COTTONWOOD PARK IN IDAHO

From deserts to lush green trees...this has been a trip. First, I have to say that we made our trip to Lake Powell just fine. But when we got there it was all desert around a lake that was packed with people and boats. The RV campgrounds was not near the water and to top it off they charged $42.00 a night. We didn't see any thing that was worth that high fee so we drove on down the road. Spent the night sleeping at a truck stop at Beaver, Utah. As it turned out it was a very good move. As we pulled into the truck stop a guy came over and asked if we were having problems. He heard the trailer axles snapping and popping when we rounded the corner. We had to replace the shackles on the trailer as they were shot. We knew they were going bad but didn't know they were pass the "going" stage and made it to the bad. Just what we needed when going into the mountains was to have a wheel fall off. We got a pretty fair deal on replacing them so we are $800.00  lighter... hmmm, not the kind of lessing of weight we had planned but once again the Angels were watching out for us. That could have been a very dangerous situation.

We saw a lot of beautiful country from mountains to painted deserts...

I took a lot of beautiful pictures but the internet connection is extremely slow here where we are staying. But one of the pictures I have to share is of an energy ball that I just happened to capture as we drove pass. I was taking a picture of a lavender farm just the other side of Ogden (a town pass Salt Lake City, Utah. As it turns out there was a major fire in that area not long after we passed it.  Seems the fire started from powerlines too close together and arcing during a storm. Everything I heard fits together so I have a feeling that this energy ball had something to do with the burning down fifty two homes and the taking of two lives...

At first I thought the ball of light was on top of the mountain but Phil pointed out that it was on the power lines. But I cannot explain the shaft of darkness just pass it on the left. Sunrays through clouds maybe? Who knows, but for sure there is a malfunction in the power lines. We looked back over the desert and saw the smoke from the fire as we were going through Idaho. We also went through a lot of high wind and rain just after this photo was taken.

Since this isn't a good or even a half way decent internet connection I will have to limit my photos. So the last one for today shows the Salmon River. This is running just outside our door and we overlook it from our windows. An oasis of beautiful lush green and a river runs through it...

This is what we see from our campsite looking down river. A rain had just passed which allowed the far mountains to really show up good. The girls are so funny when I let them outside. The first thing they do is run out and bark at the river. They have never heard rushing waters. We are staying at the Cottonwood State Recreational Park. Which is fifteen miles below Ennis, Idaho on Hwy 93. They except the senor pass so the stay is only $5.00 a night.  The first night we camped on the other side next to the mountain face so it wasn't very pretty. But the next morning when people began leaving we had our choice of spots. Nice! We are paid up through Sunday. Not sure if we will stay longer or not. We are about one fifty miles from Phil's sister in Montana which is our destination.

Life has been wonderful as we dance with the Angels across the United States of America. The dance is a beautiful one with everyone dancing to their own "heart" beat to as the tune of life plays on.

May Angel Wings Caress You and Keep You Safe...  And May You Keep On Dancing...

Here it is Sunday and I'm left wondering where the last two weeks went? Time has flown by quickly and it is time to begin packing up for moving again.  As my mind begins to grasp the meaning I begin to feel the sadness of leaving my friends behind me as we venture forth into the world. It has been a time of peace, relaxation, and great inner revelations.

Both Phil and I have came to the conclusion that we really don't care for the bleakness and heat of a desert in the middle of summer. It is true that it is a dry heat but it is still too much heat for us. The area certainly has a lot of beauty and wildlife is there to see. But the only thing I've seen has been a lynx cutting across the middle of the land moving fast. Lizards, jackrabbits, cottontails, quail, white wing doves, finches, sparrows, hawks, and some birds that I am not sure of the names. And lets not forget the ants... everywhere. One thing I did notice was that there were no mosquitos. That is a huge plus for deserts lol. We shall return here to Sun Camp the first part of next October. We have plans for staying one month so that we may help with a few of the projects that need completing. It shall be interesting to see what the area looks like at that time of year.

The other day I saw my first "herd" of  jackrabbits.  I don't know what you call a group of over fifteen jackrabbits but herd gets the idea across. I could not get them all into a photo because they scattered when I approached. I did not have time to adjust the settings on the camera so the rabbits are not in perfect focus but this shows a few of them that didn't get away fast enough...

As you can see they are big rabbits with long legs, long ears, and a long black tail. I believe that they are classified as a hare rather then a rabbit. When I first saw them I thought I was looking at a fox or small coyote but soon realized it was a rabbit.

And it seems that everywhere you look there are the ground squirrels. The ground is so full of holes that you have to be aware of where you walk just to keep from twisting an ankle. A couple of them have gotten used to seeing me on the bike so they are getting brave. They will allow me to ride up pretty close before ducking into a hole for protection...

The residents here at Sun Camp feed the local wildlife so there are plenty of birds, rabbits, and ground squirrels. I find it amazing that I have yet to see a snake. Even at night when taking the dogs out I have not seen one.

I will miss the feeling of love and peace that I find within this church. This is an old building and many have sang the praises of God within it's walls. The main part of the building is a nine sided round building. Each section is a different color almost like a rainbow room. The walls do not clash with each other but rather blend together. Very nice. The entry way is guarded by two angels sitting back to back with each facing a walkway...

Here is a photo of the non-traditional christian church as I see it...

As this day begins to pass I will be busy going through boxes to lighten our load and pass on what I can to this community. Some of the things that they were needing we have donated to them such as our crystals, books, crystal bowl, and a flat screen tv that was needed in the church. It has been fun.

But the sun is setting on this great adventure....

 

The time has come for us to move on to the next campsite down the road. Our goal is to make a stopover at Lake Powell (Page, Az) area. Hopefully, Phil will be able to put his boat in the water and check out the monster trout of that area. 

May you continue to dance to the tune of life. May your reality be filled with joy, love, and peace. And may the Angels surround you with their protecting wings as your dance continues. No matter what just keep on dancing..........

 

AN AMAZING DAY

Wow, what a visit here in Arizona. Things have been happening non stop. Blessings have been in abundance since our decision to give the "Lightwave" crystal to Ashlem by placing it into the safe keeping of Rev. Bob Copeland. Ashlem is a Tibetian Spiritual Guide that speaks through Rev. Copeland. This is a large very special group crystal and has great healing powers. There is a reason that I am mentioning this as you will see later in the writings.

Our day begin with a visit to our good friend and teacher... Dr. Hannelore Stumpf of Phoenix, Arizona...

She is an anchor of "Light" in the Phoenix area. Although she has retired from the public she is still doing a daily meditation prayer. We had the great honor of attending one last Thursday. During which she rang her healing Tibetian bowl on my back injuries... What an experience... I could feel the healing taking place. And I can truthfully say that I have not experience pain in my back since. I stand in amazement as I have had pain since I was eighteen years of age. My spine was injured in three places from a car accident. Here is a picture of her Tibetian bowls. The large one in the rear is the one she calls her healing bowl. It is amazing...

She also has a large collection of Tibetian bells...

After our visit with Hannelore we returned to Sun Camp where we were greeted by Joyce Provence...

Another dear friend.  Joyce does Iridology and is very gifted at it. This picture of her was taken while she, Bob, Phil and I sat in Bob's living room discussing old times and the Lightwave Crystal. The lamp near the empty chair turned on by itself (so to speak) which was a delight. I welcomed our unseen visitor as Phil put the lampshade back on the lamp so the light would not shine into people's eyes. He had just gotten seated back in his chair when the lampshade shook. The shaking was hard enough for us to know that it wasn't a breeze or something to that effect. I feel that the unseen guest was Ashlem. What a treat !

I would also like to make note that while I was sending the above photo to Mary Jane Holland and telling her about the lamp. When I wrote that I felt it was Ashlem who had turned on the lamp a dust devil from out of no where shook our trailer. It did no damage but did cause a laugh.

We have been on the go for a few days and it is nice to slow down. We have decided to wait until after July 9th before making our way towards Montana to visit Phil's sister "Adella". We have been on the road long enough to have learned that it is hard to find a place to stay during major holidays. So to keep from spending another night in a Walmart parking lot we are not going to leave until after the rush. Meanwhile, we plan another trip to visit our friend Hannelore and to the helping Bob around the camp. As usual, Phil is doing needed repairs. We are indeed dancing with Angels (seen and unseen) to the tune of life..... May Angel Wings Surround You and May You Continue to Keep On Dancing....

 

THE VALLEY TOUR

Rev. Bob Copeland returned to Sun Spiritualist Camp Sunday. We were treated to dinner at the Cracker Barrel restaurant in Buckeye, Az. That is a very unique place with antigues and gifts. Naturally, you walk through the temptation of the gifts store before you go into the restaurant part of the building. I was glad that I had left my purse at home.

We unloaded the crystals, books, flat screen tv, and a few other items that we are giving to Bob or the Camp. I say we, but the truth is Phil did all the lifting and carrying of the items.  This should lighten the load that we pull quiet a bit. I also noted that we are still down sizing, learning what is important and what is not. I even went through and toss out all of my "big" clothes. I have one more dress size to drop and I will be back at what I weighed before the thyroid problem. That is a good feeling of accomplishment.

Today, Bob took us out sight seeing in the desert. He took us to see the Palo Verde Nuclear Plant...

As he talked about the founder of Sun Spiritualist Camp and the dream he followed as to it's creation. He was told to look for the sleeping indian. And in the distance there is a mountain that looks like an Indian sleeping...

After showing this to us Bob took us to see the King of Arizona. If you look closely at the right side of this mountain you can see a man's face...

This mountain is part of the Kofa mountain range. They were named for the King of Arizona gold mine, discovered in King Valley in 1896. The mine used to stamp their property "K of A" and hence the name, Kofa. They are arid and rugged volcanic remnants of the Tertiary period.

We then went through the Harquahala Valley area. I was amazed to find so my green in the middle of a desert. There were miles of alfalfa fields, corn, maize, cotton, and plants unknown to me. Most of the fields belonged to Del Monte. That was a total surprise to discover. This a photo I took of an alfalfa field as we passed by...

The secret is water. There are miles of aqua ducts running through the valley to carry the water. This must be how they made deserts flourish in the ancient days of Egypt. As we drove we arrived at a Outback Australian Tree Plantation...

 They grow eucalyptus and other Australian desert trees for market here in Arizona. I was very impressed with their operation. They had mounds of rich black compost, row after row of covered seedlings.

After the valley tour Bob treated us to the history of Tonopah Joe and we sat in the Tonopah Joe Restaurant. He is a photo of Phil playing around...

We thoroughly enjoyed the tour and the history of the area. Including this old building...

Thanks to Bob, we discovered that this was once the Harquahala Courthouse. Can't you just see the law of the west in this old building? Only thing missing is the hitching post.

Well this day has ended and a new one shall begin tomorrow. Meanwhile, remember to keep on dancing...

THE ROLLER COASTER RIDE

I have had a stomach infection but I'm starting to feel a little bit better.  At the Santa Rosa State Park in New Mexico we lost our front landing gear in trying to set up at a campsite. The twisting of the trailer due to a poorly designed camp site cause the back fender of the truck to twist. It also totally wrecked the top of Phil's toolbox. We watched another person nearly take out the bottom of his trailer. Can't say that I recommend that camp ground. The water was very low and hard to get to. But they did have a nice boat ramp. I saw my first red snake there. After checking on the internet I think it is a rat snake...

The area around Albuquerque was pretty. It is a large city and things are painted in a southwest theme. The overpasses are gentle on the eyes with their earth tone colors highlighted with a turquoise splash. Even the water tanks are painted southwestern..

We turned onto I-25 at Alburquergue, NM and at Socorro we got on Hwy 60. Now, that was a trip. We had no idea what we were in for but soon discovered we were on a roller coaster that only got more thrilling as we rode it. There was a long valley that the National Radio Astronomy had put up their dishes and they stretched as far as we could see. There was one close enought to the road to get a good picture of it...

 At Show Low, Az we entered the Apache Reservation. It was beautiful with the tall pines and steep canyons. There were signs that stated, "watch out for elk". I watched but never saw one lol. At one point we could smell smoke and thought maybe lightening may have started another fire as a rain had just gone through the area.

The area between Show Low and Globe sorta reminded us of the Grand Canyon only prettier. Then we hit Devil's Canyon. All I can say is wow what a ride. We stopped at several places and looked at the views. There were several places that cars had gone off the road and into the canyon. Here is a photo of one of them...

The road had switch backs and sharp s turns...

We decided to spend the night on a Walmart parking lot in Globe, Arizona. It was a rough night because of the heat. Next morning we hit the road again and made the trip all the way to Tonopah, Arizona. We are staying at The Sun Spiritualist Camp off 355th Avenue and I-10 about 90 miles from Quartzsite.  I've never been a desert person so this is a new experience for me. But an interesting one. There is more life in the desert then I had ever dreamed off. But that is a tale for tomorrow. May Angel Wings Surround you ... and you keep on dancing...

FROM OKLAHOMA TO SANTA ROSA, NEW MEXICO

It was a long trip from Oklahoma to New Mexico and it was interesting.   The fun thing about Interstate 40 is that it was the highway that replaced the Route 66 highway.  So that means you get to see the sights that Route 66 is famous for. For example the cars planted in the pasture. Which I saw but didn't get a chance for a photo. I did get to get a photo of the famous giant cross in West Texas...

Between western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle there were miles and miles of wind generators with their blade slowly turning in the wind. I had heard that they were  dangerous to birds. But as I watched them  turning I came to the conclusion that it would be a really stupid bird to fly into a blade. The blades turn too slowly. I don't know if that fact changes during extremely high winds but I do know we had a pretty stiff little wind going on at the time...

When we left Oklahoma there was a rain storm coming in. Somewhere between Amarillo and Santa Rosa we were passed by several storm chasers.  Guess they  chased the storm that dropped the golfball size hail around the Dallas, Tx area...

We saw trains coming and going on the miles and miles of railroad tracks that ran along side the highway. This yellow train caught my eye because of the big American flag that it displayed...

There were miles and miles of views such as this one...

As the sun hung low in the sky we were close to our destination at the Santa Rosa Lake State Park...

We checked into a campsite and discovered that the landing gear wouldn't work so it was a rough night of trying to sleep on a bed that tilted. Had to be careful not to roll over in your sleep or you would roll off the bed onto the floor. We are shortening our stay here so that Phil can get a new landing gear in Phoenix.  The draw tight hitch for the boat needs stabalizing as it is starting to bend. Most of the things needed will be found in Phoenix area.

We went out sightseeing today and took some photos of the park which I will post tomorrow. Meanwhile.... remember "Keep On Dancing"...

LAST DAY AT LAKE THUNDERBIRD

Here it is, time to think about packing up and moving on. I can imagine how the wagon train women felt as they traveled the west. Constantly setting up and breaking camp. Not my favorite thing. But something I do so that I will have the joy of this chosen lifestyle. The traveling and seeing new places, people and things. I cannot remember when I have been more at peace with life. As you know, Libra Horoscope is the sign of the scales... mine are in balanced and it is a good feeling. I feel blessed.

It has been a great visit here at Lake Thunderbird. Yesterday I went bike riding up to the abandoned park . For the first time I saw signs of life.  Little lizards ran everywhere and one seemed to be leading me in. There were rabbits, several deer, and the birds were everywhere. Life has returned and the curse put upon the land for whatever reason no longer exist. I pray that someday all people will understand the power behind the spoken word. It can create our reality.

And the visit with my daughter has been a wonderful one. I gained a great insight and understanding of her, myself and life. Both she and I have the ruling planet Venus. She is a Taurus and I being Libra have more in common then I ever dreamed. I tend to absorb life while she tends to be experiencing  it. I saw a lot of myself in her. She is living the "homestead" lifestyle that Phil and I once desired when she was young. But most important she is basically happy with her life. Although she would also like to change a few of the experiences she has a good life. That is a heart healer for me.

Yesterday was a good visit with her and her lifemate Tim. Sat and Sunday we had their friends and family stopping in. There was games played, lesson  sessons, and plenty of food and laughter over the last few days...

Here is Phil teaching Mikal (our daughter) some of what he knows about flyfishing.

They took time out and helped to finish up the work on Phil's boat trailer. Tim gave Phil the roller that needed replacing and helped Phil put it in place. This is Phil, Tim and Mikal working on the boat trailer...

Mikal gave Phil his Father's Day present...

I could see his surprise when he opened the silver box and saw it loaded in flies for flyfishing. Later I swapped Tim my catfish "Hog" fishing rod and reel for his fly rod and reel for Phil. Phil was one "Happy Camper". Everybody celebrated... (Even Boston, their Boston Terrier had fun)...

This afternoon we will begin the packing up the outside so that we can hit the road tomorrow. Our plans are to travel to Santa Rosa, New Mexico,within a two day timeframe. Spend a week and then move on to Phoenix, Arizona. Our stop in Phoenix is to visit Dr. Hannelore Stumpf, a very dear friend. To avoid the heat we will move quickly across the western desert states to get to the northern part of California.

Time to close and begin this day.  May Angel Wings Surround You.  No Matter What Beat Of The Drum You Dance To ... May You Keep On Dancing...