Arizona in winter

[golfoh1]

Looking to go to Arizona this winter. Like to see birds any suggestions of places?

Thanks for all the input.

It should be great.

[darsben]

Quartzsite; Part freak show, county fair, flea market and medicine show combined.

[More_To_See]

ferndaleflyer wrote:
I don't understand your explanation of Quartzite. Looked like a Gypsy convention to me.

Some RVers just love Quartzsite and wait the whole year to head back there in Snowbird season. Others going there for the first time take one look and keep right on going - and maybe do the Tums and Alka Seltzer thing on the way out. We all march to a different drummer as they say.

I fully sympathize with your feelings about Tucson from your perspective of the old days. I have similar feelings about the changes in San Diego over only 35 years. It just ain't the same no more.

Next time you head out this way read up on Californian touring. There are some absolutely wonderful parts of this state up north well worth checking out. The coast drive. The highway 49 gold country drive. Route 395 up the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada. And Death Valley, of course, over in that area. And don't forget the redwood country way up north.

Best of all to you. Good traveling.

[ferndaleflyer]

More to see as a matter of fact I was in CA before I came east to Ariz. Daughter lives in Orange Co and brother lives in 1000 Oaks. I was in Palm Springs this time though and I will be back. I don't understand your explanation of Quartzite. Looked like a Gypsy convention to me. As a kid I enjoyed Tucson and everything about it but like they say "you can't go back" Right now I am in central NC and this is still pretty laid back......

[TexasJorge]

Can't really speak as an informed member of THIS community-yet--got out in Phoenix in 80, went to ASU, raised a family there until 2001, still own properties there, too. It's pretty brutal from now thru the last week in September. Steve Benson is/was an Editorial cartoonist who used to enrage the snowbird/RVers 3-4 times a year with his commentary in the AzRepublic, though. It was Hilarious, unless you're thin skinned. He had gone off the political deep end by the time I left though. Prices there are like the ROK when the 7th fleet ports in Pusan---You know and feel it up on the DMZ. I'm partial to the area north of Globe Morenci, myself. Heber is too far north/cold for me. Lots of resources there for you, for the same reasons. The river cities average 112 degrees in the summer. Yuma is similar. Lot of people summer in the Prescott valley area, 70 miles north of Phoenix. Tucson is relatively cooler too. Different 'culture' there, though.

[Executive45]

#63 and #64 say it all......:W.....Dennis


Try the Lost Dutchman State Park for a visit of 14 days or less. You will not be disappointed. For longer stays, try one of the many upscale parks in Gold City or Apache Junction. Regardless, you owe it to yourself to spend at least a week or two at the Lost Dutchman.....Dennis

[2gypsies1]

Bog Springs C.G. is recommended only for RVs up to 22'.

Patagonia Lake State Park in Patagonia, AZ is another great place for birding.

[Desert_Captain]

redsb3 wrote:
I hear from the locals just outside of Tucson that Madera Canyon is a real hotspot for birders. Also a very beautiful area, so birding and sightseeing all in one trip!

X2 There is a small cg, Bogg Springs in Madera Canyon (the only one), with 13 sites but nothing over 30' will fit and less in some. It is a beautiful cg located at 5,000' with lots of critters (black bears, deer, wild turkeys and more migratiry birds than you imagine). Considered by many to be "The" premier birding location in AZ.
:C

[J-Rooster]

Dennis M M wrote:
I would not get too wound up about Valley Fever. It is endemic in Southern California, Southern Nevada, Southwestern Colorado, all of Arizona, most of New Mexico. and Southwest Texas.

There are hot spots in Southern CA, Southern AZ, and the Rio Grand Valley.

The VAlley Fever Center for Excellence has extensive information on the disease.

It killed a friend of mine!

[More_To_See]

ferndaleflyer wrote:
I was 15 when I moved East from Tucson. I visited this past Feb. It is amazing what tourists and transplants can do to what was once a beautiful state.....That mess around Quartzite was unbelievable......60 years of progress!!!!!!!

If you ever decide to head out this way again (which apparently you won't) swing through California first and then Tucson will seem like a quaint little village to you again.

As for Quartzsite, some people just don't like carnivals and county fairs. Or perhaps I should I should say state fairs.

And there is always Tums and Alka Seltzer.

[ferndaleflyer]

I was 15 when I moved East from Tucson. I visited this past Feb. It is amazing what tourists and transplants can do to what was once a beautiful state.....That mess around Quartzite was unbelievable......60 years of progress!!!!!!!

[redsb3]

I hear from the locals just outside of Tucson that Madera Canyon is a real hotspot for birders. Also a very beautiful area, so birding and sightseeing all in one trip!

[Dennis_M_M]

I would not get too wound up about Valley Fever. It is endemic in Southern California, Southern Nevada, Southwestern Colorado, all of Arizona, most of New Mexico. and Southwest Texas.

There are hot spots in Southern CA, Southern AZ, and the Rio Grand Valley.

The VAlley Fever Center for Excellence has extensive information on the disease.

[J-Rooster]

During the winter in Arizona I recommend a low elevation city in Western Arizona anywhere between Bullhead City, AZ. (900 feet above sea level), Lake Havasu City, AZ. (450 feet above sea level) and Yuma, AZ. (200 feet above sea level). Central AZ. Phoenix and Tucson AZ. can get really cold when the Artic cold drops down they can get into the low 20's and both those cities are around 2,000 feet above sea level and in Eastern AZ. Grand Canyon is around 5,000 feet above sea level and Flagstaff is close to 7,500 feet above sea level! Coldest I've been in at Lake Havasu City, AZ. when the Artic cold hit was 33*. Don't dig in the dirt in AZ. and keep your mouth and nose covered when the winds blow to reduce your chances of contracting Valley Fever. 66 out of 1,000 people get Valley Fever. Not trying to scare you just trying to prepare you for the entire Southwest! If your traveling with a pet dog or cat walk them in a grassy dog park or on the pavement, keep them out of the dirt. My Vet in LHC (Dr. Buckman) told me he treats one dog a week for Valley Fever in his office on Smoketree Ave. if it's not treated immediately in animals it's fatal.

[Thunder_Mountai]

McDowell Mountain Regional Park operated by Maricopa County. Campground is magnificent. Lots of people feed the birds in the campground. Great spot to just set and watch from your window. Fabulous hiking and mountain biking trails right from campground. Fountain Hills and the best Safeway in the world is about 20 minutes. Maricopa County also operates Cave Creek and Usery Mountain campgrounds. Great place to go birding is the Boyce Thompson Arboretum east of Gold Canyon. Gilbert, AZ has a waste water/recycled water park with miles of hiking trails. No smell. Couldn't believe the variety of birds.