whyknot : One tough dude!

Well , here I am in Tombstone, Arizona!
The journey here was long but interesting as I left the mountains of New Mexico a few days ago.
It was hard to say good-bye to my friends there but I was eager to continue my journey and head to a warmer climate.
It felt good to get back into my RV although I had many concerns about the freezing weather it has been sitting in for 2 weeks. After shoveling off about 10in of snow from the roof, the engine started right away. My fridge wouldn't work and I didn't want to test the tanks or water pumps for leaks until I got to a warmer place.
The drive that usually takes about 1 1/2 hrs took me almost 
3 hrs due to having to drive extremely slowly. It was a beautiful sunny day but the narrow road was very steep and curvy with some ice patches and no guard rails..Yikes!...whyknot handled it very well and kept me safe, driving in low gear.
It was a relief to get to Silver City and my appointment for an oil change. Everything was great with the truck but I would have to visit an RV service center to check out the water lines and fridge.

Camping at Rose Valley RV Ranch was a treat, having full hook ups and wifi. I filled and drained the tanks a few times and was amazed that there were no signs of leaks! Even the pumps worked. Then I tried the fridge and yes, it worked too, sounding quieter than before. A miracle!

With "Pedro" at Rose Valley RV ranch
The managers of the campground were very helpful and it was fun  meeting "Pedro" who is a mannequin and permanent fixture at the office!! 
After a good sleep, I discovered that the freezing weather did have an impact after all. I had left my US cell phone and also my in line water filter in the RV during the freezing weather and both stopped working. Walmart to the rescue to get another phone for $10 and keep the same number and then to an Ace store to get a new filter for about $30 ,so I was grateful that was all I had to deal with.          
My RV is definitely one tough dude!!
There were a few patches of snow in Silver City but it            felt warmer and it stayed above freezing. 
                   The next day, I continued towards Tuscon. The road became very flat and all I could see was desert with some mountains on the horizon. There was little traffic and rarely any sign of civilization except the road and telephone poles.
    As I got closer to the mountains, I stopped at "The Texas Canyon" rest stop. The mountains and rocks in that area were truly amazing.   The traffic was heavier as I was now on the major I-10 highway which heads all across the southern US.     

Someone I met at the rest stop told me about Tombstone which was worth seeing so I decided to go there first. It was on #80 and about 1/2hr SE of Benson. I stopped to ask about RV parks and found a very good one just across the street from "The OK corral " where the famous gunfight took place in 1881.

Allen street close to the OK corral

According to the info I read, "Police chief Virgil Earp deputized brothers Wyatt and Morgan Earp and Doc Holliday to help him disarm the cowboys who were waiting to confront Doc. A rapid shootout occurred with about 30 shots fired in 30 seconds, resulting in the 3 cowboys being killed. Both Virgil and Morgan Earp were badly wounded (but survived) and Doc Holliday suffered a superficial hip wound.Only Wyatt walked away unscathed."

One of the gunfight re-enactments

Tombstone has become quite a tourist attraction.Allen St is closed to traffic and you can take a stagecoach ride, go shopping for souvenirs or western clothing, buy art, go on a ghost walk or visit some the old saloons and restaurants.
One famous (or is it infamous??) attraction is the old "Bird Cage Theatre"which was the most famous Honky-Tonk in America, 1881-1889. This "lusty-den of iniquity" was also one of the wildest, experiencing many gunfights. Numerous bullet holes can still be seen in the ceilings and walls.
"The Birdcage was named for the 14 bird cage crib compartments that are self suspended from the ceiling overhanging the gambling casino and dance hall. It was here that the ladies of the night plied their trade" (from brochure)
                                                          

Bird cage Theatre

Dress seen in shop window

Many people claim to have seen ghosts in this
building but I didn't see any.
The theatre offers nighttime historic ghost tours which I haven't gone on. Most shows and buildings charge a fee and I'm sure the town does very well.

original old movie poster

Tomorrow I'll leave here to continue on to Tuscon for a few days.
I've made an appointment at a Mexican dental clinic in 10 days. It's  a state of the art clinic catering to tourists and is just across the border at Yuma which I'll be heading to after Tuscon. My friend Win told me about it as she knows someone that has been there a few times. The prices are much lower than those in Canada.

I've also been very grateful for the low gas prices (I paid $1.99/gallon last fill-up!!! ). It offsets the low Canadian $  resulting in having to pay an extra 18% or more for everything.

With the main actors of a re-enactment I saw. Doc Holliday is the one with the red vest

The weather here is wonderfully warm and I was finally able to walk around in my T-shirt and sandals again today. It is still in the 40's F at night.

A couple of nights ago, I thought it was raining. I looked out and there were quite a few birds running around on my roof!

What will tomorrow bring?

Some quotes:

"Be the change you wish to see in the world" (Ghandi)

"Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear- not absence of fear." (Mark Twain)

"We are the universe becoming aware of itself" (Thomas Berry)

And a story (from the "Coffee News", Sept 24/14)

"A car rental company in Sursee, Switzerland rents out some of its vehicles for an unusual reason- to act as a security system for homeowners. Some vehicles in the company's fleet were painted to look like police cars and vacationing homeowners can have one left in their driveway so that it appears that a cop lives there.....Renters pay for the service and the cars are delivered on a truck because it is illegal for the general public to drive a police car."