I am sure that my friends and family in Illinois are asking the second question! WHEN WILL IT END! They have been hit hard this year, not only with snow (60+0) but cold weather as well. Just keep saying Spring is coming, spring is coming!
Yes spring is coming and that not only means better weather for the midwest, but that our time here in Tucson is getting shorter. We have had a good winter and have kept quite busy, attending potlucks, exercising, yes I said exercising! I have been working out each day, both aerobic and weight training. It has helped my blood glucose and I have lost some weight as well. Loretta has been to Zumba and water aerobics and has lost weight as well. Other activities have been hiking, ping pong and walking the dog as well as excusions here and there, mostly to the grocery stores!
This is our hiking group. We have had up to 40 hikers on some of our popular hikes. I have created a web site for the group. Desert Explorers of RCW We take our time and the hikes are anywhere from 3-6 miles in length
and at the most moderate in difficulty. A great group, going to interesting places! Our next hike is to the Bowen Stone Ranch house. The house was built in the 1930′s by Sherry Bowen, a typesetter and, later city editor for the Arizona Daily Star. Bowen brought his wife, Ruby, to Tucson from Rockford, Illinois, in the late twenties, hoping that the climate would help her serious heart condition. They homesteaded in the Tucson Mountains eventually owning two thousand acres. Ruby kept a diary of her first year in the Tucson Mountains. She wrote of the wild mountain sheep that came to the base of the cliffs nearly every evening to graze. A mountain lion would pace about when she was cooking meat and one time attempted to get in the window. The valley and their homestead became part of the Tucson Mountain Park in 1983.
We have an exciting hike coming up to the CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS. Rising from dry grasslands, the Chiricahua (chee-ree-KAH-wah) Mountains hold a wonderland of rock formations, spectacular views, diverse plant and animal life, and a variety of hiking trails. The name may come from the Opata Indian word Chiguicagui, meaning “mountain of the wild turkeys.” Volcanic rock, fractured by slow uplift of the region, has eroded into strangely shaped forms. Weathering of softer rock at the base of some columns creates the appearance of giant boulders balanced delicately on pedestals. This will be a 3 day event, staying overnite in Wilcox.
So our winter has been as active as we wish it to be. Some days we just read or take naps! But have been trying to get that exercise in for sure. I know for some back in the midwest that it may sound like I am boasting but I do know it has been hard. Do I miss it? The cold no, the snow no, the excitement of a big storm yes. Weird I know!
To all our friends and family, please take care if driving in the snow and sunshine! Please take the time to drop us a line and let us know how you are.
Happy Trails