Tag / kritterspaw

by kritterspaw

South Eastern Arizona

Living in Northern Arizona, Southeastern Arizona is a bit of a trek for us. This area is home to a lot of undiscovered (by us) territory to explore, and worth spending some time to get to know better.

We started our trip in Douglas, just North of the Mexican border, at a place that many have suggested we go to see the fantastic stained glass, Gadsen Hotel.

The Gadsen Hotel was originally built in 1907 and named after the Gadsen purchase of the territory as a railroad opportunity. The hotel burnt down in 1928, but was rebuilt over the next two years and reopened in 1930.

We found the hotel displayed it’s opulence and elegance of a time gone by with grandeur. Wood and marble finishings throughout, marble pillars and large stained glass embellished the gorgeous hotel.

From our fun stay in this historic hotel, we headed Northwest to Whitewater Draw. A place we have now been to several times to witness the sandhill crane migration.

We enjoyed watching the snow geese and pintail ducks navigate the pools of water interspersed with sandhill cranes.

For more photos of our Whitewater Draw sandhill crane experience, check out my blog… https://kritterspaw.com/2025/02/01/whitewater-draw/

Whitewater Draw is not only a refuge for sandhill cranes, but for a variety of owls, hawks, ducks, numerous waterfowl and birds. For the birdwatcher and nature lover, it’s a great place to experience.

Following our immersive trip of Whitewater Draw, we headed another hour Northeast to the New Mexico border and took in the Chiricahua National Monument.

We delighted in our first coati sighting and a very pleasant stay in a nice park on the outreaches of Arizona.

Check out my photos of Chiricahua’s here… https://kritterspix.com/2025/02/01/chiricahua-national-monument/

by kritterspaw

Whitewater Draw

Whitewater Draw is a large marshland obtained by the Arizona Game & Fish Department (AZGFD) from previous ranch land to manage as a natural habitat for the many birds and animals that frequent the area.

The AZGFD has re-seeded the native grassland to restore and conserve the environment, by flooding the wetlands, creating a natural habitat.

Between November and March sandhill cranes flock to the area to escape the harsh climate as far away as Siberia, Canada, and Alaska. They must have been none to pleased to find themselves skating on sheets of ice during the cold front we witnessed during our visit in January.

There were far less cranes this year than in previous visits, possibly as a result of the temps, but more likely due to the reduced water levels at the site, which made it difficult to sustain the normal large volumes of previous years.

We were last at Whitewater Draw in 2022 when there were estimated 40,000 cranes. This year (2025), there were only 12,000.

Still, it was great fun to see the cranes mass fly out in early morning (6:30am – 7:00 am). Some would return to feed on the grain around 10:30am – 2pm, then the rest would return in bulk around 5pm.

We spent 5 days at the site allowing us to observe their behavior throughout the day. We loved watching them ‘sing’ and ‘dance’ as they talked to one another vying for position and mates.

Hopefully, in future years they will return to their higher levels. No matter, the site is quite the spectacle to see, and certainly worth a visit to watch and enjoy.

Check out my other posts on our trip here .. https://kritterspaw.com/2025/02/01/south-eastern-arizona/ and here .. https://kritterspix.com/2025/02/01/chiricahua-national-monument/

by kritterspaw

Snow Foraging

Elk forages through the snow with bull elk behind.
Buck prowls through the deep snow.

I never realized the trouble our animals had trudging through thick snow. With the threat of predators, swift winds, and deep snow, animals hunker down during large snow falls.

I can only imagine them running in heavy snow, with unknown ground coverage, rocks, and trees beneath their feet.

It made me happy for what we have, and not have to fend for ourselves or our food. It can be a harsh world out there, so take the time to practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty.

See my other posts, here… https://kritterspix.com/2021/01/29/a-world-of-friends/ and here… https://kritterspix.com/2021/01/27/we-got-snow/.

by kritterspaw

Blizzard

Snow falls on road along Mogollon Rim.

Ok. That may be pushing it a bit. But we got 2″ in an hour along the Mogollon Rim. It was a virtual blizzard for a short time.

Which was a big surprise to us considering we just got back from 3 nights camping at Alstrom Point waiting for a single cloud! (See post here.. https://kritterspix.com/2020/12/12/alstrom-point/)

It was quite the winter wonderland, and made for a great way to kick off the holiday season. We loved it!

by kritterspaw

Carnero Lake

I posted some photos here .. https://kritterspix.com/2020/07/31/carneros-sunrise/, from our last visit to Carnero Lake.

Sunrise Color_IR.jpg

IMG_7821_IR.jpg

We enjoyed it so much, we went back for more.

Carnero canoes_IR.jpg

chip prize

While most folks go to a lake to swim, fish, and canoe, we go to relax and watch the animals and the sunset / sunrise, and take pix.

osprey fish

Carnero SunriseReeds

I could sit by the waters edge and watch osprey fish or chipmunk play all day.

Carnero Pontoon

Nosofast

 

by kritterspaw

Fall is in the air

knobbyupvert_IR.jpg

We went out to check on Fall Colors, but it’s still a little early for this neck of the woods.  Maybe next week will yield more color.

knobbyclos_IR.jpg

For now, we were happy to walk through the woods and take in the crisp air… as was this little squirrel we found.

fallsquirrelvert_IR.jpg

Winter is coming.  Storms are on the horizon, and we have already had our first snow.  We’ll take it.   Our burnt forest can certainly use a good soaking.

sunstreamstorm_IR.jpg

bursntsilo_IR.jpg

_40A6253-HDR_IR.jpg

We’ll make another trek next week to check on colors again.  It’s all good.

_40A6292_IR.jpg

mapleburstvert_IR.jpg

 

by kritterspaw

Pizza Oven Final

Finally, you get to see the finale of the Pizza Oven.  It’s been a long hard 6 months of labor… and while it’s still not quite done, here is the final installment of our efforts.

Pizza Oven Final

We still have yet to complete the lower ‘cabinet’ doors, hook up the gas jets, and complete the wiring, lights, etc.  But winter is here, and Christmas is coming… so it’s time to do something else that is more in keeping with the weather… like go cut down a Christmas tree.

This project has been larger than life… and exemplifies our mantra – go big or go home.  It has consumed our year with it’s many facets, but it’s final result is something we can step back from and be pleased with.  Now on to experimenting with it and perfecting great recipes in our new wood fired / gas outdoor oven.