Motor Oil to Olive Oil

Dec 10/17  Weather 76 sunny, night 45.  

traditional Olive Tree plantation

Agriculture and Farming are plentiful just south of metro-Phoenix.  You will find cotton, cattle, pork and Arizona's only working olive farm and mill.   Oddly the gentleman who owns and operates the farm and business is from the Detroit area.  We found that bizarre, how did he end up here in an Olive Farm business?  Well apparently like us a warm getaway from the chilly Detroit weather was a turning point for their future.  Within a year(1997) they moved from Detroit and planted 1,000 olive trees on 100 acres in the outskirts of the town of Queen Creek Today Queen Creek Olive Farm and Mill have over 7,000 trees/16 varieties.  Mr. Perry went to study the trade in Italy and acquired his Masterblender & Olive Oil Sommelier accreditation.  

shopping for oils, olives, vinegars

Beyond the olive tree groves and the Extra Virgin Oil Processing you will get to enjoy a delicious eatery, which uses many of their products and a coffee roaster on site - Superstition Coffee.  Shopping will include their oils, vinegars, wines, and an array of interesting foodie stuff.

Superstition Roasters ~Coffee Beans

A small tour (tasting included) is available where you will learn why you should always buy "Extra Virgin".  It contains the most nutrients and the highest quality.   Other tips: 1) the label should display the harvest and bottle date - which you want to keep for no more than 18 months maximum; 2)a dark bottle is necessary to keep out light which promotes oxidation.  Never buy "light olive oil"; it appears to make you feel it would be good for you when in fact it is made from the leftovers of the process which are called refined oils and then has perhaps 5% Virgin added back into it.  In other words it is garbage......   Good to know.
The food was wonderful and the fresh roasted coffee!!!  Oh boy this was a great place to visit.  We left full and happy and healthy with a supply of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  And the wine.... so funny, no we did not buy the Happy Bitch.  If it had said "Lucky Bitch"; that's me.  Haha.

Queen Creek Olive Mill Award winner

hilarious...... Happy Bitch Wine

Working the left and right brain

Coffee and our Morning Puzzle

It is so nice out each morning we take our pot of coffee outside and last week we started working on a puzzle that we can leave outside on our table.  When we walk away we cover it and start up at another time.   It is so addictive and fun.  
 

3 days later 

Did you know there is a warning on a puzzle box that it is good for your Brain?  The Brain produces a chemical known as dopamine that is chiefly responsible for learning and memory. The production of this chemical increases in the brain at the time when it is engaged in solving the jigsaw puzzle.
Jigsaw puzzles also promote the relationship between the left and right brain. The logical left brain looks at individual parts. It is sequential, rational, analytical and objective. The left brain is stimulated by problem solving. The creative right brain sees the big picture. It thrives on randomness, is intuitive and subjective, and even likes the unfamiliar. Jigsaw puzzles satiate the needs of both the left and right brain.

Beeline to Rim Country

Dec 2/17 Weather sunny, high of 74 and only 67 up in Payson, low of 48.  Our neighbours are riders and knocked on our door to go for a ride.....but we missed out.  We have to admit we were still in bed the first time they knocked  ~it was 7:30 a.m. and Billy and Rosey don't move till about 9 a.m. !!!  So the next time we asked what time are you leaving and we set our alarm clock to go for a ride.  We left at 9 a.m.  and had lunch in Payson then looped back past Lake Roosevelt and popped out at Globe and then back to Gold Canyon.  About a 200 mile ride, back at 3 pm.    Nice riding day.

Beeline Hwy headed to Payson from Phoenix

The destination was through the Mazatzal Wilderness with over 250,000 acres of the Tonto and Coconino National Forests.  Hwy 87 is called Beeline Hwy and the name fits as the population of Phoenix can make a quick escape up to Payson to escape the heat.  The entire 90 miles is worth the ride, the views are quite beautiful.  Notice the haze in our pictures, there were several controlled burns going on for a few days in the Forest and it created a softness to the shots. 

smoke laying in the valleys near Payson

Canyon Lake

Nov 28/17  Weather sunny 85, low 51.  Today might be the 100th day here in the Phoenix area with no measurable rainfall.  Can you imagine?  

views are great, road needs reconstruction

We meandered out along the historic Apache Trail.  The road was once an old stagecoach trail that ran through Superstition Mountains.  The quality of the road has really deteriorated; it is a washboard.   If travelling on a motorcycle we suggest going during the week when there is little traffic so you can take it slow and drive around some of the ruts when possible.

a view like a painting

The end of the pavement is at Tortilla Flats and beyond that the road turns to dirt and very narrow and steep cliff drops and little in the way of safety barriers.  No worries, we turned around at the end of the pavement.  We have heard some horror stories of bikers wiping out.  Most of the road has a maximum speed limit of 15 mph. Little known tidbit: test drivers from General Motors Proving Grounds used to use the Apache Trail to test tires and vehicle maneuverability. 

how the Apache Trail became a road

22 miles of dirt, hairpin turns, switchbacks........time to turn around

We backtracked to Canyon Lake where we sat on the marina restaurant patio and had a bit of refreshments.  We are good at eating out; have you noticed?  Haha.   This is one of the reservoirs of water created when damming the Salt River. 

from the restaurant patio view of Canyon Lake

Old Willy's

Nov 25/17  After a great few hours of hiking around the Arboretum we jumped on the Harley and road a few miles farther down the road to Superior.  There is a cool bar and restaurant in the old downtown section called Porter's Cafe.

Porters Cafe before the $'s came down

We understand it has changed ownership and all the dollar bills have been taken down off the walls and the new owners donated them to local town charities.  Sounds like a great thing to do, we just hope the burgers are still as good !!!!     (Yes we can say our burger was great; although we were starving and would have ate anything!!!)    Next door is an antique store and look what he uses as his advertising sign - an old Willy's (1940's circa) the original Jeep.  Willy's Overland manufactured the Jeep for World War II.  Interestingly the plant was in Toledo and the Chyrsler Jeep plant is still in Toledo, Ohio.

Old Willy's

our ride parked beside the Willy's

And ours is sitting at home..... saying "Hey what about Me?"  We still really like our motorcycle riding; but in the future we will get our Jeep ready to tow.  Would be great for off roading in Arizona that's for sure.

maybe one day we will tow our Jeep

Fall Festival

Nov 25/17  Weather  sunny, 84 low of 55. 

along the garden path

on the 2 mile walk

everything is picky so stay on the path

About a half hour away from Gold Canyon is the Boyce Thompson Arboretum on hwy 60 near Superior.  This desert botanical garden has over 2600 species.  We heard there was a fall festival with live music, artists, and fall colours.  Now fall colours are not what we think of when in the desert.

found the fall colours

It made us curious so we took the 2 mile walk/hike through the gardens.  About half way through we both sat down in the shade for a while.  Phew it was hot!  I asked Billy if I should call the MediVac to come in with a chopper and get us.  Haha.  Not funny.  Haha.  Ok lets keep going...... need water.

Rosey halfway around the loop

There are some very unusual plants and trees and the setting in the canyon is stunning.    Billy loves jujubes and now we found the tree they come from, finally! 

jujube tree!!!

Looks Better Than it Tastes

Nov 22/17  Weather is hot.  Definitely Lemonade drinking weather.  How about this >>>  it looks too good too drink! 

tasty, just a little flat compared to lemon lemonade

Everyday the weather report is breaking temperatures (85 to 90) here in Phoenix area .  Apparently it is also getting close to 100 days without any rainfall.    Still the nights cool down so much (50's) we have not had to turn on the air-conditioner.  We leave the windows open and by morning are pulling on blankets and quilts because it is chilly!  Billy says " I know we have lots of quilts to keep warm. "  Ha ha, oh yes we do.

Flannel quilt just finished that Billy has claimed is his

pulling into the clubhouse at Canyon Vista

For the next 6 weeks we have moved up to the Phoenix area to a suburb on the east side.  Gold Canyon is at the outskirts of the metro area which is better for us on the motorcycle plus we just don't care for the inner city of any city.
Last year we ran into a biker couple in a restaurant and we chatted and found out they were at a park near Phoenix that allowed you to keep your cargo trailer on your site with your motorhome.

often a mega resort is just a big fancy parking lot

That is not common in the Phoenix area, usually you have to store it in overflow or find a warehouse for it.  We don't like that much, Billy likes having it with us.    So here we are at Gold Canyon RV resort which is a "mega-park".  The park has over 800 sites and many park models; they also have a section of RV homes.  There are activities every half hour and lots of clubs and things to keep a person busy; oh and don't forget the senior sport that all 55+ are addicted to Pickleball. 

RV home with parking pad

Copper Corridor

Nov 20/17  Weather 86 low 50.  Everyday sunshine!
 We have just been vegetating(and it feels soooo good) at Catalina State Park.  It is so peaceful here and the views are so great we just sit outside and read or listen to music or walk or find mindless other things to do.  We are staying 8 days and only went for one ride.  It was a great R & R place to camp. 

view from Copper Corridor

Motoring up to Globe (Apache call it the Place of Metal) takes you through old mining area and even some current mining in Winkleman.  This ride is called the Copper Corridor Scenic Byway.

Globe

Globe has seen some better days but has some cool old signs in the historic downtown and we found a wonder cafe for lunch; The Copper Hen Cafe.  Might have had the best quiche ever.  So you just never know what the ride will bring.

Bet American Pickers would love this sign

State Park Camping

 Nov 17/17 Weather sunny, 85 and nights are cool down to 47.   

sunset in the Catalina mountains

This state park we are staying in (Catalina S. P. in Oro Valley) has a beautiful mountain backdrop, cacti and wildlife and no lights.  At night when the sun goes down it is dark.  Seriously!!!  Pitch Black.  First night we walked to take our trash and we felt almost blinded without a flashlight.  Remember take a light from now on after dark.  One other thing was sitting outside at dusk we could hear in the same spot each night a pack of coyotes howling away.  One would start and then several would join in.  Every night they collected and howled and sometimes we could hear them in the middle of the night.  Definitely no walking after dark!

campground

All the roads are paved and all the sites are paved.  We had water and 50 amp at our site plus it was 145 feet long~  and the next site was not close.  We need to stay at more state parks; we forget how peaceful and beautiful they are..... crazy!
One thing that we could not figure out and we did not ask till just before we left was what are all the holes in the ground about.  Rosey is always fearing snakes.  Well what are the holes??????    Ok thank you Mr. Ranger.  Ground squirrels that are hibernating.   Yeah!!

holes all over

Adventures to tell

Nov 16/17  Weather is warm, warm, warm.  One of the warmest fall's here in Arizona. 

Adventure Before Dementia

Don't you just laugh when you have to take a "double take".   Some people have such a sense of humour.   The first RV is just that.  We spotted this one at the back of the park in Benson.

You have to just wonder what stories these two RV's could tell........... most likely opposite ends of the spectrum.

All the Gear

Now the second one we saw was in Catalina State Park.  It is a "survivalist" machine.  It was an older fellow sitting outside he was also flying a Marine Corp flag.

What a View

Nov 14 - 22/17 Weather hot, every day high 80’s, night high 50’s. 
Quietly parked in Catalina State Park (near Tucson) for the next week.  A good book. A lawn chair.  Doesn’t get any better than this. 

Our site looks like a postcard😊

Tombstone and the Wild, Wild West

Nov 12/17  Weather 86 high today, low 51.  Local news tells us it is 10 degrees warmer than normal.   Last time we stayed in Benson it was February about 5 years ago and we remember it being "dang cold".  Not this time:)

Not a horse, not a motorcycle but definitely a "cool" ride

On our way to Bisbee the other day we stopped briefly in Tombstone but not longing enough to fill our cup.  Ah shucks we just had to get on back there for Sunday theatrics.

Shootout after 10 paces

wake up pardner

There is a Tombstone Historical Society that puts on free shows on main street for most of the afternoon and boy do they have fun.  Did you know you really can grow up and be a cowboy?  Even after you retire from your real job!  Haha.

all the ladies like the Sheriff

Spent a few hours walking the boardwalk on main street then hanging out in a saloon for some more fun.  Everyone is a kid nowadays in Tombstone.

at the local Saloon

Caving a Recreational Pastime

Nov 10/17  Weather  sunny, 82 low 50.  Not far out of Benson maybe 10 miles is quite a State Park. 

walkways through the caverns

Today we are going to do something that neither one of us is too keen on.  Caving, Potholing, Spelunking.  No not really but that is a recreational pastime that people do.  They look for underground holes, caves, rooms.  Billy and Rosey wait till it is big and we can walk into it.   We are visiting the Kartchner Caverns State Park where we will go underground to see preserved cave bacon, helictites, soda straws, stalactites, stalagmites and brushite moonmilk.  Well if you say so!!!!!  Taking the walk down under with a ranger it will all be explained to us in detail.  Words we never knew....  and the meanings.  All your belongings have to be left in a locker.

soda straws, some 20 feet long

You don't have to worry about feeling claustrophobic the two cave rooms we were in were huge, one was 2/3 the size of a football field.   As you enter into a series of tunnels it is shut off between each area with refrigerator type doors to seal in the humidity and moisture and seal out the everyday bacteria and contaminants.  In the final tunnel before entering the caverns you will actually be misted off and several warnings that you do not touch the rock formations, do not leave your contaminant behind as these speleothems (cave deposits) are still growing~~~~ Wow.

The Big Room

No bags, purses, cell phones, no cameras, no picture taking(all these pics are downloaded from the net) and very little lighting inside but the walkways are excellent and the view is spectacular.  Enjoy Nature at its wildest.  The two cavers who found this rare double cavern crawled in through a sinkhole and with many many trips inside  continued to find more and more over time while keeping it secret for 14 years!  Their fear was how to preserve it.  Their find lives on as an Arizona State Park and very well preserved.

kubla khan

 bacon formations

Not sure how many caves we will visit in the future but definitely feeling glad that we went in to see this display.  Driving up you see the hill not aware that 260 feet below is 50,000 years of limestone cave deposits and its still growing - dripping everywhere extending the formations and creating new ones. 

under that hill are the caverns!!!!  well hidden