Journeys and Wanderings

South Mountain

2011-12-26T13:32:00.000-05:00

Arriving at the Holbert Trail

Yesterday was my third annual Christmas Day hike. This year I went to South Mountain to hike up to Dobbins Lookout, which is the highest point in the park accessible by trail. (See here for my 2009 and 2010 hikes) To get to Dobbins Lookout, you follow the Holbert trail almost to it's terminus, where you take a spur trail to Dobbins.

It's been a chilly December this year compared to last; the temperature at the start of the hike was 40º, compared to mid-50s last year.

Metrics:

Round trip distance: approx. 4.8 miles
Elevation change: approx. 1100'
Ascent time: 48 min.
Ascent pace: 3.00 mph
Descent time: 43 min.
Descent pace: 3.35 mph
Footwear: Vibram Five Fingers
Water consumed: approx. 20 oz.

Thoughts:

This trail surface was much rougher and more rugged than my previous hike in Zion. Coupled with the chilly temperatures, my feet got a good workout in the Vibrams. Also, overall, this trail was a bit steeper, so it provided a good workout, but a slower pace. Being on the north side of the mountain, most of the hike was in the shade, so it was nice to get to the top and bask in the sun.

Let's get going

Piece of cake

Rocky slope forming one side of a ravine

Sun peeking over South Mountain

Downtown Phoenix in the distance

Approaching the ridge line and the morning sun

I took the spur trail to Dobbins Lookout

Success

The Valley of the Sun from Dobbins Lookout

Dobbins Lookout shelter

Looking west from the shelter

Looking north from the shelter

Looking northeast from the shelter

Back at the trail head


Lunch at Lux after a 4.8 mile hike and a 17-hour fast: egg bake with broccoli, cheddar and onions; bacon; sourdough toast; corn muffin; and coffee

2011 Zion Canyon Music Festival

2011-09-26T15:00:00.001-04:00


3rd Annual Music Fest Last weekend, I attended the 3rd annual Zion Canyon Music Festival, my 2nd year in attendance. Once again, a great venue with great music. Special thanks to Bill and Janel for providing me with a crash pad and their usual hospitality. A good time was had by all.

Favorite Groups: Shannon McNally(1st video) and Black Carl.(2nd video) Both had sultry, soulful female vocalists that could wail

Most Promising: The Folka Dots(3rd video) - a young, unpolished band from Salt Lake with an awkward stage presence. However, they have 3 good female vocalists, which will help as they evolve.

Best Performance by Someone Who Shouldn't Have Been Performing: the dancing man in the Black Carl video.

Most Boring: The West Coast Jazz Players...snoooooozefest.

Pressed Into Duty

2011-09-26T14:12:00.000-04:00

A beautiful DeArmond Guitar

The 2nd act on Friday night was Shannon McNally and the Smoke Signals. She and her band left later that night to continue their tour. On Saturday night I arrived at the music fest and ran into Alex, the event coordinator. The following is the gist of our conversation:

Alex: Dave, when do you go back to Phoenix?
Me: Tomorrow morning.
Alex: Can you do me a huge favor?
Me: Sure.
Alex: Shannon McNally left last night and forgot a $2,000 guitar. She needs it for a show in Tempe tomorrow night. Can you get it to her?
Me: You got it.

Her band was playing at the Sail Inn in Tempe at 8:30, near ASU, and I delivered the guitar at 4:00 p.m. Mission accomplished. (Do NOT say like GW)

Hike to Scout's Lookout

2011-09-26T13:36:00.000-04:00

Crossing the Virgin River at the Grotto Trailhead

On Saturday morning, I took the Zion National Park shuttle to the Grotto to hike up to Scout's Lookout. From Scout's Lookout, hikers can continue on to Angels Landing or the West Rim Trail. I'd like to say that I did this hike to commune with nature and be in the Great Outdoors, but I really did it to push myself and gauge my current level of fitness and conditioning. And just to add another element, I did the hike fasted. (hadn't eaten in over 12 hours) I left the trailhead at 10:00 a.m., so the hike was still mostly shaded and the down canyon breeze still plugging along.

Metrics:

Roundtrip distance: 3.9 miles
Elevation change: 1070 feet
Ascent time: 38 minutes
Ascent pace: 3.08 mph
Descent time: 34 minutes
Descent pace: 3.44 mph
Footwear: Vibram Five Fingers
Water consumed: 24 ounces

Thoughts:

While this is a spectacular hike and I've done it numerous times, I've always dreaded it, because it would beat me up. I have to admit that I destroyed this hike this time and I'll tell you why. First, I didn't take my first water break until the base of Walter's Wiggles. Usually, I've had 3 or 4 by this time. My second water break was at the top of Walter's Wiggles and a third at Scout's Lookout. I didn't have any more water until I got back to the trailhead. I got through the entire hike on only 24 ounces of water. Second, I was easily passing other hikers on the ascent when it's usually me giving way to let someone pass. Third, my ascent time was very close to my descent time and I was not lollygaggin' on the way down. Fourth, I buzzed up Walter's Wiggles in virtually no time, a first for me. All in all, very happy with my current level of fitness.

The trail surface varies between sand, gravel, rough-textured concrete and rock. My Vibrams performed like a champ. At the end of the hike, I had one hot spot on my left heel from the descent. Can't ask for more than that.

I love the "falling to your gruesome death" icon

Angels Landing

Mid-morning in the canyon

Sandbar in the Virgin River

Looking down canyon just before entering Refrigerator Canyon

Refrigerator Canyon

Base of Walter's Wiggles, a series of 21 switchbacks

At the top of Walter's Wiggles, taunting the namesake for his feeble attempt at slowing my ascent

Looking down from Scout's Lookout

Hikers continuing to Angels Landing

Angels Landing to the right, viewed from Scout's Lookout

Exiting Refrigerator Canyon on the descent

Back at the trailhead

Post-hike, post-fast lunch - rice bowl with teriyaki chicken and veggies

The Road Less Traveled

2011-09-26T12:55:00.000-04:00


Taking a shortcut

In the spirit of this blog, I took a shortcut. After 6.5 hours of driving, I was on Rt. 59 in Apple Valley Utah about 8 miles from the UT/AZ border. To get to Springdale, UT from this point, you can continue on Rt. 59 to Hurricane, UT and backtrack about 25 miles on Rt. 9. Or, you can cut across Smithsonian Butte to Rt. 9 in Rockville, UT, which is about 7 miles. Then, it's just about a mile to Springdale. It was slow-going on the dirt/gravel road, but very scenic.

About 7 miles across the butte

The West Temple

Strata

East Temple at the far left

A rocky, sandy gulch

Descent of the butte towards Rockville

Almost to Rt. 9

Crossing the Virgin River in Rockville

Quebec City, Quebec

2011-08-22T22:10:00.034-04:00

Crossing the St. Lawrence River into Quebec City

A recent 2 week vacation to New England included a 4 day trip from Portland, ME to Quebec City. My brother, Jeff, flew into Portland and we rented a car for the 5.5 hour drive to Quebec. The twins, Mike and Matt, drove up from Alexandria to meet us. We stayed at a hostel in the The Old City that had 4 beds and a private bath. We spent about 2.5 days sightseeing around The Old City, The Lower City and the area just west of the Old City. It's a beautiful city and I highly recommend visiting, if you get the chance. We also decided that we didn't have a bad meal the entire time we were there.

Recommendations:

Lodging - Auberge Internationale

Food - Cafe Le Hobbit and Chino Sois

Most Pretentious Club - Chez Maurice

Favorite Eccentric - Female Nick Nolte at the hostel

Favorite Pic - the fire escape in The Lower City

Side trip - Montmorency Falls (see post below)

Footwear - Vibram Five Fingers (mine were awesome. wore them 4 straight days)

The Old City

The Lower City

Battlefield Park

Fountains and Statues

Montmorency Falls, Quebec

2011-08-21T21:29:00.013-04:00

Taking the tram to the top

Outside of Quebec City, about 10 minutes, is Montmorency Falls. We visited on a cool, misty day, which seemed appropriate.

The staircase across the river

Suspension bridge over the crest of the falls

The Montmorency River dumping into the St. Lawrence

Looks harmless enough

Oh boy! Looking straight down from the bridge

The bridge

View from the other side of the river

View before descending the staircase

Descending the staircase

Bonus: 5 seconds of "roar," then my batteries failed.

Prescott Bluegrass Festival

2011-06-27T20:37:00.007-04:00

The crowd gathered in the town square

Yesterday, I drove up to Prescott for their yearly Bluegrass Festival. It was a warm, breezy day in the low 90s.(Warm at this elevation) And it was still 20 degrees cooler than Phoenix. For those of you who have never watched live bluegrass, I highly recommend it. It's good, fun music and has some of the best musicians you'll ever see.

This is my first video blog and I apologize for some of the bad audio, the wind played heck with my recording.

(I started my drive from Phoenix by listening to 2 CDs of Flatt and Scruggs.)

The Triple L Band - Start out with a little gospel

Just 4 Mama - Watch at the :27 mark. It's the bluegrass equivalent of Gene Gene, The Dancing Machine. Complete with rawhide gloves.

Lonesome Otis - Suits with cowboy hats are money for a bluegrass band. That's straight up gangsta.

Thomas Porter and the Copper River Band - Last show of the day

Impromptu Jam - Bluegrass Beatles

Bonus track - Check out these two kids.

Bacon and Sangria Party - Phoenix, AZ

2011-05-17T20:42:00.010-04:00

Provisions

Last Saturday, I threw the world's first Bacon and Sangria Party. Never before has the world seen such a revolutionary event. The perfect melding of salty and sweet; swig and sizzle.

I purchased 8lbs of bacon and 13.5 liters of sangria. Guests, if they chose to, were instructed to bring something - AS LONG AS IT WAS BACON OR SANGRIA. The beautiful simplicity of this directive was lost on some, so various contraband was brought.(egg salad on bacon, cookies, fruit salad)

Those people will be dealt with later. (This is not to say that the contraband wasn't eaten.)

Black Forest bacon

Center cut bacon

Name your poison

Bugs in a rug - dates wrapped in bacon

Klassee

Buckboard bacon

Menfolk chewing the fat

Warrior Dash - Florence, AZ

2011-04-30T19:48:00.011-04:00

Let's get it on!

Today I participated in the AZ Warrior Dash. It was a great time and a lot of fun.

Stats:

Course length - 3.4 miles
Obstacles - 12
Elapsed time - 46 min 03 sec.
Pace - 13.53 min/mile
Face Paint - in honor of my Apache brothers, who have lived for centuries in the beautiful and rugged desert Southwest. (And David Puddy)

Berserker!! That's my Metal face. (Olaf, Metal!)

Straw bale obstacle

Cargo net obstacle

Mud pit obstacle. Almost there...

Finish line

Post race

And he did feast upon the fowl

This group had Charlie Sheen "Winning" t-shirts. FTW

Just wrong

Railroad Revival Tour - Tempe, AZ

2011-04-25T20:28:00.017-04:00

Time for some music

Saturday night, I attended the Railroad Revival Tour concert in Tempe with Krista, Jeremi and Amanda. Mild, breezy weather made it perfect for an evening, outdoor concert. This tour consists of 3 bands traveling to 6 venues by vintage rail cars. This was a great show. Not only were the bands eclectic, but so was the crowd. Senior citizens, teenagers, college students, couples with young children, the whole gamut. Everyone was having a great time.

Act 1 - Old Crow Medicine Show

These guys started the show off with rip-roaring bluegrass. They got on it from the start and energized the crowd.

Act 2 - Edward Sharp and The Magnetic Zeros

This group had the shortest set, but their eclectic brand of folk/Americana kept the energy going. They had at least 10 people in the group and bodies were flying everywhere. They had the crowd whistling when they played "Home," their bringing-down-the-house song.

Act 3 - Mumford & Sons

Classic British folk music from the UK. Their recent CD, Sigh No More, is one of the best I've heard in years. Top to bottom a great album. They also played two new songs and, if they were any indication, the next album is gonna be good, too. These guys are good - good musicians and good lyricists.

Waiting in line

Crossing the tracks

The stage is set

Old Crow Medicine Show

Dusk descends on Tempe

Edward Sharp and The Magnetic Zeros on the simulcast big screen

On the roof above the California Zephyr

Old school Pullman car

Troubadours outside the concert

Food

More food

Cool ticket - flexible plastic with a 3D image towards the bottom. Like the old baseball cards

Bonus Video (shout out to TT in EGR)

The Chuckbox - Tempe, AZ

2011-04-17T17:54:00.013-04:00

The Chuckbox in Tempe

In my continuing search for the best burger in the Phoenix metro area, I sampled the fare at The Chuckbox in Tempe for lunch today. After you step inside, you place your order at the beginning of a cafeteria-style line, under the Bill of Fare sign. The wood-fired grill is right in front of you as you place your order. The person taking your order is working the grill and yells down the line with any orders for the deep fryers.

Inside, there was seating for about 60, plus additional seating on two separate patios.

This was a good burger and it's rare to find char-broiled burgers these days, so I'm giving this a thumbs up and moving it to position 2b on my list of best burgers. I'm going back to check consistency, but I can see this place taking over the number 2 spot.

1. Five Guys
2a. In N Out
2b. The Chuckbox
3. Feeney's Pub

What you gonna have?

One of those burgers is mine

The warm, soft glow of the wood fire

Bacon cheeseburger with deep fried mushrooms

Take heed, ladies. No boozin' when preggers!

The condiment island

11:00 am and half full already

Corner of University Dr. and Forest Ave, on the edge of the ASU campus

Reds Spring Training

2011-04-02T13:49:00.013-04:00

Home of the Reds and Indians

Last Sunday, I went to Goodyear, AZ to watch the Reds play the Diamondbacks in a spring training game. This complex is only a couple years old, so it's a pretty nice field. However, the grandstand was butt-ugly, so whoever designed it is dead to me.

The Reds won 9-6.

The scoreboard in left field

Play ball!

Future All-Star, Drew Stubbs, after his first of two hits

RBI time!

View down the left field line

Kind of steep

Fans hanging out on the left field berm

Bonus: While walking around the mezzanine, I noticed an impressive looking man behind a table. It was none other than George Foster. He was a key cog in the Big Red Machine of the mid- to late 70s, had awesome sideburns and was one of the first players to use a black bat, otherwise known as Black Beauty. His MVP year of 1977 was one of the most impressive of all time - .320 BA, 52 HRs and 149 RBIs. For a donation to his foundation, I got his autograph on my ticket stub.

The autograph

George Foster, back in the day

Austin, TX

2011-02-28T20:07:00.019-05:00

State Capitol Building

I flew into Austin on the 17th for a 6 day, 4 city tour of Texas. 3 of the cities - Austin, San Antonio and Houston - I'd never been to before, so it was a new adventure.

Downtown Austin -

Impressive structure

Looking south towards Congress Ave.

Austin skyline

Carriage house in disrepair

Burger joint on 6th St.

Lakes and parks -

Lake Austin, above the dam

The dam

Pillars under the 1st St. bridge

Bridges over Lady Bird Lake

Stevie Ray

Nymphs and satyrs

University of Texas - Austin campus -

Infamous clock tower

Darrell K. Royal Stadium

Statue of Earl Campbell - the most devastating RB I've ever witnessed

Longhorns practice

Dinner -

Dinner at Whole Foods - 1/2 lb. of brisket, 1/2 lb. of pulled pork, mug o' root beer

San Antonio, TX

2011-02-27T18:26:00.033-05:00

The Alamo

Friday morning, I did a quick day trip down to San Antonio to see The Alamo and River Walk. They're both right in the heart of downtown. To be honest, there's not much to The Alamo and I was much more impressed by River Walk. Call me crazy.

The Alamo - The historic, Texas shrine where the likes of Bill Travis, Davey Crockett, and Jim Bowie died fighting the Mexican army, led by Santa Anna, during the Texas Revolution.

River Walk - The San Antonio River flows through downtown and is lined with walkways, restaurants, shops, bars and fountains. I loved it. Placid, calm, soothing and relaxing.

The Main Plaza - immediately west of the San Antonio River and River Walk

Bexar County Courthouse

San Fernando Cathedral

Inside the cathedral

Remains of commanders at The Alamo

Fountain on Main Plaza

View of Courthouse while dropping down into the River Walk

Plano, TX

2011-02-27T14:18:00.009-05:00

Czech bakery in West, TX

On Saturday morning, I made the journey from Austin to Plano to visit my friends, Dave and Kathryn. There were two stops along the way.

The first stop was in West, TX where Kathryn suggested I stop at a Czech bakery and pick up some kolaches - it's a type of fruit danish thingy. The bakery was right off I-35 and it was hopping. I got a dozen, consisting of cherry, apple, pineapple and peach.

Busy morning

Kolache menu

The 2nd stop was in Arlington, TX and the Bluegrass Heritage WinterJam. Dave and Kathryn own their own video production company and they were shooting footage for a bluegrass documentary. They allowed me to tag along and watch them in action. Great time and some great music. The documentary is on the future of bluegrass and focuses on a 16 year old guitarist named Lucas.

Location of the Bluegrass Heritage WinterJam

Lucas on stage

A bass mandolin

Bonus "Behind the Scenes" Footage - Lucas jams with Bluefield Express

Sunday in Plano - This is where it gets kind of fuzzy. I went with Dave and Kathryn to a local pub for Sunday Brunch. The Bloody Marys started about 10:30 a.m. We were joined by a group of their friends who I will now refer to as the Plano Posse. After a couple hours at the pub, someone(Kathryn) had the idea to go next door to a roof-top bar called 32º. 7 hours later, we finally left after many drinks and quite a bit of food. The Plano Posse put a whoopin' on me. No other way to describe it.

Houston, TX

2011-02-27T12:53:00.008-05:00

Ridiculous statue of Sam Houston in Huntsville, TX

Monday morning, I took the 4.5 hour drive from Plano to Houston. Unfortunately, it was done with a hangover due to the belligerence of the Plano Posse on Sunday. Also, my picture-taking enthusiasm began to wane, so this post is particularly uneventful.

My first stop was a late lunch with my cousin, Sue, whom I haven't seen in about 25 years. It was good to catch up with her, even if it was only for a couple hours. Then, it was on to visit my good friend, Aud-man, who lives in the Alabama Place section of downtown Houston. Very quaint neighborhood. We had dinner and drinks at a nice bar/restaurant and also played catch-up, since we hadn't seen each other since the Bumpus Reunion of Aught-8 in Estes Park.

On Tuesday morning, before making the drive back to Austin to catch my flight, I had a little time to get some pictures of the campus of Rice University.

Sam's Bio

Rice University - there was no shortage of trees in this portion of the campus.

Lake Havasu City, AZ

2011-02-05T17:49:00.028-05:00

Arriving in Lake Havasu City

A couple weekends ago, I took a day trip over to Lake Havasu City on the AZ-CA border. They were having a hot air balloon festival, so I decided to check things out.

London Bridge - Yes, that London Bridge. The Brits were replacing the London Bridge and it was bought by an American. It was taken apart and shipped, stone by stone, and reassembled here in Lake Havasu City. After it was reassembled, a canal was dug from Lake Havasu to Thompson Bay to provide the water under the bridge. It's the 2nd most popular tourist attraction in Arizona, with the Grand Canyon being the 1st.

London Bridge dedication

The London Bridge from the pedestrian mall below

Spanning the canal

One of the many small marinas

View from the walking path

Cars crossing onto the peninsula

Downtown - Traffic was backed up across the bridge onto the peninsula, so I headed to the downtown business district. I took a leisurely walk to see what I could see. It was a nice little area that seemed to be fairly thriving.

Looking east on McCulloch Blvd.

Looking west on McCulloch Blvd. with Lake Havasu in the distance

Outside the indoor shooting range

Leisurely walk downtown

Old school

I love the simple architecture of The Red Onion

The Red Onion was hopping

Gearing up for the Hot Air Balloon Festival

Balloon Festival - With traffic backed up to get onto the peninsula, I decided to go to Rotary Park and see what I could of the hot air balloons from across Thompson Bay.

Rotary Park

Rising above Havasu

Looking across Thompson Bay from Rotary Park

Kayakers viewing the hot air balloons

Random Pics -

Bi-planes buzz Lake Havasu

Looking north from the south end of the lake

Looking south from the south end of the lake

Overlook along the Colorado River, south of Lake Havasu City

More overlook

Parker Dam, south of Lake Havasu

Rt. 60 - Arizona Mining Towns

2011-01-30T19:08:00.041-05:00

Approaching Superior, AZ on Rt. 60

A couple weekends ago, I headed east out of Phoenix on Rt. 60 towards the cities of Miami and Globe. Both of them are old mining towns in different states of repair. Globe, maybe due to its location at the crossroads of 3 highways, was in much better condition than Miami, which is a few miles west of Globe.

Miami, AZ - Two words: Beat Up. It was Sunday morning and there was little to no activity that I saw. The downtown area was in various states of disrepair with many boarded up and vacant buildings. There were a fair amount of antiques shops, but all were closed. It was kind of eerie.

Arriving in Miami

Bullion Plaza School

A local church

Downtown

Bottles! Get your bottles!

One of the many storefronts that were closed

About the only building that showed signs of life

An empty alley

Up, up and away!

I think this place was still in business. Couldn't really tell

Bridges over the wash

One of the few buildings in good shape

This sums it up

An elaborate memorial as you enter town

Hillside disrepair

No idea what's going on here

Or here

Hotel in disrepair

More hillside disrepair

An old jalopy in a storefront window

An old Mexican restaurant

Gutted

Looking down an alley

The old YMCA

More bottles

Globe, AZ - This town was in much better condition with more activity. Although, being Sunday, a lot of places downtown were closed.

Entering Globe

An old brew pub

Downtown Globe

The old courthouse, now an arts center

Local church

Oldest building in Globe

An excursion train

You drive real fast under these, so they don't collapse on you.

Post Office

Local bar

View of Globe from the Rt. 60 bypass

Disrepair

Camelback Mountain

2010-12-26T12:56:00.014-05:00

Approaching my nemesis

Yesterday was my 2nd annual Christmas Day hike. Last year, I hiked Squaw Peak and this year it was Camelback Mountain. Instead of waiting until mid-day to hike, like last year, I got an earlier start. I started from the trailhead at about 8:25 am with sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-50s. There are two ways to summit the peak and I took the Cholla Trail, which is on the east side of the mountain.

The trail starts as a series of switchbacks up a moderately steep slope. This alone is a pretty good workout. The first two-thirds of the hike is like this. Then, you crest a ridgeline and this is when the fun starts. Not only does the trail get steeper, but the majority of this section of trail consists of scrambling over rocks. Good times. It took me about 50 minutes to summit, where I took a 20 minute break to drink water and eat some cashews. The return hike to the trailhead took me 40 minutes.

It was a very pleasurable hike and a good workout. My hips, thighs and glutes were a bit sore this morning.

OK, let's start hiking

Gaining elevation

Overlooking the East Valley

View to the south

View to the north

Cresting the ridgeline

A steep dropoff along the ridgeline

Looking north from the summit

Resting hikers on a breezy summit

View of Squaw Peak from the summit

Christmas on the summit

The Farm Redux - Morning Glory Café

2010-12-19T14:12:00.007-05:00

Breakfast awaits!

In last week's episode, I had lunch at The Farm at South Mountain. I returned this week to have breakfast at the Morning Glory Café. It was a cool, sunny morning with chirping birds and crowing roosters. There was a slight breeze, but it was deflected by the natural canopy over the patio. All of the seating is on the outdoor patio and it's very informal.

My meal was delicious and made with fresh, local ingredients. I highly recommend this place; not only for the food, but also for the setting and ambiance.

Approaching the café

Omelet with biscuit and home fries, coffee and Bloody Mary

I was one of the first arrivals

An hour later, the place is filling up

The waitstaff area

Lunch @ The Farm

2010-12-12T18:14:00.014-05:00

The Farm

I was a Cincinnati Bengals fan for 35 years; that's enough nonsense for anyone. So, instead of spending 3 hours on a Sunday following a ridiculously amateurish sports franchise, I've decided to use that time for more productive and pleasurable pursuits, such as having a quiet lunch at an outdoor café or gouging my eyes out with a dull spoon. Today was lunch at The Farm at South Mountain in Phoenix.

There are 3 restaurants at The Farm: The Morning Glory Café for breakfast and brunch, The Kitchen for lunch and Quiessence for dinner. I had a leisurely lunch at The Kitchen, then walked the grounds. It was a beautiful Fall day under warm and sunny skies. I think I'll go back next Sunday for breakfast at Morning Glory Café.

Skeeter! Skeeter! Skeeter!

Lunch!

Your items are put in a basket to either eat on the patio or in the picnic area

Grilled chicken on a bed of spinach with tomatoes, dried cranberries, goat cheese and spiced pecans. Blueberry scone on the side.

A big shade tree covers the entrance to the patio

View from the patio

Picnic area under the pecan trees

Greenhouse and gardens

Morning Glory Café

Maya's Farm

Artists' Studio

The Retreat

Vulture Mine, Wickenburg, AZ

2010-12-05T19:29:00.047-05:00

(Ed. note: A recurring theme in my posts is that of "disrepair." I try to post a few pictures that show a place or thing that has fallen into disrepair; I'm fascinated by it. This entire post is on disrepair. I'm not going to lie, I was giddy as I toured the mine.)

On the recommendation of my brother, Steve, I paid a visit to the Vulture Mine, which is about 12 miles southwest of Wickenburg, AZ. The mine has been closed since 1942 and has been privately owned by an individual since the late 60s.

According to the caretaker, the son of the owner is doing a little mining as there is still, supposedly, a lot of gold below ground. At one time, it was the most productive mine in Arizona.

The entry fee was $10 and it was worth every penny.

Caretaker's office

As usual, I signed the guest register

Start of the self-guided, above-ground tour

The Assay Office - "to assay" means to analyze ore to determine the amount of gold, silver or other metal in it. So, every mine had an Assay Office.

The Assay Office

Let's get assayed

Every place needs a good bullion storage room

Is someone in there?

The Glory Hole - "In 1923, some "personal miners" were working in one of the large underground chambers. The Vulture Mine, a hard rock mine, had no need of support timbers. The mining company found it necessary to leave about forty percent of the ore in place as supporting columns. One large chamber had ore columns that were very rich in gold. The personal miners were chipping away at these columns when they suddenly gave way. One hundred feet of rock over their heads collapsed on them. The cave in killed seven miners and twelve burros. There was no hope of rescue.

"Above ground, what had been a small hill became a pit. The collapsed chamber area became known as the "Glory Hole." Ironically, the miners soon discovered that the new Glory Hole was an excellent place for personal mining."

Their name, not mine

a big sinkhole

More sinkhole

The Main Shaft - it reaches a depth of 3,000 ft and goes down at a 35º angle

Looking down the rail into the entrance of the main shaft

A huge winch above the main shaft

Twisted rails and timbers

Another view

The blacksmith shop next to the main shaft

The Ball Mill-

The Ball Mill

Metal, timber and light

Funky lighting

Barrels and drums

I don't even know what these are

And what the hell is this?

The Power House - in a metal building near the Ball Mill is the power house. A big diesel engine ran a generator that provided electricity for the mine.

You need power to run a mine

The power house is big

Control Central

View of the diesel engine from ground level

View atop the engine on the catwalk

Another view from the catwalk

That's one big generator

The Hanging Tree and Wickenburg house - Henry Wickenburg was the mine's original owner and owned it from 1862-1866. At the age of 85, unable to care for himself anymore, he shot himself in the head with a Colt revolver. The town of Wickenburg surrounds his grave.

By all means, I will watch my step

The tree didn't look tall enough for hangin'

The Wickenburg house

Pretty sparse

Dinner

Random disrepair -

This seemed to be some sort of bunk house

Another bunk house?

I think the warranties have expired

That dormer needs a little caulk

Do I dare enter?

Come in and sit a spell

A small stove and oven

A big stove and oven

Skylight

OMG! Is that a specter or poltergeist?

Over Easy

2010-12-05T19:06:00.006-05:00

Over Easy

Before heading to the Vulture Mine, I stopped at Over Easy on Indian School and 48th St. for breakfast: Homemade corned beef hash, eggs over easy and marble rye toast. The hash was good; not too salty or greasy. It's a quaint little place with seating for 60+. I'll probably go back and try one of their omelets.

The counter and kitchen area

The dining area

Breakfast

Flagstaff, AZ

2010-11-22T21:16:00.022-05:00

Our room

Last Thursday, my brother and I took a two day trip to the South Rim and Flagstaff. Flagstaff is one of my top 5 American cities. It's a combination of things, but I love going there. We stayed at the historic Hotel Monte Vista and got the Humphrey Bogart room.

We arrived there Thursday afternoon after a couple hours at the South Rim. Thursday night and Friday morning were spent wandering the city to see what we could see.

No ghosts in our room... that we know of.

The hotel at night

The Babbitt Building across from the hotel

A row of shops

Looking north on San Francisco St.

"We are now arriving in Flagstaff."

Visitor Center and Amtrak stop

Thursday night dinner at Diablo Burger

I had the DB House burger - blackened burger with cheese, pesto and a fried egg on an English muffin

Friday morning breakfast of huevos rancheros

The Bank Hotel building

A row of shops south of the tracks

Courthouse

Church of the Nativity

Inside

Gargoyles guard Baby Jebus

Hotel Weatherford

Disrepair in Flagstaff

More disrepair

Grand Canyon South Rim, AZ

2010-11-21T20:31:00.013-05:00

Visitor Center

On Thursday morning, we drove up to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Vast and majestic. We had some interesting light and shadow while walking the Rim Trail. Enjoy.

Puerto Peñasco, Mexico

2010-11-21T18:47:00.024-05:00

Prawn Hunter!

On Monday, my brother and I took a 2 night, 3 day road trip to Puerto Peñasco, Mexico. Puerto Peñasco is about 4 hours south of Phoenix on the northern coast of the Sea of Cortéz. It's the offseason, so the beaches and town were pretty quiet.

We rented a condo at Las Palmas, which is on Sandy Beach just up the coast from the town. The town itself, known for its seafood industry, is pretty run down, but it was fun sightseeing and seeing another culture in action. The weather was nearly perfect and a good time was had by all.

Sunrise from the balcony

Mid-day from the balcony

Sunset from the balcony

Exploding sunset over the Sea of Cortéz

The condo

The Point

Walking along the seaside in Puerto Peñasco

The plaza

Disrepair in Puerto Peñasco

More disrepair

An uninspiring lunch

A gull eyeballing our lunch

Par-tay!!!!

I bet you do, Panama Red

Fishing boats in the harbor

Walking the beach near the condo

A boy and his burrito

Surveying the night sky from the balcony over a whisky & water and Cuban cigar. Boo-yeah!

Desert Museum, Tucson, AZ

2010-11-21T18:22:00.017-05:00

An old Studebaker

Last Sunday, my brother and I took a day trip to Tucson to visit the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. It's part zoo, part botanical garden. Good place to take friends and family.

Pollinating a flower

A hummingbird takes a break

Neat sculpture

A bird in the bush

A bighorn sheep rests in the shade

A river otter frolics in the pond

A cactus wren nest amid a chain fruit cholla

What the...? I call this the Elephant Man cactus. Anyone know what this is?

A Shadow Person taunts me

A beautiful bobcat

A black bear sleeps on a rock ledge

A cat nap. See him?

An ocotillo soaks up the sun

Late lunch at Mi Nidito. Burrito smothered in green chili sauce

Sunset over Tucson

7:15 to Yuma

2010-10-31T23:20:00.023-04:00

A converted post office is now the Gowan Company building

(Editor's shout out: As I arrived in downtown Yuma, I got a call from my college chum, Skeeter. We talked college football, movies and hockey.)

Now, back to our regularly scheduled program...

Early Saturday morning, I left Phoenix for a day-trip to Yuma, AZ, to see what I could see. Yuma, on average, is one of the hottest cities in the U.S. and filled with sunshine. I was welcomed with temps in the mid- to high 70s, sunny skies and a nice breeze.

Downtown Yuma:

Space on the ground floor is available

Looking west on Main St.

The Kress building

The Yuma Theater

Drink anyone?

Looking east on Main St.

Looking south on 2nd St.

An old firehouse? See below

Ah, that's what it is

Random Buildings:

Yuma County Courthouse

Fourth Avenue School

Disrepair in Yuma:

A row of shops

An erstwhile law office

Hotel Del Sol

Odds and ends:

A train crosses the Colorado River from CA to AZ

Looking up the Colorado River from the Fourth Ave. Bridge

Lunch at Texas Roadhouse

Yuma Territorial Prison

2010-10-31T22:51:00.017-04:00

Notice the ball and chain

After walking around downtown Yuma, I drove out to the Yuma Territorial Prison. It sits on a bluff overlooking the Colorado River.

The Sallyport. What the heck is a Sallyport?

Glad you asked

The main guard tower

Check out what this gal was in for

If you were really bad

Illuminating the Dark Cell

Entering the main cell block

Cell after cell

6 men to a cell. Stacked them 3 high

The yard

Prison stats

Of course, I signed the guest register

Prison cemetery

Zion Canyon Music Festival

2010-09-27T21:09:00.016-04:00

Approaching Zion Canyon

I attended the 2nd annual Zion Canyon Music Festival in Springdale, UT. Springdale is right outside the gates to Zion National Park; it's one of the great places in the world. The festival started Friday evening and went most of Saturday. There was great weather and an eclectic lineup of acts. There were also numerous vendors selling t-shirts, jewelry, etc. There was also a beer and food tent that had samples of the local fare. Good times were had by all. Hopefully, this festival will continue to grow. Everyone should visit Zion Canyon once in their life.

Favorite Band: Thrift Store Cowboys
Favorite Band Name: Crippled Stripper (click to see their awesome logo)
Favorite Food: Gyros from Cafe Soleil
Favorite Gaff: The generator went out on the Mother Hips at 10:30 pm on Friday
Favorite Cover: Shine On You Crazy Diamond by Crippled Stripper

Thrift Store Cowboys on the main stage

Great stage backdrop

Vendors

Climbing wall for the kids

More vendors

Lodging: While in Springdale, I stayed with my friends Bill and Janelle, whom I've known since the early 90s. They have a great house with great views. It was really tough duty to take these pics while holding a glass of Maker's Mark and Mexican Coca-Cola. Don't weep for me!

Zion National Park

2010-09-27T20:11:00.015-04:00

The East Temple

Zion National Park is my favorite place in the U.S. I worked there as a seasonal ranger in 1990 and 1991 and I try to visit there as often as possible. It's a geologic wonderland of Navajo red sandstone and the effects of water and wind erosion. I'll let the pictures tell the rest.

Mighty canyon walls

Towering rock formations

Rock within sand

Sand within rock

The saddle portion is an itinerant waterfall

A huge Ponderosa pine soaking in the late September sun

View from the itinerant waterfall. You can see the dry wash below

Slot canyons everywhere

Iron deposits on top of sandstone

Found this hiking up a drainage. Hope it isn't a headstone

Wind and water shape the rock

Oak Creek Dorm. My humble abode for two seasons

North Towards Utah

2010-09-27T18:07:00.010-04:00

Entering Lake Mead National Recreation Area

On the way to the music festival, I took Route 93 out of Wickenberg, AZ, up through Kingman and then to Lake Mead NRA. Currently, the highway goes right over Hoover Dam, but a new bridge and roadway is being built to divert traffic off the dam. I then drove through Lake Mead up to Interstate 15 and then north to southern Utah.

Barren and desolate

Approaching Hoover Dam

Lake Mead looks a might low

Hoover Dam

The new bridge

Massive bridge support

The Grid

Bonus Video: I took video as I was crossing Hoover Dam, which will be a thing of the past once they open the new bridge to traffic. No people or animals were harmed during the filming of this video, nor were any citations issued.

Route 89A

2010-09-27T16:57:00.018-04:00

View from atop the Kaibab Plateau

Returning from the music festival, I took Route 59 out of Hurricane, UT to pick up Route 89A at Fredonia, AZ. From Fredonia, you head south and make the climb up the Kaibab Plateau. At Jacob Lake, you're at about 8000' in elevation amid a ponderosa pine forest. From here, you can take Route 67 to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. I began the drive down the other side of the plateau into the sage flats and along Vermillion Cliffs National Monument.

This is real Desert Southwest mesa territory. You half expect The Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote to run across the road in front of you.

South edge of the Vermillion Cliffs

Classic Southwestern mesa

View from Lee's Ferry Lodge

Near the turn off to Lee's Ferry

Crossing the Colorado River at Marble Canyon

View from the foot bridge

Spanning the Colorado

Looking straight down; a small, sandy beach separates red rock from emerald water

Lee's Ferry is just up river a piece...I reckon.

Steele Indian School Park - Phoenix

2010-09-12T18:51:00.016-04:00

Palm-lined walkway

The Phoenix Indian School operated from 1891-1990. It was purchased by the city of Phoenix in 1996 and re-opened as a park in 2001. A wide concrete walkway, called The Circle of Life, encircles the 3 remaining buildings of the Indian School. To the south of this walkway is the Entry Garden, which is a representation of Sonora Desert plants.

Overlooking the Entry Garden

Water cascade and pond in the Entry Garden

The Arbor bridge connects the Entry Garden to the Circle of Life walkway

Memorial Hall

Grammar School building

The Dining Hall

South end of the Circle of Life

This water feature bisects the Circle of Life

Disrepair in Indian School - these pictures were taken through windows, so I apologize for any glare or fuzziness.

Grammar School interior

Dining Hall interior

Payson, AZ

2010-09-06T22:04:00.019-04:00

Hwy. 87 heading towards Payson

Yesterday, I took a day trip northeast of Phoenix to Payson, AZ, which is in Arizona Rim Country. It was nice to go up in elevation and get treated to temperatures that were 15º cooler than Phoenix. From Payson, I detoured through the Roosevelt Lake area on my way back to Phoenix. (see post below)

Arizona Rim Country - The rim referred to is the Mogollon Rim, which is a geologic escarpment that forms the southwest boundary of the Colorado Plateau. Elevation on top of the rim averages about 7000 ft. and the communities below, at about 5000 ft., constitute Rim Country.

The Mogollon Rim off in the distance

Another view of the Mogollon Rim

Green Valley Park - This park is the location of the Rim Country Museum and the Zane Grey cabin. Payson is a regional fire fighting center and a lot of the museum area is dedicated to that.

The lake with fishing dock

Firefighting stuff

There's an old fire engine inside

Herron Hotel

Zane Grey cabin - quite robust for a cabin

Haught cabin - now THIS is a cabin

Disrepair in Payson - The Sidles Mud House was built around 1881 and is the oldest standing structure in Payson. It was later bought by the Pieper family and was their home until they built their "mansion" next door.

Sidles Mud House

Another view

Nestled next to the "mansion"

Rental cabins next door to the Mud House

The "mansion"

El Rancho - I had lunch at the El Rancho Restaurant. I ordered a shredded beef burrito smothered in green chile sauce. It was pretty good, but still not as good as the burritos at La Pasadita in Denver.

Exterior

Interior

Lunch

Roosevelt Lake and the Tonto Basin

2010-09-06T21:16:00.010-04:00

Gassing up the truck in Jake's Corner

From Payson, I backtracked a bit towards Phoenix and went south on Hwy. 188 into the Tonto Basin and towards Roosevelt Lake. Roosevelt Lake is a man-made reservoir formed by the damming of the upper Salt River. Tonto Basin drains the Tonto Creek area which originates near the Mogollon Rim. Roosevelt Lake consists of the lower Tonto Basin and the upper Salt River Basin.

Backwaters of Roosevelt Lake

I bet there's some good bass fishing in there

Coral pink hillsides slope down to water's edge

The Sierra Ancha Mountains to the east of the lake

Roosevelt Bridge from Hwy. 188

Roosevelt Dam

Boats under the bridge

Chase Field

2010-08-19T21:54:00.008-04:00

Upper deck down the left field line

The Reds were in town, so I went to the game last night at Chase Field in downtown Phoenix. It's a massive structure with a retractable roof. The roof was closed tonight and the inside cooled to escape the 105º heat outside. I may have to go back in late September and watch a game when the roof is open.

The stadium, with it's hangar-type roof and windows along the top, has the feel of an old-style fieldhouse, but on a much larger scale. It has all the amenities of a modern stadium - giant center field scoreboard, concession stands everywhere, restaurants overlooking the outfield, etc.

The Reds won 11-7 after scoring 4 runs in the 8th to tie the game and 4 runs in the 9th to win it. I also found out I was part of history. This game had the smallest crowd in Diamondbacks history - 15,509 in attendance.

Just about ready to start

The field is ready to go

Looking across the diamond from the upper deck along the left field line

Edinson Volquez on the mound

The mongo scoreboard in center field

Leaving Chase Field

Downtown Phoenix

2010-07-25T19:30:00.029-04:00

The Rising Phoenix

This afternoon, I took a stroll through downtown Phoenix to photograph the architecture of the various buildings. It's a mix of old and new, classic and modern, beautiful and ugly.

I parked in front of the County Courthouse and took off on foot. It was a robust 108º and soon I was sweating like Moses Malone. By the end of my walk, I was drained like a Larry Bird 3-pointer. If Gage and DeSoto had come upon me, they would have ordered IVs of D5W and Ringers Lactate. STAT!

Anyways, enjoy the pics!

New School -

Ugly and hive-like

U.S. Airways Center - Home of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury

Bank of America - a good looking building

Chase Field - Home of the Arizona Diamondbacks

The Phoenix Convention Center

Futuristic

The Arizona Center

Fountain at City Hall

Old School -

The Art Deco Luhrs Tower

Brick and stone

Classic hotel

The Westward Ho

More Art Deco

The Arab flair of the Orpheum Theater

Maricopa County Courthouse

Very Spartan

Churches -

St. Mary's Basilica

Imaculado Corizón de Maria

First Presbyterian Church

Bonus Section - Gutted Gothic: I came upon this by accident. It's the historic First Baptist Church, which is now overseen by the National Park Service as an Historic Building.

The First Baptist Church lies in disrepair

Sky through the stained glass frame

The gutted interior complete with eroding balcony pillar

Offices are closed!

View from the rear

Beat up belfry and roofless

Tombstone, AZ

2010-07-18T12:06:00.023-04:00

Classic Star Trek episode

Downtown Tombstone - Tombstone is the epitome of the Wild West in America. Mining, gunfights, cattle, prostitution, etc. It's located in the high desert of SE Arizona. Tourism is the only thing of note I could see taking place here.

Looking south on Allen St.

I do believe there's gonna be a showdown

Is this the 3:10 to Yuma?

Supposedly, the Bird Cage Theater is haunted

Looking north on Allen St.

Big Nose Kate was Doc Holliday's girlfriend

Boot Hill Cemetery - I have to admit, I was expecting dirt, dust and sagebrush. Instead it was rocks and cacti. The old woman taking donations - who was only SLIGHTLY younger than Wyatt Earp - asked me to sign the register. Mine is the last name in the picture below and is a shoutout to Dave and Kathryn in Plano.

Funny epitaph

He was the supposed leader of a gang of robbers

Blunt

Casualties of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

Boot Hill

The Register

Random Pics -

Former county courthouse when Tombstone was county seat of Cochise County

Mine elevator cage

German music machine inside The Bird Cage

Entrance to the mines

City Hall on Fremont St.

Bisbee, AZ

2010-07-18T11:00:00.024-04:00

Bisbee from Rt. 80

Old Bisbee - Bisbee is an old mining town in the hills of SE Arizona. It is now re-inventing itself as a retirement community, art community and tourist destination. Old Bisbee; with its narrow, winding streets and compact buildings had the feel of a quaint, European village. The town was full of galleries, shops and artisan studios. There were a lot of metal works, owing to its past as a copper, silver and gold town.

Old Bisbee

A good looking Post Office building

Bisbee Mining Museum

View of a brewery from an elevated sidewalk

The spire of the Pythian Castle building

Steeple of the Presbyterian Church

A couple hotels

Side streets and back alleys

The Inn at Castle Rock

Stairways - there were so many weird and different stairways in this town, I had to devote and entire section to them. For kids, these make great get-a-ways when being chased by the cops. No donut muncher is gonna hang with a spry kid on these steps.

Stairway to Somewhere

Gone to seed

Relatively lame stairway

Trippy copper work

Enlarge this pic. This stairway goes on and on and...

Locals are trying to save the town's stairways and each step had a donation plaque

Brick staircase

Random Pics -

Disrepair in Bisbee

More disrepair

Old school General Store

Look at all the retro

For TT in EGR

Sedona, AZ

2010-06-20T21:58:00.010-04:00

Red sandstone

I headed north yesterday on a road trip to Sedona, Jerome and Prescott. Sedona, my first stop, is known for its red sandstone formations. It's also been the backdrop for many Westerns. For the New Agers, this is a location of spiritual vortices. I have no idea what that is.

Bell Rock

More red sandstone

Chapel of the Holy Cross

Red sandstone spires

More red sandstone

Crash pad on Chapel St.

Signs and stuff