I hit a wall last night...nothing I wrote made sense to me so I’ll condense yesterday to this: We drove...we reached Picacho...we set up camp in the dark...I ate too much leftover macaroni and cheese...I went to bed.
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The water line connection into the new toilet is a bit higher than the camper water hose will extend so a trip to the local hardware store is necessary to finish the job. As long as we’re going into town can we stop at the grocery store? The piggy cookies are calling to me. 😋
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Trip to town for necessary supplies...√
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When
we got here last night I realized the bathroom has a coded lock...that’s a new
wrinkle. Couldn’t find the code on the
paperwork so I knocked on Ryan and Felicia’s door. Got the code and was on my merry way.
Walked
up to the office this morning to officially check-in. I so enjoy being greeted
by Felicia’s big grin which this morning was accompanied by “Did you make it into
the bathroom without peeing your pants last night, Karen?” Yes,
ma’am, I did...thank you so much for the code! 😎 Talked with Ryan and Felicia a bit before wandering back to camp. Kim proceeded to go out to ‘his’ cement pad
to set up his telescopes. He is so
geeked at the opportunity to play with 'his toys'.
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The campground is full...Felicia said it’s been crazy busy which, I suppose, is a good thing for a business. But March is also the time of year when there’s less long term and more overnight stays...people are slowly heading home after a winter away and Picacho is a nice stop along the way. However, Felicia said that the recent weather throughout the country was keeping people from heading home because cold temperatures and camping don’t exactly mix. Best to stay where it’s warm.
While the aftermath of the storm still has to be reckoned with (some of the accounts coming out of Texas about burst pipes, water damage, possessions destroyed, etc. is heartbreaking), the weather seems to have stabilized to a more normal pattern so the campground may become more transient soon...or then again maybe not. Maybe other campers are digging this warm sunny weather as much as we are and will be hanging around longer just because.
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Been
almost a year since COVID-19 became national news. A year!
Last year in AZ everyone had a fairly laid back attitude because the
numbers were low meanwhile in MI numbers were going bat shit crazy and the
state was shutting down. We extended our stay out here until mid-April because
hanging in a campground seemed fairly safe. It was a time of confusion and fear
which has morphed into anger and weariness as months passed. However, I find the majority of people we’ve
encountered while travelling out here have been wearing a mask and respecting
the social distancing concept. I find
that to be reassuring because it tells me that people are taking responsible
action to get us to the other side of this pandemic.
Even
though Arizona’s numbers were very low last March almost everything public was
shutting down. I checked some of our
favorites to see what the scoop is this year.
I don’t know that I’m interested in going to any of these places this
year but it’s good information to know.
* Coolidge Cotton Days which is typically held
early March has been postponed until April 2, 2021. It wasn’t cancelled in 2020 because COVID
hadn’t really become a thing yet...we did attend it in 2020 and 2019.
*Organ Stop Pizza, a must do when we’re out here, closed down this time in 2020. It’s currently open but operating at a lower capacity with hostess seating of self-seating. Masks are required except when seated at table. The website states further precautions that are being taken. I don’t know, I might be tempted to do this. 😋
*Pinal County Fair, cancelled in 2020, looks
to be on schedule for mid-March.
*Gu-Atchi Trading Post, a favorite ride
destination, was closed toward the end of our time here in 2020, but appears to
open. Mask required.
*Saguaro
Nat’l Park closed the visitor’s center in March 2020; visitor’s
center/restrooms reopened with limited hours and a mask mandate.
*Casa Grande Ruins Nat’l Monument closed
everything in March 2020; reopening in phases with the ruins and visitor center
open, theater and exhibits are closed.
Mask required.
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Walgreens is my go-to place for printing pictures to send to the
grandkiddos and I’ve been carrying around a thumb drive with some pictures on
it for a couple of days now. Didn’t see
any Walgreens on our route but I know where there is one a short bike ride
away. So I went online and ordered
pictures to be picked up this afternoon in Coolidge. I smell a ride coming on!!
Bikes
came out of the camper last night with no problem...today neither of them would
start. Ding Dang!! Kim’s bike was acting weirder than mine so as
soon as my bike was started he said to go get the pictures by myself. He had to figure out the issue with his bike
and it could take a while. I was there
and back in about an hour. It felt good
to be cruisin’ down the road in the warm sunshine. Now if Kim could just get Flame’s problem
figured out it would be so much better.
Update on
Flame: After a couple of hours on the battery charger Flame started right
up. Don’t know why each of the bikes
died overnight but I’m glad it was just a matter of getting charged. Maybe new batteries are in their future.
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I
took a walk on Picacho Highway today around midday which reminded me why
morning is a better time to walk. Definitely
cooler and maybe less truck traffic. Took
another walk toward dusk on the frontage road but still didn’t get to 10,000
steps before dark. Oh, well, there’s
always tomorrow.
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Today’s bike miles: 42
