An Interesting Place…

Since Thanksgiving, Darwin and I have been hovering around Cane Beds, AZ. We have come to the conclusion it’s not a real place but yet, here we are. By definition it’s a census-designated place, not really a city or town with a population of maybe four hundred. Try to send mail out here and the zip code will probably say Fredonia, AZ another city about thirty minutes away. If you travel only ten minutes in the other direction, you’re in Utah.

We are surrounded by amazing Red Rock Mesas, literally within walking distance of where we are staying. Within just a few short minutes we can be on a trail that is riddled with beautiful large boulders and chunks of rough sandstone. Following a trail of scree up one of these mesas will lead you to a collection of petroglyphs. A feeling of history and power, fills this special place.

Although technically still in the desert, a viewpoint from a mesa may reveal forests and white-capped mountains. Darwin and I have driven past large sections of farmland, hiked past a lake and alongside flowing water. We have found that if Cane Beds doesn’t provide the environment we want to explore, a short drive can get us there.

Our alarm clock has been the crow of roosters from a neighboring farm; crowing and rousing us even before the first glimpses of dawn have broken the night sky. Throughout the day we hear the occasional bellows of a bull or the long baa of the sheep. We have fallen asleep to the howls of coyotes conversating in the distance, proving this area to be full of a variety of animals beyond just the domestic dogs and cats that also fill the day with chatter.

The wind has been so strong it shakes the little camper we are staying in and rattles vents and windows but yet can be calm and quite within a few hours. The sky has opened and released heavy rain resulting in a battle with Caliche Mud the next day. The sun has shown and heated up the red rocks and soil causing us to sweat and yet it has also already been so bitter cold our breath has been stolen while gazing out across a snowy desert landscape.

This is an interesting place.