A well, a crater and bears...OH MY!

I didn't have very far to go for my first sightseeing destination of the day when I left Camp Verde this morning. It was sunny and just a little cool, which was just perfect for me. Yesterday, I visited Montezuma's Castle, and this morning, it was Montezuma Well. Despite being located in a desert environment, the well is constantly replenished by water bubbling up from its bottom. And, it never overfills due to an outlet that flows into the adjacent Beaver Creek. I spent a leisurely hour walking along the half mile loop trail. It was so peaceful...only two other people were there so early in the morning.

There were several ancient dwellings located along the wall of the well, down below at the water's edge and along the top edge. There was also some graffiti from people who had visited the site back in the late 1800s.

Another hour and a half later, I arrived at the Meteor Crater. This crater is the best preserved...as well as the largest...meteor impact site in the world. I guess that's why if someone says they visited the Meteor Crater, there is no mistaking it for some other one.

Even though there was a guided rim tour included in the price of admission, I wanted to have time to thoroughly enjoy my final destination of the day... Bearizona Wildlife Park!

This wildlife park is a combination drive-thru and walk-thru facility. I've only been to one similar drive-thru park and it had mostly African animals. This place specializes in North American species, big and small. I started things off with the drive-thru area, encountering some reindeer and mule deer.

Then, it really got exciting when I saw a timber wolf and bears! LOTS of bears! Black bears to exact, and running free. They make sure you keep your vehicle's windows closed and doors locked when driving through the wolf and bear sections. I thought it was rather amusing to see a kaibab squirrel helping itself to some of the bears' pumpkin treats.

The walk-thru area was somewhat small, but they had some beautiful animals. Here are photos of swift and red foxes, badger and bobcat.

Tomorrow, I'll be heading over to Sin City...Las Vegas! I'll only be there for one day and night, but I'm looking forward to a little fun. At least, I'm hoping it will be fun when I hit the slots. Losing all my money is NOT fun!

Miniatures and Montezuma's Castle

After a restful night in my hotel suite, I had a few more things to do in Tucson before leaving town. So far on my road trip, I've only visited one museum...that was the Museum of Modern Art last week in San Francisco. Today was my second... The Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures. The name of the museum comes from its ability to send you back in time with its depictions of historical events...and also some very old pieces...all in miniature. The definition they give of miniature is at least 1/12th the size of the actual thing. Some of the items I saw in the museum were definitely much smaller. I liked the animals, especially the cat stuff. Look at the tiny chamber pot under the mouse bed!

 

The first miniatures in history were generally dollhouses. Nowadays, you can still see miniatures on display in buildings, but there are also standalone items and diorama type scenes. I always find myself drawn to tiny food pieces.

After my museum visit, I got a much-needed car wash and had lunch at a road trip favorite, Culver's...frozen custard! I then traveled north to the town of Camp Verde, the location of Montezuma's Castle National Monument. Now, this park has nothing to do with the Aztec ruler, Montezuma...the ruins were named by European-Americans back in the 1860s. They are really the ancient cliff dwellings of the Sinagua and Hohokam cultures. Some Hopi and Yavapai tribal clans are ancestors of those early peoples. Due to its location in the cliffs, the "castle" was basically inaccessible to the curious and thus, fairly well preserved. 

There was also another cliff dwelling adjacent to the Montezuma's Castle, mostly in ruins now known as Castle A. As you can see it was a beautiful day at the park and the temperature was also more favorable than it had been...mid-70s! I didn't take any animal photos today, but I did get flowers!

Tomorrow, the temperatures will continue to drop to more my style...40s and 50s! I'll be visiting a couple more outdoor sights and maybe see animals! Five more road trip days to go...

A day of rest, then...saguaros!

I spent yesterday reminiscing about the previous night's final Five for Fighting concert of the tour...and the other three shows I attended, too. I will not soon forget the good times! As I left Thousand Oaks and headed east, Sunday traffic was much more manageable than what I had experienced for the past couple of days. It was smooth sailing to Indio, where I made a brief stop for lunch and picked up some dates from Shields Date Garden. The hot temps continued when I crossed over into Arizona. It was the low 90s when I arrived in Yuma. I had planned to visit the Yuma Territorial Prison State Historic Park, but confusion over Mountain Time and general weariness nixed that. I had assumed it was an hour later, which would not have given me much time to visit the park properly. But, after deciding to call it a day and check into my hotel early, I found out from the desk clerk that Arizona doesn't adhere to Daylight Savings Time. So, I was still technically on Pacific Time.  But, after so much driving for the past few days and not enough sleep, I needed a rest.

When I left Yuma this morning, I continued driving east and a couple hours later arrived at Painted Rock Petroglyph Site near Gila Bend, AZ. This site preserves the petroglyphs created by the ancient ancestors of the Yavapai people. The pile of rocks are located somewhat in the middle of nowhere, but it was well worth the drive off the interstate.

I was experimenting with my camera settings and decided to try out Expressive in the above photo. Hmm...it sure seems to give those rocks some personality! As I walked on the the loop trail, I spotted a pretty barrel cactus and an equally pretty lizard.

After my little walk, I ate my lunch at a shaded picnic table, then continued my drive all the way to Tucson. Initially, I was afraid it might be too hot to visit Saguaro National Park. But, once there, I realized the high 80s was not too bad at all. I picked up a map at the visitor center and some info on a couple of good short trails. I was actually at the western Tucson Mountain District of the park...the eastern section is the Rincon Mountain District. I drove along a gravel/dirt road to the Valley View Trail. Once out of my car and walking among the saguaros, I forgot all about the heat. The landscape was breathtaking!

I also did another short hike on the Signal Hill Trail, which features more cactus views and petroglyphs. And, I did see a couple more lizards! Sadly, no gila monster.

 

Tomorrow, I'll be starting my day with a museum visit in Tucson, then head north to (hopefully) cooler temps and a cultural site. I'm in the homestretch and will be slowly making my way back to Washington. It seems like so long ago that my road trip started. I'm really, REALLY missing my cat!

Change of plans: Five for Fighting, Day Four

So, as I mentioned in the last blog post, I received an unexpected invitation by John Ondrasik to attend the last Five for Fighting show in the current tour in Thousand Oaks, CA. I had initially requested to get on the guest list for that one, but was told the list was maxed out. Instead, I settled for the show in San Juan Capistrano...you can read about that one also in the last post. After making a new hotel reservation, I had to quickly come up with an alternate plan on how to spend my free day in Los Angeles. The easiest place I could think of was the Los Angeles Zoo. It had been several years since I last visited that zoo, so it was settled.

My drive back north on I-5 was much better than yesterday's nightmare on I-405. When I arrived at the zoo, I was surprised to find the parking lot packed with vehicles...and the zoo and only been open for a half hour. I soon discovered the reason why...they had a Halloween event going on. I found myself having to deal with a zoo full of rugrats and their parents! Not only that, the temperature was hot...much too hot for my liking. I would later find out it was over 90 degrees! But, I made the best of my zoo visit by enjoying the animals...and taking photos of them. I tried to look for the unusual or creative shots. For instance, the meerkats seemed a bit intrigued by the gummy meerkats above their enclosure.

Mommy, what are the tigers doing? They're just playing! Hot and sweaty from my zoo visit, I was ready to check into my hotel and prepare for the Five for Fighting concert. I got to the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza pretty early, but I always do. After getting my comp ticket from the box office, I sat outside the building that contained the Scherr Forum...the venue for the show. The bench I was sitting on was very close to the security box that controlled access to the performers parking area. Suddenly, a late model black sedan pulled up to the box...and it was John driving! I yelled, "Hey!" and John replied that he would see me later.

A short while later, I went inside and waited in the lobby for the doors to open. I chatted with the gal staffing the merch table...she had been doing so for the whole tour. When I got inside the theater, I found my seat was at the top row of the orchestra section...that would be sixth row from the stage. As the attendees filed in, I kept my eye out for John's family. Soon, I saw John's parents come in and take a seat down the row from me. A little later, John's wife Carla arrived and prepared to sit next to them. When she looked in my direction, I waved to her and Carla came over to greet me.

My last Five for Fighting string quartet show of the tour was fantastic as usual. The audience was filled with John's family, friends and industry acquaintances. The venue requested that people not take any photos or video, not that I really needed to do that. I've already done that during the previous shows, and I really have enough. What is more memorable is my interaction with John and the quartet. And, after this show, I introduced myself to John's parents...I've never really formally met them in the past...and it was nice talking to them. John came out to chat with his friends, and I was able thank him and say my goodbyes.

And so, my latest rendition of the Five for Fighting groupie experience has finally...for sure...come to an end. It was fun...lots of fun...but, I have more road trip to go. Tomorrow, I continue on to Yuma, then Tucson, before working my way back north. I'm dreading what appears to be more blazing hot temperatures. I may need to find indoor activities if this continues. I'm melting!