Arizona
Organ pipes and a mountain of garlic?
So there we were... on a mountain of garlic. At least that's what they named it. Really, I didn't see any garlic anywhere. Or any tomatoes, onions, or peppers either. No wonder the nearest town is named "Why".
Tombstone, Arizona and Clanton Days
So there I was... with a notorious gunfighter! Well, actually with his namesake relative. The old Ike Clanton died back in 1887, before my time. The new Ike Clanton is alive and kicking, and hosting Clanton Days, an annual event in Tombstone, Arizona... Read article...
Sedona in the movies: Broken Arrow
I finally watched the 1950 Jimmy Stewart movie, Broken Arrow. I say "finally", because I've been meaning to for years. Sedona, Arizona was a big place for making movies, especially back in the days of the westerns. The thing is, for decades they were making movies here, but never calling it Sedona! ... Read article...
Sedona - Hedgehogs in bloom
One nice thing about visiting the desert in spring, is the flowers that add splashes of color. It's amazing how even the forbidding cacti, covered in treacherous thorns, have these beautiful blooms. These little hedgehogs are just a few inches tall, and the blossoms are nearly as big as the plants themselves... Read article...
Tumacacori - Ruins and dancing
Last weekend, I was at a little place in southern Arizona called Tumacacori - the site of a Spanish mission, founded by Jesuit missionaries back in 1691. Over the centuries, this place has seen the O'Odham and the Jesuits, the Franciscans and the Apaches, the Spanish, the Mexicans, and the Americans... Read article...
Tuzigoot - Ancient Sinagua Ruins in Arizona
Not far from Sedona, Arizona, lie the ruins of Tuzigoot, an ancient Sinagua town that was abandoned centuries ago. This small hilltop town was built by the Sinagua people about a thousand years ago, and there's so much we don't know. We don't know what they called themselves, or called this place... Read article...
So there I was... riding in the old tow truck
The old tow truck, as opposed to the new tow trucks that the other drivers got to drive. When you're the new driver at the company, you're stuck with the oldest truck. Just one of many things I never expected to learn this day! I set out from Phoenix, headed for Taos... Read article...
The rare Arizona Prickly Palm
Desert life is fascinating, in the variety of ways that plants and animals have adapted to deal with the harsh environment. Frogs survive buried underground for many months at a time. Flower seeds may wait years for the right rainfall conditions, then sprout, grow, bloom, and back to seed in a few weeks... Read article...
Ancient Anasazi motel maps?
Petroglyphs -- images or symbols chipped into the rock -- are found throughout the Southwestern US, left by prehistoric inhabitants. Their meanings are obscure, the subject of much speculation and little proof. In most cases we’ll probably never know, but one set may have yielded up its secrets... Read article...
So there we were... watching imminent disaster
If you ever come to Sedona, take one of the jeep tours. The best involve amazing feats of driving up, down, and over the red rocks, and you'll go places that look like they should be impossible! Personally, I always go with a trained professional driver, but some people want to do it themselves... Read article...
