Two nights ago, the low temperature was twenty-two degrees. Tonight, the low will be eighty.
What a difference a little distance makes. We left Creede, Colorado at nearly nine thousand feet, and, over the course of two days, descended south to Phoenix. Easy driving, we took a looping route, no mountain passes, by following the Rio Grande, east to the San Luis Valley, then out the south end of the valley into New Mexico, picking up the Interstate at Santa Fe, abandoning the Rio Grande at Albuquerque, and heading west on Interstate 40. We spent the night at Gallup. Got Cassin’s kingbirds there. Today, we continued west to Flagstaff, still at altitude, seven thousand feet, then did the big drop to Phoenix at about fifteen hundred.
Now we’re suffering separation anxiety, having plugged the motorhome in at an RV Park and left it in favor of the conference hotel. It’s a nice room here at the Wild Horse Pass Resort in Chandler. It looks out over a recreated Gila River, complete with complimentary riverboats that cruise past every fifteen minutes. Got a Gamble’s quail and a Verdin. Pet friendly, so Annie can enjoy this with us.
The conference starts tomorrow.
