TOMBSTONE TO PEARCE THROUGH THE DRAGOON MOUNTAINS

 

NEW YEAR’S EVE FULL MOON ………………from the ranch:))

No frost on anything this morning so I was outside at dawn running around in my pajamas taking some photos of the Moon setting in the west somewhere over in the direction of Tombstone.

 

THE MOON SETTING IN THE WEST THIS MORNING

Kelly had an exercise class at 9 so we loaded the computer in the car & off we went.  While Kelly was pumping iron I uploaded a bunch of updates that we had been getting behind on because of our Verizon megabyte limit.  What a big pain in the assparagus that Verizon 5 Gig cap is!!!!

From the Elfrida library we headed up the highway & turned west heading for the little old ghost town of Gleeson.  We had never traveled the dirt road from Gleeson to Tombstone before so figured to-day was a good day to do that.  Always so nice to see new scenery.  Rolled right through Tombstone & headed north a couple miles before turning east onto the rough & washboardy MIDDLEMARCH ROAD.  Our destination was another little ghost town on the other side of the DRAGOON MOUNTAINS.  Wanted to see the route Tombstone residents took over a hundred years ago to Pearce after gold was discovered there.

The Dragoon mountains ahead of us stood majestically in the high noon sun & I was reminded of our hike to the COCHISE STRONGHOLD this past March from the east side of the mountains.  (OUR COCHISE STRONGHOLD PHOTOS)  The Dragoons ahead marked the very spot where Cochise's many Apache lookouts took up posts on high rocks scanning the valley we were currently driving through.  Troops from Fort Huachuca on the west side of the San Pedro valley would set out across the desert floor in force to chase Cochise & his men down.  The Indians could see the troops coming for miles & miles & always had the advantage in any battles that took place & Cochise was never captured.  Thought about all that as we approached the natural rugged mountain fortress ahead.

 

Turned off the Middlemarch Road onto a smaller dirt road & headed north past a sign saying, Coronado Forest.  Road was a bit rough for a short distance then smoothed out reasonably well.  We had gained some altitude so Agave, Yucca, Prickly Pear began appearing along with a lot of trees that we couldn't identify.  These trees stand about 15 feet high with a spreading canopy but we just don't know what they are.  Alongside the road we saw campfire rings where people have pulled in & set up camp.  Saw a windmill slowly turning in the breeze amongst a cluster of trees.  A road led in that direction so we followed it stopping to take some windmill photos.  A cluster of tents marked the end of that road but we didn't see anyone around.  Could have been a group of rock climbers.  We backtracked to the main dirt road & headed a little further north before taking another road which led us a short distance right to the very foot of the beautiful Dragoon Mountains. 

    

CAN YOU SEE THE INDIAN HEAD PROFILE LOOKING TO THE LEFT IN THE LARGER PHOTO?

Parked the car & looked up at the large rounded rocks climbing into the sky.  It was so beautiful here that you just wanted to jump out of the car & run right up those huge boulders into the canyons beyond & the towering heights above.  It was a perfect place for rock scrambling because the rocks had a sandpapery surface & with good hiking boots the traction was phenomenal & I just felt like I could walk straight up the mountain.  Didn't take us long to scramble up a hundred feet or so just reveling in our great fortune to have found such a perfect camping spot for future days.  We could see the darkened Huachuca mountains probably 40 miles to the southwest & Bisbee's Mule mountains as many miles to the south.  Sunlight glinted off distant rooftops in Tombstone.  The towering Whetstone mountains led north to Benson which we could also see at the far end of the valley.  Beyond Benson the Rincon mountains spread across the horizon.  Just wanted to stay at this place forever.  It is days like these & places like this that remind me of how truly fortunate Kelly & I are.

We continued our journey back to Middlemarch Road & wended our way along the bumpy dirt trail winding it's way up & over the summit of Middlemarch Pass.  Patches of snow & cooler temperatures marked the highest point but overall it wasn't that high & it wasn't that cold.  Nice views of the Sulphur Springs Valley far below as we began our descent & I could see the town of Sunizona way out on the valley floor to the northeast.  Finally rolled through sleepy little Pearce east of the Dragoons around 3, picked up highway 191 & headed for home with a quick stop in Sunsites for a very late 2 o'clock coffee.   Awwwww, my kinda day:)))))))

(click on photos below for captions)

       

ALIEN DINOSAUR MOUNTAIN GOAT

Well, it's New Year's Eve & the thing I am most happiest about to-night is that I don't have to do all that silly New Year's Eve stuff anymore!!  I have now been over 30 years free from New Year's Eve's parties.........yaaaaaaay:)) 

JUST HAVING A LAZY AFTERNOON IN THE DRAGOONS

BELLE’S UPDATE

Emails have been rolling in again to-day with questions, suggestions, & offers.  We plan to go over to the Silverado Ranch in the morning & have us a sit down with Belle & talk about all the positive things that have been happening the past couple of days & her vision for the ranch.  Some decisions will have to be made & a direction forward found.  Emails have to be answered & work has to be started.  Again, Kelly & I thank everyone for their encouragement & support & I will post updates as they happen............................:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  A man was telling his neighbor, "I just bought a new hearing aid. It cost me four thousand dollars, but it's state of the art. It's perfect." "Really," answered the neighbor. "What kind is it?" "Twelve thirty."

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

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The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

ALL THE BEST TO EVERYONE IN THE NEW YEAR FROM THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))

A BIG THANK-YOU:))

 

First & foremost I would like to thank everyone for responding to last night's post.  From the emails & comments we received I feel there are already positive forces at work .  Thanks to Camille's comment in our 'Shout Box' we did contact both the Caretaker Gazette & Workamper News.  Gary Dunn responded this morning with an offer to run a free ad for Belle in their next issue.  Thanks to Gary & the CARETAKER GAZETTE.

John M sent us an email requesting Belle's mailing address saying, he couldn't get there to help but can send Belle a check.  I hadn't thought about that last night so will include Belle's address to-night in case anyone else feels the same way.

Belle Starr

5189 Hwy 80

Douglas, Arizona

85607

And, for anyone travelling in the area you can find Belle's Silverado ranch at mile marker 353 on the south side of highway 80 between Douglas & Bisbee.

Thanks to ESCAPEE CLUB members LAURIE & ODEL for notifying their boomer group about Belle's situation.  ROD & CONNIE posted a link on the RV DREAMS forums & Froggi Donna from 2 TAKING A 5TH made mention on her Facebook.  Received an email late this afternoon from an Escapee member who will be in the area next week & is interested in meeting Belle.  We are looking forward to meeting Joy at Belle's.  And thanks to everyone for the kind comments & concern.

 

I know I probably shouldn't be mentioning the weather all the time but we are Canadians & it's our right of passage to do that.  That was just a lead in to say we had a big sun shiny day here in southeastern Arizona with temps reaching 60F.  Nice change from the past few cloudy & colder days.  The recent weather fronts brought snow to the mountains & made for some great cloud shrouded sunrise & sunset photos again.  

We had thought of driving over to Tombstone to-day & then taking the Middle March road over the Dragoon mountains to Pearce.  It is the road that nearly emptied Tombstone of all it's inhabitants back in the 1800's when gold was discovered in Pearce.  People dismantled entire houses & moved them through the Middle March pass to the new 'gold strike'.  We have also heard it is nice drive.  However, our computer became increasingly busy this morning so we have put that drive off until tomorrow or Thursday. 

We had rain a few days ago so that automatically means 12 muddy paws going in & out of the motorhome.  To-day the rain threat was over so it was clean up time.  We have to put Checkers & the Motormouse outside while vacuuming because they both have a habit of attacking the vacuum cleaner.  And Checkers attacks the ATV every time I move it as well.  Ya just gotta wonder what they are thinking sometimes:))

Just before posting this another email came in from an RV couple currently in St. Louis expressing an interest in coming to help Belle so things are really coming together & we are so grateful to everyone for their response:))  

GROANER'S CORNER:((  My mom has a lead foot, so I was not surprised when a highway patrolman pulled us over as we were driving along the freeway. Hoping to get off with a warning, Mom tried to appear shocked when he walked up to the car.  "I have never been stopped like this before," she said to the officer.   "What do they usually do, ma'am," he asked, "shoot the tires out?"

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

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The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

AN APPEAL FOR HELP

 

BELLE’S BACK 40

Kelly got her Yoga times mixed up this morning & headed out about 8:45 for a 9 o'clock class.  She was back about half an hour later after realizing the class didn't start until 10:30 on Tuesday mornings.  Lost her incentive to go back again so we decided to take a drive over to Belle Starr's & help her a bit more with some computer stuff.  Belle was hoping to get her website back up & running but despite Kelly's best efforts, Belles treasured site has been erased from her website carriers site & is not retrievable.

Belle is such a caring person with a heart of gold.  Her love & care of stray animals is well known in these parts.  Her determination & spirit is to be envied & admired by all who meet her & Belle goes out of her way to help the homeless & downtrodden.  And therefore.........therein lies a sad problem.  It is these very people who have most often taken advantage of Belle's kindness & caring.  Her trusting nature has led to her house being ransacked by a 'person' while she was in the hospital with a broken hip.  Equipment has been stolen from her property by people she befriended & she is a constant target of internet scams & flim flam artists. 

  

As we talked with Belle this morning it was apparent she was in pain from her broken hip back in August.  A second fall has injured a knee but this 82 year old independent lady won't let any of that daunt her & is reluctant & afraid about returning to hospital.  She still struggles to get her wheelchair & scooter out the door & down to her John Deere gator tractor.  Belle can't ride her horses anymore but she can still drive her John Deere down to the corral to see them.  Belle’s spirit is not going to let something as trivial as a broken hip & injured knee stop her.  She has had a young fellow helping her on the ranch the last while but he's moving on this week.  Thad travels in a travel trailer but he's headed east to do some fishing.  Belle took in another homeless person a few days ago to help with the horses but after meeting this fellow to-day I'm not to optimistic about that working out.  Belle & the ranch are in desperate need of a 'responsible' person or persons to help, whether it be short term or long term!!  She really needs a trusting person to step in & take a leading hand at getting the ranch back in shape!!

 

As Kelly & I drove back to the rig this afternoon we were both saddened by Belles circumstances & felt helpless in not knowing how to help her.  Belle is in need of medical attention & her house & ranch are in need of repair.  All the animals are doing OK right now but hooves need to be trimmed, manes combed, etc.  Fences need repair & corrals need to be strengthened.  Some electrical work in the house is much needed & some plumbing repairs to some outside RV sites are needed.  A general clean up would go a long way into an overall improvement for both Belle, the animals, & the ranch.

 

So, I appeal to my fellow RV'ers/Bloggers/Friends & Boondockers out there.  If your in the area or know of anyone who can stop in & help this lady I ask you all to spread the word.  Belle has 2 workable RV sites plus acres of boondocking land & it's free for anyone to stay there & help Belle out if they can.  Water the many miniature donkeys, hay to the horses, feed for the geese, pheasants, & peacocks.  Belle's dogs are all friendly critters & wagging tails greet all visitors.  If you love animals, there are plenty of critters here to love you:))

 

Kelly & I are not members of any RV clubs or have an abundance of RV friends but the thought occurred to me this afternoon about some of the clubs like the Escapees who have a lot of people functions & rallies.  I know they have a boondocker division for example & I wondered if they had any 'special rallies' where they gather to do good deeds for unfortunate people.  Thought how a club rally at Belles ranch would be be a good idea for everybody.  She has the room, she has a great personality, she has facilities in place, & she's only a 10 minute drive from beautiful Bisbee & 20 minutes from Douglas & it's big box stores.  Belle would love nothing better than to get out around a campfire again with a bunch of great people, play her beloved western music, & spin her favorite tales of old Nashville friends from her music days.  

Belle's property has ATV & hiking trails leading into the mountains as well & she has Hughes net Wifi on the property.  I see the possibility here for a win/win situation for both RV folks & Belle Starr.  And, like I said before, if any of our readers, fellow bloggers, friends, & RV folks can help or know of anyone who would be interested in helping this grand old gal of the wild west we'd sure appreciate hearing from you.  For obvious reasons I'm not going to post Belle's email address so just email Kelly & I here at the Bayfield Bunch.  

I will include the link to my post about BELLE STARR a couple weeks ago & in that blog you will find more links to Belle & her Silverado ranch.  Wouldn't it be great to gather a bunch of folks to-gether sometime in March maybe for a big get to-gether at Belle's ranch:))  Ideas & opinions would be greatly appreciated.......... AL.

All photos to-day are from Belle's place:))

(click on photos to enlarge)

GROANER'S CORNER:((  One Sunday morning, a mother went in to wake her son and tell him it was time to get ready for church, to which he replied, "I'm not going.""Why not?" she asked."I'll give you two good reasons," he said. "One, they don't like me, and two, I don't like them."His mother replied, "I'll give YOU two good reasons why YOU SHOULD go to church. (1) You're 59 years old, and (2) you're the pastor!"

BLOGGER WEBSITE http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

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

The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL.

TO-DAY KELLY MADE ME GO SHOPPING:((

Another cloudy, cold, morning so there was only one thing to do. Go shopping!! Yep, you heard me right.......go shopping:(( Kelly expressed an interest in driving over to Sierra Vista because she had some things to return to Marshalls. Seems to me women are always returning things. I figure why buy something in the first place if your just going to take it back again anyway. Seems like such a waste of time or something. Once I buy something I consider it mine forever whether it works or not. I don't even have to like it to keep it.


I needed a few camera things plus we have been interested in those hand held GPS systems for a long time now so thought we would have us another look at them in Sierra Vista. For those 2 reasons I decided to skip my photo group to-day & allow myself to be dragged over the northern end of the Mule mountains & down the other side into the shopping malls & stores of Sierra Vista. Kelly knew I would require a pacifier while waiting at some stores so she threw my Roswell book in the car.....and it worked.

I didn't figure Marshall's was a guys store & before I got 6 feet in the door my nose told me I was right. I detected the telltale scent of new clothes. Racks & racks of clothes on hangers, bedsheets, slippers, perfumes, & frilly things. The colors were a dead giveaway too. Lots of pinks & whites. Where were the motor oils, the electronics department, the paints, chainsaws, & hammers. You know, the good stuff. Short answer......there was no good stuff in that girly store so I wriggled free from it's commercial grasp & hustled myself out of there & back to the car. Reclined the seat, put some quiet music on the CD player, braced myself for a long wait & immersed myself in the ways of the CIA, FBI, Army intelligence, scientific research, particle beam weapons, laser lights, & flying saucers. All was right with my world again.

Our next stop was Best Buy in the Sierra Vista mall. Well, that was a big disappointment because they didn't even stock hand held GPS units. Yes, we can order that stuff on line but I wanted to actually lay eyeballs on some of the darned things. We've read about different models on the internet & Laurie showed us her Garmin GPS 60 at the BBC the day before but I just wanted to compare units. Well, like I said, they don't even stock them. Lots of other neat-o electronic toys but I just wasn't in the mood for it to-day. Staff said there were a couple sports stores in the mall that might have hand held GPS units so off we went but to no avail. Aside from white socks with chartreuse racing stripes & 5,000 pairs of varying super hero running shoes they didn't have what we were looking for either. Kelly spotted some more girly stores so I headed for the food court. Now, there's a manly thought:)) Luckily they had a Subway & I got my old standard Tuna sub. Been eating those things since Columbus came across on the boat. They sure taste good but boy they sure do make ya smell bad!!

There were more people in the food court than were in the entire mall but I still found a seat ok. Not a good idea for me to eat a tuna sub standing up because it can get pretty sloppy & generally really make a mess on my shoes. And I didn't need to draw any more attention to myself with tuna dribbled down the front of me either. I sat quietly at the table watching all the people walking by & totally felt like a fish (tuna) out of water. It occurred to me that I could not even remember the last time I had ever been in an enclosed shopping mall like this & everything seemed so weird to me. It was if I had time warped myself back into my mall crawling days in the late 80's. The people looked the same, the stores hadn't changed much, the tunes on the mall speakers seemed familiar, & all the vendors in the food court were the same too. A&W, Subway, Chinese Wok, Wendy's, etc. Nothing had changed..........except me. I sat there mushing away on my Tuna sub feeling like an invisible alien under impossible scrutiny. Had on my 12 year old blown out Rockport shoes with a big lumberjack shirt, & by now, tuna stained pants. My bulky camera accessory stuffed photo vest probably made me look like the Michelin man going backwards on a windy day & I'm sure my Bayfield Bunch hat had a wad of dog fur stuck to one side of it. Yep, it was time for me to exit the mall alright!! Had me another chuckle when we reached the car. It was the only one in a sea of spic n span, fancy schmancy, shiny, metal monsters that was splashed from tire to roof with good old Arizona desert mud. Awwwww, I like when that happens:)))))

Our next stop was the camera store where the wily old duffer behind the counter charged me too much for a half a camera blower brush....& I let him. From there it was another sports store where Kelly tried to wheel & deal on a set of new hand weights by trading in her old ones. I don't like when she does that wheeling & dealing stuff because I get embarrassed so I hid out in the car. Five minutes later she returned carrying her old weights. She got out wheeled & dealed I guess. Sometimes it's just not best to ask!! Another sports star followed & this one looked promising for having some GPS equipment. Another dead end!! From there it was across the road to a Target store. I knew I was in trouble as soon as I walked in the door. It had that cosmetics smell to it & my eyes were assaulted with pinks & burgundies. Yikes, Christmas is hardly dead yet & this store was setting up for Valentine's day already!! Amazingly enough they did have some GPS stuff but it was all for vehicle dashes. Kelly went to look at some pink stuff & I hastily beat a retreat out the door & back to the car. She found her way back about 20 minutes later with a bottle of mouth wash in hand. She would have done well to pour some of that stuff in my ear to cleanse my brainwaves of foul shopping thoughts!!

Across the parking lot was the big grocery store called Frys. I have been mauled in that very same Fry's store twice before & there was no way I was going in there to be trampled upon again. This is the busiest store I have ever been in & I have learned my lesson well. It's a free for all in there, dog eat dog, survival of the fittest, & just plain knock em down & stomp em out!! Kelly grabbed a shopping cart & headed into action while I strolled next door to a Staples store. It was a Staples store in London Ontario that I bought my very first digital camera years ago. It was a cheap little 1 megapixel Hewlett-Packard & it was the camera that single handedly launched me back into the world of photography after a total abstinence from photography of about 10 years. But, that's another story. I knew Staples carried electronic stuff so figured they might have some hand held GPS devices. But, no go. They had the usual selection of GPS equipment for vehicles & that was it. Needed a new pen so figured this was a logical place to find a good one so after much deliberation I selected a package with 2 pens of the style I prefer. Returned to the car & within minutes Kelly was back with half a cart of groceries. Five minutes after that we were thankfully back out into the tranquility of the desert & 40 minutes later we were back at the ranch.

Brought the groceries in, swore under my breath at the cheaply made camera blower brush, & opened my package of 2 pens which turned out to be a package of................... 2 pencils!!!! *!!@#)&^##

GROANER'S CORNER:(( Did you know a crocodile cannot stick out its tongue. Ya, I thought you did.

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The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now....AL..