Year: 1978

Tuesday, April 25, 1978
[No entry]

Monday, April 24, 1978
[No entry]

Sunday April 23rd 1978
Jackye and Wilda picked us up at Bunkhouse at 6 to take us to airport. Good flight (8:00) mostly clear over Arizona, New Mexico, Kansas.
David, Karen, Sarah and Josh met us at airport and packed us in the Mazda. Sarah kept saying “There is a lot of people in here.” Rainy and miserable but David and I walked down in the woods. Daffs starting to bloom, but Howard said I didn’t miss a thing- miserable weather all week. Three boxes films back and showed them after eating Kentucky Fried Chicken. They left about 9:00.

Saturday April 22nd 1978
Mary and I roamed the hills back of the corral for several hours. Found nearly all the flowers we had found every place else. About 50 species on the ranch. And the usual warnings about rattlesnakes but didn’t see any.
Went to the bowling alley to have chimichangas still really like them. More slides at Wilda’s.
Packed ready to leave in morning. Two boxes weathered wood, etc.
We’ve had perfect weather all week temperature 70 Blue Skies.

Friday April 21st 1978
Wilda took Mary and me to Neva and Berlie Christians at the the Country Club Motorhome Park. Had lunch and dinner with them. Neva took us shopping and drove us all over Wickenburg. It’s mostly spread out on Hills. Also drove out to the Vulture Mine and stopped all along to see wildflowers. Wilda had been chauffeur for all of the kids as Jackie and Kent went to movies. Kids had track, baseball, dance etc etc

Thursday April 20th 1978 600 miles!
Left Ranch at 4 watched moon set over the mountains to the West. Scorpio gorgeous in southern Sky. Daylight 6 at Blythe, California and then across the Mojave Desert. Sand verbenas, yellow Composites, adonis lupines, California poppies. To Cabazon to visit Hadley’s for dates, dried fruit, nuts- fabulous and fun. Spent $50! So did Jackye and she had just been there two weeks before! Then to Palm Springs Tramway on Mount San Jacinto. Snow up there and gorgeous views of Palm Springs and San Gorganio Mountain. Into Palm Springs and drove along the streets of posh shops looking for Las ? To have nachos. Stopped at date farm in Indio and supper at Blythe. Back to Ranch at 9:30.

Wednesday, April 19, 1978
[No entry]

Tuesday April 18th 1978
Jackye, Wilda, Mary and I headed for Bagdad. Past Thompson Ranch they had considered buying. All rocky and very far from any place. Flowers everywhere. At one stop had Primrose, penstemon, Indian paintbrush, desert Zinnia, Desert Marigold, brittlebush, desert Holly, creosote bush, Chipa ppppies, lupines, Desert Star, Hedgehog Cactus, Etc. Have identified about 60 kinds. Had lunch at the Copper Company restaurant. Kent’s company built all the houses with red roofs- the company rents them to the workers.

Monday April 17th 1978
Mary and I roamed the Ranch area and photographed the flower garden. Can’t believe the change in 4 weeks. Solid mass of bloom- snaps, petunias, pansies, alyssum, dimorphotetica, and the grass like a putting green.
In p.m. Jackye took us out Constellation Road. Every place we stopped were new flowers. Lay of the land here so lovely. Would like to live in that area.
Showed slides I took when here before and saw the Sturms growing up and their camping trips.

Sunday April 16th 1978
88 miles from Walt’s to ranch.
Off at 8 for Wickenburg through Scottsdale. Stopped at Rex Jr. & Jane Bills near Rural and Bell roads. Had to backtrack to pick up chicken in Sun City and got to the ranch at 12:30. Jackye and family and Wilda and I in Suburban and Mary with Walts and headed for Alamo Lake another 50 miles over secondary roads. Lake much larger than usual and Kent said he had Japanese gardeners out all day Saturday planting the hills of Owl’s Clover. Had tailgate picnic, boys fished, Mary and I wandered and photographed. Back to the ranch and settled in the bunkhouse.