A Busy Day

We woke this morning to the birds feeding on our thistle sack.

In addition to the gold finches we have purple finches, ground squirrels, jack rabbits, and coyotes come to visit.  After doing our strength and stretching exercise, we decided to take a hike up to the Panoramic Overlook.    In the trail guide book we use, this was classified as “1 mile and strenuous”.  It turned out to be a continuous uphill climb, but the trail was smooth and not much scrambling. 

  We were climbing to the top of the hill you see in the foreground.  The trail had several switchbacks, but we were rewarded at the top with views of the entire valley. 

  

The State Park campground and visitors center were below us.

   

I tried to build a balancing cairn while on top, but failed.

Back at camp, after lunch, we spent an hour making a wheel cover out of a $4 plastic tarp we bought at Quartzsite the last time we were there.  I made a design, transferred it to the fabric, cut it out, and Marlene sewed it together.

  

It worked as designed.  Now, the tires will be protected from UV sun rays which is a problem when you park long term in the same orientation on the desert.