Category Archives: Arizona

Arizona, Wildlife

Frequent Visitors

It’s the time of year when out here on the ranch we start paying close attention to where we’re putting our feet.

It’s with good reason, as the desert has a host of things that want to bite or sting you, so it’s best to take heed.

A frequent visitor is the Western Diamondback. Usually not a super aggressive snake, you sure don’t want to step on one.

Years ago, I walked down to the garden first thing. On the way back not a few minutes later, in that morning reverie one can have before the coffee kicks in, I came less than 6 inches from stepping on a four footer. I was definitely awake after that, and so was the snake.

Continue reading Frequent Visitors →

Arizona

Wildflower Season Soon

It’s been a wet year so far. Today we received a light rain. On top of the rains of January & February and the upcoming rain on Friday, we are looking at what may be a rather good wildflower season.

In a perfect year, we would receive a decent soaking at least every two weeks from September to March. In most years, this just doesn’t happen, and this year was no exception.

We did get some decent rains in October, but November and most of December were devoid of any rain. There’s still hope though, and the relatively moist run that we’ve so far this season will really help this year. (At least one can dream.)

In 2005, we had a particularly wet year. The groundwater was so abundant that water ran across Alamo Rd. in spots for months. There were “seasonal” streams that had been dry for years that suddenly became babbling brooks. It was a verdant green time, and the desert was simply splendid.

Will 2019 be another stunner? Time will tell

 

 

Arizona

Are We Losing the Grand Canyon?

“IF YOU BREAK loose here, you can’t stop. You’re going into the abyss,” barks Rich Rudow. Normally he is unflappable, but as he knows too well, this is no place to let down one’s guard. We’re on a cliff roughly 3,500 feet above the Colorado River at the tip of the Great Thumb Mesa, a spectacular formation that thrusts out from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon like the bow of an immense ship. It is one of the canyon’s most remote spots, rarely seen even by the most hard-core backpackers. If you come this far out on the Thumb, there is no way to get down to the river without climbing gear, and the dwindling food in your pack won’t allow you to make the eight-day trek back the way you came. You have to move forward.

Click the link to read the whole article, including pictures.

Source: Are We Losing the Grand Canyon? Via National Geographic

Arizona

Frequent Visitors

Javelina are frequent visitors here on the ranch. We used to store birdseed on the front porch in a closed 5 gallon container. One night I heard a sound on the porch, and when I went out I discovered the overturned container and heard a shuffling noise in the darkness.

I cleaned up the seed as much as possible, but our porch is made of flagstone, and there were still quite a few left in the cracks and crevices.

I waited for a short while, and sure enough, the javelina returned to finish his snack. By morning there wasn’t a seed remaining.

Here’s some daytime shots:

Arizona, Gardening, Off Grid Living

Rainy Saturday at the Ranch

It’s a rainy Saturday morning, so that means gathering up every available 5 gallon bucket, pail, and even a plastic garbage can or two in the hopes of collecting the coveted premium –  rain water.

Although our well water tastes great, it does have about 350 parts per million of mineral content. This tends to give the water a slight alkalinity. For the most part it hadn’t seemed to hinder growth, but we were amazed at the difference that filtered or rain water made with our indoor plants.

In addition to rain water, we’ve been using a Berkey filter for the times when there is no rain. We also add a balanced liquid supplement varying between more nitrogen based, and adding potash & phosphorous as well.

At the moment inside, we have Black Krim & Yellow Pear tomatoes started, lettuce, Aji peppers, Peruvian Kiowa, Turmeric, Cilantro, and tobacco.

In the garden, we have three kinds of lettuce, cilantro, asparagus (soon!,) and I hope to start peas, spinach, and arugula this weekend.

We have a lot of seeds, and my darling spouse is always complaining that I buy too many seeds, but if we had to live off the garden, they would be a Godsend.

Yesterday, the Yucca food bank had big bags of spinach, so today it will be pureed and frozen for later use. Spinach is excellent and makes a great part of many ranch meals.

Here’s some pictures of last Falls’ indoor Yellow Pear tomatoes:

 

Arizona

More Snow Pics

Well, at the risk of being too much like the family member who has to show all of those endless vacation slides, here goes more snow pics.

We spent all day Friday, running around trying to capture the snowy scenery on our land listings before it all disappeared. Yesterday, I drove up Hualapai Mountain Rd to catch some views of Kingman from above. Here’s a few:

Deer spotted at Lazy YU Ranch above Kingman, AZ

Continue reading More Snow Pics →

Arizona

More Wintry Weather in Mohave County

It’s a rare snow day here today. We awoke to a light drizzle which quickly morphed into a rapidly accumulating snow. US 93 & I-40 have been closed due to a large amount of snow & freezing conditions which make the hills a very dangerous place.

We’re snug at home sipping Peruvian coffee & hot cocoa.

Although we had an inch or so, it quickly melted
Clouds slowly lifted in the afternoon
Snowy Hualapai Mountain Day 2 21 19
Arizona

Launch of a new blog?

Every once in a while, I visit my own website (this one,) and am somewhat dismayed. My problem is that being somewhat of a dinosaurish techie, I’m loathe to relinquish control to someone unproven.

I have another website for our coffee business, and did quite well playing all the tricks to gain new subscribers, and in the end it really did work, and we have many faithful customers that combined with our “local” customers, makes for a nice little extra every month.

I had let a “flashy” website guy take over, and it was fine for several months. Soon though, there were issues with the theme (which is the overall internal workings of the page.) The young dynamic go getter web designer suddenly became the milk carton tech. One is then left to figure it out alone.

So when I came back to this site which had been rather neglected, it was with dismay. Sure, I have a website, but it sucks.

The good news is that I’ve finally decided to jump on it. The world probably doesn’t need another website to stare at daily, but there are some thoughts, and certainly pictures that can be shared, so here goes. Wish me luck!

Ben

 

Arizona, Land

Winter in NW Arizona

Every once in a while, someone will say “Well, I like Arizona, but I need four seasons.” I have to laugh; we’re freezing today!

We awoke to a snow covered landscape today, and even at mid day there are still patches of snow everywhere.

Check out these pictures:

Hualapai Mountains, Mohave County, Arizona
Mohave Mountains, Mohave County, Arizona