Ringing in the New Year at Kartchner Caverns State Park- Benson, AZ

We wish you a healthy and prosperous 2012!  We are ringing in the New Year at Kartchner Caverns State Park near Benson.  This morning we explored the wet cave on the Rotunda/Throne Room tour and tomorrow morning we will explore the Big Room.  Pictures are not allowed in the cave itself, but I can tell you that God’s hand is at work in the cave and it is amazing! (Just tune out the “hundreds of thousands of years” as the ranger explains the stalactite and stalagmite formations.)  Kartchner caverns is a wet and warm cave which is very interesting in this arid desert land!

We are tucked into the state park’s campground and are enjoying temps in the low 70’s.  A short walk from the campground to the Discovery Center and we were on our way into the caverns!  A tram takes you from the center to the cave opening.

Then after being properly informed about protecting the cave, we were allowed to enter.  Strategic lighting highlights the soda straws, columns, stalactites and stalagmites, and drapery formed from calcite.  There is also a music & light show towards the end of the tour to highlight the largest column in Arizona, Khubla Khan.

Once fueled up with lunch, we took the dogs on the Foothills Loop Trailhead, where we enjoyed grand vistas on a trail relatively unoccupied!

Traversing 2.5 miles up and around the hills that cover the caverns, we wonder how big is this cavern?

We look forward to experiencing the Big Room tour on New Year’s Day! 

Usery Mountain Regional Park- Mesa, AZ

We spent the first part of our Christmas Break among the cactus of the Sonoran Desert while staying at Usery Mountain Regional Park near Mesa, Arizona.  Usery Mountain is a Maricopa County Regional Park with large camping sites that have a state park feel!

The park is close to the 202 for ease of travel  to points in Mesa and made a great stop in order for us to get a few replacement pieces for the new Road Warrior and have a wonderful barbecue with family in the area! 

The park features a 5 star archery range with 4 miles of trails to various targets.  Caleb pulled out his recurve bow and got started!

We saw coyote, javelina, mule deer, turkey, quail, rabbit, black bears and more!  Of course, they were of the burlap variety.

Eventually we called it a day and headed back to the campground to plan out our next adventure.  There are many multi-use trails at the park and we decided to try out the popular Wind Cave trail. 

Two miles up and two miles down with a 600 foot elevation change to scamper up the decomposed granite trail of Pass Mountain to reach Wind Cave. 

We hiked up to where you can see the green band of lichen on the mountain and kept going until we got to … the cave!

We decided “cave” may be a misnomer as this seemed more like an “alcove”, but it was a great shady spot to grab a snack and peer over the valley below.

Being the most popular trail, there was a steady stream of people going both directions.  Going down sure seemed easier than going up, however a few others we saw along with myself, slipped on the granite onto our rumps.  Fueled up with lunch, Caleb took another run at the archery range.

Then it was time for our (second) trip to Bass Pro!  New shoes were on the list this time, along with some more archery supplies!

Tomorrow we point the truck to the south as we venture to one of Arizona’s State Parks! 

Christmas Break 2011- Road Warrior

I’m not sure how Santa managed, but he delivered a beautiful Heartland Road Warrior in time for Christmas Break!  We waved a fond farewell to our Montana Mountaineer, a rig that had served our travels well.  We look forward to many more wonderful journeys in our new 5th wheel.

Introducing to you our Heartland Road Warrior RW305 Toyhauler!  Measuring in at 35’, it is the same length as we are accustomed to.  Noticeably different is the 10’ garage in the rear that easily accommodates bikes/gear, large dogs and adds an extra ‘room’ for Caleb! 

Stay tuned, the dormant travel blog will awaken as we travel the next two weeks around the deserts of Arizona and California!