Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge

Another wild and crazy adventure with my birding friends!  It seems that since I am the designated guide and driver, I have the ability to find these places where there is birds and scenery. I don't promise anything, but life is an adventure...don't ya know! This time Ellayne is busy with her East coast friends at the Grand Canyon, so Karen and I are out to discover places unknown (to us). I had seen signs to Buenos Aires, and since it was so close to home, it seemed a crime not to visit. Yesterday morning, Karen and I set off at 6 AM to beat the heat and wind. There were plenty of information posts and trails along the way, but here we are at the visitors' center, which opens at 7:30 and has restrooms. Thank you, Lord! Morning coffee and all. I wanted to identify our location, but there's Karen trying to capture all the swallows flying about. She collects pins for her hat and vest of all the locations we visit. We actually got to meet the young lady who designed the pins and t-shirts for Buenos Aires.

The visitors' headquarters was actually the ranch house for the area that was turned into the refuge. Below is the skeleton of a rattlesnake. Of course, I don't know how they did it, but I thought it was worthy of a picture.

Down the road from the center is Aguirre Lake when it rains: it was bone dry. You had to imagine a lake in the indentation of the land. From there, we headed east to Arivaca Creek Trail. We didn't plan to go far since this was just a recon tour for the fall season. Well, don't ya know, we got caught up in a fantastic walk full of birds and more....

This is a summer tanager with his back to me; the best I could do. If a bird flies in front of me, I'm lucky to get a good picture. I thought I was concentrating on this one.

My choice is flowers, so this is a white zinnia. You can tell that the wind has started to blow.

I love dead trees, and in the wild no one is going to take them away, so there they are for me to photograph. This is a cottonwood, but I don't understand why the bark is crackling. That's my only word to describe it. I guess it makes the woodpeckers happy.

All of a sudden there's a slight path going up the hill. Well, that looks like fun and different. Of course. it was. A burned ranch house with a cattle chute, barn, fencing and a toliet? Oh, that comes later.

Here, I'm trying to tell Karen that I want to do a picture of her through this window frame, and all she can scream is, "Look at that lizard!" Well there he is in the bottom right-hand corner.

We encountered four or five ranches along the road, and they all had cattle chutes. Some looked like they were abandoned, and some looked they were being worked. This one was on the burned out property from two different angles. This one obvious.

This one down the chute!

Oh! Here's the toilet to nowhere!

Below is Arivaca Lake. It is suffering some drought, but is still quite a bird paradise. Karen was snapping pictures like crazy.

Here's Karen. I think I asked to her to pose. I don't usually do that, but I was looking for a particular background, but settled for a nice photo.

Love dead trees! Big old cottonwood with the Santa Rita's and something called "Elephant Head" in the distance to the right. Without a glass of wine, you'd never be able to find it!

Pow Wow

The Mission View RV Resort where I live is located on the Tohono O'Odham Indian Reservation as well as Xavier del Bac Mission. In early March they had their annual pow wow. It was a sunny Saturday afternoon with lots of clouds scuttling across the sky. I got there in time to see the performers get their numbers and line up for their entrance to the dancing circle. The emcee announced that pictures were allowed, but no video. I guess that allowed for the honor system, because with today's cameras you can't tell if a person is doing stills or video. All of the outfits are handmade. They are not called costumes, because that would imply that one is pretending to be an Indian, and, of course, all these participants are Indians. This I learned from a lady from Canada who had come south to warm up for a couple weeks.

The outfits had several categories and fringed dresses was one of them. Pictures were difficult to take, because the person you might be trying to shoot could be blocked by someone walking in front of your camera. So even using telephoto, you never knew what to expect.

This young lady was so photogentic and obviously enjoying herself. She had sequins and fringes.

These entrants are lining up with their numbers. I was blown away by how colorful the outfits were.

You only have to be able to walk or toddle in some cases and have the appropriate outfit. These two were just darling. The one girl seems to be somewhat shy, and is being led by the other one.

I took a lot of pictures of this young man. He was totally into it. Some sort of shuffled to the beat, but this guy pounded the dirt and moved his whole body.

The dance arena is located behind the church, so when I came out to the parking lot, I couldn't help myself. The clouds made the day!

This food area to the east side of the parking lot always does a good business, but today because of the pow wow, they were exceptionally busy, and the smell was wonderful.

Clouds automatically make an exceptional sunset. What a perfect ending to an exciting day!

These are a neighbor's petal cactus that were blooming in March. Everything bloomed early this year because of our mild winter. I'm slowly learning the different cacti and someday will be more specific in identification, especially when it comes to the different petals.

March Madness

Well, I don't have any basketball pictures, even though, I am a huge fan, and New Mexico and Arizona did give us cause to cheer. I was expecting company from out of town and was busy scouting birding areas and other nearby tourist attractions. This particular Saturday I went to Catalina State Park north of Oro Valley. What a really great place for hiking and birding. They also have great areas for RV's. I took the birding path, because my Canadian friend Brock was soon to arrive. These were the pictures that I took on my walk.

You can barely see the moon in the arm of this saguaro to the left.

Looks like a nice easy path; however, it does change in the next picture. Instead of having you hike up a path, they conveniently constructed some stairs. Also got my shadow while taking the picture.

This is a view going up the other side. Hard to watch for birds while you're making your way, but the dedicated birders that I know would do just that.

So this is how insane life in Tucson can be. Of course, it grew without my permission, and right across the street from the State Park is the Oro Valley Market Place which is a really nice shopping mall. They were having a car show and one of my photography groups Shoot It Raw was meeting here to take pictures. There were hundreds of people there snapping away, and I never did find anyone from my group.
I have a fondness for Bugs as many others do judging from the shot.

My mom and dad had one of these Buicks only it wasn't a convertible.

Before NASCAR became popular, we always listened to the Indy Race on Memorial Day while doing lawn work in Albuquerque.

This is what I guess is termed as a "selfie." I don't know if the shadow counts as an added bonus.

Evidently this guy's wife insisted on having a Bentley. I guess I should have gotten a shot of the whole car, but the price was so staggering that my eyes glazed over...Hundred of Thousands! Yikes, back in 1999 to boot. Oh well, this is what make car shows interesting and taking pictures a bonus.

Another Desert Museum Day

Since my friend Ed Fenton was nice enough to take care of my flowers while Karen Keating and I went to Antelope Canyon last week, I took him to the Desert Museum, because he had never been. I promote the museum whenever I can, because I'm a member and they give us free guest passes and other perks like free ice coffee and tea when we want to take a break. We had an excellent docent as they all are, and Ed was impressed learning how to use his camera. At some point, I realized I didn't have my cell phone. Thinking I probably left it in the car, I didn't worry too much. After all, you know how seniors are! We left the docent to enjoy our coffees on the patio, and then did the butterflies and humming birds. The butterflies were non-existent, and the hummers were too fast for my mind that had already started to worry about my cell phone. When we got back to the car and searched for my phone by Ed calling my number and establishing that it wasn't there, my blood pressure must have been astronomical. I let the people at the ticket booth know what my problem was, plus the docents who immediately banded together by calling one another and putting the word out. Ed and I re-traced our path, and I really felt that someone would readily see a purple cell phone lying on the ground. The window people gave me a local Verizon number to call from their phone book, and we dejectedly returned to the car and decided to head to a Verizon store. I had a Verizon number to call, but the guy was in New York and hadn't a clue how to help me. My phone book number locally turned out not to be the store that I last visited. As we were headed to town, Ed's phone rang, and miracle of miracles, the phone had been found in the parking lot. The young lady at the entrance window had enough smart sense to call the last missed call, which was the time that Ed called so we could find the phone in the car. After retrieving the phone, we headed to Olive Garden for soup, salad and WINE. However, I did take a few pictures.

The above is a Western coral bean.

Same flower...different stage of bloom.

Can't stop taking pictures of plain old petal cactus.

I'm Back

So, I've been viewing other blogs and everyone knows that there are a lot out there. Originally, my main focus was to let my children know where I was in my travels. Now that I've settled down this past year except for day trips and occasional long trips, I've been very lazy. I've been taking pictures left and right and making new friends without benefit of sharing. Shame on me. I plan to remedy that. By the same token, I plan to speak my mind from day to day about various things and maybe not show any pictures. I love Facebook because I can keep up with family, particularly my sister's family and my late husband's, but everything else is so in your Face. It's the good with the bad, and I know I have the option to modify what I see, but lazy must be my new modus operondi. Other things that are happening are that my motor home and Tracker are up for sale, plus the house in Elephant Butte. Tomorrow I'm taking another friend to the Desert Museum, because he's never been and I have lots of visitor passes. Plus it's a really great place. At this time of the year, you have to go early morning. Our temps are already heading into the triple digits.

Well, I guess I couldn't post without at least one picture. This is my friend Patrick Moore who recently visited me from Truth or Consequences. This is the top of Kitt Peak, an observatory west of Tucson. I had never been there. The scenery was truly incredible. Unfortunately, the telescopes that were on our tour were not working that day. Great pics and fun anyway.

Remembering Ginny Nylen

Virginia Nylen passed away in Tucson, Arizona on December 11, 2013. Ginny was born September 8, 1939 in Trail, BC, Canada to Ralph and Mary Scriven. She went to school in Olds, Alberta and then Swift Current, Saskatchewan. After graduating with her RN degree from Calgary General Hospital in 1960, she worked in Santa Barbara, CA, then moved to Oahu where she and several of her CGH classmates lived together and worked at Queen’s Hospital. She married in 1962, and lived on the Big Island for four years. While raising a family, she obtained her BS in nursing, and then her Masters in Public Health. She also continued to work as a nurse at Castle Hospital, Salvation Army Addiction Treatment Facility (ATF), Drug Addiction Services of Hawaii (DASH), Ask a Nurse, and ultimately at Hawaii State Hospital. In her retirement, she has spent time both in Hawaii and on the mainland, and for the past 8 years, she has kept a motor home on the mainland, travelling throughout the United States and Canada, and making friends along the way. She has also made trips to Asia and Europe and has been on several cruises with family and friends. Ginny gave freely of her time to such worthy causes as the American Red Cross, American Heart Association, and the Presbyterian Church Mission. Predeceased by her parents, Ginny is survived by her children, Reyn, Randy and Heather, and by her grandson Noa, all on Oahu. She leaves behind her brother Morris (Carole) Scriven, and sister Linda (Colin) Sumner, as well as numerous cousins in Canada. Ginny is also survived by a host of friends and acquaintances both in the US and Canada, all of whom will miss her sharp sense of humor, her honesty, her wisdom and her willingness to help people. In accordance with Ginny's wishes. her ashes will be scattered at Chinaman’s Hat in a private family ceremony.

The above is a copy of the obituary that Ginny's daughter Heather sent me.

I first met Ginny at Desert Haven, an animal rescue place, where we were both volunteers in New Mexico. After I got my motor home, we would plan to meet at various destinations and always had a wonderful time. She and Colin and Linda are responsible for me being at Mission View here in Tucson. They literally helped me move from New Mexico. I always called Ginny my Guardian Angel; she was always there to help. My blog post for Thanksgiving has, I guess, our last pictures of Ginny.

This is a scrapbook page that I did for her when she visited me near Yuma in 2011. Her smile says it all.

Today was the family's memorial at Chinaman's Hat. Rest in Peace, dear friend.

Copper Canyon Trip Friday

This morning we had another great breakfast and everyone was ecstatic because they were able to connect with the rest of the world from the lobby. Our bus took us to the old Casas Grandes where Paquime the ruins and museum are located. The town site had a square and an old church, but the money was at the museum, so that's where we headed.

Carlos started giving us a very interesting lecture about the ruins, but we who wanted to take pictures took off and did exactly that. One lady from Australia said, "I can Google this!"  

The pictures above are two views of the same thing. The bird (top right) is in both pictures. I think he liked getting his picture taken. Part of the ruins look like mud with vertical lines; that part is original. Any stone work is done to hold the original stuff together and preserve it. I don't know if they have treated the old stuff to keep it from melting in the elements or not.

The last picture is a bit of poetic license. I took the shot from inside the museum through a window. The area was a courtyard. My regrets: I didn't take pictures of any pottery, nor did I buy any. What I saw just didn't grab me.

Back on the bus, we headed for the border and Agua Prieta where we would eat lunch. It was a hair-raising ride through a mountain pass on a two lane road full of semis. Before we entered this stretch, Carlos told us that just six miles away was Flowing Wells, NM. They are building a road that way so traffic would not have to suffer this horrendous bit of highway. Lunch was good, but I tasted the fruit-flavored water and asked immediately for bottled water. I suspect that was my downfall, because Saturday morning I awoke with Montezuma's Revenge or a severe intestinal flu. Back to the trip: crossing the borders, both Mexican and American was relatively easy and we were soon on our way to Tucson via Bisbee and Tombstone. 

Karen picked me up at the hotel, and Marilyn and Maria followed us home so that my two new friends could spend the night, because hotel rooms were scarce. We had fun drinking wine and showing Karen our new treasures. I hadn't seen the pretties that Marilyn and Maria acquired at the museum and was green with envy. The next morning I'd be green for another reason.

Reflections: it was a great trip meeting new people and seeing the sights that I always wanted to. Need to learn more about tours. Thirty-seven people on one bus is probably seventeen too many. More breaks are necessary if you're going to cover long distances. All in all. I'm glad I did it!