Jan 7 - 13, 2019 Hanging out at Pioneer RV Park.

Jan 7
It's just us now. Barry & Ailsa had to fly back up north for work and other than a couple of guys at pickleball we don't really know anybody here. I'm okay with it though because I want to focus on running before the race on the 20th. Leslie is busy with the social calendar and she wants to try some activities here. We're good.
We had a quiet morning and eased into our day. We're going to try a hike at Cave Creek Regional Park today.

We drove over there about noon and paid the $7 for a day pass and did a driving tour of the campground first. It looks like a nice park and there are several sites we could fit in by the look of things. Next up was picking a hike we liked. Barry usually does the Go John Trail but it's longer than we feel like doing today. We chose the Slate Trail which is 5k/ 3.2 mi out and back rated easy.

Our choice for today.

We quickly learned that the first portion is part of the guided horse ride and it kind of smells and you need to watch where you step. (We have to pick up Margaret's poop but horses are okay??) It wasn't terrible and not long before you get past the horse portion. We even met some riders on a tour.

Looks like fun.

It's a very easy trail and goes through some beautiful desert scenery. There was a cactus called "the Michelin Man" that we took pics of but unfortunately they turned out badly. Rats! We had a nice hike and Margaret got some exercise so it worked out great.

Leslie & Margaret leading.

The namesake rock "Slate" along the trail.

We got back in the truck and checked out another loop on the way out to the gate. It's a nice park, well worth a visit if you are in north Phoenix. We drove back to the rig and put together a great steak dinner for the two of us. 

Steak and Greek salad numm.

Jan 8

 We got going early and enjoyed a good breakfast to fuel today's activities. Leslie is going to water aerobics, then a 5k walk followed by line dancing in the afternoon. I want to try a longer run for conditioning to be able to do 21.1km (13.1 miles) in 2 weeks. I managed a total of 12k which I would have liked to be 15k but that's what I got. I'm still learning to train properly for the distance and Christmas/New Years activity didn't help perhaps. As long as I make the distance and try my best then I'm happy. We both relaxed after all the stuff and made a delicious shrimp pasta supper. Leslie found a super good deal at the social hall before coming home. Someone brings shopping bags with lemons, oranges & grapefruits from their trees and puts them in the coffee room for sale. Only $1/ bag and there was 12-14 of each in the bags!! So fresh and juicy. Delicious, a real treat for us of course. That night we just watched TV and relaxed. Tuesday is my new fave show, FBI. Great show with good action.

Jan 9

Leslie is trying another game at the social hall, Mahjong, this morning while I work on the blog update. She enjoyed learning the game and she met another lady from Bonnyville that lives very close to our friend Trent. Small world. We want to see the town of Cave Creek today so we are going there for lunch. Ailsa was telling us there are lots of different shops and things to check out so we'll go have a look. Neither one of us are "shoppers" but we'll see. We ended up doing more of a driving tour than shopping. We really don't need anything so we didn't stop until we found the Buffalo Chip Saloon that we were supposed to go to last week.

Buffalo Chip Saloon, nice area for bikes with a fence around it.

Some history about the "Chip"

Mechanical bull riding rules.

The big thing about the Buffalo Chip is they have live bull riding on Wednesday and Saturday at the bar!! They have their own arena and grandstands. So cool. 

Tables outside of course, close to the arena.

The beer box and arena with the VIP stands up the back.

Of course they have great barbecue!

Leslie got brisket so I ordered pulled pork so we could share and they were really good. I could have maybe done both as I love this stuff but I wouldn't have been able to move after. Washed it down with a Kiltlifter draught. Now that's a great lunch! We did a little walk after lunch and window shopped the Harley shop across the road but didn't buy anything. We stopped at Fry's on the way home for groceries and had a little lie down when we were done putting stuff away. Around 4pm we moved our lawn chairs out front in the sun beside the road and enjoyed a couple Coronas with fresh lemon (of course). People walking by said hi but nobody else on our street does happy hour! What kind of strange world have we entered ?? Lol.

Leslie called her sister Lorin and they enjoyed some time catching up on things. We just grabbed some leftovers for supper and chilled in front of the TV after that.

Jan 10

We walked over to the pickleball courts a little early and I helped Les get warmed up for when her usual players arrive. She has been playing Tuesdays and Thursdays with Marshall, John & Jim from here in the park. I don't want to risk a calf injury so I just watch or walk the dog while she plays. They play for a couple hours and they really enjoy the competition. Les is definitely as good or better than them so they are good games. They rotate partners quite often and that seems to add to the fun.

John, Leslie on this side, Jim & Marshall far side.

We feel like having lunch out again so after Leslie got cleaned up we drove up to Anthem and decided on Tennessee Grill, a place we have never heard of. They have barbecue but I'm feeling more like a burger today and we both ended up ordering burgers made to order. OMG they have fantastic burgers! They say it's 3/4 pound patties and they look fresh made by hand but they are delicious. Definitely going back there.

So good!

We went across the road to Walmart for a couple groceries (Ugh) and then back to the rig to lie down. Burger trauma haha. We took the dog for a nice long walk around the park after we got up and then just a light dinner and TV. Not a thrill a minute routine but it's perfect for now.

Jan 11

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYAN !! Leslie's little boy is having a birthday, 34 today, Leslie must have been 5 when she had him hahaha. Hope you have a great day buddy!!

Ryan and Mom

 We're planning another driving tour to the west today to Lake Pleasant Regional Park. I want to check out the RV Park at the marina that I had looked at online before coming here to Pioneer. It's not far so we were soon at the turn for Pleasant Harbour RV Park. We stopped at the gate and the guard told us we are welcome to have a look for $6 entry fee. Yeah no, how about I drive around the outside of the fence for free. It's nice but I really don't want to pay to see an RV Park (there's ur sign) their clubhouse etc is a really nice building and supposedly you can see the water but we'll never know that.

Looks nice from the road.

We drove back to the highway and went west again for a couple miles to the turn for the Regional Park.

We followed this road north until it turned into a dirt road and turned around at park map sign. It costs $7 to see the lake at the park so we'll come back another day when we have more time to enjoy it. We turned south to head back to the highway when Leslie noticed some animals in the desert maybe 50 yards off the road. It's a small group of wild donkeys!! We haven't seen any before so it was really kind of exciting. I pulled over and we got out for a closer look.

Never seen them in the wild.

Of course I was talking to them like Shrek ;)

We drove back to highway 17 and decided to go to the outlet mall in Anthem for Leslie to look for a new bathing suit. We're both hungry so we stopped at the food court first. We decided on Fresca's Mexican Grill, it was a great choice! The food was great and plenty of it.

A burrito bowl and in a wrap, so good.

We stopped in a few shops but Les didn't find anything she liked so we headed back home. Another shopping trip, oh goody lol. We had another happy hour by ourself and then inside for the evening.

Jan 12

Leslie is playing pickleball with the fellas again today while I take Margaret for a long walk. We have plans to meet a few people from High Chaparral at the Mesa Market today to do some shopping and a nice visit. Nice folks from the other RV Park ! We walked around a couple of the tents but again we don't really need anything so we left empty handed. We decided to meet everyone at Barro's Pizza about 2 blocks away.

Lots of pizza and some good people.

Missed getting Shelley in the first shot !

We said good bye to everyone and we'll see them at my race on the 20th. Six of them are coming to the race. So nice of them to go to that trouble. Leslie and I drove back to the rig and just took it easy. Pizza leftovers for supper and park it in the Lazyboy. Not a bad thing.

Jan 13

We started the day with a fantastic breakfast that Leslie made. Brown toast with avocado and onions on top with a perfectly cooked over easy egg on top and a side of fresh grapefruit. It was awesome!

How healthy and delicious is this??

After that settled in a bit we both headed out for a walk/ run. I am just doing a short run to keep things moving before the race, don't want to go too far at this point. Leslie did a nice long walk with the dog and when we got back I noticed the NFL playoffs are on! I don't watch a ton of football but it really seemed like a good idea to hit the couch and enjoy the game. Leslie didn't think it was a great idea but she let me have the couch and the TV. She chilled in bed and then played some games on her phone while listening to me cheer. She was watching lots of the replays too so I think she actually really likes football but doesn't want me to know haha. We're having barbecued salmon and veggies for supper so Les got that started and I did the salmon. Pretty great day again.

Perfect!

Well that's about it for another week of retired life. Race day is getting closer and I'm excited and nervous all at once which I'm sure is making Leslie nuts. She's awesome though and helps me out no matter what. Next post should get us to race day! Cheers everybody.