During the first half of March, we were paying close attention to the spread of Covid 19 and how it was starting to really impact things much closer to home. During the second weekend in March, we were looking forward to attending the Yuma Air Show on both Friday evening and all day Saturday. But just a day before the show was to start, the commander of the base where the show was held decided to call it off. I’ll admit at the time I was quite disappointed but writing this post a few weeks after the fact, I can say it was the proper decision. Later that weekend, the president declared a state of emergency. It was a little strange because in many ways, things didn’t really seem all that different at least here in Arizona.
When the first 15 days of social distancing were put in place, we figured things would change dramatically. But then we realized how our lifestyle, favorite activities and being generally introverted people to begin with work rather well with the concept of social distancing. And since we no longer work, there wasn’t any consideration about whether we should be going to the office or not. We helped to patronize a local restaurant by ordering takeout and we found our immediate lives weren’t that much different.
We got out to do a few days of bicycle rides around the Foothills area. Once off the main streets, there isn’t a lot of traffic and there are plenty of trails off into the surrounding desert areas that can work for mountain bike riding as well. Our rides took us thru some interesting areas with new homes being built. Many of them had nice homes with a large garage attached big enough for a motorhome or large fifth wheel. It reminded us a lot of the a place call “The Gardens RV Park” in Crossville Tennessee - about halfway between Nashville and Knoxville. We had stayed there to check out the possibility of living in a place where we could store the motorhome inside when we weren’t traveling. We obviously skipped that option and went fulltime instead. I suspect the people that own places in Yuma, spend their winters at home and take the rig north during the sweltering portion of the season.
Ocotillo in Bloom |
Just a few miles from our campground was a place called Telegraph Hill. So named for the dozen or so towers situated on top of the peak. However, I suspect they are no longer used for sending telegraphs. We have been to the parking area below during a bike ride and know it is a very popular hike to the top. The main trail is actually the gravel service road up to the towers. By going this out and back route, it is about a 5.4 mile hike with 1400 feet of elevation gain. In the Google Earth View below, this would begin at the “Start” point on the left of the image and parallel Interstate 8 before climbing the trail up to Telegraph Hill on the right.
Blue = Actual; Red = Skipped |
It took us a bit of effort to find the start of the trail out of the parking lot. There was a faint trail up the side of a rocky hill but after heading up several hundred feet, we were convinced we were on the right trail by using our app. At the top of the hill is an American flag and we suspect that is where we are heading. It was slow going because of the steepness and the loose rocky trail. As we are heading up, we keep thinking how glad we were to be doing the loop in the clockwise direction since coming down this stretch would be a challenge. We eventually make it to the top of the first hill and indeed spot the flag and cross at the top. The view from up here is pretty dramatic as well.
Heading Somewhere Up There |
Rocky "Trail" with Cross Just Visible |
We Made It Up Hill #1 |
Distance View of Yuma |
Need to Follow the Ridge |
Chris Comes Down an Early Challenge |
Looking Back at Knife Edge with Rock Cairn on Right |
Small Cactus with Bright Red Protuberance |
Another View Looking Back with "Trail" Highlighted |
Prickly Pear Blooms |
What's On the Other Side? |
That's Where We Are Heading |
Chris Works Her Way Up the Next Hill |
Another Bloom |
The Next Flag is on Top of Hill to the Right |
A Bit More Tattered Old Glory |
Our Route Should Follow Ridge to Towers |
We Move On from Second Flag |
Overlooking Irrigated Fields |
Our Bail Out Point - Just Head Down |
Looking Back Up Ravine as Chris Picks Her Path |
Still a Long Way to Go |
I See a Face in the Rock Patterns |
Never Got There |
We considered heading to the Prescott Valley Elks Lodge again. We were there in mid-November and enjoyed the area. As we investigated options, Chris stumbled upon a fairly new campground in Camp Verde about midway between Phoenix and Flagstaff. It had decent reviews, reasonable monthly rates and a 25% discount coupon on top of it. Being a bit further north and about 3000 feet higher in elevation, the temperatures should be a bit more bearable even as the spring rolls on. We had heard of many horror stories of state and national campgrounds closing and even private campgrounds being closed to new campers. Being full-timers without a “home base” to head to, we opted to book a spot at Verde Ranch RV Resort for two months even before our stay here in Yuma was over.
We still needed to wait for a new mattress we had ordered online to arrive before we could leave so we had some days left in Yuma. We got another desert hike in but picked what we knew would be a bit more sane of a hike. This hike took us to the outskirts of some new housing developments on the perimeter of town. Since we were following ATV trails, it was generally easy going. We could look up and see some of the hills that we were nearly stuck atop a few days earlier. I did have one geocache puzzle I had solved that took me to the top of a rocky hill. Chris opted to sit patiently below as I scrambled up to find the hide and back down to the trails. It ended up being a rather easy 4 mile hike.
Many Blooms |
Ocotillo Blooming |
ATV Trail |
The Geocache is Up There |
Nice View from Cache Location |
A few days later we received our mattress and needed to get rid of our old one. We might have been able to squeeze it into the dumpster at the campground but the town has a transfer facility that would accept our “donation” without cost. They had some policies in place to help prevent the spread of Covid 19 but it was a very easy to get rid of it. We took advantage of being in a different part of town to check out some of the sights in the area. Some geocaches introduced us to a federal wildlife area called Betty’s Kitchen. There is a small picnic area and a couple of short paths that go back to a wide dam that makes a bit of a wetlands for all sorts of ducks and other birds. There is also an odd concrete bridge nearby that has swastikas formed into it during construction! The geocache that brought us to the bridge had an extensive history. Built in the very early 1900’s by the United States Reclamation Service well before this symbol took on its present day connotation, the swastika was used as that government bureau’s symbol. You learn something new every day.
Entrance to Betty's Kitchen |
Reflecting Palm |
Overflowing Dam |
Swastika Bridge! |
Mittry Lake View |
One of Many Jetties on Lake |
One last stop before leaving Yuma was the Conservation Garden. It was open and only the volunteer greeter was there, so social distancing wouldn’t be an issue. There are lots of desert plants to check out but it by no means was the nicest gardens we have visited. Another whole section of the garden is dedicated to old farm machinery. There was an eclectic mix of old tractors, trucks, bulldozers and assorted planters as well as a geocache hidden on one of them. The pond is decent sized and full of ducks and geese. The place is worth a quick stop.
Conservation Garden Sign |
Senita Cactus with Whiskers |
Colorful Cactus |
Old Rusty Tractor |
Needs TLC |
Bulldozer Collection |
Pretty Pond |
Noisy Ducks |
Vast Produce Fields in Valley |
Aerial View of Fields Surrounding Yuma |
On the Move to Next Spot |
Bus Next to Field |
Hi Jack & Chris, Nice blog entries about Yuma. We've only been there for a day to go across the border to the dentist. Looks like we need to visit there longer but not take the Telegrah hike you mention. We've been spending the winter in Casa Grande, AZ camp hosting at an RV resort. We plan to head to Prescott Valley in May to have some work done on our trailer. If you're still there and we can move to PV, let's try to connect and catch up. Nancy & Al
ReplyDeleteWe're in Camp Verde until May 25. Depending on how things go, we may stay longer? Would love to catch up with you two. Stay safe. Jack & Chris
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