ROAD TRIP! Hillsboro and Silver City, New Mexico with Sue.

I took off into the mountains with eBaying, RVing Sue. We left our cat-eat-kibble world behind for the day.

We didn't know that Hillsboro is closed on Tuesdays. Still, it has a cool place to camp overnight with a toilet, so let's hear it for the town. I also saw a sign for the public library, so that's promising.

It's a thrift store.

We saw these everywhere. They must have washed up in the storm.

 Santa Rita is the patron saint of impossible cases.

Javalina Café. We disagreed on the pronunciation, but we hoofed it up to the bar anyway.

This river was once Main Street. During a flood, it had a tantrum and was sent to bedrock.

Get it?

Finger Rock. City of Something State Park.

Butterfield rest area.

I'm playing with some ideas. If I wanted to park somewhere in Kanab, Utah where there was a toilet, but not in a motel room, where would it be? I'd like to work for a little while at Best Friends Animal Society (more kitties, please?)

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I've finished Thundershirting the cats. Can I have a bandaid and a transfusion, please?

Kanab, Utah dining: living high without the hog

I'll close up this chapter by telling you where you should eat while in Kanab.

• Angel Village, Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. We ate here almost every day (they're closed Sunday). Nicolas is the chef and manager of the café, and hospitality is his strength. All items on the buffet are vegetarian, and if you prefer a vegan option, grab a plate and head to the kitchen for an animal-free delight. Enjoy all-you-can-eat salad, entree, dessert, tea and/or coffee - $5.

Thanks, Nicolas! It was hard to leave you... I mean Best Friends.

View from the terrace

• Laid Back Larry's Vegetarian Eatery and Market. Val makes some tasty vegan food, mostly grilled sandwiches. We ate here several times. My favorite was the tempeh reuben. You can also get a smoothie, or just stop in for a cup of coffee. Everything on the menu is vegan, so relax. If you're an omnivore, I suspect you won't miss meat this time around. Check out the small-but-densely-packed vegetarian market in back.

I can't recommend Spurs; they do boast "VEGAN" on their sign, but there are three lackluster items on that menu. Service is the pits. I can't imagine your service will be much better even if you order a steak.

We ate at Houston's Trail's End, where the service was very good and the veggie burgers (and fries) tasted great. They have plenty of meaty choices, too.

It's not dining, but I do recommend a couple of local thrift stores. Kanab's Hospital Auxiliary thrift store is pretty good, and we really liked Fredonia's ARC thrift shop right on 89. Their proceeds go right to local animal rescues who aren't as well-endowed as Best Friends.

We're enjoying wonderful temps in Flagstaff, and thinking ahead to fall and winter. Can you suggest boondocking areas we might want to try as weather gets cooler? 

Volunteering at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

When you're in Kanab, you may have a free morning or a dull afternoon to deal with. Why not spend it at Best Friends? It's easy.

• Go to the Welcome Center. It's impossible to miss from 89, going north out of Kanab. Just follow the signs.
• Ask for a tour. Free! There are four every day, and a tour takes about 90 minutes. This is also an easy way to see some beautiful countryside.
• It's all here.

If you like what you see, and you're thinking about volunteering, tell them so when you get back to the front desk. They'll get you set up with a brief orientation time, and then you'll sign up for the department of your choice. Pigs fill up quickly, in an ironic twist.

I Hugged a Cowboy: tales of the Southwest

I have alluded to my fear of horses. We signed up for horse doody on Saturday, which is pretty much like it sounds. You grab some work gloves and a pitchfork, and Ron drives you through the canyon on a Polaris Ranger. We shoveled poop for a cumulative total of maybe 15 minutes, with a tour in-between piles.

I confessed to Ron that I was afraid of horses, and he was very reassuring. He told us how to be with them, and how to fend them off if they got too friendly.

I was inside their pastures STANDING RIGHT BESIDE HORSES. I touched them, and spoke to them, and scritched their necks. I even turned my back on them. Curly Sue followed me to the turd castles to make sure I was doing it right. Rocky got up-close-and-personal with my water bottle to look for the apple-mint treats he was sure I carried.

Rocky's girlfriend, Cassia. Cassia was severely abused in her previous life, and has permanent back injuries and trust issues. They believe she was a Mexican tripping horse. Her trainer demonstrates her Parelli training, a completely gentle technique.

Rocky moved to Best Friends when it was realized he was in serious pain with his bad feet. A trainer there determined to take him in, either to manage his pain, or to euthanize him. Now, BF's ferrier works with his feet, and Rocky is on pain medication all the time. He is a happy, active horse. With a cute girlfriend. And, they're both retired! Life has gotten a lot better for these two.

Anasazi grain storage facility, and Ron

800 - 1000 year-old corn cobs. Don't bother trying to compost them.

Pictograph

185,000,000 years ago, giant carnivorous cows roamed Utah. We're lucky enough to have the fossil record.

From Hidden Lake

Toward Hidden Lake

Kanab Creek forms a slot canyon

Anasazi hand prints

Potsherds. Ron holds some rarer decorated sherds.

Silver's Point. Hi-yo Silver! That Silver.

Turtle Rock. Yarmulke or beret? [I'm stealing Ron's jokes]

Ren was probably a ranch hand, and this is likely his headstone. This is now about seven feet above the ground, and was probably a couple of feet lower in 1883. Next visit, I'll show you Ren.

Anasazi dwelling. Bottom half of wall was still intact when it was rediscovered.

People still wonder what happened to the Anasazis. DNA testing indicates the Hopis and Zunis are descendants, and so it's possible nothing "happened" to them. They may just have moved and formed new groups.

If you get here to work, just don't miss the "horse tour." Ron loves showing people this stuff, and most people (us) wouldn't know to ask about it. 

Zion National Park, and never stand between a pig and his apples.

As Heard in Our House

I'm giving my feet a spa treatment.

What does that mean - you're gonna wash them?


Blogger meet-up

We met the wandering Desert Diva, and her faithful sidekick, Cali. Cheryl took the time to visit with us for two days, and we all saw the sights and heard the hears. Annie and I had a great time, and Cheryl and Cali were gracious enough to pretend the same.

Our clutter terrified her.

We discovered that we share several major interests, like authors in common, love of animals, a passion for thrift stores, and margaritas.

She drives a 22' Toyhome, and we admired its agility and gas mileage. And its cute-itude.

Pigs love apples - a cautionary tail

Arnold

Emily, the odd pig

Annie and Cherry

Saturday morning was Pig Time! We saw an oinkientation video, then Adria let us take pigs for a stroll.

Pigs walk very slowly. Annie demonstrates the promise of apple chips to keep Cherry moving.

Arnold and I got ahead of these two, because he had places to go. My job was just to keep Arnold out of the apples.

Where our walk went south.

You people already knew this, but I'm a suburban girl:

• Pigs are stubborn. 
• When pigs see free apples, pigs are no longer tempted by apple chips.
• Pigs love apples. 
• Pigs remember where they last found apples. 
• Pigs know what I forgot: pigs will bite right through a pig-walker to get to apples. 
• Pigs don't care if a pig-walker wets herself.

Arnold was out of control, and Annie with the radio was far away. I had to shatter the bucolic silence to get her to call for help. I was powerless against Arnold and his apple jones.

Adria apologized profusely for Arnold's atrocious behavior, but it was all good. A pig bit me! It's a badge of honor, like receiving the Purple Snout.

Later, we just cleaned up their pens and filled their mud baths and scritched bellies. Arnold and I made up: I rubbed his belly, and he let me.

Pig trivia:

1. Female pigs can get pregnant at 3 months
2. Male pigs start to breed at 6 weeks. 
3. There is no such thing as a micro, teacup, or pocket pig. There are just undernourished piglets, or baby pigs having baby pigs. 

Our Best Friends Piggy Paradise review? Four trotters up!



Zion National Park

We made a day trip to Zion to see things.

Desert bighorn sheep.

Roxi showering at Weeping Rock.  

Jennifer Beals showering at Weeping Rock

Pavement bighorn sheep

This trail seemed like such a good idea.

 

If you get here later than mid-morning, cruise on through and park in Springdale. You'll catch a free shuttle up to the park boundary, then walk across and show your receipt (or your Interagency Pass). A shuttle bus will take you through the scenic route at the bottom of the canyon, and lets you disembark wherever you'd like.

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