rvsue and her canine crew

The crew and I set out on a hike in search of campsites. 

Time to go out and get some exercise!

Our present camp is near the convergence of five, two-track trails heading out in different directions, some of which have branching trails. 

It’s a cool and windy day.  We’ve been holed up in the BLT all morning.  I’m wearing a hooded jacket, and Bridget and Spike are happy to be in their black suits again. 

The crew seems to carry a sense of purpose when wearing the harness suits, trotting side-by-side in front of me on-leash.  Their heads are only inches apart.  Bridget playfully nips Spike’s cheek without breaking stride.  I love it when she does that!

This is gold country.

"C'mon, Spike. C'mon, Bridget. Find that gold nugget.

People drive ATVs up these trails looking for gold.  You can tell the prospectors by the big buckets behind their seats.  The buckets carry soil home to be sifted and washed in search of the valuable flakes. 

I fantasize about spotting a gold nugget the size of a walnut among the many rocks lining the trail. 

Ha! Fat chance of that happening!

The trail winds its way up to a promontory.

A wide, sandy wash cuts across the desert valley.

The wind is whipping the palo verde branches.  It’s exhilarating to look out over the desert for miles from this high perspective, the cool wind in my face.

What a campsite this would make, up here above the world! 

Except if the BLT started rocking in the wind I’d imagine us rolling down to the valley below . . .  

I look for the horses, but no luck.

A seemingly endless number of boondock camps stretch out for miles in all directions and not one camper in sight.  (Al and Kelly, our Class C neighbor, and the BLT are behind a ridge.) 

I take some photos even though I know the spectacular drop to the valley will not be captured.  

Back home the crew naps (now there’s a surprise!).

And I fix myself something to eat (another big surprise!).  I go online with the intention of doing my income taxes.  I received my W-2 form by email this morning.  I find the site I want and . . . Oh, bluh, I don’t feel like doing this. 

Instead I grab my Rand McNally road atlas and skip on over to www.blm.gov.  I find boondocking possibilities to the north in Arizona and Utah, which sets me day-dreaming about how the crew and I will travel through the warm months.

I get up for some tea and inspect my nose in the door mirror.

Looking good!  I recently had a skin cancer scare.  My nose developed a blemish right next to where I had the Mohs procedure done last August.  Last weekend was the test.  I told myself if it didn’t heal up over the weekend, I’d be pulling up stakes and heading south to Casa Grande where there’s a dermatology clinic able to do Mohs surgery. 

I am so relieved it healed.  There’s no sign of anything suspicious.  Probably all the UV protection I slather on my nose every day caused a break-out!

I want to burn some paper trash.

Between the wind a-blowing, and the fire raging across the desert south of here near Buckeye, I don’t think starting a fire is a very good idea!  I sense a pattern here in the desert Southwest.  .  . four or five days of perfect weather followed by a day or two of wind.  Not a bad formula, eh?

What a front yard this would make!

rvsue