Serene Wandering

Occasionally we’d see something else.  This is an old water tank for the steam engines on the old railroad line between Chama and Durango.

One morning we saw all these fish congregating along the bank for about 300 yards!  We caught THE day the carp were spawning!   When the water temperature is right (73 degrees) it all happens in one day.    Two days later the eggs hatch.

We did get in the truck a couple times to go exploring!  Chimney Rock became a national monument in 2012, one of only 11 national park sites that are managed by the US Forest Service.   

Over 200 structures, or former structures, are evident within the monument. Some have been excavated and stabilized.  Large archeology efforts were made in 1921 and 1971.

The Ancient Pueblo people lived here from 925 to 1125 AD.  They were part of a larger network that centered in Chaco Canyon, 100 miles southwest.     Within the network, the Chimney Rock community was the most remote and highest in elevation.

Architecture and pottery similarities establish that Chaco relationship for archeologists. The wall under the shelter above is the only section of original wall available for viewing.  Other areas have been rebuilt (using original stones as possible) and stabilized with concrete.  When in use, the walls and roofs would have had a covering of adobe.

We accessed self guided tours to both sections of the national monument.   The first was Mesa Village containing home sites and a grand kiva.  The path is paved and the audio tour is well done. During non-covid times, guided tours are available.

The second section is the Great House Pueblo Trail.  The trail is a bit adventurous with rock/gravel footing,  steep drop-offs and gorgeous views.

Evidence exists of large fires at the Great House site.  They are thought to have been signals to a community on Huerfano Mesa approximately 30 miles away.  From there signals could be sent to Chaco Canyon.

The Great House appears to have had ceremonial purpose instead of residential.  Archeologists estimate no more than 10 people lived in this part of the site.  Many rooms were empty, thought to be guest rooms occupied only when special gatherings took place.

There were normal ceremonial gatherings and then there was the Northern Major Lunar Standstill gatherings.  Of course they didn’t call it that. Once every 18.6 years the moon rises between the two rock pinnacles, as viewed from the Great House.   During occupation of the site, those dates would have included AD 1076 and AD 1093.   Wooden beam datings have corresponded to those dates.

The next cycle of the Northern Major Lunar Standstill will occur in 2024-25.  Maybe we’ll have to come back to see it, and maybe by then I’ll understand it.  I looked for a simple, brief explanation for the blog and nothing was simple or brief!

Peregrine Falcons return to nest at Companion Rock each year.  We didn’t see falcons, but we did see evidence.

Beyond our exploring and relaxing, Handy Randy spent considerable time trying to fix leaks in our shower.   We had a cracked shower pan replaced under warranty a number of years ago and it is such poor quality that we are hesitant to use it again.We’d like to install a residential grade shower.  

That discussion led to a few other things we’d like to do – like resurface the splitting desk top, replace the carpet with a vinyl “wood” floor, and a few others.   We have appointments with two RV renovation companies to look at possibilities.

This three week trip has been great and reminds us that we really do like traveling in our fifth-wheel.  Randy is ready to sell the house and go full timing again but I’m hesitant.  We spent the last year getting our house just how we like it.  I’d like the best of both worlds!

We so enjoyed our 12 days at Ridgway State Park near Montrose, Colorado.  We can see ourselves volunteering here in the future – after we finish our map. 

The only negative is that campsites have only 30 amp power.   For those who don’t know what that means, it means on the cool Colorado mornings, I can’t warm up my cocoa in the microwave and run the electric fire place at the same time.  High amp appliances like those, and the toaster and blow dryer have to be managed – I can’t use more than one at a time on top of the other random low amp draws.  It’s do-able, just not as convenient as having 50 amp power.  Randy could explain to you that 50 amp really means 100 amps but what I know is that when we have 50 amps, I don’t have to manage anything.  It all just works, whenever I want, without tripping circuit breakers.

We aren’t the only ones who love this part of Colorado.  Actor Dennis Weaver, (environmentalist, all around great guy) and his family lived in Ridgway for many years.  He and his wife built a solar home made of recycled materials (tires, cans etc.) and called it Sunridge Earthship.  With walls three feet thick, it is well insulated against cold winters and warm summers.   We saw and commented on the home without realizing what it was and who it had belong too.

Dennis Weaver and family donated large acreage along the Umcompaghre River as a wildlife preserve and recreation area.  (Uncompaghre is a Ute word roughly translated to dirty water, or red water spring – likely from area hot springs.)  There are miles of hiking trails.

Dennis Weaver died in 2006 and his family dedicated the Dennis Weaver Memorial Park in 2007.

This eagle, by sculptor Vic Payne, has a wingspan of 21 feet. 

There is an invitation to assemble your own prayer stones.

Enjoy a musical interlude along with relaxation and reflection inspired by the park.

Dennis Weaver isn’t the only actor who spent time in these parts.   An impressive number of movies were filmed in the area and one is mentioned repeatedly –  True Grit.   During non-Covid times there are True Grit tours and movie locations to experience.

We found one True Grit site, Katie’s Meadow on Owl Creek Pass, where Rooster Cogburn (John Wayne) had a shootout with Ned Pepper (Robert Duvall).   Search for the “Bold Talk for a One Eyed Fat Man” movie clip if you want to relive it.    A few free range cows were enjoying the meadow when we were there.

 Owl Creek Pass is one of the famous scenic drives in the area.   Drivable by two wheel drive vehicles, it rises to 10,114 feet in the Uncompaghre National Forest.    

We saw Chimney Rock, clouded in smoke…

…and other beautiful towering rocks lifted up.

Miles and miles of aspen (and the random evergreens) made us want to come back and drive Owl Creek Pass in the fall.

Although we saw signs for bear and big horn sheep everywhere, we didn’t see much wildlife beyond the free range cows.  An exception was this marmot high on a rock behaving as sentry along the road.

And this squirrel, high up in a dead tree, enjoying the Colorado beauty – just like we did!

A list of the ten national parks in the US with the smallest number of annual visitors include three in Alaska.  Why is kind of obvious.  Two are islands (Isle Royale and Dry Tortugas) so require watercraft.  The other five are in isolated parts of the country.   That doesn’t mean they aren’t worthy.  They are National Parks after-all.

Although we have not yet been to the parks in Alaska or those that are islands, we have visited three of the remaining five least visited parks, one of them recently – Black Canyon of the Gunnison.

In 2014 we visited North Cascades National Park along Highway 20, the northern route across Washington.  The area is stunningly beautiful.  I wrote about it in the blog post  What is that smell?!.  (The title had nothing to do with the national park!)

 

Great Basin National Park is very isolated near the Utah- Nevada border.   Again in 2014, we enjoyed the scenic drive within the park and Lehmann Caves.   We traveled The Loneliest Road in America to get there and that is the name of the blog.

This week we visited Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.  This park isn’t hard to get to (at least in summer) so my guess is that there is just so much else to see in the four corners region.  We are actively exploring the area and have much more to go.  There are five national parks in southern Utah, two in northern Arizona and another in southwest Colorado.  Maybe Black Canyon of the Gunnison just gets lost in the mix.

Like the Grand Canyon, this park is more easily accessed from the south so the south rim has nearly all the services.   We entered at the south entrance near the town of Montrose.  Also like the Grand Canyon it is not a simple decision to visit the north rim.  It takes several hours to drive around to the north side.   It took us many years to get to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon (The North Rim – Finally!)  We hope it won’t take us that long to get to the north rim of Black Canyon of the Gunnison so we can enjoy “solitude and self-reliant conditions.”

After entering the park, we started down the East Portal road which descends to the Gunnison River.  Some reviewers said they had seen bears in the morning so we went there first.  Unfortunately, we didn’t see bears.  

The East Portal road is closed in winter because of hair-pin turns and a 16% grade.   Vehicles over 22 feet are prohibited.  Randy never saw the truck tilt more than 9% but apparently there are places of 16%.  The road was impressive and I was glad my driver knew how to use low gear and engine braking.  Some people were riding their brakes all the way down!

At the bottom we found a beautiful river and canyon.  If you look close you can see an ever present fly fisherman.

The road itself seemed quite an accomplishment but at the end we learned that the true engineering marvel was the Gunnison Tunnel.  

This picture shows the small town that supported the tunnel workers and families in 1905.  It had a  power plant, post-office, school, dining hall, hospital and more to support the 24 hour per day work lasting through 1909.

The 5.8 mile long tunnel was one of America’s first Reclamation Projects. A straight line was maintained for 10,000 feet into the canyon wall.  It still brings 495,000 gallons per minute of irrigation water to the Umcompahgre Valley.

It was honored as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.  Other projects honored in this way include the Statue of Liberty, the Golden Gate Bridge and the Durango & Silverton Railroad.

After driving back out to rim level we started the scenic south rim drive.  There are twelve overlooks along the seven mile route and we went to eleven of them.  (Three overlooks were very close together and we skipped the middle one.)  All involve a bit of a walk to the viewpoint, some short, others ranged from 300 – 700 yards.  One was as long as 1.5 miles.

Black canyon isn’t the deepest canyon or the longest in the United States.  Those distinctions belong to Hell’s Canyon (Idaho and Oregon) and the Grand Canyon respectively.  What makes Black Canyon distinct is the combination of depth, vertical drop and narrowness.  The canyon is only 1/4 mile wide in the Narrows and some areas see very little daylight.

Randy stands at the edge of the precipice because…of course he does.  I do not ask for these photo ops!!!

One of the primary features of the canyon is Painted Wall.  The dark sections are Gneiss while the lighter veins are Pegmatite.   The wall is twice as high as the Empire State Building.

While all the scenic viewpoints are great, the eighth in our journey was our favorite – Cedar Point.  

There was a bit of a hike through Pinon-Juniper to the overlook.

From Cedar Point we had a nice view of the Gunnison River and the Painted Wall.

The last viewpoint involved a “moderate” 1.5 mile hike to Warner Point.  After being sick much of July, hiking at 8000 feet, with the smoke and the afternoon heat wasn’t a breeze for me.  Randy had plenty of time to take close up shots of this very colorful lizard.  

When we got to Warner Point we found our view thwarted by smoke.  It had been evident throughout our visit but increased in the afternoon.   Oh well, just one more reason to come back and visit Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park – next time from the north rim.

 

In early July we wanted to escape the heat and go to cooler Colorado.    Since the trailer had been in storage for many months, we had a lot to gather and organize.   Things needed repair due to lack of use.  It was a hot endeavor to get ready.

When we stopped enroute, I was not feeling well.  We assumed I had overheated while loading the trailer.   When we arrived at a state park near Grand Junction the next day, I never felt well.  I had a headache, low fever, cough, and fatigue.    Despite being very careful  – I had covid symptoms.  We decided to go home in case I got worse or Randy got sick.  Randy drove ten hours home and unpacked it all himself.  

My doctor recommended Covid testing, not an easy endeavor in Arizona,  but one that was accomplished three days later.   I was told I likely had Covid.  I was mildly sick for ten days, very unusual for me.   By the time I got my negative test results 14 days later I was mostly well and we were highly skeptical.   Randy never did feel sick.

By mid August I was well and wanted to finally escape the heat.  Social distancing is easy in an RV and I was able to find reservations in two Colorado state parks above 7000 feet.   

Randy installed “soft starts” on both trailer air-conditioners.   That allows us to run an air conditioner from a 20 amp outlet at the house.  It made the loading procedure much more tolerable!   Due to the extreme heat we can’t keep much in the trailer while it isn’t in use.

After a quick overnight in Flagstaff, we arrived at Ridgway State Park near Montrose, the northern point of the San Juan Skyway region in southwest Colorado.  

The park has trails along the Uncompahgre River and Ridgway Reservoir.  

Fly fishing is very popular here and we enjoy watching.  

We are here for 11 days so have plenty of time to wander, relax and explore the area.

Also plenty of time for a Handy Randy project!  Because the trailer is stored for months at a time, he kept needing to sterilize the fresh water tank.  Not only is that time consuming but it wastes water.   We never forget we live in the desert!

Randy installed an UV-LED water purification system by the Canadian company ACUVA.  Basically the water is zapped by ultra-violet light to kill any contaminants  from the source or our water tank. (That is Serene’s non technical explanation.)  Some municipalities use the same technology for their water purification.    Included was a charcoal water filter to help with taste.  We will use water through the ACUVA for drinking and cooking.

We took a day long excursion along the Million Dollar Highway, one of the “most scenic drives in America.”  There are several thoughts on why it is called the Million Dollar Highway.  Possibilities include building it cost a million dollars a mile and that fill dirt contains a million dollars in gold ore.   

The Million Dollar Highway northern terminus is Ouray, the Switzerland of America. 

Ouray looks like a fun town with a historic main street, enticing restaurants, brew pubs and hot springs.  Since we are not currently doing ANY of those social things, we just drove through – happily anticipating our next visit.  

The route between Ouray and Silverton is 25 miles long and takes about 45 minutes to drive if you are just going from one town to the other.   Of course we explored a bit!

According to tourist information, there are two ghost towns accessible from the highway,    Ironton and Red Mountain.  They were just two of many towns that sprang up during the mining bonanza of the late 1880s.

Ironton boasted 1000 residents circa 1890.  The Silverton Railroad made twice daily stops and life was booming due to the 1890 the Sherman Silver Purchase Act requiring the federal government to buy silver.  In 1893 the act was repealed and the price of silver plummeted.   By 1910 only 26 people remained in Ironton.

It was easy to see the additions off this main house – an added room and the covered walkway to the outhouse.

There are six or seven buildings still standing in the former residential area.  I wonder if this house was the nicest in town.

  A copy of The Mining Age newspaper, used for insulation, is still visible under the stairs.

 

Red Mountain Creek runs adjacent to the town and is shocking at first sight!  

Over 100 mines were developed within the 30 square mile Red Mountain region.   They left environmental devastation.  Mine tailings exposed zinc, cadmium, copper and lead.  Rainwater and snowmelt go through the tailings resulting in acid mine drainage.  Iron is also evident in the bright orange water and rocks.

Only one mine company,  Idarado, is still in operation.  Their mission is remediation of the land and water by re-contouring and moving water routes away from pilings.  Idarado is remediating areas damaged by all mining operations, not just their own.

Given the remains of mines are everywhere, that task seems enormous!

We searched for the townsite of Red Mountain but didn’t find it.  Our four wheeling search led us to other interesting things.

We found this mine opening…

…and this machinery and mine shaft.  

Eventually we got back on the Million Dollar Highway to Silverton.

We spent a little time in Silverton last year when we rode the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. (That blog post is Plan B:  Colorado!)

The Million Dollar Highway, part of US 550,  is not a road for the timid.  Parts include hairpin turns, no guardrails and steep drop-offs.   I am glad we explored the highway this way first because our route to the next Colorado state park goes south through Silverton.  That means the Million Dollar Highway with the trailer… Randy says no problem!

You may remember that we have citrus trees in our yard and have enjoyed the bounty in whole, juice and liquor forms.

We also have a mesquite tree with lots of seed pods. 

I knew native peoples used mesquite as a food source so I studied it. There is a wide variance of flavor in the seed pods of mesquite trees.  The resulting flour has a strong flavor and needs to be mixed with other flours to neutralize it.   Assuming I liked the taste of our seed pods,  I would have to find a place to mill it.  Since I do almost no baking I’m not going to pursue it.   If COVID-19 still has us home this time next year, I might rethink that decision for a new experience.

This year I chose to learn about harvesting the fruit given by our prickly pear cactus.   There are dozens of varieties of prickly pear and we have these two in our yard.

This one has lovely yellow blossoms.  It had fruit last year but didn’t develop any this year.  

I don’t know if skipping a year is normal or if it is because we have water sprayed this cactus several times to reduce dactylopius coccus, a scale insect.  This parasitic insect is useful in making red dye.

The first step was to pick the magenta fruit, also called “tuna.”  That is no easy task given that prickly pear cactus have tiny hairlike prickles called glochids that stick to  everything, especially skin.

Even using the precaution of metal tongs and gloves I still got some prickles in several places on my body!  (Twenty four hours later I think they are finally gone.)

Once gathered, I used a culinary blow torch to burn off the glochids.

Then I passed the fruit back and forth between bowls to knock off any remaining prickles.

I boiled the fruit and then let it steep for several hours.

The directions said to mash and then strain but the skin was too tough.  I resorted to puncturing the skin and then kneeding the juice out.

From four and a half pounds of fruit I got four cups of prickly pear juice!  An equal amount of sugar goes into the pot to simmer and then cool.

While we were waiting for it to cool, we tried some fresh prickly pear fruit, eating only the insides.  I thought it tasted like watermelon.  Randy, who doesn’t like watermelon, thought it tasted bitter and didn’t like it.

A couple hours later we bottled our prickly pear syrup and enjoyed prickly pear margaritas!  I don’t like plain margaritas but thought the added syrup made it taste good!

So what else might we be eating from our backyard?  Not this cute little bunny enjoying the cool mulch under the grapefruit tree.

Not our favorite quail parents and babies!   The babies start out like ping pong balls with hair.  As they grow, the family seems to shrink from 15 babies down to 5 or 6.  They have a high mortality rate.  Even though both parents are always present and seem to do their best to keep track of the brood some must get left behind in the constant movement.

We won’t be eating this guy either. Does anyone eat lizards unless it is absolutely necessary?  He is fun to watch as he does his push-ups each day.

We haven’t checked whether the seeds pods on our pineapple palm are edible.   Pineapple palm is indicative of the appearance, not the fruit.

These palms have nothing for us – no coconuts, no dates – nothing!  What’s up with that?

Cue “How Deep is Your Love” by the BeeGees and you will be singing our song.  We danced to it just last winter at a BeeGees Tribute concert and can still sing every word.   The chorus ends with the phrase “We belong to you and me.”  Today is our 40th wedding anniversary.

Randy and I met soon after we arrived on the Northern Arizona University campus in August 1977.   We became friends and then a couple.

Shortly thereafter we moved to Boise, Idaho for Randy to work at Hewlett Packard.   Here he is with his first engineering paycheck!

I was hired as a first grade teacher and we were off, working at careers that would last 33 years for Randy and 25 for me.

 

 

Last fall we were so busy traveling that we barely had days at home between trips! I wrote about our September trips in the posts  Our “Problems” With Antelope Canyon…      Fourteen Border Crossings in One Day! ,   The North Rim – Finally!  and New Things in Las Vegas!

In mid October we met friends Kent and Pam in Sedona for an awesome, beautiful weekend.   This is a Sedona landmark, the Chapel of the Holy Cross.

We continued on with Kent and Pam to San Jose for a BSU volleyball game,  football game and some whale watching!

 

Randy and I stayed in Mexico a second week to visit Rosa (in pink).  Rosa is Randy’s dad’s second wife and our friend.  She lives in LaPaz now and we had a great time meeting her family.  

Rosa had organized a large family gathering in our honor.  Her family loved Carl so much and Randy looks very much like him.  It was an emotional experience for all of us.

 From Flagstaff we traveled to eastern Washington for a family Thanksgiving and then a brief stop in Boise for Natasha’s birthday. When we returned to Surprise in early December we were ready for a rest!

January begins “the season” in Sun City Grand.  We usher for events and music programs throughout the year but everything kicks up a notch during the season.

We had Bocci league, golfing, hiking club, Grand Dems and a FunDiner’s group.  We both enjoyed taking classes through Grand Learning.   We started gleaning for the food bank and were blessed with visits from friends and family.

We went whale watching again and it was awesome.  We followed a mother and calf for a time.

Then we watched four males competing for a female.  Pam took the great pictures.

Home again,  we started Spring Training volunteering for Peoria Sports Complex, home of my team, the Mariners.

 We were spending a lot of time at the ball park, either volunteering or just watching games. Then spring training came to an abrupt halt.  So did life as we all knew it. 

Initially we were very content to have some down time.    Given that we aren’t trying to work, or deal with not working, or have kids at home, it hasn’t been too hard.  We live in an area of high risk because of age and health related concerns but also recognize that we have it much easier than so many others.  

We had gone from being way too busy to finding ways to keep busy. We are doing some miscellaneous projects around the house, some reading – same as most people. 

Every few days we have been delighted to check in on three owlets near a community lake.  The parents have nested in the same tree for several years. 

This morning we got more than we expected!  Mother owl had breakfast for the family.  We heard the owlets call to her and watched her fly over to feed them.   Poor bunny.

Randy and I mostly stay home but we do go walking every morning. 

We have had great weather have been blessed with amazing cactus blooms for several weeks!  

Did you know the desert does this?  Enjoy!

We have been amazed at the variety of cactus but haven’t learned many names.

Some look like they belong in the sea!

When we bought our house last spring we knew we were getting a grapefruit and an orange tree.   We like oranges and fresh squeezed orange juice but weren’t too excited about the grapefruit.  The oranges were gone by the time we moved in but the grapefruit were surprisingly sweet and the juice was good.

Unfortunately we knew nothing about caring for citrus trees and they got very stressed with inadequate water.   The irrigation system was still set on the winter watering schedule and by early summer the trees should have been getting triple that amount.  It seems so obvious now.

With the aid of a local nursery we got our act together and learned how to care for citrus trees.  Randy spent long hot hours digging water wells under the trees, changing sprinkler lines and pruning the inside of the trees allowing for airflow. 

 We even added to our citrus grove by purchasing a tangerine tree.   We were hoping for a “little cutie” seedless tree.   Because we were newbies, with the nursery planting in the summer,  we bought tree insurance allowing for replacement for a variety of reasons- including if we didn’t like the taste of the fruit.

In December we harvested about thirty tangerines.   They were baseball size and had seeds.  We were so disappointed.   The nursery offered to trade our tree but said maintaining a seedless variety would be pretty much impossible.   Apparently those little cutie growers go to great effort to plant orchards far away from other citrus to avoid cross pollination.  Our tangerine tree was mere yards from our orange and grapefruit trees.   Even though we were disappointed it seemed excessive to destroy a perfectly good tree in exchange for another that still wouldn’t be what we wanted.  We’ll just enjoy our tangerines.  

In January we joined a citrus gleaning group at our church.   About thirty of us spent Wednesday mornings January through March gleaning oranges, grapefruit, lemons, tangelos, etc. from trees in the adjacent Sun City community.  The fruit is donated to a local food bank – some given out as whole fruit and some as juice.

Most of these trees are owned by older people who could not possibly pick the fruit or manage its distruibution.  They donate $25 per tree to the food bank for each tree we pick thereby helping to defray the cost of operating the juice machine.  (The cost of professional gleaners would be $150 – $200 per tree.)  As a group we gleaned 212 trees yielding approximately 95,000 pounds of citrus for the food bank.   

Twice we had house guests who joined us.   Thanks to our friend Jacque for visiting and for pitching in.  

Our friend Beth also came and picked with us while visiting.   We didn’t get a picture of her but she took one of Randy shaking the tree.   In January we were picking fruit that didn’t seem quite ripe and by early March all he had to do was shake a limb and lots came down!  (The white paint is to avoid sunburn.)

Our own grapefruit were plentiful but much smaller than the ones we “inherited” last year.   Our oranges were also plentiful and small but we don’t know what size they were previously.   We assume they too were stunted due to the summer stress.

We left the fruit on our trees very late into the season hoping they would improve with age but eventually we gleaned them too with the help of our neighbors.After Donna and Rick had taken as much as they wanted,  and we had given away what we could,  we still had a lot left….

We juiced a lot!  We have enough grapefruit juice to last all year and have six quart bags of orange juice.   Our oranges were so small it took about 30 oranges to make 2.5 cups of juice.

And that brings me to limoncello…   Our son-in-law, Seth, introduced me to limoncello several years ago when he home crafted a batch in Boise.    I purchased some  limoncello at Costco last summer and it is my happy hour drink of choice.  I even have a T-Shirt saying limoncello is my “spirit drink.”

All that is way overstating the importance of limoncello in my life but when you have a neighbor with a lemon tree, and he gives you way too many lemons, you go for it.   We made our own limoncello.

Limoncello uses zest peel, not juice, and is usually made with Everclear.  We had some rum that Randy didn’t like so we used that instead.   After sitting for a couple weeks we mixed that concoction with a simple syrup and were pleasantly surprised with the outcome.

Our limoncello isn’t nearly as strong or as sweet as the brand we buy.  We are liking combining a little of ours with a little of the store bought version.

We got overconfident and decided to try grapefruitcello and orangecello using our own citrus.   We went to the liquor store to buy Everclear but it was scarce as people were using it to make hand sanitizer.    Vodka was recommended as our base liquor.

From the beginning we had doubts about grapefruitcello because no recipe ever calls for grapefruit zest.  But why not try it?   Several weeks later, when we were ready to add the simple syrup, we made up only a small amount.   Grapefruitcello was really bad.

Our orangecello was drinkable but not as good as our limoncello.   We think the secret for us may be using rum instead of  vodka.

So we’ve learned a lot in our newbie citrus year – about caring for trees, about gleaning and about eating and drinking the fruit.   This little orange is already beginning next year’s crop of fruit, juice and orangecello.  Cheers!

No, we didn’t fall off the face of the earth – and thanks to those of you who wondered!   We were enjoying fall travel and then enjoying “the season” at Sun City Grand.   We would be busy still, except for the corona virus, social distancing and forced relaxation.  

We are both doing well in stay at home status.  We walk each day and are working our way through podcasts, books, movies and projects.  SereneWandering finally rose to the top of my list.   I plan to write a few posts to catch you up –  a way to spend my time and yours – if you’re willing.

You may want to go back to May 2019 and read Our New Grand Plan post about the decision we made to stop full time RVing and buy a home.  One year later,  we are happy with that decision.  Randy is doing very well but has had a few blips along the way.  Having a home base near Mayo Clinic was the right call.

In the July 2019 post Wheels, Batteries and  Desert Things, we told you about buying new vehicles and what we had done to our new house that “didn’t need anything.”  We have spent the months since doing even more things.   

Our biggest project was to add a covered patio along the entire back of the house.  The afternoon sun made that area unusable all summer.  It also required having the entire back of the house closed up.

We created a lot more outdoor living space that we are loving.  We opted for a solid cover, added a door from our bedroom to the patio and another area for a fire table seating area.

We really enjoy the animals that visit our backyard. One morning this bobcat strolled by as I was sitting with my coffee!  So exciting!

We see coyotes come through often enough.  As long as they don’t bother our bunnies, we enjoy them.

We had 27 solar panels installed.   They are producing power but it has been a huge frustration for Randy.  If he wasn’t an engineer who wanted to know everything about how they worked and how they were installed, we wouldn’t be as far along as we are.  At one point we thought he was going to have to become a solar power expert and fix them himself.  Persistence with the manufacturing and installing companies has paid off, at least in the short term.

Randy decided he was done with our other solar power system.  The solar hot water system came with the house and was one of the first projects he had to figure out.  The system leaked and needed to be coaxed along.  Eventually it wasn’t worth the grief and he pulled it out.

After a new heating and cooling system, I suggested to Randy that maybe we should be done.  Ha!  A week later I decided I wanted security doors.  Security doors are sturdy, lockable doors to keep two and four legged critters out.  Many people lock the security doors and leave their other doors open at night.

Due to an irregular size, our security doors needed to be custom built which led to a lot of research on how I wanted them to look.  I chose an Ocotillo design and we have the same on our front and bedroom doors.

 

We really do think we are now done working on our house that “didn’t need anything.”

Next time I’ll tell you more about what we’ve been doing that isn’t house related.

Our fall road trip concluded with a few days in Las Vegas.  We’ve been to Las Vegas lots of times but still found some new things to do.

We stayed downtown (instead of on the strip) to have easy access to the Fremont Street Experience.   We walked through the five block covered extravaganza several times enjoying the lights and zip-lines overhead.   There were interesting artisans and musicians during the day but the place got pretty seedy later in the evening.

Our downtown hotel was across the street from The Mob Museum.   We spent a few hours exploring but could have spent many more.  Another visit is certainly warranted.   The museum documented, with exhibits and video, the rise of Organized Crime through prohibition and beyond.   Organized crime infiltrated Hollywood, Sports, Racing, Gambling and Drugs.   Police and politicians were bought and paid for in cities across the land.

Huge skimming operations occurred at both the Stardust and the Tropicana in Las Vegas.

American awareness of organized crime was raised through the Kefauver Hearings in 1950 and 1951.  Tennessee Senator Estes Kefauver led the Senate Investigation on organized crime and held hearings in 14 cities across the United States. They were broadcast into people’s homes by a new medium called television.

Today the old Las Vegas courthouse is The Mob Museum. A very effective multi-media presentation about the hearing is available in the very room in which it was held.

After Americans became aware that organized crime had infiltrated their lives in previously unknown ways, the tide began to turn.  Efforts to root out corruption took hold and the battle waged.   

In tribute to Speakeasies, common during prohibition, the Mob Museum has its own in the basement.

We enjoyed a couple of drinks.

Also new, we went to a Rod Stewart Concert!  

It was very good!