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2024
  • Debra Giltz

2024

A 298-day adventure by Debra Read more
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  • Trip start
    March 3, 2024
    Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    Dec 25-March 3

    March 3, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 66 °F

    Randy and I have had a great winter here in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona. We've been hiking the land surrounding our community, visiting and dining with friends and of course playing a lot of pickleball.
    Many pounds of lemons, oranges and grapefruit were harvested by us from our friend's trees. They were gone for the season and had a bumper crop of citrus which we shared with friends and neighbors. Thanks Charles & Amparo!
    My cousin Steve and his friend Karlene stopped by for dinner on their way home to Palm Desert from Green Valley. We had a wonderful visit, it was great connecting with them after a three year absence.
    We took a day trip to Wright in the Garden in north Phoenix to use a gift certificate from Kelsie. A really cute shop with some unique house plants. https://wrightinthegarden.com/ We also spent a day exploring Florence.
    Late January through February was all about pickleball. I tested to move up from a 3.0 rating to 3.5. A total of 24 games over several days and a lot of anxiety. I'm very happy to announce that I passed. Last week my partner, Michele, and I competed in the Robson Ranch In-House Tournament which required a bit of practice and coaching. We didn't medal, but played well and had a lot of fun.
    Today we fired up the motorhome and headed 100 miles southwest for a four night stay in Ajo.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    March 3-7

    March 7, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F

    We had a wonderful stay at Shadow Ridge RV Resort. Great location, nice sites, friendly staff, well maintained and clean. We even played a couple of hours of ping pong at the clubhouse!http://www.shadowridgerv.com/
    Monday we visited the Ajo Mine Museum before taking a walking tour of the Curley School and Town Plaza in the historic district.https://ajoplaza.com/
    Tuesday we headed to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument where we stoped at the Visitor's Center before taking the Ajo Mountain Drive, a 21 mile loop on dirt roads. We stopped for lunch at Diablo Wash viewpoint then continued on the loop to hike the Arch Canyon Trail. https://www.nps.gov/orpi/index.htm We completed our day with a delicious meal at Tacos El Tarasco.
    Yesterday we went to the Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Visitor's Center before taking unimproved roads into BLM land then onto the refuge. We hiked the Copper Canyon trail then onto BLM land as well. We would have liked to explore more but a higher clearance vehicle is a must. https://www.fws.gov/refuge/cabeza-prieta
    On our way back to Ajo we hiked up a hill to catch views of the surrounding area then rewarded ourselves with dinner at the Agave Grill.
    As always it was great to get away and explore new sights.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    March 8-April 10

    April 10, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 79 °F

    It's been a great month. The weather is warming and the desert is in bloom.🌞
    Last month we headed up to Gilbert to play pickleball with our fellow snow birds from Oregon's Hillendale Pickleball Club followed by a pot luck. Thank you Sherry and Kirk for hosting and organizing the event. It was a blast.
    Robson Ranch held the Desert Slam Pickleball Tournament. We volunteered and watched some great matches. The Creative Arts Fair was the same weekend and I was able to purchase some unique items.
    The community had its annual yard sale where I scooped up some great bargains.
    We dined at the area's only food cart pod, the Casa Collective. Good food and a friendly vibe.
    https://www.casacollectiveaz.com/
    Easter weekend I flew home to Portland to celebrate my Uncle Dan's 100th birthday.
    Celebrants came from as far away as New York and Texas to honor him.
    It was good visiting with the family. Thank you Uncle Dan, Sally and Dave for hosting such an awesome party and to the rest of the family for all their help.
    This month we hiked Casa Grande Mountain, bought a bunch of gourds at Wurtz Gourd Farm and participated in Adopt a Highway roadside cleanup. Last night we rocked out at a Doors tribute concert.
    As always we're playing a lot of pickleball, bicycling around the community, walking the surrounding desert and sharing meals and fun times with our friends here at RR.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    April 11-15

    April 15, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F

    Our friends, Gary and Carrie, flew in from Gig Harbor, WA Thursday evening. Friday we spent the morning at the Tucson Botanical Gardens. I especially enjoyed The Butterfly and Orchid Pavilion and the Washed Ashore exhibit. https://tucsonbotanical.org/
    After a surprisingly good breakfast at Frank's restaurant, the blueberry pancakes were delicious,
    https://www.franksrestaurant.com
    we headed up to Mt Lemmon. It was a beautiful drive on a winding road and a great way to beat the heat.
    We hiked the Aspen Trail and Marshall Gulch Loop Trail. The beginning of the trail followed a clear cold stream before gaining elevation. We were treated to amazing views and lots of wind at the top. Thanks Carrie! You chose two winners out of the list of activities I sent you.
    Saturday we spent a leisurely day playing pickleball followed by lunch at the Robson Ranch Grill then hanging out at our patio.
    Departure day came too soon. After morning pickleball and a bite to eat we bid our friends farewell. What a wonderful weekend!    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    April 16-May 28

    May 28, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 102 °F

    Randy and I have had a busy six weeks.
    Our friends Kathy and Renee came for dinner. We had a good time catching up and met their new puppy, Jasper.
    Our son Kyle and his fiancee Kelly were our guests for a short fun filled weekend. We headed to Tucson and visited Suguaro National Park, the Arizona - Sonoran Desert Museum https://www.desertmuseum.org/ and the Mini Time
    Machine Museum of Miniatures https://theminitimemachine.org/
    I resumed carving, burning, painting and embellishing dried gourds and also took a beginners pottery class.
    We took in a Garth Brooks tribute concert that was quite entertaining. Excellent vocals and instrumentals.
    The birds have been enjoying the bird bath bubbler we brought down with us from Oregon this season and we've been keeping watch on an owls nest near us.
    As always we've been playing a lot of pickleball as well as sharing meals and game nights with friends.
    We ended our season as we started it... with colds! 😓
    We're off to Las Vegas for two nights, Austin, NV then Hines, OR. Should be back at our home base in Oregon by Saturday the first of June.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    May 28-June 1

    June 1, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 68 °F

    We took five days to travel back to Oregon.
    Our first two nights were spent at the Thousand Trails Las Vegas RV Resort. We had hoped to stroll the Strip and take on a show but decided against both due to the heat and our lingering colds. We did manage to drive by the Sphere and explored a tiny bit Chinatown Vegas which is huge. It's three plus miles of Asian businesses. https://chinatownvegas.com/ We had lunch at Fuku Burger. Delicious burgers with a Japanese twist. https://www.fukuburger.com/ We also enjoyed some really good Thai cuisine the night before in Henderson.
    https://www.mayathainv.com/
    Thursday night was spent in the tiny town of Austin, NV where we had our first experience with mormon crickets. They were swarming everywhere! Friday we drove through 100 miles of them. Thank goodness they don't fly or jump very high or we wouldn't have been able to see through the windshield, but they did make a mess of our car and motorhome's undercarriage. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mormon_cricket
    Last night we stayed in Hines, OR, adjacent to Burns, at Cathi's Place RV Park. A good night at a small, clean friendly park. Cathi is a jewel. We highly recommend her park.
    We arrived at our home base in Boring, Oregon this afternoon. Randy spent many hours on cricket debris removal.
    As always Sharon, my MIL, welcomed us home with a delicious home cooked meal. ❤️    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    June 2-July 20

    July 20, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 88 °F

    As always we spent the first couple of weeks back in Oregon catching up with family and friends and appreciating the many shades of green here in the Pacific Northwest.
    I enjoyed a lovely picnic lunch with my friends ,Jan and Terri, at Leach Botanical Garden where we strolled and visited.
    We celebrated Father's Day with homemade pizza and pasta. It was great having everyone together again.❤️
    Randy and I visited my Auntie Mary who is still going strong into her 90's.
    Kyle took us out to lunch for Randy's Birthday and my inlaws took us out for breakfast.
    We continue to play pickleball at least three times a week. We sure were spoiled in Arizona where we biked to our courts in less than 6 minutes. Here we drive 20-40 minutes.🙁
    Two weeks ago we drove the motorhome to Elite Motorcoach Renovation and Repair in Harrisburg, OR to have some work done. While it was being worked on we took a day trip to the coast. It was wonderful getting out of the 100° heat. Florence was sunny and cool. Elite got our repairs done in record time.
    https://eliternr.com/
    We were lucky enough to get last minute reservations at the coast so we headed to Whaler's Rest RV Resort in South Beach for three nights followed by five nights at Neskowin Creek RV Resort in Neskowin.
    We had a great time dining, exploring, beach walking, playing pickleball and appreciating the cool weather. We highly recommend La Maison Bakery and Cafe in Newport. Excellent food and service.
    Yesterday morning we picked 40 pounds of blueberries at Nappe Blueberry Farm. We'll have plenty of 🫐 to enjoy throughout the year.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    July 21-August 13

    August 13, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 68 °F

    We've had a busy month gathering with family and catching up with medical, vision and dental appointments.
    We celebrated Randy, Kelsie and Kelly's birthdays dining al fresco and playing cards.
    Family flew in from Texas to celebrate their grandson/great grandson's first birthday.
    We had a wonderful celebration enjoying each other's company and dining on delicious food. Matthew's smoked brisket and Randy's ribs were delectable as were all of the side dishes.
    We spent last week at Neskowin Creek RV Park where we visited with friends, rode bikes and played a lot of pickleball.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    August 14-Sept 4

    August 20, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 70 °F

    The past three weeks have been busy and full of fun.
    We spent four nights with our friends Gary and Carrie at their Brown Island get away across from Friday Harbor, WA.
    We had a great time crabbing, boating, eating Gary's delicious meals, beach combing, hiking, puzzling, hot tubbing, and playing pickleball. Gary treated us to a gourmet meal at Walden in celebration of 50+ years of friendship and our August wedding anniversaries. We are blessed to have such kind and generous friends.
    Upon our return to Oregon we had lunch with our former neighbor and RVing buddy, Leslie, who made her annual visit to her home state from her place in Florida.
    As always Uncle Kay's garden is going gangbusters with flowers and vegetables flourishing. He's kept us supplied with tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplant and plums.
    Sunday we hosted an early celebration of my in-laws, Sharon and Larry's, 70th year of wedded bliss. Sharon's niece and namesake, Sharon, spear headed the party and thoroughly impressed us all with her decorating, baking, flower arranging and organizational skills. She's an event planner extrodinaire. It was good seeing neighbors, family and friends from the community center get together to celebrate their union. Only .1% of couples reach their 70th wedding anniversary so it was truly an auspicious event.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    Sept 5-22

    September 22, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 73 °F

    September has been a month of birthday's.
    Over the past three weeks we've celebrated Sharon, Kyle and Uncle Kay's as well as my early October birthday.
    Tomorrow we head to the Oregon coast. A week each at South Beach, Neskowin and Seaside. A wonderful way to ease into autumn 🍂🍁🌰☺️Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    Sept 23-28

    September 28, 2024 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 55 °F

    We've had a wonderful week here at Thousand Trails Whaler's Rest RV Resort located just south of Newport, OR. The weather has been near perfect with fog clearing by mid morning and only one day of rain.
    As always we spent a lot of time on the pickleball courts meeting a lot of new folks and getting reacquainted with players from past visits.
    I read The Covenant of Water and we watched two seasons of the Bear. Both were excellent.
    Today my sister Marcia came over from Salem to hunt for mushrooms. She's a very experienced forager and I am not at all, so it was a good learning experience. We didn't find many edible mushrooms but the huckleberries were abundant. We were hungry after all that foraging so headed down to the wharf for dinner and a stroll.
    Tomorrow we travel north to Neskowin for a eight night stay.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    Sept 29-Oct 6

    October 6, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 59 °F

    The Central Oregon Coast weather has continued to be beautiful! We only experienced one rainy day.
    As always we spent most of our mornings playing pickleball. Our friends Jim and Angie met us on the courts Wednesday and Mark and Lynette on Friday. Monday I took a walk while Randy was getting in some extra games and came across the Connie Hansen Garden, a beautiful garden in the middle of a neighborhood.
    The huckleberries Marcia and I foraged last week made some delicious muffins.
    I celebrated my 69th birthday on Thursday. We celebrated by hiking the Knoll Loop Trail, a nice wooded trail with good elevation gain that rewarded us with beautiful views at the top.
    Today we took a bike ride into Neskowin.
    Tomorrow we continue our journey north for a week stay in Seaside.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    October 7-13

    October 7, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 66 °F

    What a busy, fun filled week we've had in Seaside!☺️
    We enjoyed beautiful weather biking the Prom,
    visiting the Seaside History Museum https://www.seasideoregonmuseum.com/, Butterfield Cottage and strolling through town.
    Wednesday was spent playing pickleball in Nehalem then visiting our friends Jim & Kathy, Dick & Judy and Dennis & Linda at Nehalem Bay State Park followed by dinner at Riverside Fish n Chips.
    Friday and Saturday Val & Carl had us over for dinner and hosted my sister, Marcia, as well.
    They foraged for mushrooms yesterday. Marcia made a delicious mushroom laden meatloaf with mushroom gravy.😋 Thanks Carl & Val for your hospitality and friendship.
    We played pickleball almost everyday at various courts in the area.
    Today we went to the Farmer's Market in Astoria, one of our favorites, then took a short bike ride on the Riverwalk. We also spent some time at the Astoria Nordic Heritage Park https://astorianordicpark.org/index.html.
    Tomorrow we head back to our home base in Boring, Oregon.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler
    Our southerly migration begins!

    November 14-Dec 2

    December 2, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F

    As usual we spent the last two weeks at our home base in Boring, OR preparing for our trip south as well as catching up with friends, celebrating birthdays🎂 and Thanksgiving🦃.
    We drove four days to arrive at our home at Robson Ranch in sunny and warm Eloy, AZ. We experienced pretty good traveling weather, though it was cold and foggy through the Sacramento Valley and there was a lot of road work from Palm Springs to Blyth.
    Last night we had a nice visit and dinner with my cousin, Steve, and Karlene during our stop in Coachella.    Read more

  • Debra Giltz2024Traveler

    December 3-25

    December 25, 2024 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 66 °F

    It's been a whirlwind of activity since our arrival in Arizona!
    As always it took a bit of time and effort cleaning and setting up our home here at Robson Ranch. Thank goodness Randy didn't procrastinate with his tasks because his knee replacement surgery was moved up from the 19 of this month to the 12th! He's now 13 days post op and is doing well with physical therapy and his home exercise program.
    We wish our family and friends a very Merry Christmas 🎄 ❤️    Read more

    Trip end
    December 25, 2024
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