From 15 to 105 in a week

On our last day in Sedona we did quite a bit of driving, going first to Meteor Crater, the best preserved such crater in the world. It is 170m deep and 1200m in diameter. Quite expensive at $16 each just to see a hole in the ground. They say its about 50,000 years old.

Then on the way back we called in at Walnut Canyon, site of old Sinagua Indian dwellings, made from small caves half way down the canyon cliffs. It's a steep walk down into the canyon, but a lovely isolated spot that made it very worthwhile.

Wendy took a great shot of the red rocks of Sedona on our last evening under the light of a full moon,

Then alas it was time to move on from Sedona and we headed for Tuscon, Arizona where we had a gorgeous campground in a state park at the bottom of the Santa Catalina Mountains. In the late evening the mountains glowed (not quite as red as  in Sedona but lovely all the same. We camped in an 'orchard' of mesquite trees. 

One of the best camp sites we have ever been in and one of the cheapest. Tuscon is a lovely city, or at least a lovely area. In the heart of the Sonoran desert we were surrounded by lots of varieties of cactus. There were Ocotillos, Chollos, Organ Pipe and prickly pear and of course the famous one - the saguaro.

They grow to enormous heights and are found everywhere in the Sonoran desert. There is a lot to do in Southern Arizona and we wished we had more time. The first day we visited The great Sonoran Desert Museum and wandered through the park admiring and understanding the unique characteristics of the Sonoran Desert. We saw wild Big Horn Sheep.

The variety of cacti that they have in the huge park is amazing. I nearly tripped over a rattlesnake before I was grabbed and pulled away by a ranger.  Just down the road is Old Tuscon, a movie set where over 230 movies have been made. All the famous westerns, The Three Amigos etc. It's a bit cheesy but the guided tour we had from someone who had worked there (and as an actor) was very good. We learnt a lot about John Wayne and Dean Martin. The place is a working movie lot and sort of theme park, but much more movie lot. 

Everywhere in Arizona there are rocky mountains and deep blue skies. It was warm but not as warm as it is today.

We also visited Tombstone, one of the most famous wild west towns where the famous shootout at OK Corral took place. We viewed an re-enactment and learnt all about the town in the 1880s. We saw all the famous places like Big Nose Jane's Saloon, Birdcage Theatre and the iconic main street.

On the way out we called in at Boot Hill Cemetery to see the graves of the early pioneers. Most of them had epitaphs like 'Murdered with a Gun 1886'. 

There wasn't time to visit the great Air and Space Museum with over 250 aircraft on display or BioSphere because we had a date with Zeke and Preston who were going to show us around the Catalina State Park. This they did very well, stopping from time to time to relieve themselves, and have a bite to eat. We were sorry to say goodbye to them.

Then it was time to leave and after a long 370 mile drive across Arizona we reached the border with California. We were stopped by the Border Patrol (as we were only a few miles from the Mexican border) before continuing on to Borrego Springs in the middle of the Anza Borrego Desert Park, our home for the next 4 days. It was hot, unseasonably hot at 105F (40C). Just 10 days ago in the Grand Canyon it was just 15F. Quite a contrast.  We have a lovely campsite in a resort surrounded by a golf course. A veritable oasis.  This is the view from our RV looking over to the Santa Rosa Mountains. It is much drier than the Sonoran Desert here, being in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevadas (though they are called something different down here). Death Valley is 70 miles north of here

This week we sight the Pacific Ocean having crossed the US from the Atlantic to the Pacific and from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico. 

Hasta la próxima semana.

Get your kicks on Route 66 - and we DID!

Welcome to the start of our third year touring the USA and Canada.

We arrived back in Albuquerque, New Mexico in bitterly cold weather (at least to us) and found all well with the Silverado and fifth wheel. We had booked the fifth wheel in for a full service and while they were doing this we visited the nearby Petroglyph National Monument where ancient Indian petroglyphs have been scratched into volcanic stone.

We stocked up with food and wine from that great store Trader Joes and headed west on Route 66. It was blowing a gale force wind from the west and it was a hard slog. Then suddenly Wendy heard it. Boom. She immediately told me that a tyre had blown and I pulled off quickly to the side of the road and discovered that the tire had completely delaminated. It looked bad news but a closer inspection revealed just superficial damage and easily fixed. We phoned the insurance company who sent out a breakdown truck to change the tyre, and they arranged for the fifth wheel to be brought back to new again.  Our plans to visit Monument Valley were cancelled as we didn't want to risk unnecessary travel without a spare tyre. We headed instead for Gallup, New Mexico and awaited the tyre shops opening the next day on Monday. We decided to replace all the tyres with high quality Canadian tyres. Whilst in Gallup we headed down the road 60 miles and visited the Petrified Forest where ancient logs lie everywhere in amazing colours and preservation.

It was very cold but not as cold as it was to become. Next day we headed along the I-40 from Gallup to the Grand Canyon. A long drive but using the Interstate most of the way would make it easier. The wind was howling at 60 mph kicking up dust everywhere. At Winslow, 50 miles east of Flagstaff, Arizona the freeway was closed for 50 miles because of the wind and dust, and we either had to wait it out along with the hundreds of trucks doing just that, or take a 80 mile detour to the south, which is what we did. We eventually arrived at the Grand Canyon which was very cold - down to 15f at night (-8c). We had to leave the water running all night to stop the taps freezing and use the gas heater for almost the first time to keeps us from freezing at night.  But it was worth it as the canyon was at its best with clear air and not too many crowds. It just got above freezing each day.

The campsite we had was very nice and we had elk grazing around our rig a lot of the time.

We visited the canyon lots of times in varying light and at different lookout points. Always it was captivating.

After a few days there we decided it was time for warmer weather and headed for beautiful Sedona around a 100 miles south but not at the same high altitude as the canyon. The weather here is delicious. Not hot enough for aircon and not cold enough for heaters. Perfect Goldilocks weather. The air is clear, the skies are blue and the countryside is so beautiful. Lots of things to do and restaurants to try. On one trip we visited Montezuma's Castle, and ancient Indian ruin set up high in the middle of a cave in high cliffs.

We visited Tlaquepaque which is a pseudo mexican village housing lots of (expensive) arts and craft shops. But the village was beautiful with its inner courtyards and fountains and trees and lovely flowers.

Today we have gone walking in the Sliding Rock State park which shows off the rich red rocks of Sedona and Oak Creek cascading gently through the middle of it. All under deep blue skies and the first greening of spring.

One more day here alas, and then we head south to Tuscon and the Sonoran Desert where the temperatures even this early in Spring are in the 90s. 'Til next week...