Welcome to Prescott Valley

  Good riddance to Gallup! Sunday was spent on the road to Prescott Valley, AZ and it was not without incident.

  First, we stopped at Petrified Forest National Park which includes the Painted Desert. The actual painting only really occurs during sunrise and sunset when the angle of the sun causes the sandstone to glow in many different shades of red, orange and yellow. Since we were there around midday we didn't see any of that although all the tourists pointing and staring were sure it was happening. Having seen it myself back in the 70's I can attest to the beauty of it -- it just wasn't there at midday Sunday.

  We did spend some time checking out the bits of petrified wood which were quite fascinating. For those of you who are curious as to how this occurs, I'll explain as best I can after digesting the Park Service info sheet.

  About 200 million years ago, before the continents drifted apart, this area was about 10 degrees north of the equator, equivalent to modern Costa Rica. Consequently, there was a large rainforest on the site and, as trees fell, they sank into waterways and swamps, Once underwater, with no oxygen to enable decomposition, the wood absorbed silicas which gradually displaced organic material. As more and more silt covered them the weight of the upper layers compressed the silica, forming opalines and, eventually, quartzite, which is what we find today. As the area started to shift upwards to form the modern plateau, the logs, brittle with dense quartzite, shattered and left fragment across the landscape, which is how we see them now.

  I hope you understood that... I'll be asking questions later. Also, for the picky geologists in the audience, any errors are mine so don't complain to the National Park Service. Did I mention I'm not a geologist? Anyway, here are a few pics from the park:

This image came from what they call "Newspaper Rock" which was covered in petroglyphs:

Although the following look like rocks they are actually very good examples of petrified wood:

  After we left the park we made a couple of stops because they were there. First, the giant rabbit at the Jackrabbit Trading Post:

  I mean, who doesn't want to ride a giant rabbit? Am I right? The next stop was in Winslow, AZ, and all the Eagles fans in the audience know what that means...

  Once we finished with sightseeing we hightailed it to Prescott Valley. Well, maybe lowtailed is more appropriate. When we arrived at Flagstaff Google informed us there was a 45 minute delay on I-17 so the 90 minute trip was going to run more like 2 1/2 hours. We decided to go through Sedona instead -- same elapsed time but far more entertaining than a 20 mile traffic jam! Although we don't have pictures as the drive required all my driving skills and concentration suffice to say it was one of the most beautiful drives I've ever done. We'll be back that way and we'll get pictures later.

  We finally arrived at our house sitting job and met Emily and her two dogs, Spike

 and Radar:

  Emily doesn't have the use of her legs due to an accident 30 years ago so she's confined to a wheelchair. Having said that she doesn't use it as an excuse, being more active that most people we know. She was a dominant figure in wheelchair marathons 25 years ago and age has not slowed her down. She just left for Alaska for the next two weeks where she's joining a group that will trek to Denali. After that she's meeting up with a cruise down the Inside Passage to Vancouver, returning home in three weeks. When she's home she has a recumbent bicycle she rides around town or uses her motorized chair to take the dogs out for 90 minute walks morning and evening.

  Her house is small but very open and nicely finished. We're in a subdivision right next to some small mountains and desert scrub.

  There are lots of trails for hiking and dog walking, a beautiful golf course nearby and a 5 mile drive to shops and a billion restaurants. Yesterday we went into the main part of Prescott for breakfast and stumbled upon a bistro that served us Brisket Benedict with poblanos. Love at first bite! The fam can look for that at an upcoming New Years brunch 😋.

  The weather has been perfect since we arrived, with temps in the high-20's (C) and lots of sun. We've spent the past two days getting to know Emily and the dogs and, with Emily's departure this morning, it's just us and the guys.

  The dogs are very well trained and there's lots of space to let them off-leash in the bush above us. They're pretty good at coming when you call them although Spike gave us a bit of a scare this morning when he disappeared for ten minutes. He eventually showed up with a big smile on his face so no harm done.

  With cooler temps rolling in for the next few days we may get out on a golf course. Even though it hasn't been super hot, being in the sun makes it feel that way. Like everyone says about the west, it's a dry heat. Blistering sun but dry heat.

  Ok, now for the skill-testing question I mentioned earlier. If a train leaves Los Angeles at 2:00 pm traveling east and another train leaves New York at 4:00 pm traveling west, who won the 1946 World Series?