Laundry, internet, more clouds......

Our Location: Big Buck Resort, Hornsby, Tennessee

(205 Sparks Road)

 

Well I finally got yesterday's post out. The internet was so slow last night and we could barely get on, never mind actually do anything. There is a cabin across the driveway from us with 3 young folks, and I wonder, I'm only guessing though, if they are streaming things in the evening. They are about that age and while they were outside yesterday afternoon the internet worked fine. So it's a guess. 

 

As you can see the ducks kind of make themselves right at home.

This morning dawned with a bit brighter skies but that didn't last long as the clouds rolled in and the air is almost muggy now. The wind has picked up once again as seems to be the norm this spring no matter where we are located. Although I will say this wind isn't anything compared to what we had in Texas. 

 

As you can see there are some more ducks on the other side of the water. The playground over there and the trash dumpsters as well.

 

We enjoyed our hot drinks and chatted about the day ahead. We needed to do some laundry. We could of course use the park laundry but I prefer to do it all at once not one load at a time. There is only one washer, and 2 working dryers in the laundry house here and that would mean constantly running back and forth for most of the day as we always have four loads, three large and one small. So we once again climbed back into the Big Dog and headed out to check out a facility we noticed late yesterday on our way home. It's in the town of Bolivar, not very from here. It's a very small little spot right on main drag, and while I would have used it, Riley wasn't one bit interested. So as to our agreement, if we both don't agree then we don't see it, use it, stay there, etc. Back into the Dogsled we went further west to the town of Somerville, and checked out there facilities. I'll just say we climbed back into the Dogsled and asked a nice lady if there was somewhere we could do laundry other than the local one she'd just walked out of as well. She nodded and said 'Oakland. Do you know where that is?" I nodded and said,'Yes, is it any nicer than this one?" She smiled and said,"Oh my yes, it's very clean, very nice, not like this dump." We smiled, thanked the nice lady and turned left out the driveway. We had been in the Oakland facility yesterday but some one had been smoking inside and Riley wasn't impressed. Today it smelled much better and we managed to do all of our laundry. It's clean, well kept, a bit far from Big Buck but worth the drive. Plenty to see on the way.

 

The park is filling up....

 

We didn't take the camera and so I have no new pictures for today's post, sorry. We did however manage to find our way home by shortly before 1 pm this afternoon. Always nice to be have the morning chores completed. We were greeted by Axel the Husky. He's a very friendly older dog and wanders the campground according to a fellow I chatted with yesterday. Apparently Axel belongs to one of the neighbouring houses and comes to visit on a regular basis. We however didn't see him last fall. Axel is a big dog, although I'm sure most of it is fur. He's extremely friendly and always wants to come inside. I think we'd have a difficult time getting him out and beside HRH Miss Kitty wouldn't like it much so Axel is not a welcome visitor at the door. 

 

Toward the clubhouse....

 After lunch Riley took a walk to the dumpster to deposit our trash and headed on around to the main office to check on our packages. Sure enough Axel was right with her most of the way and when she returned and came inside he climbed up on the picnic table to lay down. Much warmer off the cement I guess. When he got down from the table he broke one of the seat boards which was already cracked and in danger of breaking anyway. It's an old table but for sure it now needs to be fixed. 

 

Riley returned with another one of the packages we've been expecting. Yeah... we've been looking forward to this package for a while. It's our weboost and I can tell you it's working fantastically. We had it out and temporarily installed within a half hour and it's improved our signal greatly. Not just the park wifi but also our own private wifi as well. We're not as fast as 4G but we're pretty fast compared to what we've been getting. I don't believe it's the one I ordered but it's working and I'm happy. It's designed for a car/truck and there is no where to connect the Jet Pack to it, but that's okay I think. It works well enough as it is. 

 

This is our little spot # 18. We're across from cabin 5 with the internet hub.

 

We have one more package which should arrive tomorrow, cords for Riley's tablet. Hopefully they are the correct cords and that will be the end of our needing to get any more packages. 

 

So we've set up the weboost temporarily until I go out tomorrow and get a couple of parts that we need before we install it securely. Those I can pick up at Bolivar or if necessary I could get them from Amazon I guess. Anyway, we're happy with our purchase and I believe it will be a very good addition to our home. 

 

Pretty broken, isn't it?

  The park is very quiet, the rain is holding off but threaten ing, the wind is gusty at times and non existent at other times. We're snug and warm in our little Igloo and all is right with the world. It's a good life!!

 

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed your visit. Nothing too exciting but at least you now know we won't be running around naked since we managed to get the laundry done!!! I can tell you are all relieved about that, and so are we! Feel free to leave a comment!!

 

Our new Weboost....temporary quarters until tomorrow.

 

 

Until next time...take care, be safe, 

 

 

Deb. 

 

 

 

 

 

A nice hike, cooler weather and a lazy afternoon.....

Our Location: 

Superstition Mountain BLM, Apache Junction, AZ

Up this morning just as the sun peaked over the ridge and so my room was bathed in sparkling rays of yellow light. A pretty sight to behold. Temps were warm as well, especially after I closed the vent at 2 am this morning. 

We are heading for that whitish/green/yellow area in the middle....

 

Up, dressed, downstairs, water on for a hot drink and starting to read posts, comments, etc by 7:30 am. Riley came out around that very time and we chatted about what we were each going to do today. Riley opted to stay home, make some salads, do the dishes and just hang out while I went hiking today. I offered to help before I left but she was happy to do it all by herself. Such a sweet young lady. 

We're closer. That's an old pit of some kind, the newer one being used is further to the left, it's directly across from the rigs. That hole is actually very deep with lots of mini washes where rain has taken gouges out of the sides. The old wooden sign is just plain, nothing written on it, its all worn away.

Around 10 am Doug, Yuma and I headed out for  a hike in the general neighbourhood. Not really sure where we were going, we spun along in the jeep until we reached the dead end, parked and managed to get some good information from a nice young man riding his quad. His buddy and buddy's girlfriend had already loaded their toys into the back of the truck.

You can see by the rocks we are already there, that's looking off toward the south. See the rain has been wearing a groove in the middle of the rocks. I wonder how many centuries before that will be a large chasm.

We started off in an westerly direction and eventually began aiming for some smooth white looking clusters of boulders off in the distance. Sandwiched between two much darker looking mountains, the yellow/whitish colour was an instant draw. It looked much more inviting than did the darker ones. The hike wasn't difficult, but some hills and washes made it seem much more labour intensive than it truly was. Some of the downward areas looked pretty steep but once we got started it was all good. Same with going up, once getting started it wasn't too bad at all. 

Just awesome, isn't it?

We managed to climb upwards without too much trouble, and continued all the way to the top. The views were absolutely awesome. We could look out over Apache Junction, Mesa and off in the distance I'm certain we could see the shimmering lines of more distant cities. As far as the eye could see there was layer after layer after layer of mountains. Dark blue, wrapped in haze they looked magical and mystical. Something from a fairy tale. We encountered two hikers, probably father and daughter as they too strolled along the top ridges of the boulder like mountains taking in the breath taking scenes below. Behind us was a more traditional desertscape with cacti, bushes, rolling hills and washes. Backdropped by towering mountains whose head wreathed in a low cloud only the shoulders and downward visible. To the east was the majestic Saddle Mountain, wrapped in myth and mystery. It's craggy appearance covered in a greenish tint reminding me of the famed Fanghorn Forest in Lord of the Rings. Centuries old, mysterious, mythical, magical and just a bit scary.

Out on those rocks we walked and looked down into the valley.....we could see for miles and miles...

We climbed to the peak of the nearby mountain on the north side the whitish boulders to see another spectacular view below us. On all sides we were battered with views of exquisite beauty, colours, shapes, sizes, tones, hues, slopes, slants, washes, gullies, some vast, some minor, all varying. And always off in the distance the ever present mountains. The once cloudless blue sky was now becoming more cloud filled, drifting and obscuring the sunlight at times, causing the already cool breeze to be a bit more sharp as we stood or climbed near the tops of the mountain. 

Various views today....

The path downwards was a bit more effort exerting as it never looks quite the same going the other direction. However, with no falls we made it safely back down. We debated about which direction the Jeep might be and the rigs as well. Finally we agreed on a direction, off we went. Mr Yuma always leading the way. He had no idea where we were going, only that he wanted to get there first. As it turned out the walk back to the jeep was much quicker than the walk out. We didn't have near the hills and valleys on the way back once we were down to the bottom. 

Interesting face, wouldn't you say?

Safely back in the dead end, Doug & Yuma climbed into the Jeep and I headed off down the road walking. We weren't far from our rigs and I felt a nice flat walk would do me good. We reached home pretty much at the same time. Said our see ya later and parted company. 

Looking over the edge of the bluff .....Apache Junction, maybe a bit of Mesa as well...and who knows what else those places may be over there...

Inside I chatted with Riley while making up a plate of salads, potato, mac, bean, and green, along with some dressing, taking it all over to Doug for his lunch. Back home I settled into my chair with my book, enjoying my salads, reading and just resting. I tried to nap after that but it just wasn't going to happen and so I ended up once more back in my chair but this time editing all 204 pictures from today's hike. Not to worry I won't put more half in this post. Just kidding, I promise not to put in too many. I also started writing this post and hopefully when night time comes I'll have it pretty much complete and can have a nice relaxing evening. 

 

More views off to the southeast....can you see the path down on the other side of the crevice? That rock over there almost looks like the back end of a turtle, don't you think?

Doug & Yuma came over to return the lunch dishes and have a chat. We moved outside and enjoyed the last few rays of sunshine but the wind was definitely chilly. We didn't make it until sunset before we all headed off toward our own rigs. We did however make plans for tomorrow. A driving day, not as long as the last one but a bit of a tour. 

Bright blue skies, great views, nice temperatures, what else could one ask for?

Back inside I called my other two daughters, Courtney and Bradey to chat for a bit. I haven't talked to them in a couple of weeks. They both survived the storm of a few days ago and both said neither of their cities were hit terribly hard anyway. They had balmy temps last week and except for the huge snow piles where it's been piled from driveways, roadways, etc there is no snow left on the ground. So I think it's safe to assume winter is pretty much over there. They can still get some snow but it won't last long even if they do. 

Amazing views no matter which way we turned.

After a chat with both of them I finally had a chance to finish this post. Although the time is now 8:46 pm and I still haven't posted this yet. So I guess I am not going to have an early evening. Somehow that never works out, does it? Hahaha...

I think they are either brothers or at least cousins....

I didn't get any sunset pictures as I was talking to my girls but there didn't appear to be much in the way of clouds anyway, so I'm sure it wasn't a spectacular sight. 

Top two pictures are crevices, look how deep they are! Bottom left is a picture of Doug taking a picture of me, as I climbed up one of the boulders to have a look. Bottom right is the boulder I climbed to take the left picture.

So there you have it, our Sunday here at Superstition Mountain BLM. Quiet, enjoyable, each in our own way. I truly enjoyed the hike, it was nice to have someone to hike with, and to share the views. 

Looking back the way we came, Superstition Mountain over there too. See all that light brown dirt, that's the road way we drove in on. The darker brown is the pit across the roadway from us. The brown in the middle is the oldest part of the pit they no longer use. 

If you look along that patch of green to the left you'll see a small white reflection, to the extreme left, almost out of the picture....

That's us...... Doug's MH on the left, and the Igloo with the Dogsled on the right. I'm sure I can see Riley waving at us, can't you?

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you enjoyed your visit, and the hike. Where ever you are, and whatever you were doing this wonderful Sunday I hope you enjoyed it and had a fantastic day. Feel free to leave a comment. 

Can you see Doug resting on the rock?

Not sure what that yellowy type of grass is but it sure is pretty.

Until next time... take care, be safe, 

I don't know the name of the mountain but it sure is pretty with the cloud covering....

Superstition mountain also under cloud cover but it quickly blew away and we had bright blue skies again...

Deb