Arizona for a week....

 We have landed in Arizona and have been here for the past week.  There have been many projects with opening up the RV, doing various repairs on it, and taking the VW in for a check-up.  We have also had some time to re-explore the area.

We were able to take my parents over to the Dragoon, AZ area.

This is an amazing area with large boulders strewn randomly all over the place.

 There were also some interesting trees.

We have been able to visit some of the State parks in the area.  

As you know, the National Parks, including Saguaro National Park, are closed....

Yesterday we went to Gate's Pass State Park.  It is an really neat area that has Saguaro in abundance.

It also has many other types of cactus, including: 

Pencil Cholla (above) and Teddy Bear Cholla (below).

  Even though Teddy Bear Cholla sound cute and cuddly... THEY ARE NOT!  

They are the option of choice for many desert animals to use as a barricade to protect their dens and home in the rocks.  They make for a great barbed wire fence, but not a nice object to snuggle with.

Why you may ask?

When they come in contact with your skin, it is not fun.  This one started by grabbing my shoe while I was hiking. Then, not knowing that it was already attached to my right shoe, I lifted my right foot to step over another cactus.  I swung my right foot around behind my left leg and OUCH!

 I was able to hike back to the parking lot where Gwen and my parents were waiting for me.  

I  had my multi-tool and about 15 painful minutes later, I had a holey leg minus a cactus.

 I have been finding small spines in my left leg ever since....