Follow the Food

Before moving to the desert, we participated in a cross-country bicycle trip that put us up close and personal with some of our food sources. We saw the contrast between big farm corporations and smaller-scale farmers, and heard the stories of local and small town businesses and farmers being run out by larger corporations and chains. After our ride, we read Michael Pollan's book, Omnivore's Dilemma (discussed in a previous post), and started to become more intentional about sourcing our food.

We visited a few farms that were practicing small, local, sustainable agriculture. Polyface Farm in Swoope, Virginia (mentioned in Pollan's book) boasts a "beyond organic" label, where pigs till the forest, rabbits neutralize waste, and mobile chicken coops permit natural cycles of grass growth. Polyface Farm introduced techniques that have caught on with organic farmers, and we have been hot on the trail!

Despite the lack of water, the Phoenix valley sustains a year-long growing season, and we have been thrilled to find opportunities to support our local (and organic) farmers. Our first find was Bountiful Baskets, a volunteer cooperative that provides local produce and grains on a bi-weekly basis. This organization is run completely by volunteers, and has locations around the country. Their unique status ensures low costs for consumers and high returns for local farmers. We have loved contributing to Bountiful Baskets, and have learned a lot about food seasonality, recipes and cooking/preparation. Since you can never be 100% sure what will be in the next basket, we've discovered several new foods, too (Bok Choy, Fennel, Leeks, and more!), which always turns into a hunt for new recipes.

We'd love to read any comments about your local food options; please share below!

Check back for new recipes and ideas from our most recent basket bounty!

Grand Canyon Revisited

You may recall a previous post about a scouting trip for a future potential field trip to the Grand Canyon. Our team of 4th grade teachers and an incredibly supportive principal were able to make it happen!

First, a recap by the numbers:

149 - 4th grade students and parents in attendance
6 - teachers/staff
3 - days spent at the Grand Canyon National Park (South Rim)
2 - charter buses
4 - A.M. wake-up call to watch the sunrise on our final day

The field trip was a great success, but there are always lessons to learn and ways to improve. There are many things we will try to repeat for next year's trip, and there are a few things we'd change and recommend to others considering this field trip.

Successes:

• NPS Travelin' Trunk Program: We reserved a box of materials about Human History of the Grand Canyon before our trip. This piqued students' excitement, and gave them prior knowledge to access once we arrived.
• Keeping a full schedule (and opting not to include a quiet/nap time) - Any unstructured or idle time almost always guarantees mischief!
• Visiting other areas of interest on our way, including Sunset Crater (as mentioned in a previous blog post) and...

 Montezuma Castle.

• Watching sunrise on our final day - This was a controversial decision, mostly because the sun rises so early in May. We decided to make it optional, and were overwhelmed when nearly our entire group helped each other wake up, walk silently, and snuggle together to watch a glorious sunrise! 

• Reserving Ranger programs - The specific educational Ranger programs for school groups are FREE and align with state content standards. The Rangers are excellent teachers, too!
• We used colored handkerchiefs to identify each chaperone group. This was helpful for quick head-counts for both teachers and chaperones. Students could tie them anywhere that was visible, which also gave them a chance to express themselves in a fun way.
• Preparing student journals for the trip - We created activities/questions that had to be answered about our route and stops along the way. We also included the packet that was provided to accompany the Ranger programs.
• Scavenger Hunt - There is so much to see at the Grand Canyon, and it is nearly impossible to see it all in one short trip. We included all the various historical and educational sites along the South Rim (with questions and info from the NPS website) in student journals. Groups could then decide which locations were most interesting (and feasible). Some groups even got to every stop! Afterwards, students from different groups could discuss what they saw and learned with others.
• Chaperone committees - We couldn't have made the trip happen without lots of parent support. We had parents serve on committees for equipment, food, and safety to assist before, during, and after the trip.

Changes/recommendations:

• Talk with campers about quiet hours before arriving - It's important to keep our camp neighbors and Rangers happy when we are such a large and noticeable group.
• Call ahead to discuss any plans to use the free shuttle buses. The park personnel were incredibly accommodating as soon as they saw 150+ visitors crossing the street to catch a bus for sunset. They ran at least one extra bus every day we were there just for us! I'm sure they'd appreciate a little more advance notice next time.

The successes clearly outweigh the changes, and we received lots of positive feedback from students and parents alike. We saw our entire 4th grade community come a little closer together for this trip, and a lot of fun was had by all. As for the teachers/staff, we feel a lot more confident about planning next year's excursion!

Home Again, Home Again

We've been doing a bit of traveling these past few months, but it's always nice to return home. Since Phoenicians spend much of summer break indoors (we liken it to snow days back east - you know, Netflix binges, scrapbook projects, blogging...) we are eagerly planning fall trips in the great outdoors. Until then, we'll revisit a beautiful hike we did in January in the Estrella Mountains:

These 4 wheels get us from our door to the trail head.

Estrella foothills - We took the Baseline Trail loop

to a short overlook trail to see what we could see...

 

Looking Northwest from the Estrella foothills, toward the White Tank Mountains

Looking Northeast over the Estrella foothills; Phoenix International Raceway (PIR) is in the distance (far right).

Close-up on PIR

Looking West: Tres Rios Golf Course (neighbor to Estrella Mountain Park)

Looking north back over our route to the park

Obligatory Saguaro picture... they just don't get old!

Gotta love winter in the desert!

A Carefree Christmas

While most of our holidays are spent with family back east, we had the opportunity for a special treat before departing. The town of Carefree, AZ puts on a delightful Christmas festival, complete with a light parade and SNOW. After wandering through craft and food vendors, we picked the perfect spot for watching the parade of community floats. We were all set with our homemade cider, camp chairs, and blankets. We had to laugh at ourselves, all "bundled up" for the near 60-degree temperatures! (Back east, we were used to many more layers and much more shivering for such an event!) That being said, it wasn't hard to find the snow play area, complete with a sledding "hill." Some of our favorite floats are included below, including hot air balloon baskets lighting the way!

This float prompted a lot of questions in the audience. It was built by the Eckankar religious community. We were curious, so we looked up more info about them here.

We were grateful for the few moments of warmth... and maybe a little nervous about the flame's proximity!

Last, but not least, Santa!

One of our favorite things about Carefree, is that it is still relatively... free. Neighborhoods are still full of desert vegetation and wildlife (contrasted with the suburban sprawl of other parts of the Phoenix valley), and we frequently catch a glimpse of a critter or two when we visit. Today's sighting - a coyote! This guy was just strolling along the side of the road as we pulled into the neighborhood!

We hope you have a truly "carefree," enjoyable holiday season!

Discovering Tucson: Sonora Desert Museum

There's something thrilling about seeing coyotes, wolves, mountain lions, and bears roaming the same ground as the path under your feet (rather than behind glass, from a paved road or sidewalk). Touring the Sonora Desert Museum is like hiking a desert trail, and being lucky enough to spot tons of wildlife. You can hike for years without seeing even half of the wildlife that you see in one loop around the open desert there!

Desert Fox

Mexican Wolf

Black Bear

Mountain Lion

Coyote

Javelina

We happened to arrive at the Museum just in time for their "Raptor Free Flights." We followed the crowd, not really knowing what all the excitement was about. It didn't take long before large predator birds were swooping right above our heads, diving and soaring from one branch to another. We learned a lot about birds of the desert, and, of course, got some really fun photos!

Gray Hawk

Barn Owl

Harris's Hawks

Gray Hawk

Harris's Hawk

The Museum also has its own aquarium, which gave us close-up views of creatures you're far less likely to encounter in the desert. We especially enjoyed the saltwater species from the Sea of Cortez.

Garden Eels

Pacific Seahorse

Can you identify this charming fellow?

If you're going to be visiting Tucson, the Sonora Desert Museum is definitely a must-see! It is certainly worth the price of admission, whether or not you get to attend a special program like the Raptor Free Flights. We arrived around mid-day, and stayed until it closed (it's a great spot for sunset!). We could have easily spent the entire day there exploring!

Discovering Tucson: Saguaro National Park

Though we only had a weekend to spare, it was just enough time to make our first trip to Tucson and see what we could see. If you're looking to see the best of Tucson with a limited amount of time (and a limited budget), we highly recommend our itinerary. We've separated our stops into separate posts, all under "Discovering Tucson."

Our first stop was Saguaro National Park.

It's important to note that there are really two parks in one - an east side and a west side, separated by the city of Tucson in between. We opted to visit the west side (officially called the Tucson Mountain District) because of its higher density of the great Saguaro Cacti, and its proximity to the Sonora Desert Museum (our next stop).

Crested or cristate cactus

N aturally formed cross-section of a dead cactus - Saguaro are preserved at all stages of life in the park.

The friendly volunteers and Park Ranger directed us to a scenic drive and short hike to get the most out of our short visit, including where to spot the rare crested/cristate saguaro cactus! Scientists still aren't sure how or why this mutation occurs, and it is a very rare find.

Valley View Overlook Trail

We'd love to go back and spend more time, as well as visit the eastern half, the Rincon Mountain District, which has longer scenic hikes and cycling routes.

Inspiration from a Hedgehog

"A little more to the left... there!"

Mike graciously tolerated my insistence on getting the perfect photos of Flat Spiky out in the great Sonoran Desert. By the third photo, I was carefully placing Spiky under various cacti spines, rather than positioning him at arm's length for a perspective shot.

"Teddy Bear Cholla" - AKA "Jumping" Cactus

This fun opportunity for educational photo journalism (thanks to Flat Stanley and my nephew's 3rd grade class) got both of us talking about our previous blogging attempt. After crossing the U.S. by bicycle, touring New England, working on a farm in Kentucky, and making the big move to the great southwest, we ran out of big and exciting blog ideas... at least, we thought we had.

Hedgehog Cactus

Snapping photos of a paper hedgehog next to a cactus that shares its name reignited our excitement for sharing our own discoveries (no matter how small) with anyone who will listen (or read). We were reminded that adventures don't have to be grand excursions or long trips; discovery can happen in our own backyard, the kitchen, a good book...

And so, ladies and gentlemen, we bring you, "A Lovely Meander." What follows will be our own discoveries as we meander our way through life.