Joe and Mary Ann's personal web site

This post is for the second day of our trip to southern Arizona. We planned on going to Huachuca Canyon. It is on the Fort Huachuca Army base, so we have to get a pass to get onto the base in order to go to the canyon. We decided to get the pass on the first day so we would be ready to go Wednesday morning. We drove from Madera Canyon to Fort Huachuca, and were informed that all of the canyons on the base were closed due to fire danger. This was a disappointment because we were looking forward to Huachuca Canyon.

We stayed in the Clarion Inn, formerly known as the Sierra Suites. This is where we usually stay. The rate was reasonable, the room was good, and they had a nice breakfast (eggs, ham, potatoes, etc). We had dinner at the Olive Garden, which had a good vegan option.

Unfortunately, with Huachuca Canyon out, we had to decide on a plan B. We could go to the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (RNCA), or go to Miller Canyon, which is in the Huachuca Mountains, but not on Fort Huachuca, or we could go to both places. We decided on the San Pedro River.

We got there early, so the weather was nice in the shade of the trees by the river. But, it heated up pretty quickly, and was hot by the time we were hiking out. There were lots of birds there, but no good photographic opportunities. Also, the flash on my camera quit working, and I rely on the flash to get good lighting in the shady environment. In hindsight, Miller Canyon may have been a better choice.

I didn’t get a single photograph that I liked, but I’m posting a few anyway. The Gilded Flicker is only found in Arizona and Mexico, and is a cousin of the more widespread Northern Flicker. The female Varied Bunting isn’t a good shot, but it’s my first photo of a Varied Bunting, which, in North America, is also unique to southern Arizona and a little bit of Texas (it’s more common in Mexico).

We got done with our hike at about 1:00, and decided not to make the trek to Miller Canyon at that point. So we headed home.

The San Pedro River was a beautiful spot, and we had fun, despite the lack of any good photos.

Mary Ann and I made a trip to Sierra Vista in southern Arizona. Our plan was to stop at Madera Canyon on the way there, and go to Huachuca Canyon the next day. The best laid plans … go oft astray. We didn’t make it to Huachuca Canyon, but this post is for our first day at Madera Canyon.

Mary Ann and I went to Mt. Ord on June 23, 2025. We left at about 7:15 for the 1.5 hour drive. It’s a nice cool spot when it gets hot in Phoenix. It was about 75 degrees there and 100+ in Phoenix. The elevation is 7000 ft. There is usually good birding there.

I’m catching up on pictures, and this is from 2 months ago! It is the second day of our annual trip to Aravaipa Canyon. The previous post covers our first day. On the second day, we made the 2 hour drive from our hotel to the canyon. There are about six creek crossings to get to the Turkey Creek trailhead. They recommend a 4×4, and our Forester handled it fine. There was a Corolla parked at the trailhead, so I guess the 4×4 isn’t really needed (though I wouldn’t do it with a Corolla)!

Mary Ann and I made our annual trip to Aravaipa Canyon on April 29, 2025. We decided to hike the east side of the canyon, which is a longer drive than going to the west side. So we drove to Safford on Tuesday, hiked Aravaipa on Wednesday, and came home on Thursday. This post is for the first day of the trip, when we went to two state parks near Safford: Roper Lake and Dankworth Pond.

Mary Ann, Father Charlie, and I went to Boyce Thompson Arboretum on April 25, 2025. We got there at around 9:00 and spent about 3 hours. We had lunch in Superior (at Los Hermanos).

Our grandson Zion’s first birthday was on April 19, 2025. Aaron and Maria had a party for him on April 27. This post has some pictures from the party. He sure is a cute boy, and growing up fast!

Mary Ann, Father Charlie, and I went to the Verde River on March 6, 2025. We left at 8:00 for the 50 minute drive. It was cold and rainy when we left. There were some light sprinkles when we got there, but it cleared up nicely during the day. We first went to the Box Bar Recreation Site, then ate lunch at the Needle Rock Recreation Site, and finally went to the Verde River Recreation Site. It’s a short drive between these sites.

Mary Ann and I went to the Boyce Thompson Arboretum (BTA) on Feb 14. It was raining that day, so we initially cancelled our plans. But, it cleared up in the afternoon, so we decided to drive out and take our chances. It turned out to be a beautiful afternoon. We noticed a lot of couples there on that day. I wonder why?

Mary Ann and I went to the Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch (RPWR) in Gilbert on Friday, Feb 7, 2025. I noticed in the daily ‘Maricopa County Rare Bird Alert’ that there were some interesting warblers reported there: the Black-and-white Warbler, Wilson’s Warbler, Yellow Warbler, Black-throated Gray Warbler. Also the American Redstart and Northern Parula were reported. So we decided to check it out.