Brrr… It’s cold! It was just a couple of weeks ago that we were basking in above normal temperatures in the mid-80s. This morning, it was only 34F degrees here.
Above is a picture of yesterday’s lingering storm including snow in the mountains. We even heard thunder once!
Today dawned mostly clear. We need the power after several mostly cloudy days. It should get up into the low 50s.
Kingman, the Heart of Historic Route 66 & one of the hidden treasures of Arizona, is conveniently located on Interstate 40 and is the perfect launching point for “Route 66 and Beyond.” Scenic hiking, historic charm, great cafes and restaurants, and the allure of Route 66 combine to make Kingman a remarkable destination.
Source: Kingman AZ Visitor Center
We like Kingman Arizona. I first fell in love with this area in 1995, and moved just a short year later. We still get mail in Kingman, and our official address is there, but we reside way out where Grand Mohave desert meets blue Sonoran skies.
Check them out for upcoming events & activities. Then come and get your kicks!
Julieanna Bottorff has lived in her quiet Sedona neighborhood for 20 years. A deer path that runs behind her house and across the street was regularly trafficked by wildlife.
Then a developer moved in across the street and ripped up the path, she says. The developer plans to build as many as five 6,000-square-foot homes to be used as short-term rentals, neighbors say.
The once quiet street is now punctuated with the steady noise of construction. The move comes as residents of the tourist hotspot grapple with the consequences of a two-year-old state law that restricts how cities and towns can regulate short-term home rentals advertised on websites such as Airbnb or VRBO.
On Wednesday, more than 150 people attended a city meeting. The Sedona residents grilled state Rep. Bob Thorpe, R-Flagstaff, about how the state plans to address the law’s consequences.
Among them: investors moving into neighborhoods to buy up multiple homes, vacation renters driving up housing costs and the changing neighborhood dynamics.
Several homeowners supported the recent law that allowed vacation rentals to flourish in Arizona. They spoke about how the short-term rentals made it possible for them to pay their mortgages.
Source: ‘They killed our city’: Locals feel helpless as vacation rentals overrun Sedona, Arizona
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We have had an Airbnb, and have also used them. The problem is in the popular areas many can become just modern day flophouses.
Personally, I feel that the property owners’ rights to full use and enjoyment should never be infringed, but rather any control of property use is best left to the individual, or past that, a small carefully supervised HOA or better yet neighborhood council.
Once we get to the municipal level, the rules get more ridiculous, and the monies wasted in trying to enforce the new laws just end up creating more bureaucracy (which taxpayers have to fund, defeating the whole exercise.) Continue reading Short Term Vacation Rentals Divide Sedona Residents
As the heat has increased over the last month, the fabulous wildflower season comes to an end. Today, we’re remembering. Here’s a few highlights:
The days are getting hotter, but June was nicer than most. Calls and emails have continued at a brisk pace, and we’re seeing many residential sales in Kingman, Lake Havasu City, and all of Mohave Valley/Bullhead City. It’s become a sellers market for homes, as we’re seeing an influx of new residents.
Meanwhile, land sales have picked up. The prices are still extremely attractive, but little by little the values are disappearing, and we’re seeing the beginnings of price appreciation in the Yucca area. The sellers here could sure use some relief.
It’s a mixed blessing though. We love our solitude & the remoteness, but it is welcome to see so many new faces. Shhh, don’t tell too many people!
Well, after leaving the hose on to help water the pine tree, we’ve had quite a show here as all day long visitors come to our real oasis in the desert. We’ve even had multiple visits from as many as 6 javalina.
It’s quite hot here today, already 106 degrees at 11:30 am. We’ll probably try to keep these guys happy for a little while longer, but being on solar, our water is power meaning that we need to run pumps more etc. to keep the flow flowing. We may have to back off a little on the happy oasis.
Meanwhile, we’re quite comfortable in the house as the swamp cooler is doing a marvelous job, and we were all the way down to 68 degrees at dawn.
I have a leaky hose. It’s in a bad place in that I would have to shut off the entire water system in order to fix it. It’s not a big leak, and it keeps the wildlife happy as there is always at least a little water.
I keep the hose by a pine tree that was planted 20 years ago this coming Christmas. It’s flourished over the years, not the least because I forget that I’m watering it sometimes, and it gets a healthy extra watering.
Yesterday, I had turned up the water ever so slightly, and then ended up leaving it that way all night. This morning, there was an indented area full of water, and a deer!
We’ve had an extraordinary year, both in terms of rainfall, and also in terms of just nice weather. Instead of suffering through days of 100 plus degrees, it’s been pleasant 80s & low 90s. Everything is so green and beautiful this year.
People have discovered that Yucca is not only an inexpensive destination, but a high quality of life place too.
It’s all meant a big uptick in interest in the Yucca area. We’re putting in long days answering questions ranging from costs of solar systems to wells and septic systems. Between showings, emails, and a steady stream of calls, our days are fully occupied.
Blah blah blah, the travails of a land guy. Anyways, back to work…
Have a great June!
In many years, without adequate moisture, the Joshua Trees won’t do anything. In the years of plentiful rain though, it’s quite the spectacle.
We’re blessed with abundant wildlife at Stagecoach Trails. We have coyotes, javelina, bobcats, mountain lions (closer to the mountains,) deer, fox, and a million quail.
I’ve seen a lion only once, but coyotes are almost daily, and the quail will come excitedly whenever we’ve been away for a few days. They want us to top off the three bird feeders that we have hung from a Joshua Tree out front.
Today we’ll spotlight the bobcats. (More pictures if you click “more” below.)
