Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! And safe travels, whether you're traveling far or just cruising around the house.

A Trip to the Black Hole

One late afternoon in the not-too-distant past, I decided it would be fun to load up the kids and head out towards the fields and see what my husband was up to. The afternoon light was gorgeous, and it felt great to be out of the house.

We couldn't find my husband (he was out shuttling farm equipment), but we decided to enjoy our time outside and go on a little adventure trip.

We drove up one of the two-track roads until I spotted an interesting looking hole in the hillside. Usually I look at those holes and say, "I should go check that out some day."

That day I decided it was "some day." It was the day to go check it out.

So we piled out of the van.

We weren't at all prepared. I didn't have the baby carrier for Emma and I didn't have a flashlight. The hole was so far away you can't even see it in the photo above.

But we had a snack and we had gumption.

What else do you really need?

I say that the kids are easily distracted by what's around them, but I have to admit that I was, too. I really liked how this Indian rice grass looked in the afternoon light with the faded autumn vegetation around it.

We're getting closer, but you still can't see much of the hole in the rocks. Henry was happy to run around. Can you see him?

It was nice when we started getting to rock, the walking was easier and it just felt more adventurous.


Desert Boy and I took turns leading. He didn't like all the bushes in the way, but he had been promised a snack when we reached the hole, so he kept going.

It got steeper and more interesting.

And then I couldn't resist racing ahead so I could get a photo before the sun disappeared behind the mountains.

Whenever that happens, Desert Boy asks, "Is the earth turning?"

You betcha.

Desert Boy did a good job getting up the steep parts.

Even though he was wearing his cowboy boots on the wrong feet.

Some of the climb was a hand-and-foot scramble.

The hole was big, and little Desert Girl makes it look even bigger. However, it didn't go back far. Oh, well, now we know.

We had our snack and everyone was happy.

We enjoyed the last rays of the setting sun.

Then it was time for the long hike back to the van. But before we left the rocks, we spotted something else...

...another cave!

We will return to explore some more someday. And eat more snacks.

Checking out Hogum

I've been wanting to check out the ghost town of Hogum for a while, and we finally made it over there today. It's located near Osceola, a mining town that was started in 1872 and expanded to a tent city of over 1,500 souls.

In 1889, rumor spread that gold had been found four miles away. Miners rushed there, only to find that all the claims had been staked. Disgusted, they said, "Only a few have hogged them." The name Hogum stuck. (Source: Effie Read's 1965 White Pine Lang Syne).

Hogum was never a big place like Osceola. In fact, the peak population approached 50. Nevertheless, the area is criss-crossed with numerous roads. We were a bit surprised when a good road we were on suddenly ended in a pile of recently graded dirt. There had been no sign warning us that it was a dead end road.

We climbed out of the truck and went over the pile of dirt.

Then we saw why the road had been 'dozed. A huge sinkhole had opened up in the middle of the road.

That would have been an unhappy surprise if it caved in while driving over it.

I saw a DANGER Unsafe Mine - Stay Out-Stay Alive sign nearby and went over to investigate. It was one of the entrances into the mine.

It was clear that the old wooden support beams were no longer doing their job. Huge amounts of soil and rocks had caved in.

I'm not sure how many entrances the mine originally had, but now it had several.

While my husband kept track of the kids, I wandered around and was amazed by all the open pits.

Fortunately all the ones I saw had signs near them. The holes went straight down into the black abyss. I don't know how far down they went down, but it was farther than I would want to fall!

The top twenty feet or so looked like rather loose gravel, cobbles, and soil. I don't think I would be brave enough to be a miner and go digging in that loose material. I'm not sure what was deeper than that--I didn't want to lean over the edge or get anywhere near it.

There were some cultural remnants scattered among the pits, like this rock wall.

I liked this tin can. Originally it pulled open, but now it's rusted shut. There were lots of tin cans scattered around. The miners obviously were more interested in finding gold than where they put their garbage.

All that was left standing of this building was the door frame. I tried to do an artistic photo, but it didn't work out right. Maybe another time...

Another open shaft.

Although most of the area was obviously no longer mined, some of it is. There were big no trespassing signs and even a Beware of Dog, so we turned around and didn't go up to the current mine. It looked like there is at least one private residence in Hogum, complete with a huge satellite dish. Electric and telephone wires go up into the area, so if you are mining, I guess you can do it in comfort.

We found a good spot for a picnic lunch. Eating outside is always more fun that eating inside if you're a kid. (I have to include a kid shot to keep the grandparents happy!)

We wandered around a little more and found some fun gravel to walk on. The views were great, and it's a place we'd go back to again to look around some more.

If you go, just watch out for all those deep pits! They were a little freaky. And this is coming from someone who normally loves pits--but pits in solid rock, not in loose ground!

Kite Flying

We seem to have no shortage of wind out here in the desert, so last week we made the most of it and went kite flying. It was Desert Boy's first experience kite flying.

You can see from the expression on his face that he thought it was grand. He crashed the kite a bunch of times...

but he managed to keep it up in the air most of the time.

I wasn't sure if the really thin thread on our dollar-store kite would hold up, but it did. In fact, we definitely got our money's worth!

Kite flying is something difficult to appreciate in still photos, so here's a little video:

Playdate

We headed over to the gym last Saturday morning for the kids to run - or crawl - off some energy. Isaac and Emma can really get around now.

It's always nice for the kids to have a good place to run. I am always envious of all the energy they have!
Emma was thoroughly enjoying herself.

Charlie and Desert Boy thought rolling basketballs was great fun. For about ten minutes. Then it was on to the next activity!

That included Nomi and Charlie dragging Desert Boy around the gym. He wouldn't let go, he thought it was the best game in the world.

I wonder if I can clean my kitchen floor that way?
I gave Emma a ride on a little bike. I had to stay relatively close to her, so I ended up with lots of photos of her.

It was a little dim in the gym, so most of my other photos came out fuzzy.
Like this one, Jenny pulling Ava and Charlie. This is always another favorite. I imagine we'll be appreciating the gym even more as we enter the colder months. It's so wonderful to have a place to go!

Ready for Winter

I couldn't resist sharing this photo. They're all ready to go outside and play!

Mud Boggin'

I finally downloaded all the photos from my cameras and found that I had some that I had forgotten about. Like these, from a walk I took when Desert Boy was in preschool. I took Desert Girl in the stroller and decided to take a different route from my usual three-mile loop.

The weather was overcast and it had rained recently, so the desert smelled great.

Nearly all the roads in the area are gravel, which isn't a problem.

It was when I got to the dirt roads that I had some trouble. Because water + dirt = mud.

I take the jogging stroller about everywhere, but this trip was a first - I literally couldn't go any farther. The mud bogged the stroller down so much that the wheels wouldn't turn.

At all.

When I pushed, the entire stroller just slid in the mud.

The stroller weighs 45 pounds empty. And Desert Girl is pushing 20 pounds, so I felt like I was getting a very good workout.

I quickly decided I had better turn around and get back to the gravel road.

Desert Girl was blissfully unaware of all this.

The mud on my shoes was several inches thick, making it not only hard to push the stroller, but also hard to walk.

I had to laugh at myself. It's not often we have to deal with mud, and I was obviously woefully unprepared.

The clouds over the recently harvested fields were a welcome change. They made me glad that I had tried a different route, even if the mud had impeded my progress. Sometimes you just have to try a different path. The stroller still has little bits of dried mud on it from our little adventure, reminding me of the fun walk.

According to the weather reports, we're going to be seeing some more clouds in the next few days, with maybe even some white stuff coming out of them. We've been enjoying some wonderfully warm autumn weather, with golden leaves blowing in a southern breeze and the warm sunshine caressing our faces. I think we'd better get the hats and gloves ready.

Goodbye, Indian summer! We sure enjoyed you while you were here!