HUNDREDS OF OLD MINESHAFTS IN THE TOMBSTONE HILLS

TIMBERS AROUND AN OLD MINING PIT ENTRANCE

Not much to say about the weather here because everyday is the same. Lots of sunshine & warm daytime temps. That's it, all day every day. We love Arizona:))

Back in the mid to late 1800's this area we are camped in was a bee hive of mining activity. There are hundreds of small open pit mines scattered throughout these hills. We can look out our window & see mounds of stones among the mesquite where men have dug down into the rocks & gravel looking for silver. It was many of these rough tough miners with their picks & shovels who made the town of Tombstone as notorious as it was. It's hard to believe when standing at the top of one of these open pits that all the work in those days was done by hand. Shovels & picks to get through the solid rocks & layers of sand & gravel. All that stuff had to be hauled back up to the surface with ropes & buckets. Add to that, hundred degree temperatures in the summer with no trees for shade, rattlesnakes, scorpions, Apache Indian attacks, sparse water resources, & a multitude of other hazards & you have the makings of some very tough & hardened people. Being camped right in the middle of this environment these past few days has been a good eye into the past for us.

SOME OF THESE PITS ARE SAID TO BE 200 FEET DEEP

Gwen & Jack, the folks who cattle ranch here told us about the many open pit mines nearby so this morning we took the car & headed up some of the old rock strewn bumpy roads in the hills behind us. Didn't take long to find the mines. Always a tell tale sign of rocks & gravel shoveled up in a pile amongst the prickly mesquite. Some of the pits are simply a black hole leading down into an abyss. Jack says some pits are as deep as 200 feet. Rumors & legends abound about bodies at the bottom of some pits. One pit in particular was suspicious so Jack said his son one time brought over a piece of farm machinery, some ropes & pulleys, & lowered himself down the suspect pit to the bottom, but no bodies or bones were found. (maybe the ghosts heard him coming) Some pits still have what's left of wooden frameworks around the entrances. Old weather beaten boards & rusted nails. One pit still had an old hand made ladder descending down into it. (web album photo) A BIG WAVE ON THE TRAIL FROM CATTLEMAN JACK

Jack also told us that Tombstone's waterline runs across the property from the Huachuca mountains about 20 miles to the west. Yesterday on the road to Ramsey Canyon we saw a sign beside the road for the Tombstone Aquaduct. To-day we actually found part of that exposed water pipe itself nearby with a sign beside it saying Tombstone Aquaduct. (picture) The black pipe looked pretty old & we were surprised to see a section of it running across the rocky surface exposed to the elements.

Gwen & Jack have another watering station for their cattle a little higher up in the hills so we drove as far as we could to find it. Road got a little rough so we walked the last section & found the water corral. No hydro up there but the 2 water lines we saw were tapped into the Tombstone Aqueduct. Some old flannel shirts were wrapped around the water pipes coming out of the ground to prevent them from freezing up. Didn't see any of the cattle to-day but there was lots of evidence on the ground of them having been there.

THE SECOND WATERING HOLE

We followed the old road back to the Charleston highway & decided to head down the road a few miles & see if we could find the ruins of an old cabin that 3 miners had been robbed & murdered at in 1858. Turned off the highway onto an old road but didn't have any luck. We may go back again to-morrow & have another look for Brunknow's Cabin. It is said to be haunted. But, then again, doesn't everything have a sense of haunting in the old wild west. It's the thing legends are made of!! THESE MINING PITS DATE BACK TO THE MID TO LATE 1800'S

We were back to the rig by noon & spent the rest of the afternoon just simply enjoying our peaceful surroundings. Kelly had computer things to do for her Deer Park Lodge job & I had things to do like relaxing in my lounge chair working hard on my afternoon siesta. At one point though I actually wound up getting a haircut. Kelly said I was starting to look like the wild old man of Borneo with potatoes growing out his ears. Well, I guess she was right so out came the scissors & off came my hair. Well, some of it anyway. I'm sure glad I met Kelly back in 93 because that's the last time I ever paid for a haircut. Oh the perks, oh the perks:)) OUR LOVELY LADY GATEKEEPER

Beautiful half moon lighting up the desert landscape to-night. When I took Max out a few minutes ago I stood quietly for awhile listening. They say you can still hear the sounds of the Indians in the hills & the miners shovels & hammers striking the hardened rocks in the pit mines. I stood very quietly facing the hills, & I listened & I listened and........................................ CHARLESTON HILLS IN FOREGROUND & HUACHUCA MOUNTAINS IN THE BACKGROUND

No, I'm not a writer........I'm just a simple guy who likes to write.

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A ROUGH & TUMBLE DRIVE IN CARR CANYON

WE WERE WAY UP THERE SOMEWHERE

Another weather perfect day in the San Pedro Valley so we headed off for Ramsey Canyon in the Huachuca mountains. We hadn't realized they charged to walk the trail there so decided to try the next canyon down the road.

Carr canyon turned out to be quite a driving challenge. We turned off highway 92 onto a paved road leading towards the mountains. Before long the pavement ended & rough dirt road began. We could see a waterfall high on the mountain so we decided to keep going despite the road. It was so nice to see big trees again & lots of greenery. The road began to wind & we were soon down to a single lane. The stones got bigger & the ruts got deeper but we kept going. We had confidence in our little mountain goat Hyundai Santa Fe. No guard rails on this road & the higher we climbed, the steeper the drop offs became. We reached a series of switchbacks & from here we were down to first gear the rest of the way. We had no idea how far it was to the top or what was there if we even made it all the way. It was one of those roads with few turn-a-rounds so you just kept going. For Kelly it was a nail biter, but luckily for me I was driving so didn't have the worries of not knowing what the driver is doing. And every time Kelly had the cliff on her side she was not a happy camper!! I kept saying, "look at that view" and she just kept looking straight ahead. We stopped once for pictures & discussed whether to go on or not. Finally convinced ourselves the top was probably just around the next curve. (it wasn't) Kept on for another 15 minutes or so & finally reached the National Forest Recreation Area campground & decided that was our turn around point. The views out over the San Pedro Valley from here were spectacular. We could see all the way down into Mexico. The Swisshelm & Dragoon mountain ranges were visible on the eastern horizon & with the help of our 7 x 50 binoculars I was actually able to pinpoint our rig way across the valley about 20 miles away or so. It was the only white dot visible in that section of the Tombstone Hills. In fact, I was able to see the little Motormouse looking out the passenger side window with a sad look on her face wondering when Mom & Dad were coming home.

SIERRA VISTA

It had taken us about 40 minutes to travel the short 7 miles up the twisting mountain road & about 80% of that was in first gear. I'm guessing we climbed maybe 2 or 3 thousand feet. Our Santa Fe is a high clearance vehicle & that served us well because we never bottomed it out once despite the large rocks & boulders imbedded in the road. It handled the ruts & pot holes without a wince. The front wheel drive dug in & never wavered all the way to the top & I was glad we had a manual transmission. They are just a lot more fun to drive. My first car was a Volkswagon Beetle back in 1963 & I've loved jammin gears ever since. ONE OF THE MANY SWITCHBACKS

Coming down didn't take as long as going up but it had it's own hazards & the main one was the kids on dirt bikes recklessly coming full tilt the other way up the mountain. We had one fellow nearly run into us on a curve. I think he probably had to pull over for a change of underwear after that. About 30 minutes after leaving the top we were back on pavement at the bottom & heading for Sierra Vista. LOOKING OUT OVER SIERRA VISTA & THE SAN PEDRO VALLEY

A quick stop at Wally-World, Fry's, & Ace hardware before heading back to the rig. Couldn't get out of that Fry's grocery store soon enough. So many people in there it was like a demolition derby with all the crazy grocery cart drivers. I felt a lot safer on the mountain road.

We were back at the rig by 3:15 & that was about it for another day. We only have a couple television channels here so ended up having the Super Bowl game on later. I'm not a big sports fan & would rather have watched a basket weaving demonstration but the game did get a little exciting towards the end & I did actually catch myself watching it.

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And thanks to my cousin Norma in Kitchener, Ontario for the following.............:))

TO ALL WHO VISIT AND LIKE TO COMPLAIN ABOUT OUR PETS:

(1) They live here. You don't.(2) If you don't want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture. That's why they call it 'fur'-niture.(3) I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.(4) To you, they are animals. To me, they are adopted sons/daughters who are short, hairy, walk on all fours and don't speak clearly.
Remember, dogs and cats are better than kids because they:(1) eat less,(2) don't ask for money all the time,(3) are easier to train,(4) normally come when called,(5) never ask to drive the car,(6) don't hang out with drug-using people;(7) don't smoke or drink,(8) don't want to wear your clothes,(9) don't have to buy the latest fashions,(10) don't need a gazillion dollars for college (11) if they get pregnant, you can sell their children..........:))

IT WAS A GREAT DAY FOR JUST PUTTERING

MORNING WALK IN THE TOMBSTONE HILLS. THE TOWN OF TOMBSTONE IS JUST OVER THAT HILL ON THE LEFT

Our morning walk took us about a half mile up a dusty road & back. That was as far as we got for the whole rest of the day. It was a warm, sunny, Saturday morning & it just seemed too nice out to even bother going anywhere. We had some twittering little birds in the desert broom shrubs nearby, a slight breeze, & a western view that stretched forever between the Huachuca, Whetstone, & Mule mountains. Yep, just a nice stay at home puttering kinda day.

Kelly busied herself with a clean up inside the rig & I worked away outside with my rake & broom cleaning up a lot of dirt & sand that had been washed onto the concrete from the local rainy season. Have been pleasantly surprised at the lack of litter & broken glass here. Many times we find boondocking areas like this have been trashed by the local young people if there is a town nearby. Drinking & party hang-outs. But, so far I've only found one unbroken empty beer bottle, one pop can, & a plastic bag. I think it has to do with the fact that there is a gate out at the road with an official looking sign on it. We open & close that gate anytime we leave here. Also, the older couple (Gwen & Jack) who lease this land & graze their cattle here see to it that there are no shenanigans going on. Jack, in his big wide brimmed white cowboy hat complete with jeans & jacket looks like he just stepped out of an old Hollywood western. He may be slowed down a bit by some arthritis in his older age but he wouldn't be afraid to put the run on any desperados that showed up here. Gwen & Jack live in Sierra Vista & come out here twice a day to water & feed their cattle. They trundle along the bumpy old trails in their aging Ford pick-up truck as they check out the cattle's watering spots in three different locations. Yesterday morning they were headed up into the hills to have a look for a few cows that hadn't showed up for a couple of days. They are truly a down home nice couple. It's been a treat to have met them.

THE SAN PEDRO VALLEY

The rest of the day was just spent puttering around & totally enjoying our environment. This is one of the best boondocking sites we've ever had. However, we also know that anybody could come rolling in here at any time & set up right next to us, crank up their radio, haul out the beer, & fire up their ATV's & dirt bikes, so we're trying to savor every preciously quiet moment we are here.

Our DVD documentary for to-night was, The Heart Of The Cowboy." A journey into California's final frontier. The life & times of the remaining Corazon Vaquero's in the Baja. A people living in harmony with their environment. Something we should all take a lesson from. Thanks to the two guys we met on our Mountain Palm Canyon hike awhile back for recommending it:))

KELLY'S RELAXING WITH A BOOK

Also would like to once again thank all you people out there for taking the time & expressing an interest in our blog. The emails, comments, messages, & shouts are very much appreciated. I read them aloud to Max, Checkers, & the Motormouse at bedtime & it always sets their tails to wagging..........................:))

No photos for the web album to-day.

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LISTENING TO ROY ROGERS & THE SON'S OF THE PIONEERS

LOOKING OUT OVER THE SAN PEDRO VALLEY TO THE HUACHUCA MOUNTAINS

Being parked on a large slab of concrete is sure helpful in keeping the motorhome a bit cleaner. Four dusty boots & 12 dusty paws can sure haul a lot of the old west into the rig in a hurry. There was some kind of mining operation on this hill years ago with a bunch of concrete pads poured for buildings. The buildings are long gone but the slabs are still here making for a great boondocking spot. Even though we have a mat & doggy bed outside for Checkers on the concrete, she always manages to find a pile of dirt to flop in & laze the sunny days away. I call her the old dust bucket dog. AFTERNOON SIESTA FOR THE BIG DUST BUCKET DOG

It was nice to look out our window this morning & see 5 cows standing outside the rig looking back at us. Across the valley the sun was lighting up the Huachuca mountain range just west of Sierra Vista. Heard a couple of ravens somewhere nearby & the sounds of the cows moooooing down by the water tank sure made for a nice morning. The warming rays of the morning sun soon pushed the night's cold air off down the valley & we had the start of another beautiful day here in southeastern Arizona.

Broke my garden rake on some tough ground while making a new firepit but with a little duct tape & a band-it clamp I had it back in operation good as new. Kelly headed into Sierra Vista around 9:30 & I was sooooooo glad she let me stay here at the camp. Groceries, laundry, & of course, the shopping thing was just not up my alley. Plus, when your traveling like this in an RV it's good for each other to have their own space at times. So, it didn't me long to get a campfire going & haul out my favorite old western CD. Slipped it into the rigs CD player, cranked up the volume & stretched out on the lounge chair outside as "The Sons of the Pioneers" took me back to days long ago in the old wild west. Blue Shadows On The Trail, Ghost Riders In The Sky, Tumbling Tumbleweeds, Along The Santa Fe Trail, Red River Valley, Wagon Wheels, Moonlight On The Prairies, Peace In The Valley, Rainbow's End, Along The Navajo Trail, Empty Saddles In The Old Corral, Cool Water, I'm An Old Cow Hand From The Rio Grande just to name a few. And of course my favorite, Bury Me Not On The Lone Prairie. The Sons of the Pioneers have a beautiful harmony & their rendition of this song is superb.
LISTENING TO MY OLD WILD WEST TUNES

We are camped in the Tombstone Hills & the old west town of Tombstone is only about 3 miles over the hills to the northeast. While listening to these songs one wonders about the characters who lived & died there back in the 1800's. Charleston is just down the road with it's own wild west history as is other small ghost towns nearby. As I look out over the hills nearby I can almost see the riders on horseback making their way through the sage & mesquite along dusty trails between the ranches & towns. They may have passed over this very spot where I'm sitting here typing this. Cochise & Geronimo roamed these hills & the U.S. Cavalry was based about 9 miles from here at Fort Huachuca. This area is rich in American history, legends, ghost towns, & wandering spirits. Over the next month or so we hope to visit many of these places & with a bit of luck, maybe feel the legendary spirits of the old west .

Kelly made it back from Sierra Vista around 3:30 with lots of groceries, a new doggy toy for the gang, & a couple of new T-shirts for me. The T-shirts had been marked down 75% at Marshalls. Most of my T-shirts look like they've taken a heavy load of buckshot:(( They haven't:))

HOISTED UP OUR COLORS TO-DAY

The temperatures started falling around 5 so we retreated indoors & that was about it for another day. No idea where we're headed to-morrow yet, but I hope it's another canyon hike somewhere.................. THE WHETSTONE MOUNTAIN RANGE

No, this is not a vacation.....this is a lifestyle:))

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TO-DAY WE MET JEANIE & RAY.....THE RANCH PEOPLE

WE MOVED AGAIN TO-DAY


Not as cold last night so our windows weren't all fogged up this morning with condensation. We met the farm couple on our walk near the cattle watering tank & they showed us how to turn the water pump on in case we should need water while we're here. Right friendly folks in these here parts.

Decided to take the rig into Tombstone late this morning & top up the tanks. Nothing wrong with the spot where we're camped but the older couple suggested we park on the big cement slabs left by the mining company so with that thought in mind we packed things up & drove our stuff in the car over to the cement slab about 300 yards away. We then took the rig to Tombstone. Only place in town that sells propane is the Tombstone Territories RV Park just north of Town on highway 80. The fellow let us dump our tanks & take on water as well. Next stop was the gas station where we filled up the rig for $101.00. Gas there was $1.87 a gallon. I don't keep track of how many miles we get to the gallon but I think we're doing really good with our 8.1 Chevy engine.

WE ARE ON A CEMENT SLAB WITH A LITTLE DIRT GARDEN & SOME COW PADDYS OUTSIDE

We were back to our "new" site by 1:15 & set to work making things homey. We had been in touch with our ranch sitting folks this past month by email & to-day we finally got to meet Jeanie & Ray. They had to go to Sierra Vista for some things & that journey took them right by our location here on the Charleston Road so they popped in to meet us. Really nice folks & we all hit it off right away. Jeanie was an electrician & Ray is a retired Sheriff from up around Apache Junction.....and a rodeo rider when he was a younger fella:)) They are RV people as well so we had a lot in common & a lot to talk about. They are in the process of replacing a broken water heater at home so our arrival at their place will be around mid week, some time next week. In the meantime we've got lots to see & do over in this neck of the woods for the next week or so. I did ask Ray about milking the chickens & with his thumb & forefinger he kinda showed me how it's done:)) THE THIN LINE OF LIGHTS IS SIERRA VISTA.... WITH 3 VEHICLES APPROACHING US ON THE CHARLESTON ROAD

Jeanie & Ray left around 4 & we resumed cleaning up our new campsite a bit. We still have the same beautiful night view of Sierra Vista as before too. We're a little lower than our other spot so may be out of the wind a tad more. We have a couple of nice green desert broom plants just outside the door plus some large concrete abutments which are nice for setting things on. Noticed a herd of cows fairly close just before supper so we'll have to watch our step in the morning. But, that's OK because we sure prefer a big herd of cows to a big herd of people anyday..................... Oh no, have I got myself in a big herd of trouble again:(( THE PLANET VENUS IS VISIBLE UPPER LEFT & CRESCENT MOON AT LOWER RIGHT

NO PHOTOS FOR THE WEB ALBUM TO-NIGHT

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TO-DAY WE FOUND THE RUINS OF CHARLESTON ARIZONA

BEGINNING OUR SHORTCUT TO CHARLESTON

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 28/09 (Computer seized up a couple times Wednesday night so couldn't upload the blog. About half the web albums made it & I'm uploading the rest of the pictures right now....Thursday morning)

The thermometer in our bin said the temperature dropped to 36F last night but it must have been lower because there was a layer of thin ice on a large vat of water nearby used for watering cattle. Didn't seem as cold to me on our morning walk as the morning before though.

A chance encounter with the older couple while on our walk this morning led to some better information as to where the elusive ghost town of Charleston could be found. We had been close the day before, but not close enough so we decided to go back this morning & have us another look.

Started off on the other side of the San Pedro river this time heading for another ghost town called Millville. Charleston & Millville were separated only by the river but Millville was going to be much easier to find because of paths, directions, & reader boards. The brochures & the BLM officer yesterday told us there wasn't anything left of Charleston except a few old adobe foundations. That information is misleading. The brochures also state there is more left of Millville than there really is. Again misleading. It's obvious the BLM authority do not want people finding the ruins of Charleston so all the emphasis is put on the Millville ruins..........of which there isn't much left aside from a few old stone foundations scattered amongst the thick underbrush. The Gird House is one of the few recognizable foundations left.

SOME OLD MILLVILLE RUINS

We knew the old ruins of Charleston were somewhere across the San Pedro river & we also knew there was an old rail bed running along the north side of the river between Millville & Charleston so we figured if we could find a way through the heavy underbrush bramble & many mesquite trees we should be able to come across the rail bed. From there we had a pretty good idea where to go because of the information the older farm couple gave us. From the Millville path we headed into the thickets & managed to find our way through to the rail bed. (check to-day's web album for pics) It was not easy going & we got ourselves full of prickles & small scratches. Had to carefully crawl through a barbed wire fence as well.
SPLASHING ACROSS THE SAN PEDRO & THE CEMENT BRIDGE CULVERT UNDER THE RAIL BED

Once up on the railbed we finally found the bridge over a dry wash the lady had told us about so we knew we were getting closer. She said to turn northwest & cross the San Pedro river at this point & then head straight for about a quarter mile to the ruins of Charleston. We made our way down the bank to the river & then made the mistake of heading up river a bit to find a better crossing. Turns out the best crossing is right there at the large graffiti infested concrete culvert. We searched for a narrow spot in the river but didn't find one so finally picked a spot to cross & away we went......after removing our shoes & socks & rolling up our pantlegs of course. And yes, the water was icy cold!! We then made the second mistake of walking downriver a bit looking for a path which we couldn't find. We knew the ruins had to be on our left somewhere so headed into the underbrush again. Luckily we blundered onto a path & after a bit of searching we followed a second path up a slight rise. The mesquite trees were very thick here. Kelly stopped & pulled a peanut butter sandwich out of her pack, tore it in half & handed me a section. I stuffed it in my mouth, turned around, took about 3 steps..........and there off to my right, through the mesquite brambles I spied an adobe wall. "Walla" we had just found the ghost town of Charleston:)) It immediately became apparent there was far more to see here than in Millville just back across the river, but first let me explain something about ghost towns. CHARLESTON RUINS

The words "ghost town" conjures up old wooden buildings with broken windows, doors ajar, wooden sidewalks, some rusting tin roofs on the buildings, rooms inside with old paraphernalia, etc. etc. Kind of a Hollywood looking ghost town with streets & alleys. Some are manufactured ghost towns for the sole purpose of attracting people & commercialism. These are the ghost towns we most often think about & see in our minds. And these are the ghost towns in namesake only. Real ghost towns as a rule look nothing like any of the above & so it is with Millville & Charleston. These & other places like them are the real ghost towns of the old west. MANY ADOBE WALLS STILL STANDING IN CHARLESTON

We spent about 40 minutes in Charleston to-day & I took a lot of photos. So many in fact that I'm only going to include a few in to-day's web album because I have already uploaded all the Charleston photos into their own album. All's you will see is sections of adobe walls with a lot of trees & grass growing in & around them, but for anyone who has an interest in this sort of thing, they might enjoy the photos. We didn't count, but we think we saw between 15 & 20 structures. I will include some links here that give the history of Charleston & Millville.......
http://clantongang.com/oldwest/charles3.htm
http://www.azkatz.net/Sites/Quiz/Lesson1.html

We finally left Charleston to it's ghosts & memories around 1:30 & headed back to the river. Off with the shoes & socks & away we went again, tippy toeing through the shallow & icy cold waters of the San Pedro. Shoes & socks back on, up the bank & through the graffiti infested cement culvert to a wide wash on the other side. Followed this back for aways until we picked up the Millville trail again which in turn led us back to the parking lot & our car. We had been gone about three & a half hours. Boy, was it great to sit down in those comfy car seats at last.

IS SHE GONNA MAKE IT:))

We were back to the rig in about 5 minutes & spent the next couple of hours resting up. Around 3:30 we took a short 3 mile drive over to Tombstone. Just wanted to check out where to get gas & propane when we leave here Friday morning. Parked the car & walked over to Tombstone's gunfigher street. Looked the same as when we had been there before just a couple of years ago. Only to-day we were lucky enough to catch Wyatt, Doc, & the boys out on the mainstreet just hanging around before the big OK Corral shoot out at 4 p.m. Cracked off some photos before the guys all sauntered over to the OK Coral building. If you want to see guns blazing & bodies dropping, you have to pay to see that inside the building, so needless to say we just kept walking. GUNFIGHTERS ON THE STREETS OF TOMBSTONE

My main purpose now was to find the Crystal Palace. A few days ago Kelly had started a thread in the RV Net Forum with some queries about the area & several people answered & have kept the thread going. Yesterday we actually met one of those fellas. This morning a message arrived from a fellow by the name of Len who remembered the Crystal Palace in Tombstone. So Len, Kelly & I went into the Crystal Palace about 4:15 this afternoon & raised a silent toast to your old departed friend, Buck . I took some photos inside for you as well & you will find them in to-day's web album.
RV Net Forum...http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm

THE CRYSTAL PALACE IN TOMBSTONE

We were back to the rig by 5 & that was about it for another fine day in beautiful sunny Arizona........:))

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WE DIDN'T FIND THE GHOST TOWN BUT WE DID HAVE TO MOVE TO-DAY

ALONG THE BANKS OF THE SAN PEDRO

We are about 3500 feet above sea level here so cooler temperatures are to be expected. And cooler temps it was this morning when we headed out on our morning hike. Had on my flannel lined winter pants, T-shirt, 2 long sleeved shirts, & my lined army jacket. Kelly had to wear mitts & a knitted woolen hat. We could see our breath & there was some steam coming off the San Pedro river. EARLY MORNING SUNRISE

Decided to head out & see if we could find the few remains of the old mining ghost town of Charleston. Found a path on the southwest side of the river that didn't look to overgrown so off we went. It was a beautiful looking morning with the rising sun low on the eastern horizon. The well worn path led through tall grasses as we followed the San Pedro north. There was evidence that cattle were in the area as well although we never did see any. We could hear the twittering of many birds in the cottonwoods but they were hard to see. I don't have a good bird lens for my camera, but maybe someday. We could only imagine how pretty this must be when all the leaves are on the trees & all the tall grasses, green. The river itself looked very clear & clean. We got into some heavy mesquite underbrush in places but the path was easy to follow for the most part. Occasionally we would see things dropped along the way by the illegal aliens that obviously use this path as well. Socks, an old shirt, & other paraphernalia. At one point we found a complete backpack with empty water & juice containers inside. Tire marks in the dry wash sand nearby suggested Border Patrol!! ON THE TRAIL OF A GHOST TOWN

We finally reached a point along the river where it narrowed & a log was across the water. A fellow on the RV Net had said when we reached the river narrows, to head up the bank & hill to our west. It was a short steep climb & Kelly waited with the dogs while I scooted up onto a plateau with a lot of mesquite trees & underbrush. The large hills were in front of me about a quarter mile away. I followed a path through the brush & then it ended. It was obvious from looking around me that I was not going to find a few old adobe foundations in the ground. I felt I was probably close to the old ghost town but there was no point in going any further so I headed back through the mesquite & down the steep bank where the gang was waiting. We re-traced our steps back along the trail & followed the river back to Charleston road & our rig. We had been gone about 2 hours, the temps had warmed up, & with all our winter clothes on we were doing some pretty good sweating by the time we got back. IT'S THE OLD GROUCH HIMSELF

Around 11 as we were relaxing in our chairs & soaking up some sun we heard a vehicle pull into the parking lot behind us & head our way. When we heard the "Wooop Wooop" of a siren we knew the jig was up & we were probably going to have to move. It was the BLM Ranger & another fellow who looked like a bonafide S.W.A.T. team member. These two guys were carrying more firepower than what the whole Canadian Army has in it's entire arsenal. Guns, ammo clips, clubs, etc. etc. These guys were loaded for bear!! (and drug smugglers) As Canadians, we're not used to being that close to & seeing all that artillery. They were both nice fellas & just informed us that overnight camping was not permitted in that parking lot & we would have to move on. The BLM guy told us of a spot just up the road towards Tombstone that we could re-locate too.....and that's just what we did. Took us about half an hour to get things squared away, waved good-bye to the Charleston road parking lot & headed up the road.

Wow, is this new spot ever great. We now have a spectacular view of the whole valley to our southwest. Sierra Vista is laid out below us about 10 miles on the far side of the valley & nestled under the Huachuca Mountains. We can see for miles & miles all the way down into Mexico. The town of Tombstone is only about 4 miles east of us & the area we are in right now is called, The Tombstone Hills. At this very moment as I'm typing this I can look straight out our window & see the long horizontal ribbon of shimmering lights in the distance that is the city of Sierra Vista. Almost as far as the eye can see from left to right the lights resemble a long thin gold twinkling chain with flecks of sparkling red rubies, glittering white diamonds & pinpoints of emerald green lights thrown in for good measure. Reminded me of driving down from the mountains into Las Vegas one night back in the mid 90's. And above all this in front of me is the black velvet sky with it's own awesome showcase of stars. You will never see things like this sitting in RV Parks!!

A MILLION DOLLAR VIEW

We spent the rest of the day doing some cleaning & just basically sitting outside soaking up the view in front of us. Last week, Kelly had posted some questions about this region on the RV Net Forum. Several people from the area responded & that is how we came to meet Sergeant John to-day. John lives over near Elfrida & works at the Fort Huachuca Army Base in Sierra Vista so he commutes the very road we're camped near, twice a day. He had given us his phone number & said to give him a call when we're in the area, so to-day, that is what we did & John stopped in to see us on his way home from Fort Huachuca this afternoon. Nice fellow, retired from the Army 20 years ago but still active on the base in another capacity. John & his wife are RV'ers also & said for us to come on over & stay a spell if we like, so we just may do that later on.

Around 4:30 a white pick-up truck pulled in with an ATV in the back & two young fellows in the cab. They were going hunting back up in the hills & just stopped to say hello. Nice fellas. Just before supper another pick-up truck approached & stopped. A well seasoned older couple got out to see how we were doing. Nice folks & we had quite a chat. Turns out they lease this land & have a lot of grazing cattle they look after. They also have another cattle ranch up around Benson. Their son has the place across the road here. Sure is a lot of friendly folks in these parts.

We received an email to-night from the folks we will be ranch sitting for next month & they said for us to come on down this Friday. So, if we don't get blowed off this big hilltop by a roaring Arizona wind by then, we'll head over to the McNeal area at the end of the week. And, I might add, as long as we don't get frozen to this hilltop as well. Temps are dipping to well below freezing to-night......................................:(( CHECKERS LOVES TO BE OUTSIDE

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

CAMPED ALONG THE BANKS OF THE SAN PEDRO RIVER

THE CHARLESTON ROAD PARKING LOT

Definitely a little cooler in this neck of the woods. Had a quiet night & no town constables came around to roust us out behind the Visitor's Center. The Centers doors opened at 8 & a few minutes later we were inside asking questions about the area & stocking up on brochures. An elderly lady was most helpful and made it clear there was no boondocking sites in the area. Luckily we had heard of one on the highway from Sierra Vista to Tombstone.

I checked Google Earth last night & it showed us where we could find a Wal-Mart in town so we didn't waste any time getting ourselves over there for a few groceries. In the meantime the wind gusts had picked up something fierce & while in the Wally-World parking lot our rig was being rocked back & forth like a small boat on a choppy lake. Picked up a few groceries & waited out the wind.

Around 11 we decided to head out in search of the Charleston road boondocking site. Wind had let up a bit so the short 8 mile drive wasn't too bad. I had previously un-hooked the car so Kelly followed along behind. Had checked the site out on Google Earth so knew as soon as I came to a river I would be there. No problem finding the big square parking lot on the south side of the bridge & east of the San Pedro river.

THE SAN PEDRO RIVER IS ABOUT A HUNDRED YARDS BEHIND THE RIG

The whole parking lot slopes towards the river so there was no finding a level spot. Ended up putting some wood under the back tires. Didn't want to use the jacks in case we had to unexpectantly leave in a hurry. We are only about 20 miles from the Mexican border here so there are additional things to take into consideration when setting up camp.

Took the furry guys for a walk down along the banks of the San Pedro river. Lots of animal tracks down there & later in the day around dusk we walked over to the old steel bridge (web album) & looked down upon 3 deer casually drinking along the river bank.

STROLLING ALONG THE BANKS OF THE SAN PEDRO

About a mile north of us up the river lies the ruins of the old western town of Charleston. In it's heyday Charleston was known as a rough & tumble town which boasted saloons, livery stables, restaurants, hotels, a school, a church, a post office, & stores that held $100.000 in goods. We understand there isn't much left on the site anymore. A few crumbled foundation walls & that's about it. We'll try taking a hike up that way in the morning but the underbrush along the river is pretty thick so we'll see how far we get. Or, we may follow the old railroad bed on the east side of the river & then try crossing the river farther up.

There is also a cairn (will get a photo of that to-morrow) here dedicated to the Morman Brigade who in 1846 encountered a number of wild bulls at this spot while trying to cross the river. A clash with the bulls erupted resulting in injuries. It is said that the "battle of the bulls" was the only battle the Mormon Battalion ever fought.

Nice sunset to-night & we were fortunate enough to see deer down at the river drinking. We've heard this parking lot is a favorite spot for telescope gazing astronomers & I can sure see why. No moon to-night & the sky is about 90% clear of clouds so the stars are just a poppin out of the night sky. In fact it was so clear that I could actually see beyond the stars into the future. And, the future told me if I don't smarten up right quick & knock off all the peanut butter & honey sandwiches I'm going to roll right past the 210 pound mark!!!!

No idea where we'll be to-morrow night but it just might still be here in this very same spot. And thanks to the folks on the RV Net Forum for the info & stories on this area......................

http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

THE BAYFIELD BUNCH RIDES INTO COCHISE COUNTY

DOING AN OVERNIGHTER BEHIND THE VISITOR CENTER IN SIERRA VISTA AZ.

We waffled back & forth for awhile this morning & then about 8 a.m. the decision finally came down. We would head for Sierra Vista in southeastern Arizona. Didn't take us long to pack things up because we hadn't put the solar panels up or the awning & mat out. Said good-bye to Bren & Bob & away we went.What an exceptionally beautiful morning it was with warm temps, a few cloud skiffs, light breeze, & plenty of sunshine. Always a twinge of excitement in the air for me when setting out for unknown new vistas & adventures. I like to be on the move & mornings is a great time to be moving.

It was Sunday and the traffic was lite as we approached Tucson from the north on I-10. In early December while heading west we had really got tangled up in the construction chaos along the I-10 corridor so I didn't want that to happen to us again so figured Sunday morning was the best time to run the gauntlet. I figured right as the traffic was very light & we had no problems at all. Except.......we suddenly got snagged by another Cracker Barrel:)) And how do we justify two Cracker Barrels in less than a week?? Well, here's how we do it. We never get desert & we don't buy coffee. That brings the bill in around $16. We rarely eat all the food so always take a bowser bag back to the rig & that usually ends up being our supper later on as well which in effect, kinda cuts the bill in half. Also, in this case we may not see another Cracker Barrel to well on into March sometime.....therefore an exception was made & we did two CB's in a week. Now, how's that for some pretty smart Senior logic........:))

Climbed off I-10 at Benson following highway 90 south to Sierra Vista. The directions we had were to follow the blue signs leading to the visitor center. Some sites were behind the center & other sites were somewhere in the area. Found the visitor center but being it was Sunday we found it closed. Pulled around back looking for the RV sites. Didn't find the sites but found a sign saying the RV section had been closed since April of 2005. Guess our direction information was a tad old. The area was very spacious so we just decided to park here for the night anyway. We'll check into the visitor center when it opens in the morning at 8.

VISITOR CENTER ON LEFT

Looking forward to spending over a month in this general area because there is a lot to see & do. This is what it says in one of the brochures......"Prepare to enjoy more history per square mile than you can find in most places in the United States. You will find that our history is that which you've read about, play acted as a child and thrilled to in the cool darkness of your hometown theaters. It encompasses the famous like Wyatt Earp, Cochise and Geronimo." The area is also a huge birding region & is hailed as the Hummingbird capital of the United States. There are ghost towns here, many canyons to explore, trails to hike. Cochise's stronghold where the Indian Chief is supposedly buried somewhere. Geronimo's Skeleton canyon where he was finally captured. Yes, we are going to be busy. And the old west history goes on & on & on.

Two years ago we had passed through this area while traveling from Columbus New Mexico to points further west. We did an overnight stop in Tombstone but that was about it & the next day we were rolling again. Here are some photos I took over a 2 day period as we approached & finally stopped for the night in Tombstone. We were driving a truck & fifth wheel at the time. http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/THURSDAYDEC28 http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/FRIDAYDEC29

Looking forward to our new adventures:))

No photos for the web album to-night.......but soon!!

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

LAZING AROUND THE RIG ALL DAY

MORNING CHAT WITH NEIGHBOR BOB & HIS FRISBEE CARRYING DOG, KELLY

Thought yesterday that we might do a day trip to-day but we ended up just sitting around having a relaxing day at the rig. Met another RV'er this morning & she was from Bracebridge, Ontario. Gee, are there no Americans out here.

The fellow we met yesterday is a bit of a photography buff so he dropped over this afternoon & installed some photo software on our computer that should help me make some improvements to my photos......if I can ever figure it out. The technology is getting faster & my brain is getting slower. His name is Bob & his wife's name is Bren & they have a home on Salt Spring Island between Vancouver Island & the main land. Nice folks traveling in a 5th wheel with their active frisbee chasing border collie dog named Kelly.

We have another week or so before heading down into the Douglas area so we've pouring over some travel plans between now & then. Considered heading over east of Phoenix to the Superstition Mtn area but I think we'll save that for March maybe. Or next October if we can swing it. It's actually nice to have the freedom to be indecisive. No hard & fast rules out here on the road if your not committed to RV Park schedules. This is our 47th consecutive day of not having to pay park fees anywhere. If you figure an average site price at $25 a night, then we have saved $1,175 dollars this past month & a half. Filled up with $60 worth of gas in Tucson back on December 9th & never filled up again until January 17th in Blyth California for $117.00. We're doin ok..........despite all our worries:))

BOB, KELLY THE DOG, & BREN

Weather has been great lately & we have not had to turn any heat on for the past 3 or 4 nights. Days have really been warm with actual humidity in the air. To-day was a tad uncomfortable but we sure can't complain. The winter weather across the north & back home is totally dreadful!! Sounds like the worst weather ever. BOB'S BUSY ON OUR COMPUTEER & THE GIRLS ARE TALKING ABOUT CELL PHONES

Not sure if we are going to roll out of here in the morning or not. Like I said, this great galloping RV world of indecision is an exciting & challenging thing:)))))))

No photos for the web album to-day.

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

SHOPPING TRIP TO CASA GRANDE, AZ.

STORMY SAGUARO SKY

The pitter patter of raindrops on the rig's roof about 5:30 this morning took me back many years ago as a kid to the days of tenting. That cozy feeling as you huddled inside your sleeping bag listening to that tap, tap, tap on the canvas. And always the thought of leaks, being careful not to touch the inside walls because somebody told you for sure that would cause the tent to leak. And as it rained ever harder you waited for that inevitable first wet feeling underneath you somewhere as the water somehow found it's way inside & began to pool right where you were!! And it was always your sleeping bag that got the wettest......first:))

Our little shower didn't last long but the sky was full of water as the large dark ominous clouds slowly tried to jostle for position right over our rig. Looked like it was probably going to be a good morning to drive into Casa Grande & do a little mall crawling. Didn't take us long to make up our minds & we were on our way.

OUR PARK ENTRANCE

Casa Grande is about a 20 minute drive east of the campground & because we had been there 3 times before, we knew our way around the area. Last year when we drove into the Promenade mall, a lot of the big box stores were still under construction. This is one very large multi-million dollar mall complex & one needs a road map just to get around to all the stores. It was about 11 a.m. & it was a Friday, but we couldn't help notice how empty the stores were. Acres of parking lot but few cars. Is it a sign of the times & what is to come? Busiest place in there was the "In & Out" hamburger place where the parking lot was full & cars were lined up in the take-out line. Another sign of the times perhaps. Our first stop was Marshall's where Kelly went in for a browse & I waited in the car listening to some tunes. Luckily she came out empty handed. Next was Best Buy where we picked up a set of Sony headphones. At home our television & located about 55 feet away from the computer. In the motorhome the television is about 2 feet above the computer & this creates a problem when Kelly wants to watch her "night time" shows & I'm stuck underneath the television having to listen to the darn things. Now, with the noise reducing headphones I can plug into the computer & float away with my many hours of downloaded music as I work away at whatever it is I'm working away at. No more wailing police sirens, gunfire, soap opera acting, or gory operating rooms with anatomically great graphic gobs of blood & gore brought on by some manic psychopath running amuck murdering whomever!!!! What ever happened to Jackie Gleason & The Honeymooners. Where's I Love Lucy when you need her & how about a little lite hearted whistling from Andy & Opie. Geeeeezzzzzz what kind of blood thirst & violence oriented society have we turned into anyway!!!!

Found a Staples store where we got one of those plastic things for under our office chair here at the computer. Castors & carpets do not work to-gether well. Popped into the "In & Out" hamburger joint for a couple yummy burgs & coffee. Asked a few questions at the Verizon store & Kelly slipped into a Sporting Goods place but once again came out empty handed. She said there wasn't one person in that whole store. Next it was down the street to Wal-Mart for some groceries. By this time I was starting to drag pretty bad & my shopping tolerance was running out real fast. Had to get Kelly to crack on some speed while we weaved our way through the heavy traffic aisles. Time to wrap this trip up, get out of town, & head back out into the solitude of the desert. Enough was enough!!

The rains came back just as we were unloading the loot back at the rig & we ended up having a nice 20 minute shower. Wondered who owned the gray car outside because the one we've been driving around has been brown. I was sure we left Ontario with a gray car. Yep, the southwest sure has a lot more dust than it really needs alright!! To-morrow we're going to do a little day trip around the immediate area & see what we can see. We may roll out of here Sunday but we're not sure yet. I like the idea of Sunday because of less traffic going through the road construction nightmare known as Tucson. We'll see how the current travel negotiations unravel to-morrow.........................

No Photos for the web album to-day.

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

A GOOD TRAVEL DAY & A GREAT CAMPSITE

SUNSET WEST OF CASA GRANDE, ARIZONA

I had put the solar panels down, & pretty well stowed all the gear away late Wednesday afternoon so there wasn't much to do this morning except hook the car onto the back of the motorhome & hit the road. Didn't want to stay another day because I couldn't stand listening to my own complaining about the crowds in Quartzite any longer.

We rolled north into Q & I was pleasantly surprised by the lack of traffic. Snapped a few pics out the window. It was about 9:30 a.m. when we waved good-bye to Quartzite & headed eastward to Interstate 8. Traffic was light & we rolled right along with no problems. Mornings are my favorite driving times because I enjoy the way the morning sun always lights the landscape & this morning was extra special because there were a lot of varying cloud patterns & that added a moody character to the sky. Distant mountains on both sides of the road looked stately, especially the ones to the south cloaked in a dark shadowy haze. Great lumbering Goliaths with high jagged peaks reaching for the clouds. Just the kind fairy tales & old western legends are written about. A beautiful morning. The other thing that became immediately apparent was the ever greening of the desert & hillsides the further east we went. More & more Saguaros began appearing, Palo Verde trees, cholla, & I'm sure there may have been some early flowers here & there had we stopped & looked. We passed the RV campground near Tonopah where our water line froze up two years ago, passed a service station that we remembered from last year having huge craters in it's parking lot that would have put a B-52 bombing raid to shame.

We had been driving about 2 hours when we saw it. The large tall sign appeared out of the horizon & steadily drew closer. Can it be....could it be?? Yes, yes, it is!!!! "CRACKER BARREL:))))" For us this was a true oasis in a long driving desert. There was a Cracker Barrel restaurant ahead just east of Buckeye. No decisions to be made here, this was an automatic YES!! The large fairly new mall is located about 5 miles past our turn off for Gila Bend but that was ok, we were starving for some good old country kitchen cooking. Had been over a month since we were last in a Cracker Barrel in Yuma. Can you tell this is our favorite place:))

I had a sausage skillet & Kelly had the newer Santa Fe skillet but we both agreed the sausage one was far better. Check the web album later for a picture... http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

KELLY CHECKING THE MENU AT CRACKER BARREL

By 12:15 we were back on the road & made the big swing south for Gila Bend. We knew we could dump tanks there & take on fresh water plus propane or gas if we needed it....which we didn't. For anyone traveling, if your coming into Gila Bend from the north, watch for the Shell Station on your right. There is free water & dump right behind the station & we noticed they have just paved the huge parking lot. No problem for big rigs getting around in there. There is also an RV Park right next door as well. Only took us about 20 minutes to do our business in there & we were back on I-8 heading east again. THE BEDROOM PAINT JOB

Herb had told us about a great little free camping place between Gila Bend & Casa Grande so that is where we headed. Jim Kortsen West Pinal Park is located in the V of the fork of I-8 & highway 84. This is a great little gem of a camping area. Well maintained with some sites having a concrete pad with picnic table & covered roof. It's all dry camping & lots of room & greenery between the sites. Not many rigs here so we were able to find a great little spot where the dogs (or us) wouldn't bother anyone. Only slight downside is a bit of traffic noise from I-8 to the south & some traffic on 84 north of us. Nice Saguaro cactus in here too. Right now as I'm typing this I can look out through our big windshield & see the dull glow of Tucson on the low cloud cover to our southwest. Across the whole horizon running north to Phoenix I can see the un-ending twinkling of lights. I'm guessing much of that is Casa Grande about 20 miles to the east. OUR NEW DIGS WEST OF CASA GRANDE, AZ

A fellow RV'er out walking his dog noticed our Canadian flag decals on the rig so came over. He's from British Columbia, & wouldn't you know it........his brother lives in Port Elgin Ontario which is a about a 90 minute drive from our place in Bayfield.

Our weather has been fabulous. It was a warm night in Quartzite last night & even warmer when we got up this morning. I could feel humidity in the air as soon as I stepped out of the coach. When we stopped in Buckeye around noon there was a warm wind blowing & our outside thermometer was saying 80F. It seemed even hotter than that by the time we got to our campsite west of Casa Grande. The sky was dark over Tucson & I think they got some rain. Also, we were surprised at the many crystal clear television stations we can get here with our antennae. And, our Verizon card works grrrrrrreat!!

All & all, it was a good day & we're happy to have a nice quiet & private campsite for a few days. To-morrow morning we'll drive into Casa Grande for a few groceries & things. And what a relief it is for me not to have anything to complain about to-day. Ok, ok, a little traffic noise but what the heck.......................... OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/