SIERRA VISTA TO DARBY WELL ROAD WEST OF AJO ARIZONA…..NICE TO BE BACK IN THE SONORAN DESERT AGAIN

On travel days we are usually up early and on the road but not so much this morning.  We are already in the Southwest where we want to be so there’s no big hurry to go rushing off to our next destination just to get there on the way to somewhere else.  Good weather is wide spread over this whole area so no need to get ahead of any bad weather anywhere.

OUR LAST MULE MOUNTAIN SUNRISE

Took our time organizing things and securing the rig for travel.  Nancy and Pat walked over and we had ourselves a morning chat.  Like us, Nancy and Pat are not social butterflies and like to stick to themselves when they are out RVing occasionally.  Same at home and it’s what works so well with all four of us.  We are not in each other’s faces everyday for happy hours and all that stuff.  Both Nancy and Pat have said we are welcome to come there any time we want and stay for as long as we want.  I think that is a pretty darn nice invitation.  They and their dog Cumori are the best and we consider Nancy and Pat to be two of our best friends.  With hugs, waves, smiles and laughter we were on our way somewhere west of 9 a.m.

PAT, CUMORI, AND NANCY WITH OUR AMARYLLIS PLANT THAT WE PAID FORWARD FROM CARON AND CHRIS

A BIG FRIENDLY WAVE FROM NANCY POINTING TO OUR SITE WHICH SHE SAID WILL BE AWAITING OUR RETURN ONE DAY

<<< A BETTER PICTURE OF CUMORI WHO’S NAME I AM SURE I HAVE SPELLED WRONG

I know I’ve said this before but as happy as I generally am to to somewhere else I am often just as sad when I leave where I have just been.  I may tire of where I am but if asked to stay longer I would say thank you but I have new places to go.  I don’t know why that is it just is.  And so it is how I felt Sunday night standing outside our coach looking across the San Pedro Valley to Sierra Vistas narrow string of glittering diamonds running the full length of the Huachuca Mountains from North to South and back again.  Knowing Monday morning would be another new dawning day I waved a final farewell to the city of diamonds thanking it for it’s memories over the years and wishing the glittering string of diamonds well.

HEADING INTO SIERRA VISTA

THIS IS OUR ALL-IN-ONE  FREE PIT STOP AT SIERRA VISTA’S VALERO GAS BAR

Our first stop after leaving Nancy and Pats was only 10 minutes away at the Valero gas station in Sierra Vista.  Dumped our tanks and took on fresh water.  There are air hoses here for tires, propane, and a vacuum machine.  It’s all free except for the propane, gas, and maybe the vacuum.  And everything is conveniently located on the north side of the station. 

BORDER PATROL CHECK-POINT ON OUR WAY TO BENSON

LOOKING EAST TO THE DRAGOON MOUNTAINS I COULD SEE THE COCHISE STRONGHOLD TO THE LEFT AND REMEMBERED THE SATURDAY MORNING MONTANA MIKE AND I STOOD ATOP THOSE MOUNTAINS A SHORT DISTANCE SOUTH OF THE STRONGHOLD

We hooked up the Jeep in Valero’s parking lot and it was sometime after 10 when we climbed aboard highway 90 heading North up along the East side of the Whetstone Mountains to Benson.  There’s a McDonalds at the junction of I-10 and we generally pop in for coffee and bite to eat to go.  Kelly had something with Guacamole on it and I had a fish sandwich burger.

PHEEB’S EYES ARE RIVETTED ON McDONALDS AS SHE PATIENTLY AWAITS KELLY’S RETURN….KELLY WAS ACTUALLY COMING THROUGH THOSE FAR TREES

We were soon on I-10 headed for Tucson under clear blue sunny skies and warm temperatures.  I had my driver’s door window down all the way.  Exited off I-10 onto Valencia West and out past the Airport.  We thought back to a few years ago when we picked up Aunt Jean there one time then dropped her off again about a week and a half later.  Valencia heads west and hooks up with highway 86 heading for Why and Ajo Arizona.

HEADING PAST THE TUCSON AIRPORT

ENCOUNTERED ANOTHER BORDER PATROL CHECK-POINT HEADING WEST ON #86 HIGHWAY

I THINK THE BOYS WERE ALL ON THEIR SMART PHONES AND NEVER SAW US GO RUMBLING BY

We first traveled this 120 mile stretch of road back in January of 2007 and it has been one of my favorite drives ever since either coming or going.  We always use this southern Arizona route to avoid the worst of Tucson and of course Phoenix.  We have never driven through Phoenix and have no desire to ever do so.

HEADING WEST PAST THE KITT PEAK NATIONAL OBSERVATORY

PASSED THIS WESTBOUND TWO CART CARAVAN GOING THROUGH SELLS ARIZONA

AND THERE ON THE DISTANT SOUTHERN HORIZON ARE THE MIGHTY AJO MOUNTAINS

AND BY GOLLY THERE’S THE HICKIWAN TRAILS RV PARK WHERE SO MANY OF OUR EARLY RV DAYS MEMORIES BEGAN

It was probably around 4 in the afternoon when we reached Why Arizona, our old stomping grounds from our first few RV traveling years.  Topped up the gas tank here and headed straight away north up highway 85 to the Darby Well Road turn-off on the southern edge of Ajo.  Pulled over, un-hooked the Jeep and made our way along a very dusty Darby road to the north end of the BLM area.  We prefer the north end of Darby Well Road because the Verizon tower is visible to the east and we always have great reception.  Actually it was the ‘Cow Plops’ area we were headed for and I knew chances of somebody already being there were pretty high.  And yes there was a Class A in there.  The area is big enough for half a dozen rigs but we are not huddlers so rather than pull in and spoil the other Class A’s view we right away went to  our back-up plan.

PICKED US UP SOME GAS IN WHY ARIZONA

MOTORING ALONG DARBY WELL ROAD KEEPING AN EYE OUT FOR A GOOD CAMPSITE

THIS DEAD END GRAVELY ROAD WAS FAMILIAR TO US SO WE HEADED DOWN IT A SHORT DISTANCE TO A SPOT WE KNEW AND SET UP CAMP

Being familiar with the area we knew right away where to find another great spot a short distance away and sure enough it was empty so we weren’t long in getting the rig down a dead end road then wiggling it around to fit into a spot we first had a number of years ago when we were the original Bayfield Bunch with Max, Checkers, and little Cora (aka Motormouse)  We had got our 33’ Damon Challenger into this spot so I knew we could get our 37’ Triple E Commander into the same spot with a couple extra wiggles.  It’s a great spot and unlike the Cow Plops site nobody is likely to crowd in on us.

It is so great being back in one of our all time favorite boon-docking places.  We are in the Sonoran desert surrounded by mountains of course as well as giant Saguaro and Organ Pipe Cactus.  We have hills and dales, rocky peaks, gulley washes, and endless miles of Jeep roads.  And in most directions we can see for miles and miles and miles.  It was here close to the spot we are in now that a number of years ago on one of our early morning walks we talked about how nice it would be to own a house and property somewhere in the Sonoran desert with all the greenery like here at Darby Wells.  Little did we know that just a few short years later we would indeed own such a place in Congress Arizona.

Heading west along highway 86 between Tucson and Why Arizona this afternoon I was reminded of something I had read about Edward Abbey.  Having read several of his books years ago I also remembered about his death and how after he died in Tucson his friends at his request put his body in a sleeping bag packed with dry ice and loaded it into the back of a pick-up truck and drove it from Tucson to Ajo Arizona then out into the desert to the Growler Mountains and buried it.  The shortest way from Tucson to Ajo is along the road we traveled today and the thought occurred to me we were probably driving the same road Edward Abbey’s body traveled  to it’s final destination in the back of a pick-up truck.  You can read about that journey in the above link about Edward Abbey.

WE AGAIN HAVE US A NICE SPOT

No plans of what we will do here just outside of Ajo Arizona but rest assured we will be quietly keeping a low profile while enjoying all of natures beauty which surrounds us.  We will sit outside in our chairs taking in the sun’s warming rays and listening to the absolutely deafening sounds of ……..silence.  It is so quiet here you can actually hear yourself thinking sometimes.

A few photos from home tonight showing the amount of snow we had around our house last week.  Thanks to Bruce and Sinnan for the pics.

OUR DRIVEWAY

FRONT YARD

BACK YARD

 

OUR STREET AND A CORNER OF OUR SUNROOM

THAT’S A FAIR BIT OF SNOW ON THE ROOF

THIS OPEN SPACE IS WHERE OUR MOTORHOME NORMALL SITS

NEIGHBOR MONICA’S HOUSE

Hard to believe here we are halfway through January already.  It was just one short month ago today Pheebs and were out on one of our Jeep jaunts taking snowy day pictures…..A Cold Snowy Morning

GROANER’S CORNER:((  These two Newfies are building a house. One of them is putting on the siding. He picks up a nail, hammers it in. Picks up another nail, throws it away. Picks up a nail, hammers it in. Picks up another, throws it away. This goes on for a while, and finally his friend comes over and asks him why he is throwing half of the nails away.   He replies, "Those ones were pointed on the wrong end." The buddy gets exasperated and says "You idiot, those nails are for the other side of the house!"

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A husband says to his friend: "My wife wasn't happy with the bag and belt I gave her for her birthday but at least the vacuum cleaner works better now."

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What's the difference between people
who pray in church and those who pray in casinos?   The ones in the casinos are serious.

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