 |
The campground in Quartzsite, as well
as the KOA we’re camping in at Picacho, is right along Interstate 10...the southernmost
cross country highway…Jacksonville, FL to San Diego, CA. What that means is that we’ve heard traffic
noise constantly since March 1st…and it’s just become the
soundtrack to our days. It’s really not
a big deal…not even at night because the amount of traffic slacks off then. Still a fair amount of big rigs but they have
a pretty steady sound just cruising on through.
Then there’s the occasional train running on the other side of I-10…we hear that, too. This morning, though, the sound I keyed into when
I was slowly waking up was the birds.
There is such a variety of birds around the camp and to wake up to them
singing, tweeting, chirping sure is a pleasure.
I really didn’t hear the traffic noise even though it was there…that’s
how much I don’t pay attention to it.
----------
Something I found out today…US 10 and Interstate 10 are not synonymous. When
referring to I-10 in the past, I know I’ve called it US 10, thinking that the
labels were the same thing…even though I know there’s a US 10 in Michigan. Just never thought about it…from now on I will.
----------
Went for a 5 mile bike ride again this morning. It only takes about a ½ hour and it’s a good
start to the day. Pecans appear to be a
big crop in this area as there are a lot of pecan groves near our campground. The road we ride our bikes on has a new area
being planted. Yesterday we watched men
at work out in the field…and I misunderstood what they were doing. Today I realized that the ‘sticks’ I thought
they were using simply as a guide to plant seedlings were actually the
trees. Yesterday the men were digging
around each stick/tree and today it was apparent that they had been preparing
the ground to accommodate the white plastic pipe that goes around each new
tree. The cherry growers do something
similar in the orchards between Charlevoix and Traverse City. Anyway, today we saw the finished job…rows
and rows of new ‘sticks’ with the protective white covering around the
base. Kim surmises that the trees are
planted mechanically and then manual labor comes along to finish the job. I don’t
care for pecans but I now appreciate the work that goes into growing them. As a kid/teenager, my summer job was picking
blueberries, so I empathized with these men as they worked in an open field
under a hot sun. And there was no visible
outhouse/port-a-john…but hopefully there was a 5 gallon bucket nearby with a
nifty little toilet seat. 😉
----------
After our bicycle time, we jumped in the truck for a run to town. We had to do some shopping and knew that Eloy
didn’t have what we needed, so it was a toss-up between going to Casa Grande or
Coolidge. I had seen a road that I was
curious about…it was paved, so Kim was on board with exploring it on our way
out. It ended up taking us in the
direction of Casa Grande so the decision of where to go was easy to make. Overall it took us longer than anticipated
because I wandered around the grocery store instead of going right for what we
needed…and of course, we spent more than we anticipated because we bought a lot
more than anticipated. 😏
----------
This afternoon we rode out to Saguaro National Park, the section west of
Tucson. We’ve gone there each of the
last two years. It’s a nice ride and we
both enjoy wandering in the desert among the saguaros. Kim looks for creepy crawly things and I take
pictures. By the time we arrived today,
the sky had clouded over so the sun wasn’t beastly hot. While we’ve been appreciating the warmth of
the sun, the heat can be extreme out in the desert. We stopped at a ½ mile circular Garden Trail and
took our time meandering through.
Movement of any
sort on the side of the the trail is eye-catching...we were able
to stop and watch a ground squirrel scamper into
a cactus to grab something off it and then take it to the ground to nibble on
it. I don’t know what type of cactus it
was but I know it had pokey things on it and they didn’t deter that squirrel
one bit. I know from experience that
cactus spines hurt and it amazed me to watch the squirrel hop around in that
cactus without hesitation. Maybe it has a
special sense of where not to land in
order to protect its feet.
 |
| Fearless squirrel in the cactus |
Saguaro facts (taken from the park brochure):
Saguaros grow very slowly at
first—an inch or so during their first 6 to 8 years. It may be 70 years before they sprout
branches, or arms. They reach full
height, 40-50 feet, at about the age of 150.
The tallest may reach 75 feet.
Long, woody ribs support their multi-ton bulk. Saguaros collect water
through shallow roots extending about as far outward as the main trunk is
tall. As saguaros soak up water,
accordion-like pleats in the trunk and arms expand to allow for storage in the
spongy flesh. Waxy skin reduces moisture
loss. Spines shade the plant, shield it
from drying winds, and discourage damage from animals.
While it's a good ride out to the park, we aren't able to fully enjoy what the park has to offer because of the bikes. There is an
unpaved scenic loop that looks interesting.
Of particular interest to me are the petroglyphs and the valley
overlook, so we might have to go back in the truck. There is also a section of the
park that’s east of Tucson that we haven’t visited yet. The scenic loop in that section is paved so we could enjoy it while on the bikes.
----------
Earlier tonight, while Kim was switching his telescope setup, I was sitting outside enjoying the evening air
and heard an amazingly loud noise coming from my left in the direction of the
highway and then a rhythmic ‘ka-wop’…’ka-wop’…’ka-wop’ at it approached and
then passed on by. At first I wondered
if a tire had blown on an 18-wheeler but then thought it was just the rhythm of
an oncoming train. My mind soon turned
to other things and it was forgotten…until Kim just came in the trailer for
something and excitedly asked, “Did you hear that semi tire explode…?” Seems I must learn not to second guess myself.
----------
*Note to self:
Remember to hit the ‘skip forward’ button when you’re on the bike and Daydream Believer (Monkees) comes on…that
ringing alarm clock in the song always makes you think something is wrong with
the bike and you have that momentary surge of panic. You fall for it every..single..time! 😕
----------
Bicycle miles today: 5
Bike miles today: 90
No comments:
Post a Comment