Where are Cheryl and Dennis?: Benson - Snow, Polar Bears and Hummingbirds

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Tuesday – Happy New Year! We woke up this morning to a dusting of snow. Not what we want to see here in Arizona. We watched a little of the Rose Bowl Parade. I made a batch of lemon marmalade. It turned out well although it was really sweet. Could cut back on the sugar if I make it again.

Wednesday – Oh boy! More snow this morning! This time about 3”. It looks really pretty but again not what we came to Arizona to experience. Oh well. Can't change the weather. It has been pretty cold the last few days as well with daytime temps in the upper 30's and low in the mid 20's. We have had the water unhooked and using the water tank so we don't have to deal with freezing hoses. We have also gone through quite a bit of propane to keep the camper warm.

This afternoon I noticed the wire on my left hearing aid was breaking so I contacted Widex to find an Audiology office that could replace it. We decided to go into Tucson to get it fixed. It was an hour drive to El Dorado Audiology. They fixed the wire then we headed back to Benson. On the way we stopped at Montgomery's Grill and Saloon for supper.

Thursday – Finally warmed up a little today which melted most of the snow. We took a walk around the park enjoying the warm sunshine. In the afternoon we headed to the clubhouse to help set up for the Polar Bear Party. This is an annual event at the park to collect food and raise money for the Benson Food Bank. Over the last few weeks food has been dropped off at various locations throughout the park. It was displayed at the party today. The Polar Bear refers to a drink made from Kaluha, Vodka, ice cream and ice. The drinks, wings donated from Buffalo Wild Wings and appetizers brought by the guests were enjoyed by all. There was no cost however everyone is encouraged to give food or monetary donations and participate in the 50-50 raffle. Dennis and I helped to serve the wings and potatoes. It was lots of fun and we got to see lots of new faces. Donations totaled $6000 and 2589 pounds of food. Awesome! Tomorrow the money and food will be delivered to the food bank.

Friday – Lovely day today with temps in the upper 60's. Yeah!! Today we decided to take a drive south and west to Nogales Mexico. Many years ago when the kids were in grade school we visited Arizona and Nogales. Dennis wanted to visit again. We took highway 10 west to highway 90 then south to highway 82. Highway 82 is a pretty drive and takes you right into Nogales. It took a while to find a parking spot as they do not seem to accommodate visitors on the US side. As we were walking in we saw a long line crossing the border back to the states. At that point we were committed so were just hoping that it would be shorter by the time we wanted to leave. We strolled around town and browsed some of the shops but it was nothing like we remembered, not as many shops and just seems more run down. After only about an hour in town we decided to head back. Well the line was not any shorter and we stood in line about 2 hours before we finally exited. We now know we do not have to visit Nogales again anytime soon.

On the way back we stopped in Patigonia AZ for a bite to eat then went to check out the Paton Center for Hummingbirds. Renowned for its backyard birds and scenic location, the Paton Center was acquired by the Tucson Audubon Society with generous help from the American Bird Conservancy and Victor Emanuel Nature Tours early in 2014. It was established as an international birding destination several decades earlier by Wally and Marion Paton, homeowners with a heart for birds and birders. When the Patons passed away in 2001 and 2009, the birding community began pulling together to save this gem for future generations. We spend a about a half hour looking for birds and saw quite a few that we do not see in Wisconsin. The highlight was a Annas Hummingbird. So beautiful!

Where we are parked: SKP Saguaro Coop RV Park – Benson Arizona – Site 158. This is an Escapees SKP Coop park. Most of the sites are leased by members with several guest sites available as well. We were put on a lease holders site that has made their site available for transient guests. The lease sites are huge and many of them have a large sheds or casitas on them as well as a spot to park your RV and vehicles. Besides the many full hookup sites there are overnight dry camping sites as well. The cost is $20/day for Escapee members, $30/day for non-members. This is for a full hookup site including cable TV. We paid $375 for one month.