Adventure 976: Tucson Winter 2026

This is our fourth winter in Tucson. Our lives have become so routine that there isn't much to say on a daily basis other than to report that we no longer consider ourselves tourists. I've decided to write a short summary Blog, which of course captures nothing of the joy and adventure we experienced. So prepare for the mundane. We've found a church: Southside Presbyterian, which is possibly the best church experience I've ever had. We've  found a volunteer opportunity: Cross Street, which is a twice a week (Monday/Friday) commitment where we arrive at 5 A.M. to help prepare breakfast for around two hundred homeless folk. We've both found trainers of sorts. Judy has a personal trainer named Rob who has made her stronger and better looking if that's possible. At the very least she can lift more weight, stand more straight, and generally feel better. I've deepened my connection to my Tai Chi community, and my Sifu, Jordan Misner says I'm improving. I believe I am, but being cursed with the hope of instant success brought on by exposure to so called American excellence, I wish I'd improve faster. We walk in the desert as often as we can, visit our new and old friends when we can, enjoy family when we can, and otherwise enjoy a grateful existence. Angela, Leticia, and Falcon spent time with us during the Gem Show. We enjoyed time with brother and sister-in-law, Kel and Karen Friesen who also spent most of the winter here. Judy's sister Karen visited, which is always fun as the time is filled with laughs, card games, puzzles, and food. Who could ask for much more? My brother Tom and his new bride, Pat, visited for an overnight. They are in the giddy love stage, and their joy is contagious. My cousin Joan is supposed to arrive this week, and hopefully we can get in a hike or two before we leave. So while mundane, our lives are full. We even joined the locals to lament the record high temperatures we all endured this last month. I'm not one to complain about the heat, but I did stand in the direct sun when it was 108 degrees. I can understand their chagrin. We leave for home via Portland to deliver items Angela bought at the gem show and to visit our good friends the Drouin's in Tacoma. With traveling mercies we should be home by April 14th, just in time to gather our tax information, and rejoin our Spokane life which is equally blessed and equally mundane. Just kidding. We're grateful for the grace we receive and live as though life is good, especially today. 

Note: The pictures below appear in inverted order. Last to first as it were.

We leave for home one week from today. Hopefully, we'll see some of the desert in bloom before we go.

We attended the NO KINGS rally with our friends, Ross and Dinah Coble. This is Ross in full protest mode.

I did a few wire sculptures. The bases are heart shaped rocks I found on hikes. The theme this year matched the sword form I learned this year in Tai Chi class.

Newlyweds, brother Tom and his bride, Pat.

We caught a sunset when Judy's sister Karen visited.

This was it.

Our newest culinary delight is the Taco Rico food truck located near Ina and I-10.

More wire creatures. I added swords later.

One of my Tai Chi instructors, Russ, posing with the sword creature I made for him.

Of course, no winter trip is complete without enjoying a Sonoran Hot Dog.

We participated in a dinner prepared by a hispanic immigrant named Elizabeth. 

She's been here legally for over twenty-five years, but since the current administration has re-opened all immigration cases, Elizabeth is unwilling to work in the public sector. We contributed to her welfare with the others in this picture. 

The food she prepared was fresh and delicious. She's far from the criminal Trump claims. Rather, she's a skilled chef, a bright spirit, and a welcome addition to this nation of immigrants.

Most of the desert nights were pleasant.

Me and my Bunny enjoyed several desert hikes. We never tire of communing with the cacti.

According to Wikipedia, Saguaros don't grow their first arm until they're around seventy-five years old. I wonder how old these fellows are?

I bought these Valentine roses from a group on the corner of First and Fort Lowell. They were raising money for their school. A win-win I'd say.

Of course we ate well all winter. This Chicken Mole dish is a specialty of one of our new favorite restaurants, La Frida. Simply excellent.

This corn side dish was also excellent.

We ate there twice. Once when TC, Falcon, and Angela were visiting.

We caught another sunset the night before Angela arrived.

Falcon thought it was pretty cool, and he's quite the cool dude himself.

Judy and I participated in another protest march to support the Tucson teachers. We stopped at Boca (another nice restaurant) for chips and margaritas on the way back.

Steve and Libby kept up the tradition of visiting their mother's grave on her birthday. She would be seventy-five.

One day, Judy and I hiked part way up the trail to "Finger Rock". This is a view from the trail.

Libby gave everyone in the family one of these towels which pictures the family at Priest Lake last summer. We put ours up in the kitchen of our condo.

Our tradition is to enjoy an In/out burger in Las Vegas, the night before we get to Tucson.

On the way down to Tucson, we stayed a couple nights with our friends Tom and Patty Losser in Twin Falls. Patty, a little camera shy, fed us this delicious Dutch Baby the morning we left for Arizona.

Here's Tom.

And here's the morning that greeted us as we headed South.

We generally leave for Tucson right after the New Year. Here's Judy holding court at our traditional Christmas feast. We all wrote something we were grateful for and turned the phrases into a paper chain that we wrapped around the tree. We have much to be grateful for, which we express in our belief that life is good, especially today.

Adventure 975: Alaska Anniversary Trip/H

We woke up to a cold drizzle and counted ourselves lucky to experience the more typical Alaska weather. Our train back to Anchorage didn't leave Denali until 12:30 so we took the opportunity to tour the Visitor Center which has some very well done exhibits. We watched two park inspired movies that not only capture the history of the park, but also the character of those who believe in the preservation of the wilderness. One of the movies chronicles the life and times of the sled dogs, their breeding, their passion, and their continued use in the park. As one of the rangers said, "Snow machines can be hard to start at forty below zero, but give the dogs a bit of food and they're ready to go." Also, because much of the mission of the park's preservation mantra, is to do as little damage to the environment as possible, the dogs are invaluable and most often the best tool for the job. For example, a suspension bridge in the park recently needed significant repair. In order for modern machinery to do the job, many trees would have had to be cleared. Because of the sled dog's narrow footprint and their capacity for toting heavy loads, the dogs and their mushers ferried the necessary materials to the job site. And last year, during the peak months of winter, a communication camera failed in the outback. The snow machines wouldn't start, but a team of dogs made it to the camera and the servicemen were able to restore the camera to a functioning state. We finished our visit with a trip to the kennels where the sled dogs are bred, housed, and trained. Despite the drizzle, which didn't seem to bother the dogs, it was a nice way to end our visit to Denali, and it made us realize just how good life is, especially today.

Looks like we're nearing the end of the season.

Many of the newest pups were born last May.

This little guy was especially loving and quite a bit squirmy.

Judy got a quick kiss.

The older dogs, like this one, realize they're on summer vacation. They weren't as excited as the young ones.

This is THRONE, a six year old lead dog and the biggest in the kennel at a 100 pounds. He seems calm here, but when he was hooked up to the training sled for the demonstration, he became as eager as any newlywed.

The training sled.

It was dark in the sled room, but this old sled made of birch and strung together tightly with sinew was magnificently crafted.

My Bunny braving the weather.

Ranger Skyler, a recent graduate of Purdue University shared her knowledge and her her passion.

After the demonstration team pulled the training sled around the compound, the dogs were given immediate chew treats and water.

The train ride back to Anchorage from Denali took about six hours. Our Alaska adventure was well worth the time.

 

Adventure 974: Alaska Anniversary Trip/G

Yet another blue sky day and on we trekked to the Denali Tundra. We boarded the 1:30 P.M. bus with fifty or so of our newest friends. They didn't cramp our style, but the child sized seats in the old Blue Bird bus did, especially after seven hours of windy wash boards. In all, we saw almost 30,000 acres of the park, or .05 percent of the 6 million. Nonetheless, we ventured as far as we could, and it was fabulous. We saw several ground squirrels, a gaggle of Rock Ptarmigans, all of Santa's Reindeer (except Rudolph) and many of their cousins ( At least 14 Caribou), a family of Dall sheep, and one large brown bear leaving purple scat behind as he/she trundled up the mountainside. Philip, the oldest driver in the park, was knowledgeable, patient, competent, and he had a very melodious voice. He gladly stopped the bus anytime anyone yelled, "Caribou, three o'clock." He'd back the bus or move it forward, take out the bus's camera, and then flashed whatever was sighted onto screens that dropped down for viewing. It was pretty cool. Today marked our seventh day in Alaska. We've been blessed with magnificent weather each of those days. Even today, the bus stopped to view Denali from several good angles, but we were so jaded from our experience in Talkeetna that we barely looked up. Upon our return to the Denali Cabins, we had a nice dinner, after which I spent some time soaking in the hot tub. Needless to say, life is good, especially today.

We shared a short stack of blueberry buckwheat pancakes with birch bark syrup and two eggs over easy for breakfast.  Yummy.

Art shot of the day: A plethora of spruce cones covered the ground under every tree.

Selfie of the day: Let the sun shine in.

Our conveyance for the day-not built for a guy my size. That's what I get for flunking sixth grade.

In five or six weeks this area will be covered in snow.

At the official entrance to the park, Ranger Jessica, gave us a hearty welcome.

Interestingly, the Dall sheep have their own crossing lane, which according to Phillip, they've come to use frequently. On the hour vehicles stop and wait for ten minutes.

We crossed four rivers, each of which have these braided streams which move back and forth as the current changes.

This could be Dancer or Prancer; it was hard to tell from the bus.

My camera couldn't catch up with this big brown bear, but with the naked eye we could see very well, if only briefly as the bear made steady headway up the mountainside.

These Dall sheep were so far up the mountainside they almost look like silhouettes. Pretty cool sight, though.