.

 Along with the new curtains, we made a wire mesh Christmas tree for Angel Tree tags.

Up front, NOEL  was placed on the wall.

 I wish I had taken more pictures of all the help that was there...

While we were doing that, Adam was back at the RV studying.  Then we all went over to Kelly's and then out to eat at Razzo's which is a really good restaurant in Oceanview.

Razzo's is an Italian place with great atmosphere in the Oceanview area near Kelly's house.  After dinner we went back to Kelly's house and hung out for a while.  Adam was getting on the train heading back up to DC the next day and was spending his last night at Kellys.  I thought it would be a good time to get a family group photo for Christmas.  

But alas, it was not to be.  My attempts were thwarted…I quickly lost control and never got it done...

On Sunday, after church, a group went out to lunch and had a good time.

Yesterday, Pam and cleaned up, ran errands, packed up and got the coach all ready to travel.  We leave in a couple of hours for parts south and Florida in the next few days.

Our 7 weeks in Virginia has been great.  We especially enjoyed getting to see Kelly and Adam and our friends in Fairfax.  And seeing Adam and Melissa run the Marine Corps Marathon.  And getting involved here in Habitat for Humanity again.  And the beach and nice weather. And the golf and the…

Thanks for checking in again on the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Hope you have a great week.  Until next time...  

The Best Time of the Year

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday.
Every year the few days around Thanksgiving seem to kick off the "Let's be nice to everybody" season.  I really like that and wonder why we can't be like that all year…

This time of the year makes me a little nostalgic and reflective.  This year is no different.
I am very blessed and thankful for the family I have.  I am keenly aware that everybody can't say that.  Pam is simply the best.  And I would not change one iota about our kids.  Adam and Kelly are two wonderful, great kids.  They are no longer kids --but you get the idea.  They bless us every day.  Thank goodness for cell phones and other technology that keeps us close when we are miles away.

I am  especially thankful for this life we are able to live.  Over the past 2 1/2 years we have had the chance to meet new people and reacquaint ourselves with some old friends and experience Americana from coast to coast and border to border.  In many ways I feel like we are just getting started.

We didn't know how this lifestyle would work out for the holidays when we started out.  But it has been great.  This year we are in Virginia Beach and Adam rode the train from D.C. to Norfolk last night.  He is a Kelly's place in Norfolk and they will be coming over later today.

We will join with Kelly's fellowship group from church and have a big Thanksgiving meal together later in the afternoon.  And I am looking forward to taking a picture of the turkey like I do every Thanksgiving.  It is part of the tradition.

What are some of your favorite Thanksgiving Day traditions?

I don't know why we did that but my dad always took a picture of the Thanksgiving Day turkey (and Christmas too) while the rest of the food was getting cold and being put on the table….

Here's one I took years ago of the Thanksgiving Day turkey on the table:

I want to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and hope that you are with your family and/or friends at this time of the year.

Thank you for being part of our great adventure and taking the time to view The Roadrunner Chronicles and especially drop a note.  A very special 'thank you' to all of those of you that have 'Followed' or signed up as 'Friends' on the Roadrunner Chronicles ~ it is a big deal to know that you are out there….

Until next time...

Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge and Judy

Welcome to our latest Followers!  Thanks for taking a look and signing up!

Lyn

Kathy and Robert

John M. Souva III

Joe and Nancy

Sofia

You may want to take a look at their blogs by clicking on their name...

Saturday is moving day for many and we said good bye to NOMADS Eldon and Linda.

 We interrupted their departure long enough to talk a minute and snap a photo.

They are headed for a month in Florida before they go back home to Illinois.

Yesterday was a beautiful day and we decided to go take a look at the Mississippi Sandhill Crane Natural Wildlife Refuge run by the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).  It is in Gautier, MS which is about 10 miles from where we are staying.

This was our first time to see a USFWS Refuge.  It is free, has a small visitor center and is on property that is very well maintained.

Inside the Visitor's Center, we looked at the displays and watched a short 14 minute video about the refuge.

The Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1975 and the first refuge to be authorized in the U.S. by the Endangered Species Act of 1973.  The Mississippi Sandhill crane thrives in a semi-open wet habitat that are on acidic-water logged soil known as savannas.  

By the mid-1950's this area was purchased and large savanna tracts were converted into pine tree plantation logging forests.  This created havoc with the savannas and the eco system of the sandhill cranes who were on the verge of extinction.  By the 1960's only 30-35 birds could be found.

After the creation of the refuge and restoring the environment to its previous savanna state, the area now is home to over 100 of the rare birds.

A couple of weeks ago, I heard from Judy who writes Travels with Emma.  She indicated she was going to be a volunteer here and wondered if we could get together.  We talked with Fonda at the Visitor Center and Judy had arrived a few days earlier.  She was waiting for us after we watched the short video.

It is always great to meet new blog friends.

She invited us over to her campsite which was about 100 yards away.

Both she and Pam are getting over some illnesses so we didn't stay long.  As you might suppose, she mentioned our visit on her blog just as I am doing here...

We didn't want to overdo it so after we stopped by WalMart we headed back to the Roadrunner.  Pam is feeling better but not at 100% yet and I am fighting off what ever she had.  So far so good but it was a nice afternoon chill out.  I opened the windows and doors and let the mid-60 degree breeze blow through the coach while we watched my man Phil play some good golf.

That's it for the Roadrunner Chronicles today.  Thanks for viewing!

Hanging Out With the NOMADS

We have been here three weeks and are almost getting 'hitch itch'.  After a while we get the itch to move on down the road.  We pulled out the map and have made some reservations for the next couple of weeks after we leave here.

But the last three weeks here have been good ones.  We have enjoyed our time here at Caswell Springs UMC.

This is one of those big beautiful churches in the South that catches your eye.

Inside on Wednesday nights they open the kitchen and feed about 100 people including us.  (On Mondays some ladies in the church cook a lot of food and take it to the homeless in the area.  They make enough for the rest of us on Wednesday night for a donation.)

Then after church every Sunday we all go out for lunch.  Here is the group at a catfish restaurant not far from where we are staying.

We haven't done this enough but, last Saturday night Patty got us all together for a game night.  Usually we are all pretty tired for games, but we decided to give it a try and it worked out great.

Roger and Donna are setting some of the munchies on the food table.

Linda, Lil, Chic, Kyoko and Dawn are chatting.

Don is showing Bob and Eldon pictures of the train that got weighed down with too much coal which burned up the wheels and cause it to come off the tracks.

 Lil is showing Chic and Patty her afghan while Jim, Bob, Don and Larry are in the background.

 I sat down at this table and played 'Sequence' with Jean, Larry and Eldon.  Jerry was explaining the finer details of Mexican Train to Donna, Linda, Kyoko, Patty and Chic.

It was a fun couple of hours except Pam came down with the bug.  In fact she was down with it all last week and stayed in the Roadrunner to recuperate.

We also get together to say goodbye.  Each week we have someone leaving and others coming to take their place.  Here Jean, Jane, Chic, Jim and Ricci took a quick photo as we said good bye to Jane and Ricci.

And after our dinner at the Pizza Place last week it was good bye to Patty and Bob.

The night before they left, they called for some propane to be delivered so a lot of us jumped on that and took our turn getting filled up.  We waited for the delivery and another get together broke out.

 Eldon, Don, Larry, Marley, Hank, Jim, Dawn, Chic, Patty, Jean (hidden) Pam and Nancy were there.  It was the first time Pam had been outside in four days.  She is getting a little better each day.

 Patty, Nancy, Jean, Pam, Chic, Dawn, Jim, Marley, Hank, Larry, Bob, Eldon (hidden) and Don from another angle wait for the truck.

The propane truck stayed for about thirty minutes which was enough time to fill two motor homes and three bottles.  It was very convenient and worked out great.

This week we tried a different restaurant for our Thursday 'Night on the Town'.  We went to nearby Hurley and ate at El Capesino Mexican Restaurant.

Everyone is studying their menus intently.

It was a very pleasant surprise but I really enjoyed my enchilada, chalupa, tamale, beans and rice.  Who would guess you can get excellent Mexican food in Hurley, Mississippi?

As I have said we have met a lot of folks we hope will become life long friends.  We like to work with these guys and we like to get  together with them and have had quite a few opportunities to do that while we have been here.

That's a quick look at some of the ways we get together.  Hope you all have a great week end.  And thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!