Butterfield Days

Nov 5, 2014
Well, we've been here for 4 days now and are beginning to get in the swing of things. At least Mary is. I came down with an achilles tendon problem - tendonitis? plantar fasciitis ? that has really prevented me from walking and doing most anything. Quite painful. Lots of sitting, icing, ibuprofen. Meanwhile Mary has got right into it: Water Aerobics on Mon-Wed-Fri, she joined the sewing group, and we cannot forget the laundry thing.

Mary enroute to the laundry room

Molly watching her off

The return

The return with someone waiting anxiously

On wednesday night we attended the Park Pot Luck Supper. Excellent selection of food. We sat with our neighbors from Saskatchewan and a couple  from Wisconsin. During the meal, our neighbor Keith told the story of how they covered all of Benson that day looking for the latest copy of Sports Illustrated( There was a feature story in it of the kicker for the Seattle Seahawks, who is the son of one of their very good friends back home in Saskatchewan).  None in the entire city. Unbelievable. Next week they plan on expanding their search to include Tucson.

Nov 6
Foot a little better thanks to one of Mary's Healing Touch sessions. This therapy really seems to work. Still spent the day sitting, icing and ibuprofening. Mary did another load of wash in the am and then sewing class in the pm. With me laid up and staying off the foot, she gets to walk Molly. Needless to say, with all the trips to the doggy area, the clubhouse, the pool, the laundry, she is getting a lot of exercise. A good thing.  Today we signed up for the saturday morning breakfast.

Nov 7

Friday- busy day ahead. Mary up bright and early - 43 outside, 51 inside the trailer. High today supposed to be in the low 70's After Molly walk, breakfast we are off to grocery shopping(Walmart), Post Office for our first mail delivery and then back to Airstream to put all groceries away in time for Mary to get to Water Aerobics class. Also, at 4 pm today is welcoming Happy Hour.

While at Walmart I happened to notice a car with Vermont plates, so I went over and said hello. Jim & Kay from Burlington area. They are staying at San Pedro Park, adjacent to Saguaro Co-Op where we had stayed. Been coming here for 18 years. Still go back to Burlington for the summer. Seems Jim used to work for Merrill Transport and when I asked him if he knew a guy named Bud Holcomb- he was kind of stunned. Bud had been his boss. I  knew Bud from my days with IH when I was in Burlington,

Nov 8

Saturday! This marks 1 week here at Butterfield and so far we have been thoroughly impressed with site, facilities, neighbors, pretty much everything about the place.

A view down one of the streets

This morning we attended the breakfast, sat with immediate neighbors Terry & Dave(Texas), Judy & Ken(Nebraska),  Dave & Terry mentioned that just a week or so ago they had to have park maintenance over to remove a 3' rattlesnake from along wall behind their motorhome. This really got my attention. Temp supposed to get up to 75 today with mild winds. At 6 PM I joined Dorann & Keith outside to view their Saskatchewan Rough Riders play the Edmonton Eskimos.

Molly is starting to settle down. Anything new usually gets her wound up pretty tight, but after a week here, she is doing good. As these photos will attest to:

Hanging out with us

Looking for cookies

Begging for cookies?

Molly in her very own spot

11/13/14 - Thursday

Day began with a trip to The HorseShoe Cafe for breakfast. When all the locals go to a restaurant, you know it has to be good. We were not disappointed. Was the place busy. And I know why now. Definitely will not be the last time we feast there!

The HorseShoe Cafe

And then we were off- 35 miles south to Sierra Vista for Mary to get her much needed FIX :

A Fabric Shop - What else!

And for me to get to the local Bank of America Branch so that I could get our new mailing address correctly entered in to their system. We are getting with all of our banking relations to be sure mail is coming to our Escapee address in Texas. Got to make sure we get our tax documents this next January. With all of that out of the way, we headed back up NM 90 to Benson. On the way we got a treat - A US Border Patrol check. This is pretty serious stuff down here. The officer took  a look at us, said hello to Molly and waved us through.  Whew!

When we got back it was time to relax. We had planned on going up to the pool for a swim, but got waylayed by neighbors and ended up sitting and visiting........

Friday 11/15/14
Another good day. We talked with our neighbor Sarah, and she had previously mentioned that she kept a horse at a nearby ranch and went trail riding. When I asked her about this, I opened the gates. She told us the whole story of her horse, Zeke, who was a rescue horse that had been taken from drug runners. He had been horribly abused- loaded to the limit with drugs and had his ears twisted when he didn't perform. She said he is still touchy about his ears, and said it must have been extremely painful for him. She was very proud of him and his progress back. She and the vet guessed his age at about 16. After about a half hour of bragging about him, she said that she was just on her way up to the J-Six Equestrian Center, where she keeps him, to drop off a lock for one of their trail gates, and that if we wanted, we could tag along and meet him. We obliged gladly.

Zeke

Zeke, with Sarah and Mary

Catherine, the Center's owner, giving a riding lesson

View from J-Six Equestrian Center

Guard dog - Charlie

Guard dog JD - the 3 legged dog

All in all it was a wonderful experience and promised to be back for the first saturday of each month gymkhana and for sure to say hello to Sarah, Dick, and Zeke.

11/15/14  Saturday
Day started with a trip to the local AZ Visitors Center where we loaded up on brochures and maps of local offerings. Also couldn't pass up the deal on post cards - buy 4 get 1 free - for $1

From there we were off sightseeing. Took a trip down AZ 80 to Tombstone, got a look at the town and made a promise to return for a little more extended visit(after leaving Molly back at the trailer). Just north of Tombstone we saw another roadside Border Patrol Check- northbound. Not very far - was about 25 miles. From there we continued south on 80 until we hit AZ 90 which took us in to Sierra Vista. Mary wanted to experience Fry Store- which is one of the state/local grocery store chains. She came out relatively pleased. From there, since it was lunch time, we decided it was time for some Mexican food, so stopped at Rudolfo's Taco Shop, where we had a great lunch. Then it was back on 90 headed to Benson, but not before another stop at the Border Patrol checkpoint. We got a quick look, a smile, a "have a nice day", and we were waved through.

Saturday night was welcoming party/meal. Pulled Pork, Hot Dogs, Hamburgs, all the fixings. Time spent with new friends. Had a couple with matching Seattle Seahawks jerseys on. You'll never guess, they were from Washington. Next to them was a couple from British Columbia, and next to them, a couple from Texas. It was a fun night.

11/16/14 Sunday
Sunday was NASCAR race day and football day. For some of us it was a good day, and for others not so good. Bob, down the road from us- 2nd cousin twice removed from Denny Hamlin, had to be disappointed. His man lost. Kevin Harvick won. Good race. The Seattle Seahawks got beat, the Saskatchewan Roughriders got beat(ending their season),  and the New England Patriots kicked butt, winning in Indianapolis 42-20. Good day for me at least.

11/22/14  Saturday

Today was a special day. At 8:30 we left with our neighbors, Keith and Dorann for a trip to Tucson. The plan was to take an "off route" and enjoy the scenery in the Tucson area, go to the Walmart that Keith got his glasses at so that he could get some adjustments made and then to go to Biosphere2 in Oracle and then finally a stop at Camping World on the way home. Everything was going great until we got to the immediate Tucson area and ran in to  "El Tour de Tucson".  We got caught up in the event as vehicle traffic that found us sitting and waiting for the competitors at different spots during the event. Turns out the event for the serious covered 104 miles and that in total, there were over 6700 entrants!

 At this intersection, we had front row seats. As you may be able to tell from the pics, there was one group of competitors merging with another group. Little hairy at times, but all made it without incident.

Our friendly cop! Actually came over to us and apologized for the inconvenience! He bears a remarkable resemblance to one of the Mud Dux.

An Elliptical! Now you talk about work.......

After we got through downtown Tucson, it was off to Walmart. In and out in record time, and then off to  Oracle, and the Biosphere. But first a stop for lunch. That was part of the deal - Keith did the driving and I bought lunch. Such a deal!  Keith knew the place - The Oracle Patio Cafe.  Highly recommend if you ever have the opportunity to stop there. Great food, reasonably priced. And then it was off to the Biosphere.

What a tremendous experience. We did the guided tour with Claudio....

Claudio imparting his wisdom

The tour was very enlightening and well worth it. In fact, the entire experience was well worth it.

Mary and an OLD friend

The Tropical Rain Forest

When the tour was over, we caught an unsuspecting girl who was looking for an excuse to rest after negotiating the many steps back up to the main level, and asked her to take a picture of the four of us. She was happy to exchange this little bit of "work" for a little rest.

On the way home, we made a quick stop at Camping World(there is always something you need). And then it was home. We didn't get back until after 5:00 so it was a long day - but enjoyable. A good day with good friends. Doesn't get any better!

Butterfield RV Resort

11/1/14: Left Saguaro Co-Op and headed in to town to Walmart where Mary re-supplied us. Very thoughtful gesture as she bought me a 6 pack of Corona beer for the Patriots football game on Sunday. We then headed to Butterfield RV Resort, checked in and headed to our spot: #105.

Our spot # 105

After we got in and settled we met our neighbors - the ones to our left were from South Dakota and unfortunately were leaving the next morning for Buckeye, AZ.

The neighbors to the right of us, Keith and Dorann Donald were from Moosomin Lake, Saskatchewan.

Keith & Dorann's rig

They are Canadian Football League Fans

We had a long visit and discovered that they too are here for the month. I'm sure we'll be spending a lot of time together. Nice people. Later  on we took a walk up to Office and Clubhouse - checked out things: Exercise room, Library, computer room, laundry, pool, and finally the activities building. Really a nice place.

11/2/14: Started with a real surprise- a thunder storm. Complete with lightning, thunder, rain, and a rainbow.

In the afternoon I  was forced to test the cable connection. The Patriots game came in just fine. And beating Denver 43-21 was even better. Guy up the row had a Broncos flag out front. Too bad. But I wasn't going to tell him.

11/3/14: Little chilly first thing this morning- 50 in the airstream when we got up, low 40's outside. Putting on the furnace took care of things quick. By 10 the outside temp was approaching 70. I'll take that.

Getting into the swing of things: Our neighbor Keith was up and out of here bright and early for golf. Mary & Dorann to pool at 11 for an hour of water aerobics. Mary signed up for sewing group session on friday. Signed us up for Pot luck supper on Wed. This PM we are off to fabric store, for, guess what? Essentials for Friday.

The Trip West - Days 10-12

10/29/14 - for the day we traveled 257 miles which brought our trip total to 2426 so far. The day began at Enchanted Trails RV Park - we packed up and headed out for I 25 and the trip south to Deming, NM. Pretty ride south passing through Socorro, Truth or Consequences, Elephant Butte, Hatch, and finally on in to Deming.

Rest stop on I 25 just below Socorro

We did a lunch stop in Truth or Consequences. And then it was on to Deming.

Our home for night number 10

Our spot at Dreamcatcher

While it looked pretty empty when we got there(about 3:00), it progressively filled up through the early evening. Popular stop - over for people on their way west to Arizona. Had a particularly impressive Motor Home pull in later that night - one of the new full size Winnebago's(which probably costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $500,000.) While there I met an interesting fellow named Ralph. We were both out walking our dogs, me with Molly and he with his Baby Girl. Anyways he told me he was involved with Escapade in Tucson and thoroughly encouraged us to attend. He also said some nice things about where we were going, Saguaro Co-Op RV Park. He also mentioned where he spends the winter- Quartz-Site - in Arizona. Not sure of the spelling, but will indeed investigate. It is all boondock camping.
We spent the night listening to the traffic on I 10 and the unbelievable number of trains that passed right by the park - all night long.

A view from Dreamcatcher

Another view from Dreamcatcher

Dreamcatcher

Us

This big rig was parked in front of us

Dreamcatcher Park Entrance

10/30/14 - day traveled 177 miles to Benson bringing miles total so far to 2603. We left the park around 10:40 and headed west on I 10. About 35 miles west of Deming we came across a sign indicating that we were crossing the Continental Divide - Elevation 4599'.  We also traveled parallel with a Union Pacific freight train for miles. We were running just under 60 mph.

After crossing into Arizona(and another time zone), we stopped for some exercise and a lunch break at San Simon Rest Area.

Rest area was very neat and clean, with pleasant enclosures for protection from the sun,  for picnic lunches. While there we noted the freight trains. A little story here. San Simon rest area is on a mountain. It was a distinct elevation change coming both east bound and west bound for the freight trains. About 10 miles east of here, we noted how much the trains had slowed as they chugged their way up. We not only passed the one that we had been running with, but also came upon another one that was slowly working its way up. After we got to San Simon, we noted East bound trains also struggling to get up........

And just before we left, had the view of both east and west bound trains passing each other....

At about 1:00 pm(West Coast time) we arrived in Benson. Before checking in at Saguaro, we made one more stop at a Walmart. Walmart has been the one constant on our trip. I think that we have been to 5 or 6 of them so far on our trip. Saguaro Co-Op is an interesting park. They accept overnight and longer guests, however you cannot make a reservation. If a spot is open when you get there, you can rent it. If you stay long term and the owner of that spot returns, you have to move. It is a nice park, clean, nice people, and reasonably priced. After signing our paperwork and paying for the site, a fellow named Chuck guided us to our spot and assumed responsibility for getting us backed in properly(without destroying anything). Our spot came with  a Casita(little house). We did not have access to it. People told us that they thought it was funny - the guy that owned our spot was from Maine. Small world.

Lot #16 - Saguaro Co-Op RV Park

Some random views of the park.....

Right after we got backed in and settled, we had a visit from the welcoming committee.  She basically asked about us, and we told her our story. When done she said " Enjoy it now. You never know when it will abruptly end." She also thought it was ironic that the place we were renting was "owned" by man from Maine. She was very nice and said we needed to be sure to attend the Happy Hour at 4 - great way to meet people in the park. This we did and did not regret it. We did meet some very nice people. A gentleman by the name of Ed told us his story - he is a Half-timer just like us. Winter in Arizona, summer back home in Michigan(?). He encouraged us, if we liked the place, to get our name on the list. Supposedly there is a very long list of people who would like to buy in to the co-op. Also,, that night, some people that were out walking, stopped to chat. Turns out that she had roots in Burlington, Vt. And the guy, when we started talking about the park / co-op, mentioned that it was like the Brattleboro Food Co-Op. Small world.

An adventure getting Molly to the dog park each day. She is used to our back yard at home in VT and just dumping when she found a spot that pleased her. This is not a good thing in these parks. Especially with her being upset and nervous about everything. Made for some messy dumps. Oh well......she is worth it.

Some parting shots of Saguaro......

this one my favorite- sunset in the mountains to the east

Later on in the day, we took a drive over to Cochise Terrace to have a look. Ed, for some reason said we would be wise to stay away. We wanted to see for ourselves. We came away very impressed. The lady at the front desk was from Foxboro, Ma. We spoke with a resident, originally from Washington, and she had nothing but good things to say about the place, especially the activities and things to do in the area. We actually got to look at the spot we are going to have. After seeing it, we went back and requested that our name be put firmly on that spot. It was near most everything: dog walk right out back of the trailer, nice view, near the clubhouse, dumpsters, activity room. By near, I mean within easy walking distance, no golf cart required.

We spent probably close to an hour there and left pleased. When we got back to Saguaro, I called Desert Trails, the place we were supposed to spend Feb & March at, and cancelled our reservation. For now, we are going to leave those months open, and hopefully get back to Saguaro as well as do the Escapee's Escapade in Tuscon in March. More to follow.

On Saturday morning we attend the breakfast at the park, then load up and head to Butterfield, which will be our new home for the next 30 days.........stay tuned.