The Romance of a Thousand Lifetimes Begins with a Single Kiss

 Intrigued by the title?  Of course, there's a story behind it.  Would you expect anything less?  

Marty and I find ourselves gallivanting in Arizona this week and today we set out to Cave Creek Regional Park to satisfy Marty's desire to see Saguaro cacti.  The weather was picture perfect, and the temperatures were ideal for us to venture out on a 3 1/2 mile hike which offered him the opportunity to get close up and personal with these stately creations of his dreams.

We parked the car, I grabbed some walking sticks, and we set out on the start of the Slate Trail.

First stop:  The Michelin Man:

It was certainly the most unusual cactus that we viewed today.

But there were several types of these beautiful plants for us to admire along our hike.  

This formation looked like hugging friends

and the vistas from the trail were pretty amazing.

Along the trail were various benches, strategically located in places with outstanding views

and they always seemed to pop up just when I needed a break.  And, what better excuse to sit and admire the beauty of our surrounds?

I'm happy to report that Marty thoroughly enjoyed today's adventure, and here you can see Marty posing in front of one of his new friends. 

You might note the holes in the cactus.  It turns out that the Gila woodpecker (which looks strikingly similar to what we call a flickr in Pennsylvania), loves the Saguaro cactus even more than Marty. They can be found nesting and feeding on these cacti, and as a sidenote, they have a call that sounds similar to a dog's squeak toy.  Pretty entertaining.

After about half a mile, we came to the Quartz trail. 

And here is where the realization hit that the trails are named after various minerals that can be easily viewed upon the trail. The picture doesn't do it justice, but when I took it, the stones were sparkling, and it was quite obvious that these were pieces of quartz, just like the sign implied.

We soon came upon a large formation of the mineral along the hillside. 

About a mile along the trail, I took this shot of Marty standing next to a tall cactus with an amazing view of the mountains in the background.

As we walked along, the trail offered more and more incredible vistas.

It was a pretty arduous trail for me, even with walking sticks, and I was pretty relieved when we were near the end and managed to capture a photo of the "three amigos".

It kind of looks like they are waving good-bye, don't you think?

And, so we were.... but let's get back to that title.  I spotted it on a bench, which sat at the cross roads of the Slate and Quartz trails, and I found it to be quite endearing.

"The Romance of a Thousand Lifetimes Begins with a Single Kiss".

What a sweet memory for a couple who was obviously much loved by the donor. 

And yes, Marty and I did take a break on this particular bench.  But Mum's the word regarding whether or not we took it to heart.  

Until next time....

Fly Fishing in Tennessee

I'm sure that my "regular" blog followers recall that I am married to Mr. Yinzerfishing of YouTube fame, so you can be assured that he wasn't wasting anytime introducing Joshua to the love of the sport. 

In fact, he was sure to make sure that Joshua had the right equipment, which not only involved a rod

but also a crash course in fly tying, all of which the little guy loved!

Pretty life-like, isn't it?

Today, we headed out to the Holston Dam so that they could practice the necessary skills of fly fishing.

While Joshua worked on his casting technique,  I entertained myself taking in the beautiful views

 as well as enjoying the antics of some very active ducks in the water. 

These waterfowl were pretty unique 

and they appeared to be having great success at finding fish, (much to the frustration of those who were not).  

We decided to move along and check out the top of the dam, which offered spectacular views. 

Then we headed to the "Weir" to try their luck.

While the guys set about enticing fish, I had a walk about to enjoy the intriguing views. 

This unusual layout is designed to aerate the water in order to assure survival of the brown trout population.  The sound of the rushing water was really quite calming, and the entire layout was fascinating to observe. 

In the end, no fish were caught, at least not by these two.   But we certainly enjoyed the beauty of our surrounds, the gorgeous weather, and, more importantly, quality time spent with our grandson. 

You really can't ask for much more.  Although Joshua would probably tell you that catching a fish would have been nice! 

Until next time!

 

Gallivanting in Blountville

 We finally made it to Bristol to visit our grandson, Joshua.  Becky set us up with an AirB&B located in the same building complex as her's, making it super convenient to spend as much quality time as possible!   If you've been following my blog, then you might recall that every waking minute is generally planned by Joshua when we make these trips.  Well, we've been a bit more laid back this trip, but certainly haven't been lacking in entertainment!

We rolled into town and wasted no time exchanging delayed Christmas gifts 

before moving on to a small combo birthday party celebrating a little late for Joshua, and a tad early for his mom. 

It was a grand time, for sure.

Yesterday, Marty and I had a chance to explore a bit of the area while Becky and Joshua were at an appointment, so we headed the few miles to Blountville.  We parked on the side of the road, and began the short walk through town.  First stop:  Anderson Townhouse, built in 1792, originally housing the first town commissioners, all whom had served in the Revolutionary war. 

We walked by Cannonball house which, more than likely, has an interesting history considering the name, but there was no indication of just how it came by it. 

Across the street, a house stood with a large stone featuring an inscription of the ten commandments.

The church was adorned with a nativity

and the Wise Men were still on the move, despite being past the feast of the Epiphany. 

This old log church was built in the late 1700s and moved to this location. 

Here stands the Delaney House built in 1802

adorned by this clever letter box.

The Old Deery Inn has a strong tie to the Civil War, when the women and children of the town huddled inside during the Battle of Blountville.  

A veteran's memorial stands in front of the Sullivan County Court House on the same street. 

This building was constructed during the Revolutionary War, although it did receive interior damage during the Civil war when it was torched by Union Soldiers.

As you can see, it was a beautiful day, and the temperatures were in the mid-50's, making exploring pretty comfortable.  After our brief adventure, we met up with Becky and  Joshua and drove into Bristol, just to walk around a bit and to get some dinner. 

We finished the day with a game of Clue.  

Joshua was thrilled to have solved the crime in what seemed pretty short time.  

I'd say that was a pretty grand day.....wouldn't you?