November 13 and 14 -- 610 Miles From Overton To Portal, A Deer And Tundra Are Killed, And I View The Remains

And all I wanted to do was check out a house...I'm interested in buying a house in Portal, Arizona, near the border of Arizona and New Mexico and a top birding and wildlife destination, so I drove 610 miles on Thursday, November 13 to view a particular house.  I left early that morning, driving along the shore of Lake Mead, with the Muddy Mountains providing a spectacular desert background --

The route led southeast on Hwy 93, east of the Colorado River. The landscape looking west was dramatic -- 

That's the dammed Colorado in the center. The route ran south in a valley with high electrical poles, perfect perches for raptors. I'm pretty sure I saw at least one Golden Eagle there, and my hunch was confirmed when I saw a decrepit billboard advertising "Golden Eagle Realty". OK, so I might not have actually seen a Golden Eagle, but at least they HAVE been seen there...I stopped at the MacDonald's in Kingman, AZ and looked at their clock; it was an hour ahead of Nevada time. I realized that Arizona did NOT move their clocks backwards or forwards with Daylight Savings Time (Doh!) but that meant I'd lost an hour. So I barreled through Wickenburg, Phoenix, Tucson, Willcox, and arrived at Highway 80 in New Mexico just after sunset. I'd hit the 600-mile mark, it was getting dark, but I was heading to Portal and had called Helen and Noel Snyder, friends and Helen being my real estate agent, letting them know I'd be meeting them at the Portal Lodge and Store soon. I was driving south on Hwy 80, about 10 miles from the intersection with the Portal Road -- when 2 deer suddenly came out of nowhere, crossing  the road. They were RIGHT in front of me; I had no time to react. I missed the first deer, then heard the sickening thump and bump of the 2nd one hitting the front of Tundra. I KNEW the damage  was bad, but didn't stop as my first instinct  was to get closer to Rodeo, New Mexico, as cell phone coverage is spotty or non-existent where the deer got hit -- and ATT, my "dumb phone" carrier, is the non-existent part of that choice. But the radiator was damaged, steam was rising from underneath the hood, and the water temperature kept rising. I pleaded "Come ON, Tundra, get me closer to the town or buildings!" and actually got to the intersection of Hwy 80 and Portal Road before Tundra died. No transmission, no gears -- nothing. I was partially in the road, so I flagged down 2 passing cars. They were locals, and helped me push Tundra a bit further off the road, then he seized-up and wouldn't budge any further. Luckily, one of my Good Samaritans knew Mitch Webster, the owner of Portal Lodge where I had reservations, so called him as I could get NOTHING from my ATT dumb phone. I talked to Mitch, explaining what happened, and he said he'd be by in about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, a Border Patrol officer came by and offered assistance. He actually figured out how to release Tundra so it could be moved off the road as we all pushed it. I thanked the Good Samaritans, who related THEIR automotive encounters with deer, then Mitch came by with 2 friends, and Mitch called the police to file a report. Helen, my friend who was waiting for me at Portal Lodge for dinner,  came by as she'd been told by someone at the lodge what had happened, so Mitch and his friends left and we waited for the officer to come. He arrived in about 20 minutes, took down all the info, called a tow truck (it would be towed to Lordsburg, about 55 miles northeast) and then the three of us started talking about Smart Phones, other deer encounters (the officer -- name of Spence, hit a deer, then went back and carved it up for meat) and then I realized that -- it was COLD! And here I was, wearing shorts because it was nearly 80 when I started! Helen and I left Tundra with Spencer waiting for the tow truck. I slept fitfully, waking up at the usual 4am, ran the water to get the hot water going in the bathtub -- but it never got hot, or even warm. Shoot! I took another "Hollywood Bath", met Helen at the Portal Cafe for breakfast, then we headed out to check Tundra and the Lordsburg Ford dealer where it was towed.. On the way we passed the deer; it was remarkably intact, and Helen said it was a doe. "Hey Steve, let's take a photo of you with one foot on the deer while holding some of the truck parts that are alongside her!"  OK..

Though my eyes were closed, I actually WAS smiling -- because it could have been MUCH worse. We drove to Lordsburg to get my equipment out of Tundra, and check the damage for the first time during daylight -- 

We agreed Tundra was probably totaled -- though we couldn't pop open the hood, the radiator, transmission, and probably front end were damaged. I called AAA and gave them the information; it will take probably a week to get any kind of idea how much money I'll end up getting for Tundra. Helen and I then went to Silver City to visit Wal-Mart, where I picked up a Smartphone for use in this area, as my ATT dumb phone is useless. On the way back to the Portal Lodge I stopped by the house 

I'm looking at here, and witnessed a fantastic sunset; this is the view from the house's back yard, with Cave Creek Canyon as a backdrop, and in the foreground are the bird feeder hangers put up by the owners; there is also a water basin in the ground, and bird feed hangers -- 

 I think I can fall in love with this place... :o)