Tucson with friends!

 

Roger here....  We were staying at beautiful Catalina State Park in Oro Valley, Arizona.  The opening picture portrays Mount Lemmon from our campsite. 

The main purpose of our visit was reconnecting with our good friends, Greg and Barb, who live in a large  retirement community very near the state park.  After setting up camp and a short hike, we all (dogs included) hopped in the SUV and negotiated a five-minute drive to their home.  Barb and Greg had arranged for us to have dinner with them at their clubhouse and then attend a 50s dance.  We dropped the dogs off (including their dog, Izzy) at Carol's house, their dog-loving neighbor, and hopped into their neighbor's electric golf cart.  (Carol is a lot like me - the more doggies, the better.   Thanks to her we had a carefree evening out and the dogs had a great time at her house! -- D.)

A live musician provided outstanding music while we enjoyed appetizers and wine.  A small dance floor was filled with dancers.  (At one point, there was even a conga line which we took part in; what a fun group! -- D.) 

 The picture below is of Barb and Greg.  Their very outgoing neighbor, Gary (in the green shirt), joined us at the table and urged us onto the dance floor.  Gary was a dancing fool - so fun to watch and to be around.  (Gary is one of those charismatic people who you instantly like -- D.) After eating we golf-carted to the nearby 50s dance where more fun ensued.  Since we are fully vaccinated, we could enjoy these events with little concern.

WINE TASTING....

The next morning we drove back to Barb and Greg's with our dogs.  We left them at their house while we left for a very tasty brunch.  I had a Mexican omelet with avocados. So good.  

We paused before brunch to take a selfie.   One of the best things about RVing is that it's easy to stay in touch with friends who have moved.   Barb and Greg were once neighbors in Texas before they moved to Oro Valley.   We have visited them in Tucson before, and before that we met up in Boise, Idaho five years ago and in North Carolina once too.   With good friends it's easy to just pick up where you left off! -- D.

We enjoyed riding in our first totally electric car, Greg's Leaf.  

After brunch Barb and Greg took us to a wine-tasting in a brand new winery - Old Pueblo. 

We walked through the landscaped garden to the wine tasting room.

 Barb had made an appointment for us to linger in the tasting room and get to know the sommelier. 

 The wine was good.  We bought two bottles - a sangiovese (Dianne's favorite) and a petit sirah.

The bottles were unique - opaque pottery.

After the tasting we returned to Greg and Barb's.  We watched @travelingrobert, a travel podcast, on their tv, and then laughed at some old Saturday Night Live sketches.  Barb prepared an excellent Italian meal followed by homemade Strawberry/Rhubarb pie.  Yum.

Barb and Greg were leaving the next morning for their own camping trip in the White Mountains, so we did not linger too long after dinner.  

However, we did take a photo of Bandido and his girlfriend, Izzy.

These two have been best friends for years.  When they were younger there was romping and chasing.  They clearly remember each other, even though the romping time was shorter (likely an age thing).  It is sad that they no longer see each other often.   Clearly, sweet Izzy still remembers Dianne and me.  Her eyes are so expressive - one of my favorite dogs of all time.  

HIKING AT CATALINA STATE PARK

Dianne and I (and the dogs) did a lot of early morning and evening hiking when the temperature was a bit cooler.  Access to the hiking trails was conveniently located at the back of our site.

Bandido says, "Hey Mom! SLOW DOWN!"

We especially enjoyed the gigantic cacti, often laden with fruit.

One morning we ventured to an archeological site - the Romero Ruins.  

More than enough steps were involved to reach the plateau where the ruins were located.

A well-placed bench  welcomed us at the end of our climb.  The views from the bench made the effort worthwhile.

An invigorated Bandido led us to the ruins.

A good imagination was required to reconstruct the remains of the older native American ruins.  The placards were helpful.  One of the evident remnants from a later time frame show the foundation of the Franciscan priest Romero, who established a ranch at the site.

One of my favorite photos from Catalina State Park was taken during one of our evening dog walks around the campground, of the sun setting on the Catalina mountains.  As you can see, because of the time of year, we had the campground almost to ourselves.  There were several other hardy souls there, but not very many.

SAN XAVIER MISSION

One morning we left the dogs in the Airstream and drove 20 miles to this well-known mission that appeared to sit in the middle of nowhere south of Tucson.  The San Xavier Mission is an iconic site that we had not seen before.  Thanks go to Barb and Greg for suggesting it.

The right tower is under renovation.  Thankfully, the mission is being well-preserved.

This mission is located on the native American reservation that it serves.  An active mission school sits on a nearby location.  The workers who admit visitors and run the gift shop are native American.

The next photos were obviously taken outside.

This prayer greeted visitors to the mission:

Words to live by....

We loved the peaceful and beautiful atmosphere of the sanctuary.  The visitors all demonstrated an appropriate reverence in the midst of the architectural and artistic features.

The crenelated domed ceiling was so interesting.

Dianne really like this faux door.

This shot accentuates the artwork on the ceiling.

A walk through a side door took us to an outdoor chapel.  We are not Catholic so I am not sure of the proper name.

The chapel was full of lit candles.

Our last view as we left San Xavier Mission was  this rocky hill with a white cross at the top.  We were told that this was not part of the mission grounds.

THE ROAD AHEAD...

We have four days of driving before we reach our next destination at Morro Bay, California.  Other than a few nights in Desert Hot Springs, CA to catch up on laundry, cleaning, blog writing, etc. all the stops are for one night.

We spent our last night in Arizona on the Colorado River in Ehrenburg.  Bandido waded in the river.

We appropriately watched Nomadland early that evening.  After the movie, in somewhat cooler temperatures, we took the dogs to the dog park and watched a glorious sunset.  We crossed the river into California the next morning.

 

Dianne here:  The pet picture of the day is a nostalgic one from May of 2015, showing Izzy frolicking in our backyard with Bandido and our dear Tequila.   They all had so much fun!

Dog Days in Duluth

View of Lake Superior and Wisconsin from Enger Park

Roger here....  After a two-day drive from Door County, Wisconsin, we arrived for a long stay with our friends Jim and Sue (and their dogs) in Duluth, Minnesota.

This was our 30 amp campsite in their side yard.  However, we spent every night except one in a private suite on the second floor of their home.  Sweet!  (Jim and Sue know we're slugs in the morning, so the kitchenette was perfect to make our own coffee and breakfast while they did their usual early-morning stuff.  It was like staying in a four-star hotel -- everywhere I looked, Sue had put out thoughtful touches for us. -- D)

There was plenty of room at the back of their property for walking the dogs.  However, we counted on Jim and Sue to take us on daily morning and evening walks --- just like old times in Texas when they lived in our neighborhood.  

Front row:  Bandido, Poquita
Back row: Gabe, Klick

Our dogs were, of course, the focus of our walks.  Here we are getting ready for a walk in the rain.

It seems as if Proctor has copied the Boilermaker Special as its team mascot.

During one of our walks we explored the county fairgrounds in the nearby town of Proctor.

Gooseberry Falls State Park...

View of Lake Superior from Gooseberry Falls State Park

One morning we all piled into Jim and Sue's vehicle and toured Gooseberry Falls State Park.  Scenic does not begin to describe this place.

Three waterfalls cascade through the rocky face of the park. We hiked up and down and around both sides of the rushing water.

Dianne loves cairns.  At one point we strayed from the path down to the running water where a city of cairn skyscrapers drew our attention away from the falls.

Below is one last photo of the falls from the bottom of the lower falls all the way up to the highway above.

According to Sue, no trip to Gooseberry
Falls is complete without a stop at Betty's Pies.  We bought four pieces of pie for our evening happy hour.  Yum.

Duluth Trading Company...

I don't want to get too personal; however, It was time to update (throw away) some of my underwear.  What better place to do this than Duluth!  Sue took us to the Duluth Trading Company and to the Duluth Pack Store.

Getting there was somewhat of an adventure.  It reminded me of the pervasive roadwork from our visit to Indiana.  

There
it is!!!

Now, 
how to get to it?











Miscellaneous Dog Antics....

Let's see now.  How many dogs did we have with us?  Our dogs (Bandido and Poquita) --- that's two.  Jim and Sue's dogs (Klick and Gabe) --- that makes four.  However, the picture below shows five dogs.  Oh yeah, James (Jim and Sue's son) went on a camping trip with his wife and kids.  They dropped off their dog (Kohana) to join the fun.

L to R:  Kohana, Klick, Gabe, Bandido, Poquita

Kohana and I hit it off right away.  This loving dog shadowed and liked everybody.  I liked to think she liked me best :-).

Sue got a picture of her cleaning my ears.

Worn out from hiking at Gooseberry Falls State Park

Poquita's favorite spot is on Dianne's lap.  However, usually she is laying down when she falls asleep --- not standing.












Vigilant 
Surveillance....

After a rocky start, Bandido and Kohana (the granddog) became best friends.  They had great fun chasing the pigeons out of the back yard every afternoon.  Poquita joined them.  I wish we had a movie of the fun.  The picture below depicts the constant watch.   

Notice that Bandido's tail is in motion :-)  The first pigeon arrived in the upper right corner of the photo.

Iron Clyde's...

During our stay, Sue and Jim prepared a mid afternoon meal every day.  We did not eat an evening meal other than appetizers (including pie) and wine.

In an attempt to repay their hospitality in some small way, we tried to pay for the cost of meals away from their home.   We had a great meal at Iron Clyde's one afternoon in an authentic iron works.

View from the Second Floor Restaurant.  Check out the photo on the far wall.

Jim, Sue, Dianne

Jay Cooke State Park...

No one can dispute that the area around Duluth is amazingly scenic.  Jay Cooke State Park was no exception.  Hiking there was a great experience. The suspension bridge in the photo below led to a (sometimes confusing) series of trails along a river and into the forest.

Into the woods we went.

The views of the river were spectacular.

Sue was our trail blazer. Armed with knowledge and a trail map, she adeptly directed our travels.  However, at one point (maybe two),  Jim questioned her choices.

I climbed a rock face to get an elevated view of the terrain, and....

.... after observation, determined that (as always), Sue was correct --- well mostly correct  :-).

With a little coaxing, Dianne scrambled up the rock to join me.  

Enger Park...

Dianne and I gave Jim and Sue a break one morning, driving a short distance to Enger Park.  The park towers over Duluth, just as this five-story tower, towers over the park.  We, of course, climbed to the top.

The elevated views of Lake Superior, the Duluth Harbor, and the iconic Lift Bridge were especially nice in the morning light.

The Hills of Wisconsin in the Background

Downtown Duluth

The iconic lift bridge is on the left.  The harbor area to the right becomes an RV park after the boats are lifted from the lake.  We stayed there in June 2011.  Unique spot!

The photo below is one of our favorites.  We were fortunate to watch the bridge surface lift so that a boat could pass beneath it.  Quite a nice experience from one of the park benches!

(Dianne here:  In the dead of winter it is amazing to check the Duluth Harbor live webcam and realize just how frigid Duluth is in the winter...

Duluth Harbor Live Webcam

  Our friend Jim showed me this link years ago.   There is also a boat schedule on the web site so that you can watch the huge cargo ships enter and leave the harbor, winter or summer.  It blows my mind in the winter to view this webcam from tropical Mission, Texas under a palm tree -- it's like looking at Antarctica!  I couldn't look at this view without remembering the frigid scenes I'd seen over the years on the webcam.)

We meandered on pathways throughout the park.  The Japanese garden area was especially well done.  

The flowered views of the tower on the precipice of the hilltop added to the experience.  So did the ice cream that we purchased from a food truck in the parking lot --- our late breakfast :-)

Our time with our friends and their dogs was special.  Thanks, Jim and Sue, for your hospitality and your friendship.   (It was the perfect way to close out our great summer vacation -- D.)

We are currently on our way home.  The trip from Duluth, Minnesota in the far north to Mission, Texas in the far south will be lengthy.  Thoughts of our home in south Texas have been calling us.

Dianne's Teensy Weensy Trailer Tip...

Here's another tip I discovered mid-way through the trip:  By reversing the dinette cushions on the seat bench they form a protected "corral" to place items (like my Instant Pot) for travel down the bumpy highways, things I'd rather not place on the floor or that won't fit in my collapsible crates.  

The edge of the dinette table (on the right, out of camera range) holds the cushions in place, and the countertop closes up the "corral".

Pet Pictures of the Day...

We loved watching Sue dispense treats to the dogs each afternoon at "treat time":