Running behind with the blog...result of really bad to non-existent internet. We've been staying in some truly remote areas, and it has been wonderful...no unsolicited sales calls!!!
Two days ago we were 17 miles out...at the far end of Bryce Canyon...the furthest away overlook. Way up at 9300 feet, top of the world...at the edge of civilization...
For any Terry Pratchett readers, we could see just where the flat discworld ended and the Great A'Tuin's head began.
So it was a shock when J's cell phone rang...such a foreign sound...it had been days since we had cell service, and there was no sign of civilization closer than 15 miles away.
Turns out it was Jens --- all was good, she was just missing her Mom. Isn't life grand!
The last National Park blog was about Saguaro NP. So back in the south Arizona desert.
Next on the list - Organ Pipe Cactus National Park. Another cactus garden right on the RIGHT side of the Mexico/US border.
Interestingly, on this trip we saw US Border Patrol helicopters and two Border Checkpoints, plus this park IS getting part of President Trump's wall, which has a few purists up in arms.
More about Mr. Trump and the National Parks in a later post. Not my hero (where is Ronnie when you need him) although I consider him the lesser of two evils. Never-the-less, I'm concerned about his actions to take away parts of the National Park lands. They are not for sale and should be protected, not dismantled.
But back to Organ Pipe National Park, which is more than just a bunch of cactus.
In fact, we are finding each of the National Parks have their own unique characteristics...sure cactus may be on the main stage for some, but each are unique and there is also the geography...all of it uniquely beautiful.
Although much Organ Pipe cactus grows in Mexico, it only grows in this one single area in the US due to temperature.
OPNP is the very northern edge of their natural range, so about the only place you can see them in the wild in the US.
Below shows the tall Saguaro (the ones with the arms) mentioned in a previous blog socializing with the Organ Pipe Cactus. They are the long pipe looking cactus rising up in a clump, with some of the pipes reaching 15-20 feet tall.
Though not a lot of hiking opportunities, Organ Pipe has a scenic 20 mile loop road through the rocks and hills in the higher park elevations.
We were both pleasantly surprised at how verdant the park was in spite of being desert and being so close to Mexico. Maybe it was the season...early spring in far south Arizona, although it was before the cactus flower bloom.
As mentioned in another post, the green we found in Arizona was terribly comforting after having spent a number of weeks surrounded by shades of brown and tan in New Mexico and Texas.
A funny thing happened while taking this picture of the rock edifice below.
When taking pics, I normally take 5 or 6 different shots hoping one turns out and tells a story.
In this case, I took about 6 shots from different angles, all included Clyde, the photo bomber.
Someone watching asked if I was making a Ford Truck commercial?
'Course, they wouldn't understand how Clyde has been the true hero of this entire adventure...
He's doing all the work, the fans are following his exploits...
...and that we are just along for the ride!
And Organ Pipe National Park is also memorable for me in a very personal way.
In creating content for The View From Windy Hill, I've tried to make it more than a travel log. I've attempted to include some humor, some odd titles and unexpected content to make them enjoyable to keep the reader interested.
I'm also writing this blog so 15 years from now I can read and remember the adventure!
So every once in a while some really personal stuff shows up. They are thoughts and feelings that I would never share if it weren't for this blog.
We've been retired since August 7th. Leading up to that, we were forced to do a lot of "dunno-never-tried-this-before" planning and preparation.
It really started ~40 years ago, back on Jasper Street.
When you're 26, retirement is just like fire breathing dragons.
You've heard of both of them - dragons and retirement - but it is difficult to really believe you will ever see either of them in your lifetime.
Although much Organ Pipe cactus grows in Mexico, it only grows in this one single area in the US due to temperature.
OPNP is the very northern edge of their natural range, so about the only place you can see them in the wild in the US.
Below shows the tall Saguaro (the ones with the arms) mentioned in a previous blog socializing with the Organ Pipe Cactus. They are the long pipe looking cactus rising up in a clump, with some of the pipes reaching 15-20 feet tall.
Though not a lot of hiking opportunities, Organ Pipe has a scenic 20 mile loop road through the rocks and hills in the higher park elevations.
We were both pleasantly surprised at how verdant the park was in spite of being desert and being so close to Mexico. Maybe it was the season...early spring in far south Arizona, although it was before the cactus flower bloom.
As mentioned in another post, the green we found in Arizona was terribly comforting after having spent a number of weeks surrounded by shades of brown and tan in New Mexico and Texas.
A funny thing happened while taking this picture of the rock edifice below.
When taking pics, I normally take 5 or 6 different shots hoping one turns out and tells a story.
In this case, I took about 6 shots from different angles, all included Clyde, the photo bomber.
Someone watching asked if I was making a Ford Truck commercial?
'Course, they wouldn't understand how Clyde has been the true hero of this entire adventure...
He's doing all the work, the fans are following his exploits...
...and that we are just along for the ride!
And Organ Pipe National Park is also memorable for me in a very personal way.
In creating content for The View From Windy Hill, I've tried to make it more than a travel log. I've attempted to include some humor, some odd titles and unexpected content to make them enjoyable to keep the reader interested.
I'm also writing this blog so 15 years from now I can read and remember the adventure!
So every once in a while some really personal stuff shows up. They are thoughts and feelings that I would never share if it weren't for this blog.
We've been retired since August 7th. Leading up to that, we were forced to do a lot of "dunno-never-tried-this-before" planning and preparation.
It really started ~40 years ago, back on Jasper Street.
When you're 26, retirement is just like fire breathing dragons.
You've heard of both of them - dragons and retirement - but it is difficult to really believe you will ever see either of them in your lifetime.
But we started saving any way...and we kept on saving. raises and bonuses went into savings...all as an investment in the future.
And then we stepped up our retirement actions in earnest a few years ago, laying a foundation which would allow rapid changes to happen in a short period of time - so once the retirement dominoes started falling, they could all tumble quickly.
Big milestone stuff...like starting to prepare Hidden Glen way back in '15 with custom building a nice big shed...redesigning and improving the back deck...putting on a new roof...and fresh paint inside and out to help it quickly sell after living there for 17 years.
And we started our search for a place like Windy Hill two years before we finally found it.
So the retirement dominoes were standing like soldiers...and it just took one push to put it all into action.
Over a very short window of time...Windy Hill was ours...closed on the sale of Hidden Glen in NJ...pulled the trigger on retirement...moved from New Jersey(!!!)...adopted Clyde the truck...put in a well...went on a Fox hunt to find the RV...and started the grand adventure of living on Windy Hill - all within about 60 days.
Many real and perceived risks, much uncertainty and lots of unknowns...we did our best, tried to be wise, and left the rest in God's hands.
Somehow it ALL happened just about perzactly as we envisioned it...each one was a huge, substantial life change...they all occurred over a very short time...
And I'm amazed over and over again at the live, grace and steadfast faithfulness of God.
And since it all happened so fast...it has taken a while to realize the impact.
Fast forward to now...February 12th...
just another Wednesday...
six months since J and I started our retirement.
At about Mile Post 17 on the Organ Pipe Loop Road,
there was another moment in time that changed my life...
It was there, while driving along the ol' dusty winding dirt road in the middle of nowhere...just thinking about the blessings of God and this life - when I came to fully realize this whole retirement thing would work out.
It came at a moment in time...there was a before and an after.
The before was concern and uncertainty - the after was confirmation and confidence...
It's not that I was actively worried about our retirement up to that moment in time...but I was just not 100% certain in my mind how it would all turn out. There was nagging doubt that it was real or sustainable...there was fear.
Difficult to explain that moment in time when you go from hope to surety.
The only similar "moment in time change of perspective" I experienced was accepting Christ as my Savior when I was 14.
As one goes through life...unless you've taken that step, the only thing you have to hold on to is a fuzzy hope for the future...that maybe the balance of life, of being good might tip in your favor at the end, or perhaps it's quietly questioning late at night, about what will happen to you if your soul really does live on when your body breathes its last...
But after accepting Christ, instantly uncertainty was replaced with a never questioning confidence...and with never a doubt since.
1 John 5:13 says "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may KNOW that you have eternal life."
And our retirement: Previous to that moment on that bumpy road in south Arizona, I'd been still a bit uncertain about how it was all going to unfold - but in that one moment, I truly knew - everything was going to be OK. It was real, now just go and enjoy it!
Much as accepting Christ so long ago resolved the question of eternal life...since Mile Post 17 on the Organ Pipe Loop Road there's been no further concern about retirement working out. It just will...
Difficult to explain that kind of Peace...
Everyone's life is an adventure really...
The greatest challenge is to simply be thankful for the gift of the journey...and to trust God with the rest.
Let the adventure continue...
It's not that I was actively worried about our retirement up to that moment in time...but I was just not 100% certain in my mind how it would all turn out. There was nagging doubt that it was real or sustainable...there was fear.
Difficult to explain that moment in time when you go from hope to surety.
The only similar "moment in time change of perspective" I experienced was accepting Christ as my Savior when I was 14.
As one goes through life...unless you've taken that step, the only thing you have to hold on to is a fuzzy hope for the future...that maybe the balance of life, of being good might tip in your favor at the end, or perhaps it's quietly questioning late at night, about what will happen to you if your soul really does live on when your body breathes its last...
But after accepting Christ, instantly uncertainty was replaced with a never questioning confidence...and with never a doubt since.
1 John 5:13 says "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may KNOW that you have eternal life."
And our retirement: Previous to that moment on that bumpy road in south Arizona, I'd been still a bit uncertain about how it was all going to unfold - but in that one moment, I truly knew - everything was going to be OK. It was real, now just go and enjoy it!
Much as accepting Christ so long ago resolved the question of eternal life...since Mile Post 17 on the Organ Pipe Loop Road there's been no further concern about retirement working out. It just will...
Difficult to explain that kind of Peace...
Everyone's life is an adventure really...
The greatest challenge is to simply be thankful for the gift of the journey...and to trust God with the rest.
Let the adventure continue...
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