ABMA Convention

We found our campground which is only about 5 miles from the Hyatt Lost Pines Resort where the ABMA convention is being held. Since John had a 3 PM meeting and we both were anxious to see our son and daughter-in-law, we quickly set up camp, showered and drove over to the resort. It's been a long winter so it was really good to see our family!!! And then to meet up with all the friends we have made over the years of coming to this convention. The resort is very Texan and nice. They even have a swim park with a lazy river and water slide. We likely will not have time to enjoy them as we are playing golf both Thursday and Friday afternoons.

Headed Toward Home

We have done nothing but drive (or so it seems) for the last 3 days! We left Creel and drove to Cuauhtemoc on Sunday, where we had our end-of-trail dinner at a Mennonite steak house. We were on the road at 7 AM Monday for the long drive to the border and then an even longer wait in line at the Mexican and American customs. Security has tightened on both sides so we were boarded and inspected by Mexicans and Americans. We got into Los Cruces around 7 PM.

We were up early Tuesday morning and after fond fair wells to our fellow caravaners, we took off for Austin, Texas. This part of Texas is very dry and desolate, a lot like what we saw in Mexico yesterday. I helped John with the driving and we pulled into a KOA campground in Junction around 7 PM. Only three hours to get to the campground next to the Hyatt resort west of Austin.

Today is our grandson's 1st birthday! We sure wish we could be there but he'll have to wait a few more days to see us. I can't wait!!

Cerocahui

Yesterday morning (Friday) we loaded into a bus and took a 2 hour ride along the Copper Canyon rim toward a town called Divisadero. Along the way we stopped at several Miradors (overlooks) to view the canyons and to buy Tarahumara crafts. The Copper Canyon may be bigger than the Grand Canyon but it is so different that it is hard to compare them. Where the Grand Canyon is a sudden drop off and the span of the canyon is huge, the Copper Canyons are more gradual, less wide and much deeper. The Copper Canyons are covered with trees and bushes with little exposed rock walls. Native Tarahumara populate almost all areas of the canyons. I've been writing the plural because there are many canyons that make up Copper Canyon. At one mirador we could see 3 canyons -- Copper, Urique, and Tararecua.

We were supposed to ride a gondola out over the canyon but the company chose that day to close the gondola for preventative maintenance!!! It would have been an awesome ride. We had lunch at a beautiful restaurant with a balcony overlooking the canyon then stopped in Divisadero to shop while waiting for the train. Divisadero sits between the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean watersheds.

The train ride on the ChePe Railroad (Chihuahua al Pacifico RR) from Divisadero to Bahuichivo was only about 2 hours then we had a 40 minute bus ride to Cerocahui (pronounced sair-o-CAW-wee). This is a very small town situated near Urique Canyon. Our hotel used to be the San Francisco Jesuit mission near the church. There is also a Tarahumara girls boarding school for about 75 girls next door run by the nuns of Sacred Heart. This area also has a nice vineyard but we weren't too crazy about the wine they produce. Dancers and musicians entertained us before supper.

This morning (Sat.) we had an early start and were in a bus climbing the mountains on a bumpy gravel road to the Urique overlook. The Mexican government is trying to make this a tourist destination so they have unfinished bathrooms and a tiled viewing platform without railings. But the view is fabulous with ridges and crags as far as the eye can see. The Canadians are doing some mining in the area, harvesting copper, silver and gold. We got on the train just before lunch time, so had a great hamburger in the dinning car. We took the train all the way back to Creel. At one point the train made a loop as it climbed out of the canyon to an altitude of over 8000 feet before descending down to Creel.

Tomorrow we head back towards the USA with an overnight in Cuauhtemoc.

Another Day in Creel

Today was an easy day with sight seeing this morning and goofing off this afternoon. Just down the road and around a bend from the campground are some high rocks with caves in them where the Tarahumara live. They have erected stone walls in front of the cave and have leaned long boards and logs near to the back to make storage areas and bedrooms. Since tour groups bring people here daily, the women have set up shop, selling hand made items such as baskets of all shapes and sizes, woven belts and bags, some clay and wooden pieces and clay bead necklaces. The cave faces east and looks out over fields that they work during the spring and summer. A large tree in the middle of the field holds hay and corn husks for drying and to keep it away from cows and goats.

  

A short way from there is the Valley of Mushrooms which is rock formations that look like mushrooms. Again there are Tarahumara selling their wares. One formation looks like a frog and another like an elephant. There are always Tarahumara around selling things. We drove a short way out of town to view a man made lake that is actually very pretty.

We are bonding well with the folks in the tour. A four o'clock cocktail hour was lots of fun, lots of laughs. Even in this group I'm considered a saint to put up with John!

Copper Canyon -- Day 3, Driving Back to Creel

After a lovely breakfast (they make the best sweet breads!) we departed on Mexican time (30 minutes late). The drive back was dreaded due to the bumpy, curvy, narrow road. We were also unsure if our van would make it back without stalling out. Our van never quit, and we made fewer stops along the road so we got back faster and earlier than expected. The views coming up out of the canyon were more awe inspiring, seeing the canyon walls towering over us. We also experienced the narrowness of the canyons. We had expected something similar to the Grand Canyon, but these are narrow, covered with trees and shrubs and paths. They are somewhat smoother, less dramatic walls than the Grand Canyon but they are much deeper and there are more of them concentrated in this area.

There was no sleeping or reading in the van as it was just too bumpy and curvy. John and I took a fast walk into town, visited with new friends and had a great grilled pork chop dinner.

Copper Canyon - Day 2 Touring the Area

We got to sleep in, but coffee was ready at 7 AM, breakfast at 8 and off we went to visit the area at 9. Our first stop was just one block away to a parochial boarding school run by the Sacred Heart nuns. There were 150 students but only 30 girls were boarded there and they were mostly Tarahumara natives who walk for miles to get there. On the weekends the parents would come to get their children and then walk them back on Sunday, and a few were full time. The place was clean and well run. We saw the dorm, the kitchen, a couple of class rooms and the playground. A few of us left them some school supplies that we had brought.

We then rode the vans (yes, it was fixed) to The Lost Cathedral which was about 30 minutes past Batopilas down a very bumpy road! Along the way we stopped at the home of some Tarahumara where we got to listen to one of the little girls play the harmonica and another young girl danced for us. There were 9 children altogether. They tend to have very large families. Then we stopped at a small school with about 50 students and 2 teachers. It is a very poor school for the Tarahumara. A lot of us had brought school supplies, some toys and candy. The teacher decided to had out some of the stuff while we were there. The joy on the students faces was priceless. The Lost Cathedral was built by Jesuit missionaries in the mid 1700's for the 220 Tarahumara Indians. Later it was taken over by the Franciscan missionaries and construction was completed around 1780. Today they are refurbishing it inside and out so it looks almost new.

Lunch was on the square at the Carolina Restaurant with a local recipe of beef and cabbage served cold on a tostada. I loved it! On our walk back to the hotel, we stopped at a small museum that recounted the history of the area with its beginnings as a silver mining community.

After a short nap the 3 Canadians and I got a ride over to the ruins of the very huge Hacienda San Miguel located across the river from the town. This gentleman was one of the first silver mine owners in the area and he spent a lot of money on his home which included a swimming pool! Today it is in ruins and has squatters living in it along with their cows and goats. The Canadians and I were surprised that our driver left us there but he then returned with a few more from our group. At that point we were ready to go back to the hotel but he had left AGAIN! So we climbed down to the river, crossed it by walking across a make shift bridge of boards and walked back. Meanwhile, John was enjoying some 'muy frio cerveza' !

I forgot to mention that our first night here we had entertainment from two Tarahumara who played the violin and guitar. Tonight our entertainment is a Mexican band consisting of a tuba, snare drum, singer/guitar player, accordion and violin/singer. It was a wild bunch. A lot of their music had a very German, oompah feel to it. It is a shame that we cannot understand the words -- I have a feeling that some of the songs were very funny or risque! And since we had a fair amount of margaritas it was a wild and fun evening!

Copper Canyon -- Day 1, Going Down

We have a standing joke about what time we are going to start a journey and that is we do them on Mexico time. Meaning that we were scheduled to leave at 8 AM but didn't get away until after 8:30 AM. They figured it was a 5 hour drive to the town of Batopilas (Baht-o-PEE-lahs) at the bottom of one of the many canyons that make up Copper Canyon. The first half of the trip was on a paved highway but it was very curvy and always going up & down.

We stopped on the roadside to look and buy wares made by Tarahumara Indians. These native peoples live in the canyon, for many centuries they have lived in caves but more and more of them are moving into adobe houses. We spotted some of the cave homes and many more of the adobe. These people walk everywhere and for many, many miles. Their civilization is changing and becoming more modern, donated clothing is changing the way they dress, paved and new gravel roads is changing the way they walk, and schools are changing the expectations of the children growing up. Not all change is good!

Back to the drive -- once we hit the dirt road it became an adventure! Our group was traveling in two white 15 passenger vans and one SUV with 9 passengers in each van and 5 passengers in the SUV. Our guide had included 3 Canadians who joined our group. John and I, being the youngest in the group, chose to ride at the very back of the van and boy was it bumpy! The scenery was beautiful but the road kept us alert because not only was it bumpy but very narrow and steep. If we met another automobile, we had to find a pull off to let them by. At times it felt like we should have been driving our Jeep instead of being in a van. We stopped several times for photo opportunities and potty breaks so we did not get to our lunch break until 2 PM. We stopped at someone's home whose front yard was a lovely orange grove where tables and chairs were prepared for us. Then the van drivers and our guide prepared a hot lunch by cooking over an open fire on a large iron wok style pan. They fried chopped bacon, ham, hamburger and hot dogs with onions and green peppers and other seasonings. They also prepared fresh guacamole and tortillas filled with cheese. The tables were covered with white clothes and white cloth napkins. Wine, cerveza and soft drinks were on the side. It was a lovely setting and a great meal!

Onward! But our van wouldn't start, so the men pushed it down the hill to level ground and it seemed fine. Then about an hour down the road our van died! It just quit running in the middle of the road. Lots of roadside mechanics in the van (i.e.. the guys all had an opinion about what was wrong.) They finally got it started and we went about 2 KM and it died again. This time we put as many people as we could in the other two vehicles and sent them on with a request to come back and get the rest of us which was John and I, our wagon masters and the driver. Shortly after the others pulled away they got the van going again and we made it all the way Batopilas and it was only 6:30 PM in time for dinner at 7!

Our hotel was lovely! It was built as a hacienda in the late 1800's and refurbished into the Riverside Hotel about 10 years ago. It was built on the side of a hill so lots of steps to get to some of the rooms, and it was pretty long. The rooms were quaint and charming, the beds comfortable (mostly) and the claw-foot tubs were unique. I think everyone was pleasantly surprised and delighted with our accommodations.

Creel, Mexico

We left Cuauhtemoc and drove only 104 miles to Creel which is located on the edge of Barranca del Cobre (Copper Canyon) in the Sierra Tarahumara. The trip took us to an elevation of over 8,000 ft., thru logging country and back down to about 7,000 ft in 4 hours. It was nice to see all the green evergreens and fir trees.

Creel is a small town that used to be the center of the logging industry but tourism is the primary job source the past 20 years. But due to the scare of coming to Mexico, tourism has really fallen off and is hurting this part of the country. Our caravan are the only RVs in this beautiful park. It used to be a KOA so has lots of amenities -- even working electricity!

Since it is Sunday, the downtown area was pretty quiet with lots of shops closed. John and I walked the 5 blocks to the center of town and then wondered around the city some. We had a nice cocktail party with music provided by local musicians who were really pretty good. Tonight we have to pack a suitcase for our trip to the bottom of the canyon where we'll stay for 2 nights. We'll have no cell service, nor wi-fi.

Cuauhtemoc

Today we went to the Mennonite Museum which was set up like a Traditional Mennonite home from the early part of this century and learned about the Mennonite culture and their journey to this country. We had lunch at a Mennonite home after learning about the religious part of their life. We also had the opportunity to purchase some of their locally famous cheese, eggs and butter.

The rest of the day was spent walking, resting, reading and visiting.

Mennonite Country

Today was a travel day thru some beautiful farm country. We left Casas Grande early and drove slowly (this is the hardest part of these caravans for John -- we never got over 45 mph.) We had some good roads but mostly narrow, bumpy roads. Our destination was Cuauhtemoc (quow-tay-moke, accent on tay, soft moke). This area is home to over 40,000 Mennonites, most who are refuges from Canada. There are over 70,000 Minnonites in all of Mexico. We are about an hour west of Cuidad Chihuahua in the state of Chihuahua.

The fields extend to over 75 miles north of Cuauhtemoc. The soil was very black and rich looking. This is not the growing season so most fields were empty. It was really pretty with low mountains surrounding the valley. The apple industry contributed to much of the growth in this area. They have very hard rains in the summer with lots of hail, so we saw many black nets rolled in an inverted 'V' among the apple trees. These will be pulled over the trees to protect them from the hail.

The RV park is run by Peter Lowean and his family and is located in front of his grain elevators. Electricity was an issue! We set us camp THREE times before finding a site with good electric. We had hoped to be able to shower here but because of a freeze earlier this winter there is no hot water! I will NOT take a cold shower, so we will be showering in the RV!

Our next adventure was the bus ride to the restaurant for dinner. We all got in the bus, drove for 1 block and the bus died! So Peter rounded up 3 cars to get 20 people to dinner. By the time we finished eating, the bus was fixed.

Casas Grande aka Paquime

A typical Mexican buffet breakfast started off our day. We had scrambled eggs with ham, refried beans, potatoes with peppers and sausage, tortilla and cheese casserole, fruit and rolls. We were stuffed! And its a good thing because we didn't get to eat lunch until after 2 PM!

We rode in a Trolley Car to tour some of Nueve (new) Casas Grande and then Casas Grande - the original, historic part of town. Then we went out to Paquime (pronounced pah-kee-may'). When the Spaniards invade this area they ask the Indians what this place was called and they said, "Paquime." Legend has it that this word means "I don't know!" in the Indian language but the Spaniards thought it meant "Big House". The ruins we see today are just the foundations of what were believed to be two and three story buildings. They had a system of running water going thru the town and into the buildings, there were two ball courts such as seen in the pyramids of southern Mexico, and many other architectural details that makes this a World Heritage site.

Not far from this site was a new church built in a style similar to those that Franciscan monks built in the 1800's. But inside the walls were covered in a mural painted by a local artist depicting Jesus resurrection and the angels in the clouds surrounding him. It was very pastoral.

On our way to Mata Ortiz, we stopped at a hacienda built in 1902 -1904. It was the site of several battles with Poncho Villa. It was owned by a very rich landowner so there are vestiges of opulence in the building as well as bullet holes from the battles. Only half of the hacienda is being lived in while the other half is very slowly being restored.

From there we drove into Mata Ortiz, a small village that is full of artisans, most of whom have studied pottery making from the originator of this style -- Juan Quezada. We stopped at Juan's house just as they were ready to demonstrate how they fire this style of pottery. The pots themselves are hand formed without the use of a wheel. They are then painted in the style of the native Paquima using a very fine, human hair brush. When they are fired, they are placed on a stand on the ground. A large bucket is placed over the pots and sealed with dirt. The men placed firewood all around the bucket as well as on top. This was lit and left to burn into ash while we ate our lunch. When the fire had died, the ash was very gently pushed away from the bucket and after it had cooled somewhat, the bucket was slowly lifted off of the pots. They had changed from red clay to a beautiful black and white pot. Of course, they had a shop where we could purchase pottery.

On our way out of town we stopped by another artist who works with wood. Then we went thru the Mormon settlement before returning to our campground. It was a VERY long day.

On The Road to Mexico

Last night we had a meeting of the caravan participants and went over our trip log and expectations for this trip. Today we thru out the trip log (for today) and had to wing it! It's an adventure!

The Mexicans have changed all their procedures at the border since the last Fantasy Tour went thru the gate. We left Las Cruces at 7 AM and drove to the border crossing at Santa Teresa where 6 couples got their Visa's and holograms for their RV's. But when we tried to go thru the crossing, the roof over the drive was too low for several rigs and the Mexicans would not let them go thru on any other drive. Fantasy Tours has a policy that they do not split up the group, so we all turned around and waited in the US Customs line for about 45 minutes and then drove 60 miles west to another border crossing at Columbus, NM. The Mexicans would not let us cross without a thorough inspection of the inside of all the coaches so we waited there another hour before moving on. We had to go through two more Mexican Military inspections along our route. We arrived in Nuevo Casas Grande at 4:45 PM and had to hurry to our evening entertainment and dinner.

We had a speaker who told of his discovery of the pottery maker from Mata Ortiz, a small village in Chihuahua. The pottery here is all hand made and formed only by hands that do not use wheels or other forms to shape the pottery. They use brushes made of human hair to paint the pottery. We'll learn more about the art tomorrow. We had a great dinner of steak and chicken cooked in lava pots which kept the food bubbling the whole time we were eating. A couple entertained us with dances from 4 different regions of Mexico and a musician who sang and played the guitar.

Las Cruces, NM

We arrived in Las Cruces, NM on Sunday afternoon in time to do some major grocery shopping. This morning found Pam at the pharmacy and John getting the oil changed in the RV & the propane tank filled. We then rode with the Fantasy Caravan staff to the Mexican border at Santa Teresa which is about 20 miles west of Juarez. We got our tourist visas and the hologram for the RV. The rest of the afternoon was spent resting and relaxing in the RV since the wind was gusting to over 50mph. We had a pretty good sushi meal this evening. Tomorrow we will meet the rest of the caravaners and finish prepping the RV for the trip to Mexico on Wednesday.

Wifi service in Mexico will be spotty (if even available) so I will blog when I can. Don't worry if you don't see a blog for a week -- this will be a very safe trip in safe part of Mexico.

Patagonia Lake State Park

Thursday we drove to Patagonia Lake State Park, about a 70 mile drive. It is a beautiful, small lake and campground. It is situated at the bottom of a canyon with steep sides and desert all around. We were able to get a site fairly close to the lake so John got out his inflatable kayak and did some fishing (no luck). This is the first time this whole trip that he has used the kayak. While he fished, I hiked. I scared up some white tail deer and watched the ducks and grebes diving in the lake. Another hike took me around a small hill in desert washes and thru the scrub -- about a 5 mile walk.

Friday afternoon a Hispanic family and their friends camped in the site next to us. At first we thought we wouldn't mind having them next to us but as the evening wore on, more people showed up and the conversations got louder. Quiet time (10 PM) came and went and the noise kept on. Bedtime, middle of the night then 3:45 AM and they were still partying!!! I could hardly believe my eyes when at 8 AM they were all up and the men had a Bud Light in their hands! All of that combined with a very windy day led us to break camp and pull out around noon a day earlier than planned. We complained to the park rangers (who had already been by their campsite) and they refunded our fee for one day. We were happy to be gone!

We only drove a short distance to Benson AZ and found a really nice campground where we spent the night. We rode our bikes and rented a movie and talked with our family for a pleasant evening!

Tucson AZ

We stayed in Tucson a couple of extra days since it was a very nice campground. Tuesday I spent the whole afternoon getting my hair cut and colored while John hung out at the RV park, rode his bike and computered. On Wednesday we rode our bikes to a shopping area in downtown Tucson - about a 16 mile round trip ride. 4th Avenue borders on the university campus so we saw lots of tattoo parlors, new age shops and coffee cafes.

We departed Tucson late morning and as we were leaving the congestion of the city, we saw this beautiful white Spanish Mission just off the highway. It is called the Mission San Xavier Del Bac and is located on the Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation. It was built in 1783-1797 by Franciscan missionaries and today is still run by them as a church and school.

Called the "White Dove of the Desert" the inside is sometimes referred to as the Sistine Chapel of the Southwest. The exterior is all white with domes, carvings, arches and flying buttresses. The inside has many paintings, murals and frescos while the altar and apses are covered in gold leaf. The gardens are typical desert designs with lots of cacti and other desert plants. It was very pretty -- an unusual stop and well worth our time there.

Kitt Peak Observatory

Oh WOW! This was really cool! Kitt Peak is a 6800 foot mountain about 45 miles west of Tucson and has 26 telescopes located on it. They offer a nightly program where one can go up and actually observe the stars. John and I signed up for this about a week and a half ago and have been looking forward to it ever since. We arrived shortly before 5 PM on Monday night. There was still a lot of snow up there and the temp hovered around 40°. We received a box lunch and preliminary information about the mountain top -- like no lights! As a large group, we watched the sun set and learned about some of the telescopes located up there. Most are university owned and operated. We went inside one dome that has a remotely operated telescope. The folks in FL were watching us while we watch them maneuver the telescope.

They divided the large group into 3 smaller groups of 12. I think we had the best! Our guide, Bob, was very knowledgeable about the universe and was able to explain a lot of it to us as well as pointing out constellations, nebulas, stars, planets etc. We learned how to use a star chart and then located the actual constellations like Orion, the big dipper, little dipper, Gemini, Polaris, Leo, and more! Using the telescope we watched Jupiter and 3 of its moons. We were given binoculars and star gazed with them and then we spent over an hour looking at the wonders of the universe. Telescopes have to be at the same temperature as the air around them to prevent distortions, so we were out doors or in a roofless room for a good part of the evening. We did have some warm classroom time as well. We were on the mountain for over 5 hours and never got bored.

In order to keep the lights from our cars from bothering the telescopes, we all departed en-mass with no headlights for about a mile down the hill.

This will be an event we won't soon forget! I would recommend it to anyone coming out to Tucson! You have to make reservations about 2 weeks in advance but it is really worth it!