Pages

Monday, November 30, 2020

A Ride to See the Dragoon Mountains

 (Clicking on the pictures should open them larger in a new window.)

Sunday, November 29, 2020

We left the Stinger "B" today to take a ride through the Dragoon Mountains. It was a beautiful ride under blue skies and did not disappoint for one minute. The issue would be the amount of pictures I took, well over 200. After going through them three times I did get the number down to just over 100 and made the decision to post them in two blogs. They are all pictures I just could not give up for our memory blog. So fair warning this blog and the next do contain a lot of pictures.  


Where we are headed today.


The Dragoon Mountains are a range of mountains located in Cochise County, Arizona. The range is about 25 mi (40 km) long, running on an axis extending south-south east through Willcox. The name originates from the 3rd U.S. Cavalry Dragoons who battled the Chiricahua, including Cochise, during the Apache Wars. The Dragoons established posts around 1856 after the Gadsden Purchase made it a U.S. territory. (Information from the Internet)


Our turn off of AZ-80, Middlemarch Road.

The pavement ended and so did the shiny clean Jeep 
Tom spent time accomplishing a week ago.




We are turning right.


This road was not bad at all.
On our way we passed two pick up trucks with families who
had went this way to cut their Christmas Tree down today.


No leaves but still standing proud Ocotillo.


I stepped out to take the picture above,
 and looked back at this view. 

What do you see?




Going up

and looking out my window.

When we got to the top tucked in on our right was
a Class C motor home. Either way he came it must 
have been an interesting ride.

Standing on the edge of this road

looking out at the road ahead

and the beautiful

views in the distance.

Taking a look back.
The Class C was just to the left here.

The Jeep may need another bath.

Definitely heading down.

I believe this was the best view of the day.

We are headed towards Pearce.

Not a bad road ahead but it needed more wiggles.





Just liked the look of the shadows on the road ahead.

As we reached the valley we passed by a small residential area.




I asked this donkey if it would mind posing and it looked up.

Not wanting to be left out this one headed over.

Looking over the Sulphur Springs Valley

Just leaving the small residential area we saw this sign.

We made a quick stop at Historic Pearce Townsite.

The Historic Pearce Township lies in the Sulphur Springs Valley in the geographic center of Cochise County in Arizona. When you stand at the point where Ghost Town Trail and Pearce Road converge, you can turn in any direction and experience the union of the past and the present and the merging of harsh high desert landscaping with the beauty of the surrounding mountains.

Pearce is located between the Cochise Stronghold, Chiricahua National Monument, and the winter Sandhill Crane refuge of Whitewater Draw making it popular for birders, history buffs, hikers, and climbers alike. At 4,400 feet of elevation, the area is also known for its milder summers which make it ideal for quality grapes and vineyards.

Pearce is a mining ghost town named for Cornishman James Pearce, miner and cattleman, who discovered gold nearby at what became the Commonwealth Mine in 1894. The Pearce Post Office was established on March 6, 1896. The railroad station opened in 1903. By 1919, Pearce had a population of 1,500. The town declined in the 1930s and became almost a ghost town in the late 1940s when the mine closed for the last time. (Information found on internet.)

Between the information I found on the internet about Pearce and the Ghost Town Trail a second trip to this area is definitely on the to do list.









Located in Southeast Arizona .... the heart of the Chiricahua Apache homeland, the people that populated these towns were as diverse as the lands they lived in. The actual "Ghost Town Trail" consists of the towns of Pearce, Courtland and Gleeson. (Information from the Internet) It would be interesting to go back and drive this Trail.


The Ghost Town Trail intersects with
US-191. We were only on the Trail
for a short part of it.

Turned here to head back towards the Dragoon Mountains.
Our goal to get to a Road numbered 84 and then 795.

On the map it looked like this road would get us there.
It did not.

Back tracking a short ways we passed this guy.

I was pleasantly surprised he stopped long enough
and with some cropping finally a picture of a roadrunner.

If you look on the right edge you will see a dog and
at this point that roadrunner was on the move.


To be continued in the next blog post.






We are so glad you stopped by!
If you have time to leave a comment we would enjoy hearing from you.

18 comments:

  1. I like you pictures! We have a place in Green Valley, and we will be there before Christmas. We have very nice neighbors, they look after our place when we leave.Take care, R Stone

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am glad you liked the pictures. We have driven over to Green Valley a couple of times in the past when we have been here. It is a lovely area and how wonderful to have good neighbors. Stay safe.

      Delete
  2. That's one of my favorite areas to investigate. It's very cool to see the old towns along the trail. Look close and you will see the old railroad bed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We will have to be on the lookout for the railroad bed next time we head that way.

      Delete
  3. Thank you for sharing the photos with us. It is nice to see all the different parts of the world while We are drinking coffee and enjoying the morning. Love the what do you see picture, I can imagine a lot of things, E T comes to mind.
    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are welcome. Alien was my first thought. I had not done a picture like that in a while. It is always fun to find what others see.

      Delete
  4. Oooh Pearce looks very cool!
    We miss the road runners and the burros.
    Have fun!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My first decent picture of a roadrunner in a couple of years. By the time I get the camera up they are usually gone. Last year I did not see any roadrunners and now I realize we have not seen any quail so far...:)

      Delete
    2. It sure looked like an alien. Loved your pictures. I passed right by the turn off today. If I knew where you're staying I would have stopped by. One of these days I'll catch a picture of a roadrunner.

      Delete
    3. Glad you liked the pictures. I just read your blog on facebook and mentioned you passed us today. We are at Quail Ridge. Looking forward to seeing where you and Yuma are going to stop and catch your breath. Stay safe.

      Delete
    4. I still have your text address. I will be boondocks getting in the Ajo area for several weeks at least. If you have never been there the town is unique and we could drive down to Organ Pipe National Monument. I'll text you closer to the 10th in case you don't have my text address.

      Delete
    5. Sounds good. Will wait to hear from you.

      Delete
  5. I agree with Patsy..would love to visit Pearce and check things out. Beautiful pictures, can't blame you for wanting to keep them in the blog! I love the road runners!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It would be fun to drive that whole Ghost Town Trail and do some exploring. I am still surprised how quick those road runners are and could not believe when it stood there long enough for me to focus and snap the picture!

      Delete
  6. Thank you for teaching me about my home state.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are welcome. I have a feeling you have a lot of stories about the area that we would enjoy hearing.

      Delete
  7. Those pictures are bringing back so many memories of Arizona.
    Be Safe and Enjoy your explorations.

    It's about time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is great to know the pictures are bring back memories for you. You and Kathy stay safe.

      Delete