Thursday, April 30, 2020
Our current experience at Flagstaff is refreshing days and
crisp nights, with low humidity. Nights are cold, with temperatures warming up
during the day. Layering is key and snow is possible. Our days have been in the
70’s and nights in the 40’s. Flagstaff is situated in the Ponderosa pines at an
elevation of approximately 7,000 feet, near the base of the San Francisco
Peaks. The name Flagstaff comes from an actual flagstaff made from a stripped Ponderosa
pine tree that was erected at the spring, on July 4, 1876, by soldiers and pioneers.
Ah, the great sense of relief that comes with the sunshiny
and snow melting ways of springtime. Spring includes a Hodge podge of weather
from snow, sun, rain and wind. This season holds all sorts of surprises which
is why it is always a good idea to check the weather reports before hiking or
driving into the mountains. The average day time temperatures range from 50 to
70 degrees; the night time ranges from 20 to 30 degrees.
Flagstaff attracts outdoor enthusiasts year-round with its
spacious vistas and cool, clean mountain air. Favorite activities include
hiking, mountain biking, historic attractions, camping, boating, just relaxing,
and rock climbing. At an elevation of 7,000 feet, in the midst of the world’s
largest ponderosa pine forest, Flagstaff is a hub of activity where an eclectic
mix of small-town charm and endless outdoor adventure beckons.
This morning, we took a nice hike through the Ponderosa
pines up to the base of the San Francisco Peaks. We saw Stellar Jays, Acorn
Woodpeckers, and Abert’s (long-eared) Squirrels.
After we made a scrumptious green chile rellenos breakfast,
we headed to the laundromat to do laundry. We picked a well-managed, clean laundromat
and used all of our protective gear and safety precautions. There were several
Navajo women and they were practicing safety too. Made me feel better about the
hard-hit Indians.
We caught take-out lunch at Chic-Fil-A and picnicked on the
Northern Arizona University campus. We took a return drive along the foothills
back to our campground. Flagstaff is home to the Flagstaff Urban Trail System
which encompasses approximately 50 miles of trails throughout the city and includes
areas on all sides of town. A local rock strata monument in Heritage
Square of downtown Flagstaff, bears witness to the dormant volcanic area that
created all this natural beauty.
It was a good day!
Venomous snakes of Arizona: These various
snakes are found in unique environments around Arizona. Some found only in a
very small pocket or area.
Arizona coral snake
Mexican vine snake
Tropical vine snake
Sidewinder Rattlesnake
Grand Canyon Rattlesnake
Arizona Black Rattlesnake
Great Basin Rattlesnake
Tiger Rattlesnake
Hopi Rattlesnake
Lyre snake
Mojave Rattlesnake (Crotalus scutulatus)
Night Snake
Northern Blacktail Rattlesnake
Prairie Rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis)
Arizona ridge-nosed rattlesnake (Crotalus willardi
willardi)
Southwestern Blackhead Snake
Speckled Rattlesnake (Crotalus mitchelli)
Western Coral snake (Micruroides euryxanthus)
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake (Crotalus atrox)
Western Shovelnose Snake
Twin-Spotted Rattlesnake
Banded Rock Rattlesnake
Friday, May 1, 2020
Following a nice breakfast, we departed Flagstaff, Arizona
and headed to our next campsite at Grants, New Mexico. I kept Google busy with questions
about the route. We have traveled it on prior occasions, but there’s always a
new discovery and something interesting to learn.
We crossed Walnut Canyon and I asked Google to “clue me in”
on something new. Sure enough, I learned something interesting. We have
explored Walnut Canyon National Monument SE of Flagstaff, where the
600-hundred-foot deep canyon exposes ancient limestone layers and contains lots
of cliff dwellings of the 1100 CE, Sinagua people. What was new to me was that;
Walnut Creek flows into the Little Colorado River. I also learned that the
Little Colorado River takes its rise in east-central Arizona’s White Mountains,
at 10,000-feet, and flows NW into the Colorado River, in the east Grand Canyon,
and some of the canyons we have hiked are tributaries of the Little Colorado
River. Of course, everyone who has visited the east Grand Canyon National Park
has seen the Little Colorado River, joining the Colorado River, via its
3-thousand-foot-deep canyon. Now, that was very interesting to me because we
have encountered the Little Colorado many times (over the years) in numerous
places along its course to the Colorado River.
We had a picnic lunch (McDonalds take-out) at Holbrook today.
Holbrook (1881) began as a town of railroaders and cattlemen, outlaws and
rugged lawmen, and a few wild women.
Today, it is a Navajo
County (city) steeped in Native American culture. At almost a mile-high, our
picnic was very comfortable under the shade trees. In Holbrook, petrified wood
is on display and also for sale, all around. The nearby Petrified Forest
National Park prohibits collecting but the surrounding area is open-season.
It’s hard to believe that this 225-million-year-old-log and fossils were in a
tropical forest, near the equator. It moved north thousands of miles and rose
to over 5-thousand feet elevation to make this high-desert. We didn’t know
about tectonic movements when we went to school at Progress!
Note: In Arizona and other southwestern States, a pond or
hole of water is referred to as a “tank”. So, if a native, giving direction,
says; “drive six miles north to the tank then take your first right”, be sure and
define “tank”!
We hit New Mexico, and we were ready to pack-it-in! There’s
no mistaking the red cliffs of Gallup, New Mexico. We have camped and hiked the
mountains at the Navajo “Red Rocks” park and rodeo grounds and always enjoy the
Native American cultures. Gallup is known as the "Heart of Indian
Country" or "The Heart of Indians" because it is on the edge of
the Navajo reservation and is home to Hopi, and Zuni tribes as well. Currently,
Gallup is being hit hard by the CV pandemic and it is virtually closed to
visitors. Hope they make it OK!
Finally, we arrived at our campsite at Grants, New Mexico,
on the north end of the “lava country”. I picked this place as a repeat site
because I was here eight days ago and loved the place. It’s on the north end of
the large 3,000-year-old lava field, part of El Malpais National Monument. That
lava is awesome, with an unimaginable story. It flowed down 25-miles, making
lava tubes, blew massive piles all around, and left an immense badlands, to
challenge your imagination.
Saturday, May 2, 2020
Doing a two-day rest-break at Grants, New Mexico, we
walked, relaxed, cooked, and did some maintenance. This is a very unique spot
with a lot of interesting attractions.
Monday, May 4
Our travel today was Grants, New Mexico to Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma.
We stayed at a familiar (Rockwell RV Park) campground in
Oklahoma City. They have a buffalo herd and we saw the newest addition born to
the herd this morning. This is a convenient spot, just off I-40, with a nice,
shady, quiet atmosphere.
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Today, we traveled from Oklahoma City to Van Buren,
Arkansas. We elected to take a two-day rest at Van Buren. We took a repetition
campsite at the Ridge RV Park on Lee Creek, near the Oklahoma/Arkansas line, just
upstream from the Arkansas River. Lee Creek flows from Arkansas into Oklahoma,
then returns to Arkansas before its confluence with the Arkansas River near Van
Buren. This park is primarily a fish camp with access to the Arkansas River’s McClellan–Kerr
Arkansas River Navigation System, linking the Tulsa Port of Catoosa and running
southeast through Oklahoma and Arkansas to the Mississippi River. It was
somehow comforting to hear the powerful tugs, pushing large tows of commerce,
passing through, during the night. The park is situated under a canopy of large
hardwood trees and is a cozy little camp spot.
Thursday 5-7-20
Our travel goal today is Van Buren, Arkansas to Little
Rock, Arkansas. We ordered lunch at the Clarksville Pizza Hut (take-out), and
had a picnic lunch. Following lunch, we called ahead and made a campsite
reservation at the Little Rock Downtown River RV Park. Continuing east, we began
to encounter wind from a cold-front and it made towing a little dicey. Even the
big-rigs were fighting to hold their lanes.
We were glad to arrive at the Little Rock Downtown River RV
Park, a comfy little resort, tucked in between the Interstate, Arkansas River, railroad
bridge, and floodwall, with access to the Little Rock
River Walk. As the name implies, it’s literally in downtown Little Rock!
We arrived mid-afternoon, so our first activity was taking
a walk. The campground connects to the Little Rock River Walk, via the old (1899)
railway bridge. The railroad bridge has been converted to a scenic walking and
biking crossing of the river. We walked around the William Jefferson Clinton
Presidential Library building and park, a beautifully landscaped, lawn and gardens,
with tributes.
In keeping with our priorities, we ordered a take-out
Southern Fried Catfish dinner from the Flying Fish. We drove over the river
bridge, picked-up our dinner, and returned to the RV Park, for the best fried
catfish filets, fries, slaw, and key lime pie. Now that’s southern-fried!
Sooooo good!!!
Friday, May 8, 2020
A rain storm came through during the night and made for some
tranquil sleeping. This morning, the storm had moved east and after a nice
breakfast, we headed to Senatobia. We stopped for fuel and lunch at West
Memphis, then called ahead for a campsite. The best/closest we found was at
Coldwater, so we headed in and shut-it-down. Tired and hungry, we made a pleasant
dinner, then kicked-back to read and watch TV.
This closes-the-loop on my Mississippi to California,
round-trip, and I feel the miles. My trip TO California was a three-day,
1800-mile drive, drive, motivated by getting back to Terry, at Lake Cahuilla.
Our RETURN trip was a more relaxed, 12-day pull, with adequate rest stops, nice
campsites, hiking, and sightseeing. We needed that after the hot, laborious
days of packing-up at Lake Cahuilla.
Now, we begin a new sequester-period and commence our visit
with Rose. Watching the Mississippi Governor announce an additional 14-day
sequester period, this will probably be the safe-mode of living until the
science and medicine folks figure-out an immunization. Glad we’re retired and sad
for the people who have to be at risk. They deserve all the support that we can
give them!
