Catching up from AZ

Hello Family & Friends,
We have still be settling in and getting acquainted with North Ranch.  The last week people have been arriving back for the winter.  Plus we have had so much rain -- I guess it is the rainiest October on record and we are expecting more over the weekend.

Also, there has been snow in the higher elevations like Flagstaff and other cities closer to the Grand Canyon.  Actually the North Rim of the Grand Canyon is closed except the visitor's center and another office area but those will close at the end of October.

We have been ordering items needed for the RV, had a check value go bad so the water leaked past the city water connection and the fresh water holding tank.  The pump/value arrived but the filter that bypasses is it dripping so we have that coming end of this week.  We ordered rodent preventive pouches that you put in the bins and we use Peppermint oil to offend their noses. 

Have made a few trips to Harbor Freight to get "solar" light ropes that flash and a spotlight to put on the flag so we can leave it out all night.  We put the flashing solar light ropes under the RV and under the truck at night so that again, the desert rodents don't visit us to live and chew on electrical wires.

But I have taken a few pictures of the sunsets (when not raining) and during one rain shower there was a rainbow that appeared!  I've included that as well.

Sun setting on the mountains (overlook the empty lot for sale : )

The skies just turn to pinkish purple and the reflection on the mountains is gorgeous

I think it was ending the rain or starting the rain, not sure!

Saturday (10/13) was either raining or sprinkling all day -- we watched a couple movies.

As you can see, the clouds are descending upon the mountain tops

Gray skies over the mountains

Once again, I am hanging out of the truck trying to capture the rainbow, look carefully in the middle of the pictures right under the clouds.

On a funny note, Brad & Mickey's cat, Archie (you've seen his picture when in Ute) is a very turf protecting cat....Mickey bought a plastic, black cat to see what he would do with a "sibling".... we didn't get to see his reaction but it wasn't pretty -- then Archie continued to knock it away from its shelf perch.  

So now the Pendergast's have a low maintenance cat, that is currently guarding our driveway.

He is a creepy looking cat with red eyes and was perching on my computer one day!

Stay tuned for more explorations from the traveling Pendergasts!

Wintering in AZ,

Susan & Darrel

Hello to Congress, AZ

Hello Readers,
We arrived at North Ranch, Congress, AZ on Thursday, October 4.  We left Ute Bluff on Wednesday and traveled to Gallup, NM.  The RV park we stayed in was USA RV and it was a busy park.  We had a lot change and was concerned we wouldn't be able to get out before noon, but were able to get on the road around 9AM.

Once crossing into Arizona, we gained an hour since AZ doesn't follow Daylight Saving Time -- so for you on MT time, we are 1 hour earlier and for you on CT, we are 2 hours earlier and for you on ET, we are 3 hours earlier --- so I will try not call some one at 11PM when we are still up at 8-9PM  😃  Remember, this will only last until Daylight Saving Time ends Nov. 4 --- then we will be on MT!  Confusing, I know.

Friday we headed into Surprise, AZ which is just north of Phoenix to do some shopping at Harbor Freight, Walmart and ate some great Chinese!  Traffic is busy, busy.... and I think most everyone I saw were retirees!!

Saturday we spent time unloading the RV and getting everything setup for our extended stay until late April or early May --- haven't made a commitment to when we will leave -- definitely before the heat is on.

Here's some pics of our lot with Zoe & Bo on it -- it is dark at night as they do not have any street lights in the park (awesome!) and you can see the stars shine brightly and hear the coyotes howl!

Zoe looks so big on the lot and we sit up high -- Bo has his own parking space!

Right behind Bo, is a storage shed we can use with an extra refrigerator.

This is from the garage end of Zo, we have lots of nice landscaping with cacti, of course.

Right behind the patio, is a gazebo,

it has a table & 4 chairs, plus a cover, once we get it on.

This is the driver's side of Zo with the patio up, we have nice a nice concrete pad to park.

The yard is small rock with a nice landscaping of cacti and patio blocks and pavers.

When I stand at the top stairs by the living area, I can see the mountains (background of pic)

The lot right across is empty right now until the other RV'ers return in the next couple of weeks.

As  you can see, a little better shot of the mountain range to the north of North Ranch.

Hope everyone is doing well, we are tired but glad to have such a nice, warm place to stay for the winter.  We will keep you updated on our exploration activities!

Love,

Susan & Darrel

Ute Bluff Lodge Goodbyes

Hello Readers,

If you have been following the national weather, Hurricane Rosa delayed our departure from Ute Bluff Lodge for a couple of days (we were also awaiting a package so it worked out).  We had a reservation outside Albuquerque, NM overnight on Monday .....but..... the rains from Rosa were supposed to hit Arizona hard (which it did) late Monday night and Tuesday.  We were unable to stay for 2 nights as they were booked for the Balloon Festival that happens Oct. 6-14, so we found another place in Gallup, NM to stay and with our delayed departure, we will spend 1 night before heading on to Congress AZ.

We have packed our RV, done extra laundry and actually hooked up to the truck so all we have to do on Wednesday morning is pull in the slides, plug into the truck and raise the jacks.  We spent extra time on cleaning the holding tanks and added fresh water so we have that in case we need to stay at a Walmart parking lot (you never know)???

We want to give a big thank you to Christian and Margareta Grill, owners of Ute Bluff Lodge (check out their website -- for our extended stay.  We have really enjoyed our time here and all the experiences we have had -- as first timers on the RV full time road, their hospitality has been truly appreciated.

I decided to trek up the Bluff one more time to way goodbye until next year as we are planning to return to follow up with the adventure from 2018.

Our RV is just in front of the Bluff and you can see me really tiny in upper middle of the picture.

Darrel, the cameraman, caught me waving goodbye (or hi??)

Headed done the Bluff, which is the long way around as I am NOT a mountain goat!

We will keep you posted on our journey back through New Mexico and across Arizona to Congress and North Ranch, for our winter stay.

We wish you all well, be safe and enjoy!

Love,

Susan & Darrel