Category Archives: exploration and educational site

The Elf Owl, the smallest owl in the world and some other facts!

With Christmas coming up, And my love for owls, I thought I would talk about these really cool little owls today!These owls are the smallest and lightest, weighing only 40 grams and their size is 12 to 14 .5 Cm. They live in Northern America and are nocturnal.

They sing a lot at night to attract mates and the sound of there hoot is that of a cute puppy sound! The current population is around 150,000. The feathers are a grayish brown including on the heads. Eyes are bright yellow and they basically eat insects.

These owls like to take over woodpeckers holes in Saguaro Cactus and Oak trees. And another interesting fact is they mate for life!

When an enemy comes around, these owls are so smart, they play dead, wow! Well, these are some very interesting facts! I may just paint some of these and put an elf suit on it for my business, Rossi Coasters & Candles lol🤣🤣

Okay guys, hope you liked this article, thanks for supporting this site by following me and my explorations and checkout ng out my handmade products! Next up, I am going to be discussing the benefits of Goat milk!

Love to you all!

Vanessa-

The Coronado trail scenic byway A.K.A, Devils highway has tons of twists and turns for thrill seeking people!

Standing at an elevation of over 9,370 ft up, The Blue Vista pullover has an extremely narrow , no shoulder dirt road. This road has extremely sharp curves, with no shoulders, but a lot of beautiful scenery. 123 miles and 460 turns! Not many travelers on this road, making it basically your own raceway.A man named Francisco Vasquez Coronado came and explored it in 1540 on his quest for gold and known as one of the least traveled roads.

You guys, I was only planning for us to go to Alpine, Az., but the hubby decided to just keep going and going. I was clueless about the road set before us! A drive through the White Mountains quickly turned into a high adrenaline rush ride! We were going South, down into Morenci.I love a good scare once in awhile and I love exploring new places but This road had me absolutely terrified at times!I definitely don’t recommend this for people who are terrified of heights or people who have a pacemaker! Especially nervous and paranoid drivers!🤣But others may really love it!

This lodge is named Hannagan Meadows lodge and it has great reviews, about the food and its whole rustic appeal.It’s a great getaway from all the bad news about inflation pain etc!
At the Blue Vista pull off, you will see such breathtaking views! This post says “To those devoid of imagination a blank place on the map is a useless waste ,to others the money at valuable part. If you are looking for lodging and gas, you will find it at the Hannagan Meadow lodge, and gas is also available there. It has a rustic cabin appeal and a great getaway for family or for a romantic stay!
We are going down, this is definitely a very long lasting drive!
We decided to go check this out, but did not go very deep. Check out all the fall foliage! This is the Juan Miller campground, Blue river.
Although it is very pretty, there are signs stating this road is very primitive and dangerous. We didn’t stay very long.
Going down into Morenci
Right before you enter into the Morenci Mining area, these rock formations remind me of a castle sculpted out of the red rocks.
This mine is GIGANTIC!

After you drive down 191,you will travel through another great historic mining town, Clifton. So much great history and so much breathtaking beauty!

Historic Clifton buildings and houses still standing!

So there you have it my experience on traveling down the Coronado trail scenic byway a.k.a (191, 666, devils highway)Hope you enjoyed it and Have a blessed Thanksgiving, stay safe out there and happy exploring and bugging out!Thanks so much for supporting this site, please like, and share!

Love to all of you,

Vanessa Sondgeroth

What happened in Sycamore Canyon off Ruby Rd.,during the Civil war era?The Hank & Yank Bartlett story

Sycamore Canyon in fall is beautiful! What a great trail! Supposedly the remains of Hank and Yanks homestead, this ranch is near the head of Sycamore…

The history behind the Agua Caliente resort

Built in 1867, King S. Woolsey owned this place in 1897. This ranch has 22 rooms and the pool was fed by the hot springs, which is across this resort behind a gate. Travelers came in from the Butterfield Overland Route back in the 1860s It is quite large and most impressive. There are caretakers but it is not in uses and closed back in the 1950’s

Before European settlers came here, this place had Tonto Apache Indians soaking in the hot springs. Rumor has it that a Mormon family was tragically massacred by the Yavapai Indians. It was The Oatman family that was traveling on the Gila trail-Southern Emigrant Route that happened 26 miles west of Gila bend.The western Yavapai Indians kidnapped the The two girls, Olive and Mary and Lorenzo of the Oatman family and held them hostage, Lorenzo, was killed by being thrown off an embankment by the Indians. This story is extremely popular as many books and articles are written on this massacre.Now, .back to this resort. Due to the Indians, the people used dynamite to protect them. Unfortunately, the hot springs water dried up from the farmers using this water. The town has many delapitated buildings along Agua Caliente rd., while the Gila river runs dry now. This is a great place to explore if you wish.

King S. Woolsey , today he would be considered a racist and a villain due to the fact he killed Apache women and children. You can research him if you want.

You can also visit this cemetery out there, and check out all the old buildings. There are many historic buildings out there, you will also find Hyder, Az which is also a ghost town and the WW2 camp Hyder out there!

Another empty building out by the Agua Caliente resort

I hope you enjoyed this article and maybe you will take a drive out there. Thank you for taking time to read this. Please continue reading articles right here on Desertexplorations.com! This whole area is quite interesting to explore if your looking for something new!

Peace!

Again please keep comments respectful, nothing rude, will be seen on this site!

Vanessa Sondgeroth

A walk along Parker Canyon lake, through photos along 83!

Want a peaceful hike, but not a crowd? A place of wondrous beauty and solitude? With trees, water, ducks and fall foliage? The water is low, but Parker Canyon lake is open to rent boats and fish. You can still go out on this lake and have fun! We went yesterday and it is so beautiful with the sun rays hitting the water!

So beautiful!
The drive to Parker Canyon lake never gets old because you can always spot different landscapes and fully enjoy them along 83, through Canelo.
Along the walking path, you will see beautiful fall foliage reminding us what season we are in.
The path is a thin line, but it is a great walk to take your family or dogs, just as always be care of the rocks that stick up out of dirt!
Plenty of shade!

I hope you enjoyed these photos, and consider a good hike through Parker Canyon Lake, it really is such a beautiful and peaceful place!

Next exploration will be Agua Caliente Ghost town, a completely abandoned area. I will also write about the history of this place including the abandoned ranch/resort and the buildings still standing out in Maricopa county!have a beautiful day!

Peace out!

Vanessa Rossi-Sondgeroth

Hyder ghost town and General George S.Patton, a great piece of American WW2 history!Exploring Hyder,, and Agua Caliente ghost towns.

A look back in history at Camp Hyder, it was one of many WW2 Desert training centers led by America’s toughest Generals, General George S. Patton! They started in 1942. They were trained in the desert so they would learn how to adapt in very harsh conditions, as such were the harsh conditions in South Africa to fight The German soldiers.
The old store and gas station still stands in Hyder, this place is in an isolated area way out in the Yuma county. This area could easily pass as an area for a horror flick!

We drove into Hyder, an isolated area in Yuma county, full of old derilect buildings in Hyder, Dateland and into Agua Caliente. These are the buildings we found out there!

It says no trespassing but I don’t think people care about the sign as it looks as if many have come here and have even squatters have lived here.
Inside this building looks like a tornado hit it.
A building in Hyder,

Now we head out to Camp Hyder to see what it looks like today, here in October of 2021!

What’s left of Camp Hyder, these historical buildings still stand. A part of America’s WW2 history!

After exploring Camp Hyder, we went on into Maricopa county into Agua Caliente Ghost town. This town was named for a hot water spring. it is noted that some Indians who killed the Oatman family back in 1862 along with holding Mary and Olive Oatman. This place was dried out by farmers and ranchers back in the 1940’s. The most interesting building we liked was what we thought to be a school, only to find out this large building was once a resort. I made a video of driving through this ghost town if you want to check it out. The resort-spa was used by the soldiers at nearby Camp Horn of WW2. I uploaded a video of our drive through Agua Caliente ghost town under Vanessa Rossi-Sondgeroth on YouTube. I tried to post it to this and am having a hard time, sorry for that. Most of the buildings there are pretty much gone, except the resort, it looks like a good place to investigate for paranormal activity for those who believe or want to try it. The video was shot October 6, 2021! The cemetery of Agua a Caliente is along the old Agua Caliente rd. And has about 100 graves.

Thank you for reading this article, please share this site with others and subscribe! Next up articles coming Big foot in Madeira canyon, and Chaco Culture historical park with tons of photos! Also I own a handmade gift shop as well under Rossi Coasters & Candles, I make Handmade coasters, candles, and adding Vegan body butters, and alien soap! I also paint! Vanessa Rossi Sondgeroth

We are taking a trip to Chaco culture historical park next week everybody!!!!

Hello, how are you doing? Hope everything is good and you are doing great! I know, I told you we are going to Chaco, but had to cancel! This time, we are following through! If weather permits, we’re going next week for sure! Lots of photos and video! Stay tuned for this exciting trip!