January 27th was Ralph’s birthday and we planned to celebrate with Keith and Karen in Tonopah AZ (about 1 hour west of Phoenix). We arrived to find Karen had the flu so we had supper with Keith and saved the dessert until Karen could enjoy it with us.
We took 2 days to catch up with laundry, shopping, etc.
Last winter we bought a hotspot and phone from Verizon in order to communicate in the US. We were very dissatisfied with their payment options and vowed to look elsewhere this year. In Washington we changed the SIM card in our Telus IPhone to AT&T. We had researched the plan in advance and the change was quick and easy.
This was our opportunity to check out the hotspot options with AT&T. We want a personal hotspot for online banking and often to upload this blog. It took several hours but we are satisfied with the results. Most RV parks advertise Wi-Fi but the quality varies dramatically. We use it when we can.
On the 29th we finally had supper and dessert with Keith and Karen and caught up with our families and travels.
On the 30th we headed for Willcox AZ for one night. That was now new territory and the
real start of our next adventure.
We didn’t even see Tucson for the rain but it finally stopped as we entered New Mexico. We have heard about the damage caused by dust storms but that didn’t apply this time.
Crossing the Continental Divide in New Mexico is very different from crossing it in British Columbia. In BC there are signs with geographic information. Here it’s a tourist opportunity.
Our destination in Deming New Mexico was Hidden Valley Ranch RV Resort. It is 12 miles off the highway and the last 6 miles are gravel.
Fortunately the site was pull through as we did not want to touch anything, particularly the car and hitch.
The resort is a working ranch in the middle of the desert. Each site has a cacti and rock border.
In the evening there was entertainment by a couple who are traveling and performing cowboy music. Their mission is to preserve the cowboy music and poetry. Their little dog joins the harmony during the cowboy crooning.
You may have noticed that I am enthralled with the desert. The changing colours and shadows are endlessly fascinating.
As we went to bed I opened the door. There was complete silence and brilliant stars. No traffic, no streetlights, no music or talking. During the night I checked again and heard coyotes yipping and saw even more stars.
Words cannot convey the feeling of standing in the beauty of God’s sunrise on a new day.
When I came inside to warm up with coffee the view changed again with long shadows from the brush.
Great photos of the ever-changing desert vistas! I have always been drawn to the desert and feel at home there. I'm not sure why or where it came from as I grew up in drizzly Vancouver. Maybe it was all those cowboy shows I used to watch on TV as a kid.
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