My Journey

YukonMontanaTannerTrapper · Mar 11, 2024

ITTOG.....someone took a machete to that tree. Every branch was cut to a short length with a sharp ending, almost like spikes / swords pertruding from the trunk of the tree. And I agree with what you say about that last picture.....that's the Chiricahua Mountains that you see in the distance which was our next destination.....

halseyt.....it's OK to like it.....the damage to the camper & to my face sucked, but I got over it quick enough.....I'm thankful for everything. We're constantly in motion so a few mishaps along the way are to be expected I think.....

Ace.....well, the good news is that it was one of a kind.....the bad news is, I found it.....

Riversdad.....I chuckled at your post to be honest but at the same time your post is right on the mark. Obviously I haven't been careful and my only excuse for that is that I'm somewhat like a caged animal these days, finally released. 2023 was one tough year for me.....

thedavidzooo.....reminded me of mountains I saw in Argentina.....truly unforgettable.....

Next up for us were the Chiricahua Mountains and more specifically, Cave Creek.....we continued driving south on Highway 80, dropped down from the higher plateau where we had spent the last few days, took a right turn onto a county road, crossed the state line and drove into Arizona, passed through Portal, Arizona, and made our next stop at the Cave Creek Visitors Center.....

One of the first things you'll learn about this area is that there are lots of Javelina here.....

Turns out that Trapper is infatuated with these beasts.....she went into chase mode & I found her 20 minutes later cooling herself in a creek.....damn dog.....

Inside the Visitors Center I inquired about the possibilities of climbing something here, and pointedly asked if my rig would make it up the road (my concern being mostly the overhanging trees). The guy working there pointed me to a mountain at the end of the road.....and also said "favor the center of the road and you'll do just fine". You can see how that worked out for me.....that's the broken vent cover for the refrigerator that you see.....

We never did climb a mountain that day.....instead I spent the afternoon speaking with RV shops.....we had repairs to do.....

It was late afternoon when we pulled into Wilcox, Arizona.....

Just outside of town is a man-made lake which is being filled constantly from a large pipe pumping recycled water.....

.....and along the lakes' shoreline is where we spent that night.....

.....as we were now on our way to an appointment with an RV dealership in Tucson, Arizona.....

I had no idea when I pulled the rig up to the shoreline of this man-made lake.....that we would see what we saw.....

At around 6:00 p.m., we began to walk the shoreline and that just happened to be when their migration began. First just a few birds.....then by the tens.....then by the hundreds.....

YukonMontanaTannerTrapper · Mar 11, 2024

They flew directly to the west.....eventually crossing the mountain chain in the distance.....

We walked the entire circumference of the lake in total awe of the show provided by the Sandhill Cranes.....

I cranked up the tunes...."The Sounds of Silence" by Simon & Garfunkel was my choice.....over and over and over again.....combined with the bugling of the Sandhill Cranes.....phenomenal.....

"Hello darkness, my old friend
I've come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence"

"In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone
'Neath the halo of a street lamp
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light
That split the night
And touched the sound of silence"

YukonMontanaTannerTrapper · Mar 11, 2024

"And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more
People talking without speaking
People hearing without listening
People writing songs that voices never share
No one dared
Disturb the sound of silence"

"Fools" said I, "You do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you"
But my words like silent raindrops fell
And echoed in the wells of silence"

"And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming"

"And the sign said, "The words of the prophets
Are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls
And whispered in the sounds of silence"

And then it was dark.....and almost silent.....

Ace Brown · Mar 11, 2024

Wow! Possibly your best post.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

RealTruck · Mar 11, 2024

A silver lining on every cloud

jameswirl · Mar 11, 2024

I have to take a moment and let you know that checking to see if you have posted and then reading about your travels and enjoying your photos is something I do every day-it has become part of my routine-I would imagine that I’m not the only one-I do so appreciate everything that you share with us.

Riversdad · Mar 11, 2024

Really like how you just roll with the punches and don't let your physical or mechanical setbacks bring you down. In todays world of constant negativity it's a breath of fresh air.
I echo what jameswirl said above. Always look to see if you have posted today before I browse anywhere else. As always, thanks for taking us along on your travels.

Dougnuts · Mar 11, 2024

This is also the first forum and thread I check every night.

Mekcanix · Mar 12, 2024

Its the first thing I check when I get to work in the morning and its what keeps bringing me back to expo

YukonMontanaTannerTrapper · Mar 13, 2024

Ace, Real Truck, jameswirl, Riversdad, Dougnuts, & mekcanix....thanks again for posting all that good stuff. It's always a pleasure to share our travels, to share my writings & to share my photos as well.....and I really do love to read all those kind comments.....you guys keep me thinking.....

So.....things didn't work out so well for us in Tucson, Arizona.....

We spent four days & nights here, camped in a gravel lot in the middle of town with a bunch of semis. The good news was that we had great neighbors.....the bad news was that the RV shop was incompetent. We left with the wrong fridge vent cover installed as well as the wrong window frame installed. Keeping it a long story short.....it was good to be back on the road.....

We got a late start out of town with beautiful skies overhead, after I finally realized that things just weren't going to work out for us in Tucson, Arizona. We took Highway 77 north, and headed right back into the canyons and mountains.....where we found more solitude & silence.....

Once again, utilizing ioverlander, I found us a quiet spot just north of Dripping Springs, Arizona where we finally spent a quiet night.....

One thing that I really struggled with while visiting New Mexico was the availability of free campsites, which is pretty much all that I'll use.....not a problem in Arizona.....they're everywhere.....that was certainly a nice change.....

We walked the roads.....

Enjoyed the views.....

And watched a fine sunset.....

YukonMontanaTannerTrapper · Mar 14, 2024

I had planned to visit the Homestead Climbing Area the following day but I missed the turn off so we continued north on Highway 70, in Globe, Arizona we turned onto Highway 60 and continued driving north. Now I started looking at the random mountains along the way, constantly wondering if we could climb one of the many buttes that we were passing by.....and finally we found one that I thought looked pretty good.....

We set up camp at the low end of what appeared to be an abandoned airstrip.....and also appeared to be an excellent access point to start our climb from.....

.....and off we went to climb Jackson Butte (6,106').....

The going.....it was thorny (the plants).....but once we got onto the plateau below the summit, the situation mellowed. We encountered deer on several occasions.....both times they were traveling at full speed.....what a gift that was.....

Beyond the plateau and the deer, were amazing rock walls that forced us to maneuver our way through small openings & cracks, and on to the summit.....

Tanner clears the trail of mountain lions.....he's always got the lead.....

We encountered really spectacular rock formations as we neared the summit.....and, by the way, there are no trails.....total bushwacking.....

YukonMontanaTannerTrapper · Mar 14, 2024

On the summit, Tanner does what Tanner always does.....gives me that amazing summit shot.....

Trapper.....she's just not into it.....she lies right down.....

The next shot is a staged one.....I literally have to lift her up, scamper backwards, and snap the shot.....before she lies right back down.....

The views up there.....they were pretty darn good.....after snacks & water.....30 minutes later we descended......

On the way down, on the plateau, the deer gave me yet another gift.....a keepsake from a barely known place in eastern Arizona.....

The remainder of the day was spent under a beautiful sky.....with Jackson Butte (6,106') dominating the western sky.....

We took an evening walk under the now changing sky.....

And then a night time walk.....

.....with a mostly silent sky.....a slight wind was all that we heard.....

YukonMontanaTannerTrapper · Mar 18, 2024

And when the next sun rose.....it was time to hit the road again.....we continued to drive north.....

From: ArizonaHighways.com

Salt River Canyon.....

"Like a Dickens novel or a Hitchcock movie, this classic drive is one worth repeating. The route crosses the river and several life zones, and the hairpin turns will get your adrenaline moving."

"Maybe this one seems too obvious. Everyone knows about the drive through Salt River Canyon, you might be thinking. But you’d be surprised how many Arizonans have never traveled the steep, winding stretch of U.S. Route 60 between Globe and Show Low. And, unlike many lesser-known drives in the state, this one is fully paved, making it an option in any vehicle."

"The drive begins where U.S. routes 60 and 70 intersect in Globe, and you’ll head generally northeast on U.S. 60 through a rolling terrain dotted with scrub vegetation, prickly pear cactuses and assorted yuccas. Early on, you’ll pass the old Apache Drive-In on the left; this theater opened in the 1950s but shut down in 2013 as a victim of the digital age. Later, as you begin to climb, piñon pines and junipers appear before a bend in the road at Mile 12 offers a view of the Sevenmile Mountains to the east."

"Next, the road parallels a riparian area that’s rich with cottonwoods and Arizona sycamores. Past Jones Water Campground at Mile 16.2, you’ll see more sycamores on the left, below 6,060-foot Jackson Butte. You’ll then climb steeply for several miles, but keep an eye out at Mile 22.5, when a gap on the left offers a brief glimpse of the Four Peaks, a landmark well known to residents of the Phoenix area."

"You’ll soon be in a section of thick piñons and junipers, along with a few ponderosa pines. The latter disappear as your descent into Salt River Canyon begins, and you’ll leave the Tonto National Forest and enter San Carlos Apache Tribe land at Mile 29. Past the ghost town of Seneca, you’ll begin getting spectacular views into the canyon straight ahead."

"Don’t let yourself be distracted by those views, though. Instead, take advantage of the numerous pullouts along
U.S. 60 as it begins switchbacking toward the Salt River. The first of these is at Mile 35.2, and there, you’ll see the river and the stretch of road you’re about to travel beneath the canyon’s imposing cliffs. The turns in the canyon are of the hairpin variety, so low speed and attention to the road are essential. The dramatic views continue all the way to the Salt River Canyon Rest Area, which sits right along its namesake waterway."

"Here, a pair of bridges — a newer vehicle bridge, built in 1996, and the historic 1934 bridge, which now is open to pedestrians — span the river as it roars over a series of rapids. And after you cross the 1996 bridge (and cross onto White Mountain Apache Tribe land), keep an eye out for a single palm tree on the right. At this pullout, stairs lead down to an overlook with a lovely view of the river, which is a vital source of water for metropolitan Phoenix."

"If you’re pressed for time, you can turn around here and head back to Globe, but for the full experience, continue up the canyon’s north rim, where yuccas and prickly pears cling to steep south-facing walls above the road. The last major overlook is at Mile 42, and its view of the river surrounded by tall cliffs is one you won’t want to miss. Soon, you’ll be back in the piñons and junipers before crossing over Carrizo Creek at Mile 60 and transitioning into a landscape of ponderosa pines and oaks."

YukonMontanaTannerTrapper · Mar 18, 2024

We continued driving along Highway 60......passing through the well known, big town of Show Low, Arizona.....here we picked up Highway 61, and now traveled in a distinctive northeast direction, eventually connecting with Highway 61. Our next stop was at Concho, Arizona where we found ourselves a nice spot to camp along the shoreline of Concho Lake......