Lost Dutchman State Park, Part 1

Sunday night we ended up having a major thunder and lightning show while we were sleeping .... we found out what was happening as Freya launched herself onto our heads in our bed at 11 pm. For the next 2 plus hours she alternated standing or sitting on our heads, laying between us, jumping down on the floor, jumping back up on the bed. Yeesh. Ray drifted in and out of sleep as I took the brunt of the shivering and shaking  as she was leaning as close to me as she could. I do have a "thunder jacket" for her but of course it was in the basement and I was not going out there in a rainstorm. Finally at 2:30ish the storm passed and Freya decided to sleep on her bed on the floor.

Monday, December 9th.

We were up at 6 and had coffee, read our news on the computer and then it was time to pack up. Fingers crossed that the DEF problem was really fixed. Started down the road shortly after 8am. Ray and I stopped for fuel in Coolidge ($2.87 for diesel) and everything was running smoothly as it should. By 10 am we arrived at the Lost Dutchman, hit the sani-dump and quickly set up in our spot for the next two weeks. Fortunately no one was still here as check-out is not until noon.

The look of the sky was not very promising on our way to the Lost Dutchman SP. We ended up with some rain on the way. Boy does the coach and car look filthy.

Barely got everything opened up and hooked up when our mobile RV tech showed up to source out my washing machine problem at 11 am. What a procedure. In order to check it out he had to disassemble our whole laundry closet, remove the dryer first and then take out the washer to get access to the back of it checking hoses etc. It took the tech and me to lift the dryer out and Ray to reach in on a stool to unplug it so we could get it out of the closet! We did find a small access hole if we remove my bathroom drawers about 8" square to reach in with your hand to access water shutoffs and plugs for next time.  Who knew! I took a picture for the future. lol I was his helper with the lift and making sure he was not hitting walls etc.

Finally he checked the computer board and it was the problem as I had already determined. 3 hours later it was all temporarily shoved back into the closet until he has the parts next week. I don't think the board is very expensive but the labour will be.

Fortunately our front furnace is working properly again. After some discussion with the tech, he figured it was a little up/down lever in the fan that sometimes gets stuck in the "up" position and the gas won't fire. Since it is working he just showed us where to "bang" on it to free it if it happens again. Good to know. I had him check our dining room light too. It has not worked since we purchased this rig 7 years ago and everytime we have something fixed I forget to get this done ... he tested it and the light is hooped as we thought. Time for a replacement.

Jesus, from 4 Points Mobile RV Service, also measured out for a replacement stove. I am going to replace the cooktop with a range and oven. I hate the cooktop as it does not have sealed burners and everything falls down inside the top and sticks to the galvanized bottom. Also, too many times I have had to run the generator to cook like I want to when having a gas oven would have been a better choice. I will lose my 2 drawer can cupboard and garbage can space but this is a better solution. I have to say he was quite knowledgeable, very tidy and careful. He showed up exactly as he was scheduled to do and he lives up to his google reviews so far. We shall see at the end of the day.

By this time it is after 2 pm. Now it began with the thunder again ... at least I'm not in bed to get my head sat on! Ray and I were supposed to go with Dave and Cheryl from Our Awesome View From Here out to the Organ Stop Pizza  for dinner but we postponed until tomorrow when there is no chance of rain, especially thunder. We don't feel good leaving Freya for several hours in those weather conditions as she is really scared. She seems worse as she has gotten older.

At 5 pm we headed out to the Mammoth Saloon just done the road at the Goldmine Ghost Town. Not the most fabulous place to eat but I had pretty good chicken strips while Ray ordered the Mammoth Burger. Again just okay but it was quick and close by after our long day. Fortunately, the thunder stopped and Freya is settled.

I managed to snag a few pictures with my phone as the clouds finally cleared. The Flat Iron Mountain of the Superstition Mountain Range.

On the way out of the restaurant.

When we were back at the coach Ray took a few shots with his tripod. It's almost a full moon.

I went to bed early as I was tired from being kept awake last night by Freya ... unfortunately that meant that I woke up early Tuesday morning. Oh well today is supposed to be sunny.

Tuesday, Dec 10

A glorious morning but quite cool out with a breeze. Ray and I headed out the door at 8:30 to get some shopping done at Walmart and then drove back home to empty out the groceries and give Freya a walk. Back in the car and off to Costco in Mesa by 10:30 am. Fortunately we hit the rush at the right time. The store was quite busy but the first rush had gone through the checkouts so it was not a very long line when we got up to the cash registers. We needed to stock up on some booze for the next couple of months.

At 4pm  Dave and Cheryl of Our Awesome Travels who are also staying here in the park for a few days, picked us up to go for dinner at the Organ Stop Pizza. We had been there a couple of times but it was new for Dave and Cheryl. They were fascinated as I am still with all the instruments that organ can play. Great entertainment. On top of that the pizza was fabulous as was the 4 Peaks Kilt Lifter beer on tap so we got a pitcher.

 FROM GOOGLE:

In 1972, the original Organ Stop Pizza restaurant premiered in Phoenix, Arizona at the corner of 7th Street and Missouri Avenue with a Wurlitzer pipe organ which was originally built for Grauman’s Hollywood Egyptian Theater. This unique concept of a pizza parlor with a pipe organ was envisioned by William P. Brown, a Phoenix real estate developer whose enthusiasm for the theater pipe organ and its music led to the creation of this landmark attraction.

The phenomenal success of the Phoenix restaurant prompted plans to open another Organ Stop in Mesa. It opened in 1975 near the corner of Dobson and Southern Avenue with a Wurlitzer organ from the Denver Theater in Denver, Colorado. In the theater, the Denver instrument had 15 ranks, or sets of pipes. The instrument was totally rebuilt, and the decision was made to enlarge the organ to 23 ranks for its debut in the new Mesa Organ Stop.

The success and popularity of the new Organ Stop Pizza mirrored that of the Phoenix location. In 1984, Bill Brown decided to retire from the restaurant business. The Phoenix Organ Stop was sold to a real estate developer, who sold the pipe organ and demolished the building in favor of an office complex. Incidentally, that instrument was sold to a couple in Downers Grove, Illinois, for installation in their home! The Mesa Organ Stop was sold to longtime employee and manager Mike Everitt and his business partner Brad Bishop. Under the new ownership, improvement of the pipe organ became a high priority. Over the course of the ensuing years, careful acquisition of rare pipework and percussions were made, culminating in what is now the largest Wurlitzer pipe organ in the world. With the change in ownership, the restaurant continued to gain in popularity. Inevitably plans were made to move into a facility twice the size of the original in order to accommodate the ever increasing number of patrons and ever-expanding organ. This new mega facility, located at the corner of Stapley Drive and Southern Avenue, was designed specifically to accommodate the expanding scope and size of the Organ Stop Wurlitzer. Construction of the new facility began in May of 1995 and the grand opening was Thanksgiving weekend of that same year.

In its new and improved location, Organ Stop Pizza and its Mighty Wurlitzer have come to be known as the biggest and best in the world as attested to by many of the world’s finest theater organists and, more importantly, the hundreds of thousands of patrons who visit each year. There are continuing efforts to make additions and improvements to the organ, endeavoring to fine tune the instrument closer and closer to perfection.

There was a different guy playing this time and I found out that the old organist that we saw passed away November 25th of this year from a stroke.

Look at all the controls!

Some of the extra characters they have that pop up while playing a particular song.

Dancing cats.

 Here is Dave putting his nose to the glass figuring out how it all works. lol

Here are some of the "pipes" and they have them changing colours depending on the music. While we were there they played a selection of Christmas music as well as other stuff including Bohemian Rhapsody! 

After spending some time enjoying our pizza's and the entertainment it was time to head out to our next destination. We planned to walk through the Arizona Mesa Temple Christmas Display. Imagine our surprise to see the whole place gone. After doing a little research they tore down the visitor's centre and are rebuilding and we just could not see the temple under renovations behind the buildings. So maybe we shall see it next year.

FROM GOOGLE:

PHOENIX — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced a date that a temple in Mesa, Arizona, will close for “major renovations.”

The Mesa Arizona Temple will close on May 19 and will not reopen until 2020, the Phoenix Business Journal reported.

The renovations were expected to include upgrades to its HVAC, plumbing and electrical systems, improved garden areas and reflecting pool and cleaned and restored terracotta tiles and murals.


A visitors center will also be torn down in front of the church. It will be replaced with a new center and ancestry research center at the corner of Main and LeSuer streets.

According to an article about the Mesa Temple, this will be the second time the 90-year-old temple undergoes renovation. It was first dedicated in 1927 and rededicated in 1975.

Here are a couple of pictures from a few years ago of the Temple lights.

Plan B was to come back to our coach and have some shortbread with eggnog liqueur that we bought on our shopping trip this morning to try out. It was a hit with everyone. :)

Merry Christmas

A fabulous day.

Wednesday morning a lovely blue and pink sunrise. By the time Ray got back from his walk with Freya it was too late to get a good picture with the colour but this one is pretty good.  I bet Dave will have a great one though. :)

Flat Iron Sunrise

Out the door at 8:30 for my hair appointment. I tried to just let my hair grow.... drove me nuts flying around all the time in the wind. So now a "new do".

This afternoon Dave and Cheryl hosted Happy Hour as they are leaving for Yuma tomorrow. They have a lovely view of Flat Iron from their campsite. It was warm enough to sit out in the sunshine.

Ray made us all Prickly Pear Margaritas. :)

After a couple of hours of stories and laughs, it was time to come back home to Freya. Thanks for your hospitality guys and all the laughs. See you in Quartzsite hopefully.

Tonight we had a spectacular sunset ... don't know how many of them we have pictures of lol but here is some more. :)

Friday morning another spectacular day. After walking Freya we headed out to the Mesa Market. Top on our list was 2 new fleeces for our son-in-law, Jason as per his request. Ray and I made a cursory run up and down the aisles and will be back to shop for our "stocking stuffers" on Sunday when we can spend more time apart and kind of know where we are heading in this huge market.

Back home at noon, we went and had our showers at the parks shower house and relaxed for a couple of hours so Ray could recover from all the walking we did.  I spent some time on the phone with 4-Point Mobile RV Repair ... have they ordered my new stove and do they have my washing machine computer board???? They only have one more week before we leave the area.  Spoke directly to the owner 2 times today and the computer board has been ordered but not the stove. He was going to contact his suppliers again and get back to me. No concrete answer yet by 5pm. However, they will have to be back to put my closet back together at the very least if this does not work out! Not impressed at this point.


At 4:15 pm it was back in the car as we were on our way to the San Tan Valley to visit some RV friends, Fran and Gerry, for dinner. Gerry smoked up a large chicken on his Traeger Smoker. It was fabulous. Nice catching up with them since we didn't come down last winter it's been 2 years since we were face to face.

Gerry has just recently suffered a few "heart" problems and flew back quickly to Kelowna for treatment. He was there for 9 days as they were running tests. Gerry was once a BC Lions football player and to this day exercises like crazy. This heart problem is a common sports ailment with a thickening of the heart wall between the two chambers and apparently inherited.

They have decided to go back to Kelowna for the winter so he can be further checked out, especially since they cannot get any health insurance at the moment as this is a current problem. They are not too upset with this as they have a new grandbaby born a few days ago and another one on the way in February. They had rented out their house for the next 6 months before this issue came up as they were going to go to Mexico for the winter. It looks like they will likely put the house up for sale in the spring as they don't know what the future holds healthwise for them and our medical system in Canada is way better cost wise. So the big "pack-up" is on. They have a beautiful 2 bedroom home in the gated golf resort so hopefully it won't take long to sell. Ray and I did notice though that there were a couple other houses for sale in their neighbourhood. They also have a motorhome which they live in during the spring/summer and this was their primary home. Lots of decisions for them in the future.

Fran is going to hate this picture of herself, but this is the only one I took. lol

Say Cheese!

A lovely evening. Back home for 9:30 pm where Freya was waiting for her dinner. lol We briefly stopped so Ray could get a couple of pictures of all the decorated Side by Sides. We must have just missed the parade.

Saturday ...

Another glorious sunny day but is supposed to be cooler. Temp 43F when we got up.

Today I will finally get some grocery shopping done. lol Maybe at Fry's and check out their in-store Bar. lol  We have been coming and going so much that grocery shopping kind of went to the bottom of my list. We have not had much time to sit and enjoy our site since we got here. I also need to get some laundry done. Maybe tomorrow or the next day. lol No need to rush these things. :)

The laundromat in town, opens at 6 am so if I get there around 7 am no one else should be in my way. :) Maybe Monday.

I got back from Fry's shortly after noon with fresh sushi in hand for lunch. It was pretty good. After using my vacuum sealer to deal with the meat I bought, managed to sit outside for awhile with Ray. Unfortunately, the Goldfield tourist trap er town are staging old west shootouts every hour or so  ... not great for Freya. Back to the shaking etc.

Dinner was fried catfish and prawns. I used my "Fry Daddy" that we purchased 7 years ago. The perfect size to tuck away in the MH. Ray assures me the catfish was delicious ... I am not a big fan as I find the texture too mushy for me.

As the evening wore on we could see it was going to be a spectacular sunset. It is fascinating how fast it comes and develops all the colour and how quickly it fades away. All in 15 minutes or less. For this one we could see other people scurrying around with their cameras trying to "catch the moment".

The texture in the clouds was amazing.

Good night Arizona

Sunday morning after a slow start we were back out to Mesa Market. Now that we walked the whole place on Friday it was time for Ray and I to go our separate ways and pick out stocking stuffers for each other. That is the extent of our "gift giving" this year with all the MH expenses.

Back home for lunch and Ray relaxed outside in his chair. His back is pretty sore from all the walking we did at the market. I spent the afternoon preparing and cooking my back ribs on the barbeque and making a batch of cornbread to go with. They had the ribs at Fry's ... buy one pack and the second one is free. For $11 I had 2 full racks of back ribs. What a deal! Everything turned out fabulous, according to Ray, and was my best batch of ribs yet. Yummm.

Monday morning, Ray and I were both up early at 5am. Me because I went to bed too damn early, lol and Ray seems to have come down with a cold. Gave him some meds and we shall see what it develops into. Hopefully nothing too bad or I will have a cold for Christmas. :(