A Desert Garden

On Saturday, we drove about 35 miles east on Highway #60 to near Superior to see the Boyce Thompson Arboretum.  In 1923, Colonel William Boyce Thompson came to this area to oversee a copper mine that he had just purchased. Trying to escape the heat of the town, he began to build a winter  home in this valley near Picketpost Mountain. As the years went by, he added to his gardens while keeping it as natural as possible with pathways around the magma rock outcroppings and along Queen Creek.

Children's garden with flowers in all the colours of the rainbow.

Cactus garden looking toward Picketpost Mountain. The temperature got to 88F but there was a cloud overcast and a breeze so it was quite comfortable.
Humidity was only 9%!

Reflections on Ayers Lake - made by damming Queen Creek.

Well, indeed! We stayed back but further along the trail - at two different points, we saw rattlesnakes - one slithered into the grass in front of us and the other was just off the side of the path. This warm weather brings them out to sun and warm up on the rocks. We watch closely the sides of the trail as we are hiking.

The suspension bridge gives one an opportunity to hike along the High Trail or take the lower easier trail to the herb garden and the Australian area.
We chose the High Trail.

In a grove of eucalyptus trees, this is known as Mr Big. Planted as a sapling in 1928, the Red Gum eucalyptus  tree has grown to 8' around and 100' tall.

There was even a labyrinth nestled in the eucalyptus grove - a wonderful contemplative walk in a fragrant forest.

The wildflower garden

The aloe vera plant is blooming

 

 An arbour created by a huge Lady Bank's Rose plant - earlier this afternoon, there was a wedding here in the garden and the bride met her groom under the arbour!

Easter Sunday

                                                                He is Risen, indeed!
         Christ conquered sin and the grave and He lives now at the right hand of God the Father
                                                                     Hallelujah!

Memories

We are bringing home something special from the Arizona that we have come to love.  This hallway table is made of red sandstone and is highly polished and just reflects the colours that we love here in the southwest. We have also added a lovely picture of the red monolith named "Cathedral Rock" in Sedona to hang above the table in the hall of our new home in Oakville.

"Gotta Go"

 The end of March marks the time when many people are packing their RVs and their cars as they get ready to "hit the road". We have made friends, shared laughs, life stories and food together. We have helped each other out and become good friends. Since November, we have been next door neighbors and now it is time for George and Kathy to begin to travel again. As full time RVers,for 13 years,  their home is the RV and they now have travel plans to head east, visit friends and family, and explore where the road leads them. In May they will celebrate their 50th anniversary and we wish them well.

   Jack, Mary, George, Kathy, Judie and Jim as we say "Good Bye"and "Safe Travels". Perhaps we will see each other again in the Fall at Mesa Regal. You have all been a great group of friends!

Passion Play "Jesus the Christ"

The Mormon Temple in downtown Mesa has a large green lawn and this is where they set up a huge stage and a couple of thousand chairs to present the Passion Play every year during Holy Week.

We arrive two hours before the scheduled beginning time of 8pm. We got a seat in the middle of the seating area - we walked a block and bought some burgers for our dinner while we watched the crowd fill all the chairs long before the sun set. It was a wonderful time of chatting and sharing while we waited.

The production begins with a herald of trumpets.
 Then the story of Adam and Eve at creation and the temptation and fall that required a Saviour that God promised to send.

Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus -the set was complete with animals and shepards with their sheep, coming to worship the newborn King.

Jesus' ministry and healings - here with the blind man

The Last Supper and the betrayal by Judas.

The crucifixion of Jesus with the robbers on either side and his mother Mary and beloved disciple John and the foot of the cross.

After the resurrection, Jesus appears to his disciples.

                             Ascension

  A cast of over 450 - all volunteers - take a bow as the angels and trumpets sing "Hallelujah" to our risen Saviour Jesus Christ!

Spring Blooms at Desert Botanical Gardens

Just enjoy some of God's beautiful creation.

            Beautiful butterflies also on display

White Peacock

 Julia and Painted Lady

Zebra Longwing

                                             On my shirt - a Pipevine Swallowtail
           

Full Moon Hike

Tuesday, March 26 is a full moon and we went to San Tan Mountain Regional Park to hike in the moon light.





The sun went down with a beautiful pink and blue glow - we have great sunsets here in the desert because of the low humidity.

The moon has risen and our eyes have adjusted to the lower light. The path is surprisingly well lit from the moon glow and we even see our shadow as we hike the 2.2 "Stargazer Trail". On this popular hike, we are joined by over 100 other people!!!

This was just an awesome experience. As we neared a bend in the trail, Ranger Adam had us all get quiet and we distinctly heard the warning rattle of a diamondback rattlesnake as we hurried past the rocks where he was hiding.

Praying Hands Hike

Soon the Monday morning hikes will be finished but today we still have some ground to cover. We drove again to the First Water Trailhead and began our hike there. We are headed toward the rocks at the end of this range in the Superstition Mountains. You can see the large rock on the lower right - the space between that and the next rock constitutes the "Praying Hands".  It will be easier to see when we get closer.

  The parking lot is in the distance at the top left. We have hiked up about 700' of elevation - you can see Barry, our tail gunner, bringing up the rear while we stop for a "water break". Today will be a high of 85F but it is still pleasant at 9am. We are hiking away from our goal of the Praying Hands to add an extra mile and an interesting rock formation.

We are going through that cleft in the rock up ahead.

                                Bruce will give us a hand (or a boost) if we need one.

Hmmm..... Is that Winston Churchill or George Washington?

Now we are heading toward the "Praying Hands" - the saddle between those two rocks.

We made it - now it's time for a snack break!

Of course, when you have hiked uphill, you have to go down again. This is often harder to do - not easy on the knees and loose rock can roll under foot and land you on your behind is you are not careful.

The chain fruit cholla is saying "so long" as we return to the parking after  our 4.5 mile (or 7km) hike.

Good Friends

   We have been privileged to have had some really great neighbors this winter at Mesa Regal RV Resort. Little did we know when we pulled into our site last November, that our next door neighbors would turn out to become such good friends over the season. We have laughed, hugged, shared stories of our families and eaten out several times together. Jim and Judie, Kathy and George and Art and Connie are all work campers and full time RVers. We have learned about life as a full timer as well as the jobs they do as work campers - and some "behind-the-scenes" scoops about the running of a large RV resort.

For the last time, our Friday dinner this week took us to a seafood buffet (even in the desert, we get wonderful seafood!).
Pictured above, from the left is Jim, Kathy and Connie.

And their spouses - Judie, Art and George.





We wish them all "Safe Travels" as we each prepare to "hit the road" again in our RVs - heading east, north and wherever the road takes us. Godspeed!