Sandhill cranes - Willcox AZ

I've been putting pics on Facebook and neglecting this blog, oops!  I've got a lot of catching up but to start off 2015...

January 17 through 18, we went to Willcox, AZ to see the sandhill cranes that winter there.  I'd been there back in 2003 for a short half day.  This time, we decided to stay in Benson (very relaxing Comfort Inn with a full breakfast) and drive to see the cranes.

We drove down from Phoenix Friday and stopped at the Singing Winds Bookstore outside of Benson. What a find!  I could have stayed all day.  Fantastic selection of books on all topics southwestern and more.  The owner has an eclectic range of topics and will provide an orientation and then you can browse to your hearts content.

We had dinner in Sierra Vista at the Mesquite Tree.  Note to self: when going to a local restaurant, stick with the specialties, not the specials.  We liked the "Texas Twigs", batter dipped fried jalapeno strips.  The fish and fettuccine were not so good.

The "Wings over Willcox" promo has become a lot of pricey tours that are unnecessary.  The advertisements are not very forthcoming on where to see the cranes but with a little checking on old Trip Advisor reviews and talking with a couple locals, we found the areas to explore.  There are places where they stay at night (usually by water) and places where they feed during the day (corn fields, mostly).

We got up 5am Saturday to head over to the AEPCO wildlife area.  There's parking here and a ramp with a railing.  This was NOT a nesting area this year (they move from year to year) but we could see thousands of them coming across from the mountains to the fields just before dawn.  I don't have a telescopic lens so these aren't up close and personal.  The site of waves of birds across the sky was spectacular..if it hadn't been 27 degrees!

 We drove to Wilcox Playa Wildlife area but weren't sure of the trails so we didn't get out and check for birds feeding.  We drove along Kansas Settlement Road on the way and spotted a few birds in the fields but they do blend in and can disappear if the leftover stalks are high.

After grabbing a lunch, we headed over to Whitewater Draw, near McNeil.  This was a great spot.  Some folks had been there all day. We got in about 3:30 and stayed till just after sun down.  I got the best pictures here.

There were several hundred birds within range of the camera and many hundreds more on the far side of these wetlands.  There were also ducks and many birds that had the aficionados snapping pics and ogling with binoculars.

A nice start to the New Year and with gas being at a low price, it wasn't to pricey either!

The cranes are in Willcox area until late February.  There are other outdoor activities in the area too that we'll explore another time.

Overland Expo at Mormon Lake

It's been a long time since I've updated our travel blog with our adventures.  About time I got back to it!
This past weekend we headed up to Mormon Lake, outside of Flagstaff, Arizona for the Overland Expo, an extravaganza of extreme trucks and campers for getting to far out places. Check out the pictures!  The orange one is an Element modified for camping.

monster camper

Element with hinged roof

Jeep with overhead tent

 A gathering of the the folks from the Truck Camper forum on RV.net were there and it was a chance to met up with everyone in person.  While I socialized, Mike put in miles hiking on the Arizona Trail.  He racked up 11.75 the first day and 11.9 the second, finishing the stretch in the area except for 2 miles that were closed for repairs.

Mike at Arizona Trail Pine Grove campground

 It was very windy during the day with no campfires allowed so we sat in a circle introducing ourselves while shivering from the cold.  That's me bundled up, two over from the folks under the blanket.

RV net group around campfire (from Jefe 4x4)

Our TC was cozy and warm the whole time.  It was neat that with all the outdoor enthusiasts gathered at the event, the evenings were very quiet.  No shouting or partying, no loud music or barking dogs.  I'm guessing there were a couple thousand people there during the weekend.  In addition to the TCs, there were lots of tent campers and motorcyclists.  It was good to get away for the weekend and enjoy this great state.

Natchez Trace

We're wandering back from the East Coast and today we came through Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi covering the entire Natchez Trace, 444 miles.  One long highway enclosed in trees that roughly follows the path of those who were returning on foot from a trip down the Mississippi River.  We took a short walk to a waterfall near where we started out in Tennessee and stole some shots of the cypress swamp in Mississippi.  Life is so good.