WE HIT THE BIG CITY: TUCSON, AZ

After pulling out of Paws and Hooves Ranch on Wednesday (for the last time) and settling in for an overnight at Tucson’s Pima County fairgrounds (click here to read our recent review), we enlisted Jeanie and Ray to come along to check out a new-to-us Mexican seafood restaurant, Mariscos Chihuahua (the one on Grande Avenue).   We’d seen the menu online; it included both ceviche and pulpo – memories of Panama - and my mouth watered. 

Our opinion: delicious!  Oh, that ceviche tostada was outstanding… yum.  It was great to spend the evening catching up with Jeanie and Ray over margaritas and fresh seafood.

Next day, we were up and on our way early, driving through rush hour traffic to Lance’s RV Service on the north side of town.  Our service list had grown – besides installation of the new Splendide washer and dryer, we needed a small adjustment to the wood trim on our big slide and decided to have the generator serviced.  Leaving Scoopy in Lance’s hands, we took off for a busy day. 

First stop?  Late breakfast at Coyote Pause Cafe, a cozy restaurant near the entrance to Tucson Mountain Park.  Then we headed off west once again, to Justin’s Diamond J RV park (click here to read our review and see photos).  Justin’s, owned by “Doc” Justin and his wife, Christine, is our favorite commercial RV park in the Tucson area, and we had called earlier in the week to see if we could snag one of their unusually large sites on short notice. 

Christine, a native of Viet Nam, is one of the most friendly, energetic and personable RV park managers we’ve met – and she has a great memory.  We exchanged hugs, and she confirmed that she’d reserved a spacious site for us.  The prior renters were leaving as we went to check it out – we’d arrived at the perfect time. 

I was surprised to realize we hadn’t been at Justin’s since September of 2008, over three years ago.  The landscaping has matured, and Doc and Christine have continued to improve their park.  Their unusually large spaces are particularly welcome this time of year, when every site is occupied.

Once we secured the site, we were off again, this time to the Tucson Mountain district of Saguaro National Park.  On the welcome advice of a volunteer at headquarters, off we went to the Signal Hill picnic area for the short hike to view 1,000 year old petroglyphs… which stretched into a pleasant, 3 1/2 mile loop hike back to the parking area.

By then, it was 1:30, and the work on Scoopy was slated for completion by 2 pm.  When we arrived just after the hour, we found three RV techs inside, grunting and exclaiming as they tried to get the dryer onto its shelf above the washing machine.  The three worked well together; they even kept their senses of humor as they alternately applied brains and brawn to the problem.  It took longer than anticipated, but we pulled out of their parking lot at 4 pm, just before the worst of rush hour – whew.

(While service work is on my mind… if you don’t already know about the RV Service Reviews website, be sure to check it out the next time you need service work: RVserviceReviews.com.   Reviews are written by RV’ers – be sure to add your own experiences, too, good or bad.  It is a great resource for those of us who are likely to need service or repairs in an unfamiliar area.)

By the time we settled in to our site at Justin’s, breakfast was a dim memory.  With wine in hand, Odel skimmed through the owner’s manuals for the new washer and dryer (light-years beyond the basic, hard-working Kenmore W/D we had replaced) while I boiled pasta and nuked a frozen container of Odel’s fantastic Italian sausage pasta sauce.  Oh, the joy of homemade, frozen food and a microwave!  :)

Odel tossed a load of laundry into the new washer on Friday morning, and we entertained ourselves watching our tumbling laundry through the glass door of our first ever front loading washing machine.  It appears to use fraction of the water we needed in our old top-loader.  And the dryer… tumble, tumble, tumble – STOP… and then tumble in the other direction.  It changed direction every couple of minutes; at first, I wondered if it was broken.  Will that keep our sheets from rolling themselves into a giant, wrinkled ball in the dryer?

So we are happily settled in our site here at Justin’s for the next couple weeks.  I’m heading off an a plane again next week, to Sacramento; Odel picked Tucson as his home while I am gone.  Justin’s offers great desert hiking right out the back of the park, and Odel has sussed out good deals on the city golf courses.  Life is good in the beautiful Sonoran desert of Arizona.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY FOR RV’ERS IN HISTORIC COCHISE COUNTY, ARIZONA

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you’ve read many times about our stays with my cousin, Rosanna, and her mom, my Auntie Carol, on their little ranch (Paws and Hooves) near the intersection of Hwy 191 and Hwy 181 in historic Cochise County, Arizona.  Many of Arizona’s most well known historic sites are in Cochise County, including Tombstone, Ft. Bowie, Slaughter Ranch, Cochise’s Stronghold – along with Chiricahua National Monument, Kartchner Caverns State Park, birding hotspots like the Whitewater Draw and Ramsey Canyon.  Ghost towns, jeep trails, and photo opportunities abound.

If you read Al’s blog, The Bayfield Bunch, you are acquainted with the area.  Jeanie and Ray’s place, where Al and Kelly frequently ranch-sit, is about 30 minutes south of Paws and Hooves.  Al and Kelly first met Rosanna and Carol three years ago; since then, they have enjoyed a Jeep trip or two and a visit from time to time.  I can’t remember all of our friends who have become Rosanna’s and Carol’s friends, too: Doug and JoAnn, Bev and JC, and of course Al and Kelly.

It is time for Rosanna and Carol to move on, after many years in Arizona.  The ponies have moved on to a good home; Kahlua (the big horse) and Gem (the young, wiggly dog) will go to their new homes soon.  All the domestic animals (cats, birds, and a dog or two or four) will make the move in February – which leaves a couple outdoor cats, 2 goats and 3 sheep as the ranch residents.

Rosanna would like to keep a human presence on the ranch after she moves and as it is being shown to potential buyers.  For ranch-sitters, there is little work to be done – feed the goats and sheep morning and night, pet and feed/water the cats, keep the water barrels topped off, put out the trash once a week, unlock and lock the gate.  Rosanna will come and go on the property from time to time.

The level RV site (top photo) is packed dirt, next to a 30 amp electric hookup and good water pumped from Rosanna’s well. Gray water can be run onto the ground. Verizon service is good (phones and air cards; we use our MiFi here).  The ranch is big dog friendly (completely fenced) and secure; your pets are welcome (Luna used to love to visit here).   General Delivery mail can be sent to Pearce (15 miles northwest) or Elfrieda (20 miles south).  Put out a bird feeder and you’ll have plenty of visitors; hawks patrol the open skies.

Great views of wide open spaces, the Chiricahua mountains to the east and the Dragoons to the west.  Plenty of sunshine! Nights here are quiet and dark, with stars spangled across the big sky.  Besides the proximity to so many recreational and historic sites, Benson, Bisbee, Douglas and Willcox are all an hour’s drive away (it’s a distance to the grocery store!), more or less; Tucson is about and hour and a half distant.

This is a good opportunity for a couple or a solo RV'er who enjoys outdoor recreation, peace and quiet and would like a free site from which to explore the many interesting places in Cochise County in exchange for minimal responsibilities.  Springtime is a great time to visit Cochise County, and Rosanna is looking for property sitters for March, April, and possibly beyond.  If you think you might be interested in spending a month here (or longer), or would like more information, you can email Rosanna at rosanna.lippe@gmail.com. I told her I would put the word out to my readers; tell her Laurie sent you!

GOODBYE TO PANAMA, HELLO TO THE AMERICAN DESERT SOUTHWEST

When we settled in here at Paws and Hooves ranch and I sat down to chat with Auntie Carol, she asked me a great question: what was my favorite aspect of my trip to Panama? A place? An experience?

After some thought, I realized what I appreciated MOST about my Panama adventure was the sense of renewal generated by stepping outside my usual routine. New sights, new experiences, new foods, a different language… pushing the edge of the envelope just a little, in a very pleasant way.  It was refreshing, invigorating, and those feelings of renewal carried over into my “normal” life as a renewed appreciation for my daily experience.

It’s been fun to document the trip, and I particularly enjoyed selecting photos for the blog.  Nothing like a photo to bring memories into focus.  These posts will help me remember why I want to go back!

So, what didn’t I like? 

I didn’t talk much about the heat and humidity in Panama City.  Even in the dry season, the humidity was very high and, combined with the heat, it was oppressive.  We were damp with sweat the morning we hiked to the top on Ancon Hill, and found walking in the mid-day sunshine very draining (a hat is a must; an umbrella even better).  Much nicer to stay in the shade, walk after sunset, or find a breeze (not found often). 

Though the heat was not as intense in Bocas, the humidity was still very high. When we arrived in dryer Boquete (with the perfect dry season climate!) and I opened my suitcase, every article of clothing was damp.  In the humid lowlands, towels never dried; I had to hang nylon pants in front of a fan to dry them, which still took 12 hours.

I didn’t talk about the bugs.  On our entire trip, I saw but one mosquito – yet we all collected a multitude of bites from bugs unseen.  The itching was minor, but annoying.  To avoid chemical bug repellents, I relied on lightweight, long pants and long sleeved shirts, but still came home with a collect of small red welts on ankles, knees, and wrists.

And I few things I want to remember and others visitors might find useful:

Although it didn’t make any difference to me, most places outside of Panama City did not accept credit cards, including many restaurants.  I used a debit card to withdraw cash from ATM’s (which were very easy to find); my bank reimburses ATM fees so it was a cheap and easy way to get money.  Since Panama uses U.S. currency, you don’t have to try to spend all of an exotic currency before you head home… very handy.

We took cabs all over.  It helps to have an idea before hand about what the cost should be; the staff at our various lodgings were helpful in this regard.  Negotiate the price before you enter the cab… and if your group doesn’t fill the taxi, don’t be too surprised if the driver picks up another fare along the way.

I didn’t take a computer, but both my friends had laptops and it was generally easy to find WiFi (quality varied).  Becky also had an aircard that cost $30/month and worked everywhere.

I DID take my Kindle, and was glad to have a case with a built-in light.  As is not uncommon in rented lodgings, there was rarely a good bedside light or a comfortable chair next to a reading light. 

I brought a small flashlight and was glad to have it.  I hate to turn on a bright light at night when I want to move around a room, or to check the time… and I also hate to swing my bare feet out onto the floor in a tropical climate without peering around a bit first.

I mentioned the bugs.  On my next visit, I’ll plan to bring a good “natural” repellent product.  And don’t forget plenty of sunscreen and lightweight, sun-protective clothing.

And, of course, you don’t want to forget to bring your good, adventurous friends!

Now, back to regularly scheduled programming as we prepare to head to Tucson for our new washer and dryer.  The excitement never ends!  :)