Big surprise today – woke up and it was cloudy. I know I shouldn't complain, but I was thinking the other day about how every day with sunshine does get a little boring. A little bit of weather makes my heart sing. I'm not complaining because I certainly don't want the weather gods to think that I am ungrateful for all this sunshine. Let's just say that it was nice to wake up to some clouds.
I decided that it would probably be wise to take my car to the trail heads. No need to get all tuckered out before I even get to the trail. I tow my car behind the RV using a tow bar. It is important when you want to hook up or unhook that the car and the RV are in a straight line. Otherwise it is very difficult to get the pin that connects the tow bar to the car out. Usually it is a 5 minute job to unhook the car. Forty minutes later, I finally got it unhooked. Guess I wasn't all that straight – another learning experience.
Then I had to fix the rod that holds the door to the RV open. One end had fallen off. A simple matter of screwing the rod into the holders. Except...when you screw one end of the rod into it's holder, it unscrews the other end. It is a careful balancing act but I got 'er done.
Enough of this home maintenance stuff. The clouds also made it a perfect day for a hike. I'm going to take the Sunset Vista Trail which goes around behind Picacho Peak. I want to take Miko so that precludes me climbing the peak. I had heard from some of the other residents in the campground that when you start climbing the peak, there are ladders that you have to climb and that it is definitely not a place for people with vertigo. Talented as Miko is, I don't think she could make it up a ladder on a sheer cliff wall. Whew – decision made. I, of course, would have climbed the wall in spite of my vertigo, but I couldn't leave Miko behind. Um-hmm.
I'm liking this type of desert – it is greener, it is seems friendlier. The trail goes up and down, you cross over the saddle of a small mountain and then you are in a valley. The flowers are starting to come out. I learn later that the yellow flowers are called Mexican poppies and they only bloom for a couple of weeks and then they are done. Our timing is great because there are a few big patches of them in bloom.
When we get close to Picacho Peak, you can see way up there little tiny bits of color where there are people doing the ascent. I'm pretty comfortable in my decision not to go. Way too far and way too much effort. As it was, I have a FitBit which measures the number of steps I take and also the flights of stairs. I was amazed when I got back home that I had traveled 13,375 steps and believe it or not 70 flights of stairs. Had to take a nap when I got back to the RV.
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| Almost looks like the Smokies |
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| Look!!!! A front shot of Miko!!! |
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| Mexican Poppies |
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| This is how close I came before we turned around - so close, yet so far away |
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| The Peak |
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