January, 2022 (Part 2)

When I blogged last time, we had just arrived in a place called Benson, Arizona.  That was January 23.  A lot has happened since then.

I've developed a keen interest in TV,
especially shows involving dogs.

This is where we stayed in Benson.  It's a large Co-op RV Park associated
with Escapee's which is a camping club Mom and Dad belong to. It's on a
hillside and terraced so everyone gets a view of the Dragoon Mountains
(seen in this photo).  This picture is taken from the water tower on
the hill behind the park.  All of the RV lots are owned by people
and when they are gone, other members of the club (like us) can stay there. 
There are lots of activities in the park - Mom and Dad went to Happy
Hour a couple of times and they went to a concert where they heard
a guy who used to be part of the New Christy Minstrels. I'm too
young to remember them, but they were a folk group popular
 in the 60's and 70's.  They also met people in the park and went to
other people's RV for dinner and had new friends over to our place for
dinner. The RV Park has it's own Dog Park and I made a few friends, too. 
It was a busy 10 days.

One day we went to the Cochise Stronghold and
went on a 5.8 mile hike with about 950 feet of elevation gain.  

I got a new backpack a few weeks ago.  I'm still disappointed the
Prada store was closed when we came through Marfa, but I
found this one at a charming little boutique (Pet's Mart)
in Las Cruces.  It's a saddlebag style in Aquamarine with
Dove grey accents and reflective piping.  Mom says it's
what all the best dressed poodles are carrying this year. 
I'm now carrying my own water, bowl, and snacks when we go
hiking.  I also have to carry my own poop 😬😖

We came to this really cool pool behind a dam and saw
lots of interesting rocks.

Even looks cool in black & white.

Mom liked this cactus.

and this agave.

Another day, Mom and Dad went to Chiricahua National Monument for a hike.  Since it's a National Monument, Canine children can't go on hikes and it was too hot for me to wait in the car, so I stayed in the RV.

They hiked in Echo Canyon.

This tree picked a really tough spot to put down roots.

Another tree that leads a rough life.

Lean on me, brother.

On the way back to me, they stopped at a Wildlife Refuge where
they saw a bunch of Sandhill Cranes that spend time there in the winter.

Another day we went to Tombstone.  I've never been to a place where the streets are dirt and the way to get around town is a Stagecoach.  

There is a Jeep group at the RV Park in Benson.  They go out every Wednesday.  We met up with them and went to a place called Empire Ranch.  There were a few places where Mom and I were really worried, but we kept our mouths shut and Dad did a great job.  He said that he's really happy with the performance of our Jeep.

 

Us following one of the other Jeeps at Empire Ranch.  

Watch out for wildlife 😁

Mom's smiling because we made it back to relatively smooth road
 and Dad didn't break the Jeep.

This brings me to February 3, the day we left Benson and moved to Tucson for two weeks.  Today (February 17) we moved again to Lost Dutchman State Park on the east edge of Phoenix.  We will be here for two weeks.  In my next post, I'll tell you about Tucson.