Last Days
It's HOT, and we are ready to leave Indian Skies. Record breaking spring
temperatures here in Coolidge have finally forced us to switch on the
air-conditioning. Easter called many of our seasonal residents home
to reunite with their families in Canada and the northern US states
of Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, though the weather there is
still very wintry. The last two weeks has seen many more leaving.
We had planned to travel as soon as our new fifth wheel was ready,
and do some sight-seeing before arriving in Idaho at the beginning of
May. But we encountered a few hitches.
After picking up our new Sabre 5th
wheel in El Paso on 28th March, and having it inspected
for Texas license plates, we had a couple of nights to check it out.
They say that you rarely get a new 5th wheel that is in
pristine condition – and we were advised to do a thorough check
just to be sure that everything worked. Luckily some of the issues
we found during those first few days where not real problems at all.
Thanks to one of our Indian Skies friends, Tom Moser, who worked in
the RV industry for years, our user errors and ignorance were soon
put straight and we discovered that we did have a water heater that
worked, and there were no major electric issues. He even pointed out
some easy fixes for the other things we discovered, but we decided to
get the dealer to do the work for us since they were covered by
warranty.
Some were quick cosmetic type fixes,
but others were not. One of the gas stove top burners would not
light, the awning hung so low when it was extended that it rubbed on
the top of the door, a bracket holding the cabling under the
slide-out had broken and the cabling was rubbing against the tire.
Worst, was the broken water spout which was not diverting rainwater
off the roof, and we were worried about a possible leaking seal below
it.
We booked the trailer into the
dealership and were advised it might take two weeks for the work to
be done. As the cool spring finally turned warmer, we finished
working at our camp-hosting jobs at the end of April. Since then we
have had nothing to do but wait and plan our trip north... and play
cards, refresh my tan, host and go to farewell meals and
get-togethers. It's been 5.00 clock somewhere in this RV park pretty
much constantly!
 |
| Canyon Lake |
Finally things were quiet. Having been
told, we would get our RV back on Friday 13th , and knowing
we would probably set off on our travels over the coming weekend, we
decided to go on a little road trip. The date for pick up and the trip we made are not related.
The Superstition mountain range is basically a volcanic caldera, with some year
round water sources. Driving into the range, there are a three man
made lakes, and the first of these is a popular tourist destination from the
Phoenix area. We thought the slightly higher elevation might get us
out of the 100 degree heat (38 C), but it only dropped a couple of
degrees.
How the indigenous people and the
miners who came searching for gold in the late 1800's survived the
heat I don't know. There's a lovely legend that explains the stone
pillars that line the top of the main Superstition mountain,
 |
| Superstition Mountain |
which
seems to me to have its roots in a bible story. A great flood was
sent by god to punish the native American tribe that inhabited the
surrounding area, and as they climbed Superstition Mountain to escape
the water, they were so scared they were turned to stone.
Other legends center around hidden gold
–according to the Apache Indians, gold lies hidden in a cave behind
a waterfall, guarded by a pigmy tribe. The Lost Dutchman mine legend
is based on a German miner called Jacob Waltz who seemingly found the
mother lode but wouldn't tell anyone it's location. Suffice to say
there's gold in them there hills, but not that anyone can find.
Richard was sure he could find it and spent a good amount of time
looking behind rocks!
Nowadays, tourists drive the Apache
trail – once a stage coach and freight wagon route from Mesa to
Globe, to visit museums, an old mining ghost town which has been
restored to entertain visitors,
 |
| Goldfield Ghost Town |
 |
| Mammoth Steakhouse and Saloon |
and the bathroom facilities at Tortilla Flat – a town of 7 inhabitants that was originally a stagecoach stop much frequented by Jacob Waltz a hundred years ago.
 |
| Ladies restroom at Tortilla Flat |
Comments
Post a Comment