Twenty-seven million years ago, eruptions from the Turkey Creek Volcano spewed ash over 3100 sq. km. in this area or the Chiricahua Mountains and created layers of grey rock called rhyolite. Weathering by ice and water erosion enlarged cracks and formed spires and balancing rocks. The Chiricahua Apache called them “standing up rocks” – a … More In the Magical Land of the Standing Up Rocks
There are numerous tourist sites within an hour’s drive of Bisbee; all of them uniquely fascinating. We began with Tombstone; a small town that has developed into a walloping tourist destination by capitalizing on the infamous Shootout at the OK Corral. This gunfight took place on October 26, 1881; a showdown over control of Tombstone … More From shoot-outs to sandhill cranes to spelunking
This open pit copper mine is one of the first things you see as you drive into Bisbee and this is the exact view from our trailer. We do have a 6-foot fence that prevents us from rolling down the hill into the bottom. We are camped out at Queen Mine RV Park for a … More Sleeping 900 feet above a copper mine
A week ago, we drove back to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, seeking refuge from the snow and sub-zero temperatures that were forecast just about everywhere else in Arizona. What we got instead was rain – torrential rain that poured for hours and hours and created flash floods and turned dry arroyos into treacherous creeks … More Snow in Arizona – it’s a beautiful thing.
First of all, I strongly dislike the term “snowbird” and the image it portrays. Older folks fleeing snow and cold and then huddling in groups for safety and comfort. There is little diversity in campgrounds and RV parks – this is the playground of senior retired white people in protective hats and three-season activewear. And … More The Snowbirds are freezing in Tucson
Sometimes certain realities take longer to sink in than others. With the exception of distinct regional accents, I never thought of Americans and Canadians as being that different from one another. Most Americans comment on the fact that we don’t sound “Canadian”, so I guess we blend in. We’ve been to the U.S countless times … More Defending the border in southern Arizona
With recent headlines about threats of violence against the busloads of migrants approaching Tijuana, along with border shut-down uncertainties, we headed to Mexico with a good measure of unease. We had made the decision long ago to avoid Tijuana (world’s busiest border crossing), and go through at Tecate, about two hours east. Now we figured … More Baja’s wine region busts out
We had never spent much time in deserts before – just drove through and gazed out the car window at scrubland and tawny hillsides without understanding what we were looking at. After Death Valley, with its negligible vegetation, and Joshua Tree, a little lusher and now Anza Borrego, lusher and more varied still, we’re beginning … More Anza Borrego: bring a jeep
I think the memo went out years ago: travelling around the U.S. during American Thanksgiving week is not for the faint of heart. However, if you’re on the road you are going to land somewhere, and Joshua Tree was it. We figured the park would be busy, but we tried to convince ourselves that everyone … More Visiting Joshua Tree National Park on Black Friday
I came to Las Vegas with more than a little trepidation. Stephen has been here three times on field schools with students, and was keen for me to see it as well. “You’ve gotta go at least once,” was his sales pitch and when our friends Lorne and Anne decided to meet up with us, … More Waking up in Vegas
Leaving Ourselves Behind 