Arizona In Review

We braved the New Mexico sand storm and were heading to Tucson, AZ in order to avoid severe snowstorms in the previously planned Flagstaff destination.  Our dusty drive was long and we didn't arrive at our campground until late at night, having to hook up with temps in the 30's!  Our first full day in Tuscon was crazy... hail, snow, and rain all in one day.  We officially failed at keeping our home out of snow all year:(  Though the precipitation melted nearly as soon as it dropped, it was quite strange being in a dust storm one day and a winter storm the next!

hail on the wipers

We loved our new Tuscon home with the Rincon, Santa Catalina, and Santa Rita Mountains surrounding us and beautiful cactus gardens throughout the campsite.  We girls grabbed our cameras and took a cactus walk which inspired us to study the Sonoran desert for a science unit!

 The varieties of cactus here were amazing...

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum was far beyond what we expected in a typical museum.  Mostly outdoors, it was an amazing place- 2 miles of paths traversing 21 acres of beautiful desert,  over 300 animal species and 1,200 kinds of plants native to the Sonoran Desert region... it reminded me a bit of our favorite Deanna Rose Farmstead at home, just cactus-style:) 

This spectacular view of the Avra and Altar Valleys in the distance separate seven mountain ranges.

Black-tailed rattlesnake

Western Screech Owls often nest in saguaro holes

Javelina dig up roots and bulbs with their sharp hooves or with their snouts.  They are herd animals and within the States are only found in Texas, Arizona & New Mexico.

Cute!

The Roadrunner, state bird of New Mexico, cannot keep its large, short-winged body airborne for long, so prefers to walk or run.  At a speed of up to 17 mph, they are quick enough to catch and eat rattlesnakes!

Bobcat eating a frozen rat

One of our favorite exhibits within the museum was this hummingbird aviary.  Dozens of these native birds whisked around us as we did our best to catch their photos:)

We spotted several nests... for stability, hummingbirds "glue" their nesting supplies together with spider webs!  Webs also allow the nests to stretch and be flexible as the baby hummingbirds grow.

Fabulous museum & a perfect resource for our desert science unit!  Nearby was the Saguaro National Park where we enjoyed hiking amongst the thousands of giant cacti.  Such a different landscape than we're used too, it was absolutely breathtaking.

Saguaro cactus are found exclusively in the Sonoran Desert.   They are very slow growing, but can reach up to 60 feet tall.  Surprisingly, their roots are only 4-6 inches deep, but spread as far as the plant is tall.  The holes often found in saguaro form an inner cavity (or "saguaro boot") that is perfect for birds to nest in.  Native Americans used these as water containers long before the canteen was available.

We hiked near petroglyphs created by the Hohokam people possibly 1,000 years ago.

The light just kept getting better as the sun began to set during our hike... we couldn't stop snapping photos!  And the saguaro were so fun to look at- like tall people with different personalities holding their arms in varoius positions:)  We reflected on the completely different landscapes we've seen so far this year... from beautiful farmland in Iowa & Pennsylvania, to rocky coastline in Maine, sandy beaches in Florida, mossy oaks in South Carolina, and the huge Saguaros here in front of us.  What a creative God!

Our time in Tucson had expired, so we were off to our new home in Black Canyon City- between Phoenix & Sedona.  It was particularly difficult finding an RV park here as most of them included the requirement "55 & over".  Thank goodness for the always-reliable, family friendly KOA!  Our new campground was great, with connecting bike paths right into the desert, beautiful mountain views, friendly camp hosts that felt more like friends, and... pet goats!  The weather was in the 70's, perfect for doing homework outside and having campfires each night:)

This week our classroom is the desert:)

We spent one day in Surprise, Arizona watching our home team play (and beat!) the L.A. Dodgers during spring training.  We enjoyed the sunny, 80 degree day, the beautiful field, and the fact that it felt like a little piece of "home".

Another day was spent in Sedona, stopping at Montezuma Castle on the way.  This castle was home to 35 or so Sinagua people who lived in this farming community for more than 3 centuries in the 1100's .  Entry into the castle was only accessible through the roof in which they would climb tall ladders to reach.  If intruders were near, they would simply pull up their ladders.  As a mom, I shivered imagining raising my curious toddlers cliff-side!

We continued north to Sedona into the Red Rock Country, stopping to hike breath-taking trails near Bell Rock.    

Lots of lizards on these dry trails

The Chapel of the Holy Cross was so beautifully built into the red rocks 

Overlook from Chicken Point

We also visited Clarkdale where we disembarked for the Verde Canyon Railroad tour.  Our 4 hour train ride brought us 40 miles along the Verde River and through the scenic canyon, turning around at the Perkinsville ghost ranch.  We had lunch, prickly pear-flavored drinks & freedom to walk out to the open-air cars at any time for even better views.

Sparkling juice toast to kick off the trip!

Natalie shared the adventure with good friend, Brooke (as seen on the phone-skype)

Instead of taking the main highway back to our home in Black Canyon City, we took the suggested "scenic" route through Jerome on 89A (in our Jeep of course).  Jerome itself is an old mining town with the roads, homes & hotels built right into the mountain.  Through Jerome and 12 miles beyond, we experienced narrow roads overlooking huge cliff drop-offs and more hairpin turns than we could count.  Super slow, steering-wheel-gripping driving, but so worth it... the view of the red rocks was breathtaking.  As gorgeous as it was, Jim will tell you he will never choose a road with the word "alternate" in it again (and I was the one driving)!

Notice part of our road on the bottom left

Before our last Arizona destination we actually left our home behind and spent a few days in Las Vegas (which will be blogged under the Nevada page), but upon our return (still just in the Jeep), visited our most anticipated Arizona landmark... the Grand Canyon.  We accompanied our excursion with a book called Grand Canyon: A Different View, by Tom Vail.  It is a beautifully written & illustrated book showing how the Canyon is not only a testimony to creation, but also presents evidence of God's judgment of the world through the Flood.

...all the fountains of the great deep burst open, and the floodgates of the sky were opened -Genesis 7:11
The mountains rose; the valleys sank down to the place which You established for them -Psalm 104:8

Great are the works of the Lord... Splendid and majestic is His work... He has made His wonders to be remembered...  -Psalm 111:2-4

We spotted herds of elk as we left the park each day.

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. -Romans 1:20

Though we were told the waters of the Colorado River running through the Canyon were typically blue-green, they were running a murky brown during our visit as seen near the center of the photo above.

Though Jim braved some rim trail hiking, he just couldn't quite make it out to the overlooks with us:(

Alayna working hard on her Junior Ranger booklet:)

We felt so small next to this grand sight! (Girls upper right)

We were ready to get back to our home & our time in Arizona was up, so back to Black Canyon City to unpack!  Of course several times our drives brought us through interesting routes like the historic Route 66 seen here in Williams, AZ which was the last town bypassed by 1-40.  It clung to Route 66 from November 1926 until October, 1984.

And I'm finding that the blog posts are much too often including photos like the one below.  Yes, Jim continues to run the tank on fumes as he searches for the lowest fuel possible- meanwhile I'm sick with nerves in the passenger seat!

Next up... California!

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A) Tuscon: Home #1, Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum, Saguaro National Park
B) Black Canyon City: Home #2
C) Surprise: Surprise Stadium (Spring Training home of KC Royals)
D) Camp Verde: Montezuma Castle
E) Sedona: hiking
F) Clarkdale: Verde Canyon Railroad
G) Grand Canyon National Park
H) Williams, AZ