Arizona Day 3

This is Wayne in front of a little baby saguaro cactus.  It is only about 11 feet tall and has no arms yet.  Isn't it, I mean isn't "he" cute?  

This is the cactus uncle.  He has been around a while.  This one is about 30 feet tall.

Seguaro only grow about an inch per year so you can see how old these guys are. They are considered the Arizona state flower and can get up to 50 feet tall.  It's hard to believe just how tall they are until you stand under one.  I don't know how they live so long because their root structure is very shallow.  If they lived in my neck of the woods, the wind would have downed them long ago.

This is a cacti garden in Phoenix.  I had never really thought of them as beautiful before, but now I think they are.  If you enlarge this picture you can really see how lovely this landscaping can be.

This red rock cliff produced a single single cactus in a protected cavity.  It really stood out.

Here are the Mama and Daddy cacti.  Notice how they are hugging. Ahhhh!

This lady is about 25 feet tall but look how many arms she has.  Ladies always like more adornments don't they?  I think we counted 16 arms on her.

The first time I saw this scene I just laughed.  There are whole forests of saguaros.  I didn't really get the whole view with this shot but it just went on forever.

When you see this background don't you just think of the old cowboy movies?  I can just picture John Wayne and Roy Rogers on their horses looking out for outlaws and the Indians that just raided their towns.

This was a red rock formation in Phoenix overlooking the city.  I just love the contrast of the red and green? 

Some of the cactus varities were in bloom when we were there but even when they are not in bloom they are very attractive.  The difference though, is that I don't bend over and sniff these.

I don't know what this variety is, but I loved it.  It is so bright and fuzzy and when mixed with the greener variety, the contrast was really stunning.

Looking down over the red cliff was this little number.  I don't know what it is.  We looked for a sign but there was none, and we came to the conclusion that maybe it is someone's home.  It is massive and very well landscaped and taken care of.  Is that a telescope in the roof?  One thing we noticed about Arizona, especially Sadona, is that there are a LOT of artsy people and even more that believe in vortex spiritual worship.

There are a lot of psychics, aura energy offices, reflexology places that use the healing art of ancient royalty (whatever that means) where you can release your blocked energy, stimulate your body's natural healing,  open your heart, give readings, help you become empowered, help to balance your arura, teach you to let your radiant light shine forth,

offer holistic experiences,  natural healing and counceling retreats etc. etc.

I am beginning to think this home belongs to one of these spiritual advisor founders.

The dome on the top probably is there to open up and channel the vortex.  Yea, that's probably it.

When we were in phoenix, we went to the art museum.  We always love to go to the really good art museums.  This wasa god one. This one had several sections, but because of time constraints we spent most of the time in the Colonial and European sections with a side step through the modern section....and this was how I was greeted....a rat on my face.

OK, not really but Wayne thought she looked like me.  Crazy exhibit huh?

The problem was, I only got pictures of the modern section because I didn't know I was allowed to take pictures when I was in the other sections.  There were paintings from the great Russian and European artists as well as from Picaso, Monet etc.

Here is crazy #2.  A Mona Lisa look alike showing  her pregnany inside and out.  Huh??

This represents the eye, I think, and was carved from wood.  I actually quite liked this one.  Maybe there was some supernatural vortex in it.

This is for Colett.  She collects birds for her mantel.  They wouldn't let me bring it  home though and I guess it would have been hard to find a place on her mantel anyway.

This trees grows everywhere in Arizona.  I was so fascinated with it because it is green from top to bottom. I had never seen green bark before.   Check it out here. Arizona Symbols, Tree: Blue Paloverde - SHG Resources

More red beauty.

Don't you just want to go here and see this?  Me too, again and again.

And yet another beautiful mountain.

Palm trees in a row.  Everywhere you go there are stately palms. Wayne says he is going to grow one here in Utah.  He looked it up and there are actually a few that will grow in our zone.

I got out to take a few pictures, scanned the area....no snakes, no cacti....or so I thought.  There was a tiny cactus about as big around as a golf ball and somehow it jumped onto the bottom of my foot and embedded itself into my shoe.  Each step I took thrust the spikes in farther. I didn't have tweezers with me so I had to pull them all out by hand.  They are nasty little buggers let me tell you. 

Arizona Day 2

Day two started out with breakfast at the Horseshoe Cafe. All the cafes in town seem to have something to do with Cowboys and this one was no exception. They cater to the old fashioned breakfast menus with big, hardy portions. Wayne ordered a 1/4 order of biscuits and gravy and it covered his plate. I can't even imagine what a full order would be. I had the 1/2 order of eggs, toast and bacon which included 3 strips of bacon. Well, now we were ready to get our activities under way. Wayne was working today and had to be gone until the afternoon so I gathered up the brochures of what to do in Wickenburg and started my walking tour. Here is a little info about the town. You will want to click on the photos to enlarge to get the best viewing.

Henry Wickenburg came to the area in search of gold. He was rewarded with the discovery of Vulture Mine, where over $30 million in gold was found. There are still relics around the area as well as a walking tour around Vulture Mine.

Ranchers and farmers discovered the fertile flood plain of the Hassayampa River and settled in the area. The streamside habitat includes many endangered birds and animals. The Town of Wickenburg was incorporated in 1909.

It was a rough start for the town with Indian wars, mine closures, desperadoes, drought and a disastrous flood in 1890 when the Walnut Creek Dam burst. Despite these trials the town grew. In 1895 the railroad arrived in town. The historic depot still stands today as the Wickenburg Chamber of Commerce building.

Today Wickenburg is known for its clean air, wide-open spaces, guest ranches, and tourism. It is the Dude Ranch Capital of Arizona, has a championship golf course and is growing as a leader in the medical services sector with Remuda Ranch, for eating disorders, the Meadows, for treatment of addictions, and Gatehouse Academy, for drug rehabilitation of young adults. Who knew?

It was a little unsettling as I walked around. All of a sudden, I would see something scary out of the corner of my eye. It was not real but I didn't realize it for a minute.

I found out that all the critters I saw were made of bronze, sculpted by artist J. Seward Johnson who has his art shown worldwide.

Here is a fellow that is in distress. He is chained to a 200 year old mesquite tree. It once served as the town jail. They just chained the criminal to the tree and apparently no one ever escaped from it. It was in service for 27 years.

Here is another bronze out on the sidewalk. It's a Gila monster I believe.

The city contains a cowboy museum, well actually it's the Desert Caballeros museum. It houses western art and is considered one of the best in Arizona.

This is a statue of the World Champion All Around Cowboy named Charles Everett Bowman. He was instrumental in organizing the Rodeo Cowboy's Association and was inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1977.

I loved this palm tree. I have seen a lot of them here, but this one has a cactus growing out the side of it. How that happened, I don't know but isn't it unique?

I snapped this picture because I love the name of the cowgirl clothing store.

I really don't know what to say about this. Every town has a yard that has "stuff" everywhere. I am sure it means a lot to the owner, but really?

Your can't have Southwest design without a coyote howling can you?

This was a caboose that was built in 1893. The train ran from Prescott to Phoenix. It housed the working cowboys that would work the range for a couple of weeks at a time. They would live in it like we would in a modern camp trailer. It had bunks, a porta potty, an ice box etc. but no shower so by the end of 2 weeks, it got pretty smelly.

This is the original kerosene lamp that is mounted in the caboose

This is the original pot belly stove

As I continued my tour around town, I found this couple chatting outside the saloon.

I don't know who fashioned them but "Gunsmoke" came to my mind. Is that Matt Dillon and Kitty?

No it's not. If you look closely you will see that this gentleman (?) is not looking her in the "eyes" as they chat. Matt would never do that. He was always a gentleman.

This is the town school teacher. She taught all grades in a one room school house.

This is Elizabeth Smith, an African American business owner welcoming you into town.

This old cowboy just sits and welcomes you into a gift shop.

Here is the singing Vaquero. Seven generations of early Hispanic families still reside in Wickenburg. They gave the town a rich culture that you can still see here.

This is the Garcia's little red schoolhouse. It was built in 1905 on donated land from Don Garcia. He was considered the father of Wickenberg education. It later became a bank and then

donated back to the city. It is used as a museum and also is used as a non-profit building to teach string music to children since the school no longer teach music. I was thinking how cute and wonderful it was. As I walked outside I noticed a suitcase that was in the yard and someone has opened it and had scattered men's underwear, socks etc. all over the grass. I should have a taken a picture of that. I 'm sure it was stolen by someone and abandoned when they found what they wanted. Oh, he needed to be hooked up to the mesquite tree.

This is a scene of a young boy at the school.

And here is his teacher.

Well, I managed to see most everything in town in the few hours I walked. I found the people to be extremely friendly and kind and welcoming. I think everyone I met here was over 65. The snowbirds were here in droves and I am sure they are the life-blood of this community. I don't that I will ever return but was glad for the experience. Wayne returned from his work and we

headed for Prescott and Sedona.

Arizona Day 1

Wayne had a business trip planned for Arizona last week. I had been doing a lot of snow shoveling and shivering lately and was feeling jealous that he got to go to a warmer climate for a few days. He decided that I could come along, so on a whim he bought me a plane ticket. We left on the afternoon of February 4th.

You have to be at the airport 2 hours in advance of your flight now with all the security measures. I was afraid that I would be picked for the full body scan x-ray because for some reason I always get picked. I did the last two trips we took. Do I look like a terrorist? This time I got to go right through. We landed in Phoenix, and made our way to Wickenburg, the site of his meeting the following day.

We flew Southwest and since the plane wasn't full, we got all three seats. This is a picture out my window saying bye-bye snow.

Wayne rents the car. You will see it in a picture below. Don't rent a 2 door Oldsmobile. It was cute but uncomfortable, the windows were hard to see out of, and we felt every bump in the road. Maybe that's why they are going out of business.

On the way to our destination

It is a green looking desert here with cacti that we had never seen before.

We stayed at the Best Western in Wikenburg. The front of each room was really cute with little patios and a Spanish design. They sent us to a different area of the motel and when we got our key and this was our room front. Huh? It was clean but that's about it. The toilet paper holder was hung way under the sink and I couldn't even find it. Wayne did, but I just used the extra role because it was too hard to reach. The TV was an old admiral set that had all the lines and snow of the 60's models. It still had HGTV though. Then at night we found we were right next to a train...noisy... and a big dog that barked a lot. I didn't get much sleep. Am I complaining? Not much. It was still a good day, warm and a new experience.

What was this strange tree next to the swimming pool? You will notice that all the bottom fruit is missing.

This is a tile mural on the side of the motel. I loved it.

On the sidewalks everywhere you walked, you could see fake...excuse me....faux animals. It was pretty cute.

We went to dinner at a local Mexican restaurant with one of Wayne's business associates. He had lived there and knew the paces to go. He was right. We had a wonderful Mexican dinner. I have been looking for a good chimichanga for years and this place delivered. I am excited for day 2.