Friday, March 15, 2024

St. Anthony's Greek Orthodox Monastery

Although I wore a long sleeved crew neck t-shirt
kerchief, and long pants, that wasn't enough.
A volunteer dressed me in long skirt, big shirt,
socks and head scarf.  

All the art work was brough from Greece and it
is exquisite. 

There are 7 chapels now and each is unique.














 "In the summer of 1995, Elder Ephraim (a former abbot of Philotheou Monastery on Mount Athos with a history of restoring and repopulating previous monasteries) sent six monks of Athonite heritage to the Sonoran Desert of Arizona with aims to establish a new monastery in the name of Saint Anthony the Great, the father of monasticism.[citation needed] The fathers began by building the main church, monastic living quarters, the dining hall, and some guest facilities. They also began a vegetable garden, a small vineyard, citrus orchards, and an olive grove amidst the desert landscape. These areas are now interconnected by an elaborate system of gardens, pathways, and gazebos with Spanish fountains.[3]" (wikipedia)

St. Anthony's Chapel surrounded by gardens, fountains and walkways. We followed a strict path 
through the complex, visiting all 7 chapels but staying carefully away from the monks living 
quarters and the extensive guest quarters. There are about 40 monks in residence. 

There were a number of beautiful fountains.

The wooden roof and carvings throughout the
St. George's Chapel were gorgeous.















We visited the Monastery while staying at the Foothills West RV Park in Casa Grande. We planned to spend 2 nights and then drive north to the South Side of the Grand Canyon for 4 nights. But after checking the weather, we moved the reservations to the following week and got 2 more nights at Foothills. Below freezing conditions and snow made that decision easy. That still left 2 nights which we reserved up in Sedona. But a day later the weather there promised cold rain and the RV park there had no Wi-Fi or cell! We hope to go there after the Grand Canyon. So again, we went hat in hand to Foothills and got two more nights.  This is a lovely place with a heated pool and a hot tub. And the weather was almost perfect all week - sunny skies with a high in the 69 - 73. My next post will cover our visits north to the Musical Instrument Museum and San Tan Regional Park. 

This was the last chapel to be built. It's just outside the main complex and visable for miles around.


A detail of two of the hundreds of
icons.

Every medium was used to decorate the
buildings and grounds

The brick and stone work throughout the 
complex was amazing.

St Demetrios Chapel

Many of the chapels are mainly lit by candles
but this beautiful chandelier was electric.

You need to be a recommended Greek 
Orthodox member to stay in here but it
seemed quite popular. We saw a lot of
guests going into the dining room at lunch.

A tiny food truck in the parking lot run by a 
Greek family provided an excellent lunch-
Spinach Feta Pie!


Thursday, March 14, 2024

Back Road Explorations with Donna and Dick

Looking out at the desert from the Visitor's Center - this is the Western piece of the Park.

Our next four days were spent with our neighbors and friends from Shrewsbury, Donna and Dick. They have a second home in Marana, AZ. We are able to park Baby right next to their compound and plug in on a long extension cord. We visited them on our first trip in 2021 and stayed there without them last year. They have been coming here for over 20 years and Donna knows the back roads very well. We went down single lane rutted dirt roads that Scott and I wouldn't have dared. And there are a warren of possibilities up near the mountains. But Donna knew every twist and turn, plus she was an excellent tour guide on the history, birds, animals and vegetation. Donna drove in her Jeep Cherokee truck and it even handled a stream crossing! That was carefully checked out before we entered. It was a lot of fun and so beautiful. The recent rain has brought out the flowers everywhere and the desert is green right now!

The movie screen went up and revealed the desert
itself!

Donna and Dick, our neighbors and friends from
Shrewsbury, VT

The barrel cactus were in bloom -
their fruit is delicious.








Our first full day we went out to breakfast at the local airport. It rained that morning but it cleared up,  and they drove us to Saguaro National Park and around the Hohokam drive. The park was created as Saguaro National Monument in 1933 and in 1961 additional acreage was added. It became a National Park in 1994. There are two sections to the Park and we only had time for the Western area.  At the Visitor's Center we enjoyed a movie on the park. At the end, the screen pulled up and revealed a huge picture window of the park itself - very dramatic and fun! That night we went out to dinner at a local bar where the Mexican food was great. 

On the back roads with Donna & Dick


Our second full day we spent exploring back roads all the way to the base of Ragged Mountain. We saw an old mine and the ruins of the community that once surrounded it. We saw a crested saguaro whose mutated tip was so large in looked like it couldn't stand up! Each morning I enjoyed sitting with Donna out on her front porch drinking our coffee and talking in the morning sunshine. Evenings we all had our drinks on the back porch watching the sunset.  

That's Ragged Mountain in the distance. We saw lots of boondocking campsites off those back roads.

The sky was very dramatic. It had rained that night and was clearing up.
You can just see the top of the crested Saguaro
in the background

That's the stream we crossed, over on the left.







Our last day Scott and I went off on our own for a hike in Saguaro National Park - the Desert Wren Trail and the Signal Hill trail. At the top of the hill we saw petroglyphs drawn by the Hohokam people who lived in this area from 300 AD to 1450. Then we visited a Amateur Airplane Field where they were having races. These planes were about 5 or 6 feet in diameter and beautifully painted.  It was a Sunday morning so over 100 people gathered to watch and see each other's planes. 

I hope you can make out the concentric circle
petroglyph on the center top rock.

A view over the desert from the Signal Hill trail













That afternoon Scott and I moved Baby over to our next Harvest Host member - the Little Anthony's Diner and the Gaslight Theater. I bought tickets for ourselves and Donna & Dick. The show was "The Curse of  the Pirate Gold" and it was a lot of fun - comedy, dancing and singing, with a great band. It's a dinner theater so we sat at a table for the 4 of us and ordered drinks and food - no room for dancing though!

The four leads from Curse of the Pirates Gold

We were sad to say goodbye to our good friends but the next day we were off heading north. More on that later!

A rainbow greeted us on our last morning in Marana with Donna & Dick.



Friday, March 08, 2024

Hiking and Shopping with Bob and Lesa

Scott, Bob and Bob's sheltie, Dandy on the trail at Madera Canyon

As you can see it was a perfect day!

A view up to the hills.


 











We've hiked with Bob over 50 years now, mostly in New Hampshire where they used to live. Our hikes are shorter now and easier but still wonderful. And Lesa always knows the best second shops around. I've bought some of my favorite clothes under her tutelage. They moved down to Green Valley 20 or so years ago at first spending only the winters but eventually selling the house in North Conway.  The area is really lovely and self contained. Homeowners in the town have access to tons of activities.  They have room in their driveway for Baby and we have a great view from our dinette. This is our third visit to them - they are wonderful hosts.

There has been some rain so we saw water in the creeks and flower buds on the trees and bushes.

Our first full day we spent at Madera Canyon in the Santa Rita Mountains. We hiked up the Bob Springs Trail and then cut over to the Nature Trail, taking it back down to our car. It was a perfect day, about 68 degrees and sunny. Bob is a Friend of Madera Canyon and head of the Trail Maintenance  Crew.  He was able to point out all the work that has been done to the trail and how it was accomplished. 

A view from our seat in the Trolley.

Bob and Scott on the hike down from Sabino Canyon. Dogs
aren't allowed so Dandy had to stay home.

The first of the poppies, which soon will be out
everywhere.










Our second day we drove north to Sabino Canyon Recreation Area, part of the Coronado National Forest. During the Depression the CCC and WPA built a dam and 9 shallow bridges with a plan to extend the road up to Mount Lemon. There was talk of a major dam there as well. But all these ideas failed, happily, as now there is a 4.5 mile road up into the Canyon that stops at the end, with major trails heading out from there. This has been a popular spot for Tucson residents and car traffic had started to be a real problem. So in 1978 a trolly system was instituted and no car traffic is allowed. 

We reserved a spot in the trolley and rode to the last of 9 stops up the Canyon. Then we walked down, stopping to enjoy the views and the stream crossings. There are a lot of bridges but they are built low so in high water the stream goes across. We got our shoes a little wet on one. I love the benches and picnic tables that are scattered along the road! We're sorry we didn't have more time to explore up the stream. And it was a little cold to get in the water. During warmer times though the sandy beaches are very popular. 

The bridges built by the CCC during the Depression have lasted although I'm sure there has been lots of maintenance over the years.

Lesa and Bob in their kitchen. Their house is
beautiful, built on a big lot with views of the
mountains. 

We accomplished a number of chores: refilled the propane, dumped the tanks, refilled with water, had my lab tests done, had a pedicure and shopped. I found a rain jacket and a now favorite top at one of Lesa's great shops. And we had two wonderful dinners out and one in. What a fun visit!

But now it was time to move on again, this time to our friends and neighbors in Shrewsbury, Donna and Dick. They have had a winter home in Marana, just south and west of Tucson for 20 years. We visited them 3 years ago on our first trip in Baby But last year they were unable to make the trip so we had to stay at their home without them. More on our stay there next...

Thursday, March 07, 2024

Wine, Pecans and a Slot Canyon

 

The view from Baby at the Rio Grande Winery in Las Cruces..

The covered patio at Rio Grande

Inside the Winery








Las Cruces is studded with pecan orchards and wineries. The pecan orchards stretch out for miles all around the city and there are 9 wineries. As far as we know there is only one slot canyon and we found it - and it wasn't easy. Pecans and wine on the other had were - we went to 2 wineries and the Pecan Fest in Mesilla. This is our third time visiting the Rio Grande Winery, a Harvest Host location. It's a beautiful spot with very good wine, live music and food. And it was a Saturday night. But we had a surprise when we sat down, only one red wine available! That afternoon they had a Pickleball Tournament and then there must have been a big celebration! But the wine and band were great so another lovely night. Another night we visited D.H. Lescombes Winery and Bistro and had an excellent dinner overlooking the mountains. And there were lots of wine choices there.

A view around the Pecan Fest

Basilica de San Albino








The Pecan Fest was set in downtown Mesilla, mostly in the central square. There was live music, lots of vendors and some very good BBQ. We discovered the trail to Slot Canyon on All Trails, which we belong to. The reviews were all raving about the canyon but there were buts... The first one was the entrance. "Either climb the 5 foot fence or go under the barbed wire". What? And concerns about finding the trail as it wasn't well marked. But we thought we'd at least take a look. Scott downloaded the map so we knew we could find our way home. We went under the fence, and loved the canyon!

Crawling under the barbed wire - folks before
us had dug a depression.

The Slot Canyon is narrow.

And it was a hot day so the shade was welcome.













This was our second time staying at the Hacienda RV Park and it is very nice with a big hot tub, which we used several times. We managed to see 5 museums while visiting there. The biggest is the Farm and Ranch Museum up near Dripping Spring. We found the history of farming and ranching here very interesting. New stories to us were the range wars, lawlessness (Billy the Kid is big around here) and especially when it changed dramatically as a result of WWII. A lot of farms were confiscated to build the White Sands Missile Range and Test Facility. Now Spaceport America and Virgin Galactic are just north of there. 

I love these slices of life long ago. What's scary
is, a lot of things look familiar from my past!

There were a lot of vehicles in the Farm & Ranch
Museum, this hearse was my favorite.








Another day we visited the Railroad Museum and the Museum Complex which includes an Art Museum, and a Nature and Science Museum. Lastly we toured Fort Selden which is now a ruin but once housed a large number of "Buffalo Soldiers", African-Americans who joined the army after the Civil War. As a testament to their bravery nine Buffalo Soldiers received the Medal of Honor while serving in New Mexico. 

The 1910 Depot of the Acheson, Topeka and 
Santa Fe railroad. Now the Railroad Museum.

I loved this story about the first woman Engineer. 
She was quite famous nationally as a result, 
made the cover of Redbook. A third generation
railroad worker, it didn't hurt that she was lovely!

There were two huge model railroad set ups. So detailed and fun.

But now it was time to head west again. We had two great couples to visit in southern Arizona: So next stop Green Valley!
The ruins of Fort Seldon just outside of Las Cruces and near the Slot Canyon.