Oh, The Winds

 The week past brought record high temperatures, this week brought us winds.  The first couple of days were most pleasant but that was about to change.  The temperatures dropped and the north wind blew - for the past several days.  Everything was rattling and banging so we finally brought in our slides and gosh, how much quieter it was.  I know, real first world problems.

We spent the week just a few miles from Oatman, AZ which is an old gold mining town situated on the original Route 66.  It has retained it's old wild west character complete with staged gunfights, wooden sidewalks, original old buildings, plus various tourist attractions. 

Wonder if it will ever be sold

He caught some lunch - a gecko

We took a drive into town one day as it's always fun to walk around.  In past years, burros roamed the streets but there was only one the day we went.  Many places sell food but folks are discouraged from feeding them in town because the are still wild animals and folks have been injured by them.  However, they are on the road on the outskirts of the town.

We are also relatively close to Laughlin, NV so of course, we took a run into town.  Often, if you sign up for a player's card, the casino will offer some free play.  That we did in one casino - they offered $5 in free play.  Of course, you have to play at least $1, and then there are a set of instructions to activate your free play.  With that, my free play only cost me $0.70 but Gerry's cost him $2 - I wonder who follows instructions better!!  And, there are always some interesting things to see. 

There are a lot of fifth wheels for RV's and many are toy haulers.  I'm not sure this toy would fit into anywhere.

A drive through the parkade - how, and why, would there be so many footprints on the overhead concrete beams.

In the parking lot was a travel trailer totally self sufficient for his power needs - not only several solar panels but a windmill - a type that required just a bit of wind and was quiet.

As well, in the casinos - the prices have sure increased since we had been in one.

Today we went for a short off-road trail.  The scenery off the highways is always to be enjoyed.

There are many beautiful sunsets but here was an unusual type of sunset.

The other night at about three in the morning, I woke up to some type of snorting and then there was some braying.  As I had mentioned, there are quite a few burros in the area and they often hang around in the middle of the road hoping someone will give them a treat.  Well, they also come around the RV's looking for a handout.  Not too bright - wrong time of day if they were looking for something good.

Baby, It's Hot Out There

 This past week has been unusually  hot and not a lot of wind.  The past number of days it has been +30C weather.  Occasionally, there was a whisper of rain but that was all it was - a whisper of 10 drops or so.  Mind you, this is why we consider ourselves so fortunate to enjoy these temps as many are not able to do so.

One day we were out for  walk and came across a group of seniors (55+) playing slow pitch and heard there was their championship game in a couple of days so we went to watch.   They played some really good ball and I had to marvel at their athleticism.  It sure was an enjoyable morning.

Back at our camp, one of the fellows was having a mural painted on the side of his travel trailer.  His theme for the project was Spam.  I am sure that many may have either not heard of Spam or had forgot all about it.   Spam is a brand of canned luncheon meat and has been sold since 1937.  There are numerous flavours of Spam products.  Why Spam - the owner of the trailer apparently loves this product and eats tons of it.  This photo show the progress of this mural.  This gal has been painting all week, in the hot sun, all day most days!!

In addition, he has created little flower pots from empty cans and hangs them on the side of his trailer with magnets.

Today we moved a bit further north again.  We found a spot, near a highway that hasn't a lot of traffic and particularly at night, and a fair bit of space.   It was nice while it lasted until 5 fifth wheel trailers pulled in.  They did make a circle, but the circle can not be very small when a couple of them are over 40 feet and the other three, slightly shorter, and all are towed by either a big truck, or bigger truck. 

They are very pleasant and unfortunately, one of them had a real stroke of bad luck.  They are all tow haulers, and when one of them went to remove his toy, the ramp malfunctioned. 

 Even if we no longer have a lot of space, we do have a great view.

I will close off this week with a spectacular sunset that was on display last night.

Until next week, take care everyone!!