Our first three nights were spent at the Pointe Hilton at Tapateo Cliffs. We had a unique challenge there. Have you ever tried to shower under a half of a dribble? Have you ever had to wait 25 minutes between toilet flushes? It was a bit inconvenient, to say the least. The next evening we had a plumbers convention in our room. I think there were at least 7 of them at one time. (I told them, "If I'd have known you were coming, I'd have baked a cake!") After a few hours, they finally resolved the problem.
On my birthday we moved to my usual "home-away-from-home" which is the Sheraton Crescent Hotel. It was fun to introduce Tom to all of the friends I have developed there over the years. After finishing the first three-day class, we went out for a nice steak dinner and on to see "Titanic." We enjoyed the love story and didn't even have to poke each other to stay awake!
While I was teaching, Tom went exploring around Phoenix. He hiked up North Mountain, traveled to Lake Pleasant, explored South Mountain Park, and got acquainted with the city. For those of you who haven't been to Phoenix, many desert mountains surround the Valley of the Sun. These mountains are covered with cactus and scrub brush, but no real trees and no snow. They make for a pretty skyline and beautiful sunrises and sunsets.
On Saturday, 2/21, Tom and I went up to Sedona to go exploring around the red rocks. Sedona is a very interesting area with many unusual geologic formations. We investigated the Slide Rock State Park north of Sedona in the Oak Creek Canyon. In the summer, as many as 2,000 people come here to stand in line for a chance to slide down Mother Nature's water slide-smooth sloping rocks with the Oak Creek flowing over them. Since this area is at a high elevation, it was definitely jacket (not swimming) weather, and there were few people around.
I took over the driving duties so Tom could really enjoy the spectacular scenery as we drove north through the canyon and up to Flagstaff. There was a lot of snow on the ground there, and Tom felt right at home. The mountains around Flagstaff are covered with Ponderosa pine and definitely have an alpine feel that is reminiscent of Colorado. Tom's looking forward to seeing more of this area in the future. He can see why this is one of my favorite areas to explore.
On Sunday, 2/22, we sought out some new territory. We headed east of Phoenix to Globe, then north to Show Low, back west to Payson and south to Phoenix. It was a day filled with beautiful, changing terrain. We started out in cactus country, passed a beautiful waterfall, drove through copper country (with ugly scars upon the land), and headed up and down spectacular canyons. Up near Show Low it looked very much like the area around Flagstaff. We were at 7,000-8,000 ft. elevation, and there were lots of pine trees and snowdrifts. The diverse beauty contained within this loop of 'dot-dot-dot' (scenic) roads impressed us. We found a great campground we plan to stay at when we bring the APPLE to this area.
While we were in Phoenix, several tornadoes devastated central Florida. When we called Jack, we were relieved to hear that they were OK, and so was the APPLE. The tornadoes had passed through Daytona Beach about 20 miles to the north. While we were glad we were spared, our hearts and prayers went out to those less fortunate.
While I was teaching the second 3-day class, Tom continued to explore the area. He went back up to Sedona for more pictures. He also checked out several campgrounds in or near Phoenix for possible future "neighborhoods" when we bring the APPLE out west. The weather in Phoenix was rather cool (about 15 degrees below normal) and wet. We had rain and clouds several days, which is almost unheard of this time of year. Since they expect a spectacular desert bloom this spring (because of all the rain) we may decide to bring the APPLE over to Phoenix before too long. Tom's looking forward to capturing the spring in his photos1.
We know our travelogues are not coming quite as regularly, but time and internet access are sometimes limited. Just be patient. As always, photos1 for this travelogue will be on our internet site in a few days so look for them.
Our next neighborhood will be near Ft. Myers, FL. We'll share our continuing adventures from there. Until next time…
Love from the wanderers...as the journey continues...
Kay & Tom
