We're continuing to have fun on our rides with our bicycle club around the Yuma area -- here is a sample of the rides and the good time that we're having in our little bicycling paradise --
The Yuma bike chicks stopping for a break at Starbucks / Subway
Out on an old abandoned bridge over the Gila River -- which was flowing pretty significantly
The Gila flowing across the road out in the Mohawk Valley east of Yuma -- one of our favorite riding areas
All ready for the start of the annual Tour de Yuma
Club member Mark B. in the top podium position as this year's winner of the Tour de Yuma
As I'd indicated in an earlier post, I took a trip to Seattle and Sequim in mid-March to see my Mother and get her taxes done. I had a great time seeing her, as well as my sister Margaret and her husband Charlie.
My Mom and sister Margaret
After my visit in Washington state, I flew back only as far as Denver, where I picked up the Mazda 4WD pickup we'd bought from my brother Tom in Boulder. Two days of (fortunately) uneventful driving got me back to Yuma, and we're enjoying having not only another vehicle, but one which we can more easily take out into the desert. When we leave here in May, we'll put it in our storage unit, and have it all ready for some adventures next season. We did get the chance to take it out on one of our monthly "full moon" desert potlucks, but any more exploring will have to wait for next season.
The moon just rising over one of our "full moon" potlucks
Shortly after getting back to Yuma, we took off on our trip to the Tucson area for some bike riding. About 16 members of the bike club went on the trip this year, and everyone had a great time enjoying the Tucson area. On one of our days there Mandy and I organized and led a 50 mile ride to the Colossal Cave area southeast of Tucson which worked out well -- I'd hoped to scout the whole route ahead of time as I drove back to Yuma from Denver, but only got a little bit of that accomplished in my rushed trip back. In any event, it didn't matter as we found a great route and had a wonderful day riding and sightseeing.
Relaxing at Colossal Cave just outside of Tucson
The next day split the riders -- some opting for the ride to the Sonoran Desert Musuem, while others tried their legs out on the Mt. Lemmon climb. Greg made it to the 18 mile marker at about 7000 feet, while most of the other stronger riders made it all the way to the ski area at 8700 feet (as a reference the climb starts at 2500 feet). Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of the event, but would highly recommend this drive -- its very scenic with a beautiful road, great rock formations, and super views back into the Tucson valley. You travel from the hot desert environment all the way up to pine trees, forest cabins, and skiers (in season) -- all in all, a very unique trip. For cyclists, its one of the best climbing rides in the country.
Just last week we drove over to Phoenix for a three day visit with our good friends Mike and Dana, and to take care of Mandy's annual cardiologist visit. We did some great rides with Mike and Dana in the east valley /Queen Creek area of Phoenix, and had a great time in their pool and hot tub afterward. We'll be able to take advantage of their hospitality again just after the first of May, as we'll need to return for a couple of additional tests -- and will stay the weekend for a couple of bike rides.
As a side note, while we at Mike and Dana's, we got re-introduced to the Wii Fit. We'd been considering one for some time, but really hadn't had a chance to try out the new Wii Fit Plus software until our visit with them. Long story short, we are now enjoying our own Wii Fit Plus, and getting some good cross training from our cycling.
We're planning on closing things up here about the 14th of May and heading out for the summer. We will be busy between now and then with moving our lot items to our lot for next year (we'll be in the Los Amigos community, just on a different street). We have access to the lot now, and will be setting up the shed to store the items we don't put in storage. We still haven't found a lot to buy yet, but as long as we can keep renting in the same area, that's OK.
When we pull out we'll have a couple of weeks to get from here to Spearfish, so we'll be spending some time in Santa Fe visiting my brother (and biking at 7000 ft), as well as a week in the Denver area, seeing my brother, Mandy's sister and her husband, and other friends in the area. We'll also get a few motorhome recall items done at the Freightliner dealer in Albuquerque on the way -- and finally get to our volunteer job at D. C. Booth Fish Hatchery on the first of June. We'll be there for two months, roam around Montana during August, and then head to Texas for September and October, to volunteer at Balcones NWR just outside Austin (and just down the road from our kid's place in Liberty Hill).
We also wanted to share some of the beautiful cactus blooms that we're getting here this spring -- these are ones that are in our yard!
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