Breaking the Inertia

I have been in Why, Arizona for a month now.  During that time, I have had the most relaxing time doing not much of anything.  I'm really waiting for the winter to get over so I can head north and explore again, in relative comfort since I'm wimpy in the cold weather.  There are hikes in the desert, socializing, and we go play Bingo once a week.  Otherwise, everyone has settled into a relaxed mode and there are no projects that seem urgent.    Obviously, since I can sit waiting for a hummingbird to come by and actually get a picture of one of these guys who whiz around at the speed of light.  I even caught one with a bee flying away from the feeding dish.

 

I'm totally amazed at how fast their wings move - they can hover, fly backwards and when they're on a trip to the next feeder, you can hear them fly, sounds like a little motor when the buzz right by you.  There are other birds hanging around, the Gila Woodpeckers keep coming to eat out of the hummingbird feeder and other little ones I have no idea what they are. 



 

 

Now that it's almost the middle of January, I want to start moving again.  So, in the next few days I'll be moving down the road to a national monument I wrote about in a previous blog, the Organ Pipe Cactus, they have a great campground there.  No hookups, so I might just stay there a few days to do some hiking.  This will get me out of the inertia that I have settled into while I've been here.  Then, I'll head on to Yuma to explore over there and then go slowly north as it warms up. 

 

Tomorrow I plan to head to Ajo ten miles up the road for a few little parts for my generator - spark plug and gasket.  I'll fill up with fuel and get a few groceries and then in the next day or so I'll head south about 20 miles to the park and get back into the traveling mode. 

 

Staying a month in one place has been a record for me, since I tend to move around while I'm exploring.  Sometimes I stay just a few days at a spot, other times it might be a week or so.  It just depends on how much I like the area and if I have seen everything I wanted to see. 

 

I already have been planning where I want to go this summer, making notes on maps and lists of things to see and do.  I'm looking forward to the warm weather and the adventures ahead.

 

 

 

Ajo Art - Ajo, Arizona

 

 

Ajo is a small town in southern Arizona, about 40 miles north of the Mexican border.  It's a nice little town and apparently there have been some artists living here.  The sign above is a mosaic that greets you as you drive into town.

 

The photo below is a painting that wraps around the corner of the building housing a clothing shop.

 

 

The lizard sculpture below is on the wall of a home in a residential section.



 

This painting is on a commercial building on the mail road through town.  The artist starts on the left side with upside down images that morph into images right side up.

 

Below is a painting on a garage door belonging to a man who worked for the railroad for many years.

 

 

And the mosaic below is on the steps of a residential house. 

 

 

The following photo is on the newspaper/book store building. 

 

 

An interesting community, but I'm not sure why they gave it a Spanish word that means garlic.  One theory was that the Spanish thought they were using the word for paint that the local Indian tribe used for the area where they got their red pigment.



Ajo, Arizona

 

Ajo is a town just north of Why where there are even more RV parks, and there are stores and other businesses that visitors may need.  It seems like a nice, quiet town with a central plaza that used to be the train station and now houses the Visitor Center and other shops.  

 

Across from the plaza and park area, there are two large churches, both stark white and very stunning.  The one below is the Catholic church.

 

The next photo is the church for most of the other religions, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Methodists, etc.  We learned this in the historical museum from a couple of very knowledgeable guides.

 

The photo below shows an open pit copper mine that operated for years, but mostly from 1914 through 1984.  There was also gold and silver brought out of the mine.  The mine is 1.5 miles across one way and 1.25 miles the other way and 1100 feet deep.  The terraces as seen in the photo below are 40 feet high, which can give you some perspective.  However, as I stood there and looked at it, I had a hard time believing that it was that big around and that deep.  One of the guides at the museum down the road felt that it may be opened again in the future.  Because this mine is impossible to fit into a photograph, I did a little video clip which can be seen at http://youtu.be/vS2CT6hcbc4

 

 

At the museum, there were numerous displays of photos, historical papers and displays as well as a collection of rocks and minerals from this area, as well as other areas.  However, my favorite display, aside from the rocks, was outside the building - an old safe........

 

 

One of the most impressive buildings in town was the old school  as shown in the photo below.  There is a large center section and two wings on each side, only one of which is shown below.  It's a massive building and very well maintained.  The museum guide told us that it has been sectioned off into apartments and is now a residential building. 

 

 

 

 

During our tour of town and the museum, we had lunch at a local Mexican restaurant.  Good thing both Robin and I like Mexican food!