Camping plans

Kevin bought a $200 Eureka tent a few days ago and wants to go on a family camp-out soon. I don't know what surprises and delights me more, the fact that he's showing an interest in camping again, or that he actually bought a high-value item for us! This is a 10x10 family tent, big enough for our weekend gear and three happy dogs.

We haven't gone camping since our week in Arizona's White Mountains two summers ago. Sadie's never been out camping.

But where to go? I suggested we try the Dos Cabesas Wilderness south of Willcox. He agreed. We had both suggested last year that area was worth exploring some more, both for its remote beauty but also for its Apache history and the many "finds" there. There are two reliable springs in the higher elevations as well so that the dogs would have fun, too. The hike would be more of a bushwhack, away from annoying horses or even more annoying flatlanders from Texas who I always seem to run into in that part of our copper state.

Now we have to figure out when we are going. I have a hike planned for this Saturday, back up French Joe Canyon, to replace a work event that was cancelled. Rain is again forecasted for late Saturday.

The week of 15-20 March I'm on spring break but will be busy with research. And the following weekend I'm leading a hike to Picacho Peak, an old Confederate look-out peak during the brief time Arizona played a part in the Civil War. Picacho Peak is doomed to close after the wildflower season this spring and I want one more hike up there before that state park gets shuttered.

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On another note, my sister Alex is planning a wedding. She hasn't announced when or where this wedding will be, but her ideas run from Orlando to Vegas to somewhere in North Carolina to Nice, France. I'd love to have an excuse to see North Carolina again. I'm no fan of Florida (too much asphalt and assholes to contend with) but the flora and the few remaining Spanish sites would be enough to lure me toward Orlando. (I will not be caught dead inside Disney World!) Vegas would be close-by and an easy eight-hour drive, but from there I'd be tempted to climb up nearby Mount Charleston, another "Must Bag" on my list of mountains. The city itself does nothing for me.

So, I'll guess I'll find out more when Alex is ready to make the announcement. She'll be in Vegas scouting out that place this weekend. But if she gets married this summer it may hamper my plans for a road trip to Oregon. Either way I'll be on a long road trip no matter where my plans lead me to this summer. I don't think I'll have the money nor the mindset to see both Florida and Oregon in a leisurely time frame, without rushing anything or simply to "get it done and over with."
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Meanwhile, my apricot, pear, apple, blueberry plants and potatoes are budding or in bloom!