Friday Fences

One the way home from Sun Valley Idaho - Summer 2011

Joining Jan and Jer at Friday Fences

Gem in the Desert

Yuma Arizona

We're heard it was a windy area...

        a dirty area...

                 a dusty area....

But who would think you would find an area like this?

Yes this is by Yuma...

Very close...

We had a picnic lunch...

Soaked up the sun...with a breeze off the lake...

Our own little paradise......

I think we need a couple kayaks...

In a few spots...there was the odd fishermen...

We'll keep this paradise a secret...:)

Who would of ever thought ...you'd find a place like this...

IN YUMA - no less.

Unique Old Vehicles

Lettuce Days was held at the Quartermaster State Park.
Here are a few old vehicles on display at the park.

Does anyone remember these?

Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park, site of the Yuma Quartermaster Depot, was used by the US Army to store and distribute supplies for all the military posts in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, New Mexico and Texas. A six month supply of clothing, food, ammunition, and other goods was kept at the depot at all times. The supplies were brought from California by ocean vessels traveling around the Baja Peninsula to Port Isabel near the mouth of the Colorado River. There, cargos were transferred to river steamers and brought upstream to Yuma.

The supplies were unloaded near the stone reservoir just west of the commanding officer's quarters and hauled up on a track running from the river dock through the center of the storehouse. They were shipped north on river steamers and overland by mule drawn freight wagons. The depot quartered up to 900 mules and a crew of teamsters to handle them. The Southern Pacific Railroad reached Yuma in 1877 and heralded the end of the Quartermaster Depot and Fort Yuma. The railroad reached Tucson in 1880, and the functions were moved to Fort Lowell in Tucson.

Lettuce Days

Yuma is the Winter Vegetable Capitol of the Nation.
They grow vegetables 12 months of the year.
So it stands to reason...they would have "Lettuce Days"

It was a fun experience...
We arrived on our preferred transportation in Yuma...

Parking was a problem for those with cars...

but we got to park at the front door!

There were Markets...

Salad Bar for $2.00

Different Cooking shows...

We enjoyed watching one chef make veggie flowers...

He could make a cantaloupe flower in 2 minutes...

Yes that was about 2 minutes!

Giveaway Booths...

We went home with: 

container of lettuce, 

cans of pineapple juice (which came in handy on the ride home...as it was very warm) 

and mandarin oranges.

We had a wonderful day!

March 17th...

It was the Air Show....

And Green was glowing....
Our park is about 1 mile from the Airport...
At the back of the park...along the canal...
The view is pretty good...

Some tried out the balcony seats...

We had a fairly good view of the planes...

The Ice Cream truck...braved the canal and was rewarded by the spectators who had been sitting for 3 hours.

I admit...Air Shows are not something I really enjoy...

 I don't like flying....

So I can't imagine why anyone would want to fly a plane....
for an Air Show...
just for fun...

But some of the things those planes do is pretty spectacular!

Yuma Air Show

Bridge To Nowhere

It once bridged the great Gila River...

but now spans over shifting sands of the desert.

The Golden Gate Bridge over San Francisco follows this style.

It was built in 1929 - a 800 foot long suspension bridge was given the name Dome Bridge, later being renamed honoring an old-timer. Henry Harrison (Harry) McPhaul, who came to Arizona in 1897. 

He was a guard at the Yuma Territorial Prison and was the only Yuma resident who ever became an Arizona Ranger.

The bridge was considered to flimsy for modern traffic, 

so the highway was rerouted to a smaller bridge. 

In 1993 this smaller bridge was destroyed by a flood...

but the Bridge to Nowhere still stands.

If you don't feel the bridge itself is worth the trip...

The FARM is!

You can sit outside or in and enjoy a Taco, Hot Dog even a Date Shake, plus more yummy treats andbBrowse the store for unique Antiques.

Its north of Yuma on Highway 95, about 18 miles from Yuma.