Spring 2016 Shakedown, NM and AZ: Part 1

First of Three Posts

Part 1:
Datil Well, Fool Hollow, Mogollon Rim
Part 2:
Historic La Posada Hotel, Petrified Forest, Painted Desert
Part 3:
Hubbell Trading Post, Canyon de Chelly, Window Rock, Zuni Mountains

Introduction (feel free to skip down): I kept getting asked when I would put the camper on the truck and where was my first trip going to be. I didn't know, I was looking forward to my fourth season camping in my little pop-up, but was also enjoying the warm spring weather at home with the trees leafing out and all the green plants. Then I saw notice of a volunteer trail project at Datil Well in the REI Events Newsletter. I'd not been to Datil, NM. I read the description, which sounded interesting. 

I realized this could be a good jumping off point to some areas in east-central Arizona that I'd never visited. By looking at my maps and looking on the net, I discovered the magnificent landscape of Mogollon Rim. I'd learned last year that the pronunciation of "Mogollon" is Muggy-own. I also saw from there I could cut up to Petrified Forest National Park that I hadn't been to since I was 10 years old. I might also revisit Canyon de Chelly, where I'd been only last fall, and get better photos of Spider Rock. OK, I had the beginnings of a plan.

Amazingly, I did/saw everything I set out to do and then some. Even though the details were impromptu, the timing turned out nearly perfect in every case. The weather was very unsettled the first few days, but did not interfere with any activities or travel.

Remember you can click on any photo to view a larger version - recommended.
There is a link at the bottom of the page for my full Mogollon Rim photo album.

April 29, 2016

Datil Well Campground, Datil, NM

I set out in the mid-afternoon for the 2-3/4 hour drive to Datil, located in west-central NM. The BLM campground is in piñon-juniper forest and located in the hills west of the St. Augustine Plain, where the Very Large Array radio-telescope is sited. Datil Well was one of the wells along the Magdalena Driveway - a trail to drive cattle and sheep from Springerville, Arizona to Magdalena where, in 1885, the AT&SF Railroad completed a line from Socorro, NM. They needed a well to water the sheep every 10 miles along the way.

I would be meeting up for my first time with NM Volunteers For the Outdoors - an all-volunteer, non-political organization that is dedicated to improving trails and outdoor facilities throughout the state.  The VFO does projects for various public agencies, such as the BLM, National Forest and Wildlife Preserves, and state parks.

I planned to arrive around 5pm, figuring most folks would be rolling in after work later that evening. I was wrong about that and was one of the last ones to arrive. The group camping area is set up mainly for tent camping, but there was a parking area for those of us who are motorized. When I pulled in there was a big RV, a 5th-wheel trailer, and a pop-up camper amid the parked cars. I found a space for myself and shortly thereafter another pop-up camper arrived (both those rigs being the larger, heaver commercial units on big trucks. Still, finding two such in this small group was interesting and I enjoyed comparing notes with their owners.)

Group campsite parking/camping.

The warm weather of the previous week was gone and I'd driven down through light, spotty rain storms down I-25 and west on US-60. Folks were gathered in the group "shelter" (picnic tables under a roof) socializing in heavy coats. A group of us decided to get out of the cold and have dinner in the nearby town of Datil. There was more socializing around the campfire after dinner with one generous attendee sharing his fine, Santa Fe distilled whiskey for those who wished to partake. It was very smooth!

Datil Well is located in the Piñon/Juniper ecosystem

April 30th

Datil Well Campground (continued)

A hot breakfast was provided by the VFO. Turns out the cooks brought the RV and used their kitchen for brewing coffee and cooking the food. We had our breakfast burritos with hashbrowns and prepared for a day of hard trail work.

Finishing coffee and breakfast

After breakfast we met with BLM ranger, gathered the tools provided by the VFO, and hiked less than a mile to the work area. We were tasked with creating three new trail segments to bypass heavily eroded and/or steep old trail sections.

VFO builds a new trail segment

Timber crew clears the way.

We had brought our own lunches and with our large crew finished our scheduled building by mid-afternoon. We hiked back to camp where we socialized until the cooks brought out the barbecued chicken, pasta salad, tossed salad, and chocolate cake. After dinner it was again tales around the campfire until we each went to our beds.

May 1st

Datil Well Campground (continued)

Breakfast on Sunday morning was French Toast and sausages. As we had accomplished so much on Saturday, our tasks today were light maintenance on the existing trail sections. Another volunteer and myself, who had GPS units, measured/mapped the newly built sections so BLM could update their maps. We finished just before noon and everyone broke camp and headed home.

I didn't head for home as I had more exploration and camping in mind. I headed west on US-60 stopped for lunch in Pie Town. As the famous Pie-O-Neer restaurant is closed on Sunday, I was able to avoid the irresistible temptation of their famous pies. I continued west on 60 to Springerville/Eager, Arizona, but instead of continuing on the US highway to Show Low. I chose to drive to that destination via AZ-260 though part of the Apache Reservation. This alternate route looked more scenic on my maps.

Indeed, the well-maintained highway climbed up through a volcanic zone into a forested mountain area that obviously gets lots of snow in winter. The weather was still chilly with storm clouds. Once out of the reservation, that next 15+ miles to Show Low is heavily developed. It is packed with resorts, golf courses, lodges, and homes from mid-sized to mansions.

Fool Hollow State Park, Show Low, AZ

I had tentatively planned to camp at Fool Hollow State Park which is on the NW edge of Show Low as it has hot showers that would be welcome after a weekend of trail building. It was early enough in the afternoon I considered driving on by, especially as the weather didn't seem conducive to outdoor activities and I'd rather not simply sit in my camper for hours. However, as I was in the area I decided to check it out. You can leave the day-entry fee as a deposit at the manned entry station and then are allowed half an hour to tour the park and decide if you want to stay. I was given a map and directions to the section of non-hookup camping away from the RV area.

It is a lovely state park along the man-made Fool Hollow Lake. It is one of the best maintained and manicured campgrounds I've seen with concrete roads and parking. The tent pads and the areas around the picnic tables are fine, crushed rock that had been recently raked. Most of the campsites in the non-hookup area are on the bluff right along the lake. I found a pretty site surrounded by trees near the showers with a view of the lake. As there was some blue sky showing, I decided I would indeed camp here. I drove back to the entry station and paid for the site for the night.

My campsite in Osprey Loop

Fool Hollow Lake next to my campsite

After setting up, there was enough blue in the sky that I walked down to the lake and along the shore. I was treated to the sight of an Osprey calling and flying over the lake. When I got back to camp, I took my shower and climbed into clean clothes. I spotted a Bald Eagle flying over the camp that evening. There were only a couple of other campers in the non-hookup section of the park.

May 2nd

Fool Hollow State Park (continued)

After breaking camp, I thought I would look at the rest of the state park before heading west. I drove though the RV areas located in an attractive, forested, hilly area above the lake - although there were very few campers in my section the night before, most of the RV sites were full. I looked at the boat ramp and later spotted an Osprey with a fish in its claws - and even got passible photos!

Osprey with breakfast

I also drove to the day use areas on the other side of the lake where I was able to get nice photos of a Great Blue Heron and other views of the lake before heading out.

Main section of lake. My campsite was 1/8 mile to the right of those rock cliffs seen at the far end.

Great Blue Heron looking for a meal.

The heron decides to try fishing in another cove.

Sitgreaves National Forest

I drove west on AZ-260 which parallels the Mogollon (pronounced: muggy-own) Rim in this area, but is several miles north of the feature. My goal was that section of the rim north of Payson. I stopped at the Black Mesa District Ranger Station in Overgaard for info. Regular readers of this blog know I frequently stop at ranger stations for advice and conditions. If the person on duty has worked there for years and wishes to be helpful, the advice is great; if it is a new volunteer, then the information can be inadequate or inaccurate. I lucked out this time as there was a very knowledgable and friendly lady on duty and she was training a gentleman new to the area. She was able to provide conditions and info on camping & sightseeing opportunities for the Rim Road I intended to explore (only the first third of which is in Sitgreaves NF.) The gentleman strongly recommended that if I was going through Winslow (I'd mentioned visiting Petrified Forest after the Rim), I should stop at the La Posada Hotel - more on that later.

Looking roughly SW from the top of Mogollon Rim.

I drove about another 20 miles to the Mogollon Rim Visitor Center which, though it was closed, has a viewing deck looking out over the rim. The rim is the very dramatic southern edge of the Colorado Plateau. The land falls away rapidly, dropping two to three thousand feet in just a few miles. I'd learned at the ranger station that the first few miles of the Rim Road were paved with several overlooks. The road then turn to dirt which was very muddy after the recent rains, but only for the eastern most section, they said.

As I wanted to view the rim from the low side, too, my new plan was to drive the paved portion, taking morning photos off the rim, then head down to Payson. I would visit the Tonto NF Ranger Station there to learn about the roads below the rim to explore and get lunch in Payson.

There are a number of overlooks along the paved section of Rim Road. I stopped at them all for photos, even though the light wasn't ideal with all the clouds.

You can see a portion of AZ-260 from this overlook.

Looking roughly SE off the rim.

Another view from another overlook.

Payson, AZ

I returned to 260 and drove off the rim and to Payson. It turns out, despite the posted hours, the station closed during lunchtime, so I ate first then got information.

I drove north from Payson on 260, but before reaching Pine, I turned east on FS-64, Control Road (as in fire control,) that roughly parallels the rim from below. I saw virtually no one on the first half of the road, until I reached Houston Mesa Road. I had originally intended to drive up that road from Payson, but it was poorly marked at the south end and I missed the turn. I dove down that road for a few miles just to see what was there. It was mostly summer homes with a few NF picnic areas at the (dry) river crossings so didn't go far, but backtracked to Control Road and headed east again. The length of Control Road is through Ponderosa forest. The eastern portion was more heavily used and there are areas showing scars from wildfires. There were side roads to summer home areas and more traffic along this stretch.

Driving east on the western portion of Control Road with the rim in the background

There were a few dispersed camping sites along both the western and eastern halves, but only one I saw with a view. There were side roads and perhaps with some local knowledge one could find interesting camping up one of those. However, I had my heart set on camping along the rim this night.

Panorama of the rim from Control Road. This was taken at the only dispersed camping site I found with a view.
Email me if you'd like the coordinates to find this site for yourself.

I did drive a couple of miles south of Control Road on a side road that leads to the Diamond Point lookout, as the map had showed a quartz crystal collection area that is open on NF lands. At the ranger station they said you could walk along there an find small crystals on the ground; that hand-digging was only allowed October through February. I stopped and walked around amid all the pock-holes that others had failed to backfill, but found nothing, so continued on.

As I was eager to return to the rim and find a good camp site, I didn't explore further off Control Road. I'd heard the Upper Tonto Creek area was attractive. There is a developed campground and at the end of the road a fish hatchery.

I regained AZ-260 and drove back east to Rim Road. I stopped again at the overlooks along the paved portion of the road to get afternoon photos.

View from the overlook. Still lots of clouds making a patchwork of the landscape.

When the pavement ended, I was gratified that my plan to wait until the afternoon to drive this section paid off by the mud having dried out. I drove through the Mogollon campground just off the road, but it was back from the rim and had not much to recommend it. The Rim Lakes recreation area is near here, too, away from the rim, but I skipped this popular area with its developed campgrounds and lakes. As I drove along, there were signs, "Camping in Numbered Sites Only," which had me wondering how far I'd have to go to find the dispersed camping that the lady at the Overgaard station had said was available.

A couple of Wapiti crossed the road in front of my truck. I manage to get this photo out the window.

Mogollon Rim Camping

Seems like I had only gone a couple of miles when I saw a sign pointing toward the rim which said "Camping Area." I turned down this road and found a treasure trove! I did not see a route sign on the road, but on the map it is named FR-9350. Once the road got within view of the rim, it turned west and roughly followed the rim. There were numbered sites on each side of the road. They have an interesting system here as it is such a popular camping area. The sites are effectively "dispersed" without facilities, though some sites have picnic tables. They control the camping by placing a post at each site and you are required to only camp within 50 feet of that post.

As I drove along looking at the sites there were a few folks already camped. I kept seeing sites that looked very good, then a bit farther, another site looked even better. This kept up as I drove along, leaving the other campers behind. After a while, I was thinking "I hope this road ends soon or I'll never be able to pick a site." Finally, I simply stopped and turned around to head back to the last, best site I'd seen. I wanted an attractive site with an unobstructed view off the rim, and that would be away from other sites should other campers come to occupy those later that afternoon.

My campsite on the Mogollon Rim

I picked site #32 and I thought it almost perfect. FYI, site #30 is also excellent - the view is slightly obstructed by trees, but it has a longer level section and a picnic table which mine did not. If you want to find this specific site, email and I can send the coordinates.  I leveled my camper only about 30' from the rim itself affording great views looking out from inside. I never saw another soul the whole time I was camped there.

180º iPhone panorama looking off the rim and taken from my campsite.

I was very happy to find this site and spent lots of time just admiring the view and taking pictures. On the rim, I had great cell service, including LTE, so took advantage of that, too. I was slightly concerned the wind might come up that night, as exposed as I was so close to the rim - after all, I was hit pretty hard when I camped by the edge near Muley Point. The wind did come up around sundown, but it was from the north and I was well shielded by the trees at my back.

Evening view from my campsite.

May 3rd

Mogollon Rim (continued)

I got up early hoping for good photo opportunities as the sun rose, but those images turned out not very interesting, so none of those dawn are included here. After breakfast I also took more photos of the rim and the amazing view.

Looking roughly SW from near my campsite.

Looking back at my campsite. See my truck/camper?

After breaking camp, I resumed my drive west on Rim Road. I thought I'd try a side road that led down to what might be an intersting view, Promontory Butte. There is no warning as you start driving toward the rim, though the road is in poor condition. In fact it was one of the more unpleasant roads I've ever driven and showed no indication of getting better as I creeped along. I finally gave up far short of the end, turned around, and got back on Rim Road. Consider yourself cautioned - it is passible, but no fun.

Bear Canyon Lake, Sitgreaves NF

I thought to check out one of the small lakes in the area. Bear Canyon Lake was only a couple of miles off the "main road" and I could take a look at the campground, too. Turned out, the basic/primitive campground was not very attractive - moderately convenient for folks fishing, though not that close to the lake.

Shoreline view of Bear Canyon Lake

I could not see the lake from the road. There are two parking areas with trails leading down to the lake. I decided I'd try one as the sign said it was only 0.2mi to the lake. The trail led steeply down though a thick forest of primarily Ponderosa pine. This man-made lake was attractive with its rocky shoreline and the heavily forested hills.

This Western Grebe was diving for fish.

I negotiated the uneven trail toward the dam. I saw a grebe diving for fish on the lake and there were a number of wild birds mostly hiding in the trees. There were a couple of families fishing in the dam area. A very pretty area.

Coconino National Forest

I hiked back up to my truck, headed back to Rim Road and continued on to the west. After driving only a few more miles I entered Coconino National Forest. There were a few dispersed camping sites scattered widely along the road with long stretches out of sight of the rim. The area seemed to become dryer and there began to be evidence of wildfires some years ago.

Looking south from the western section of Rim Road.

As I approached the western portion of the Rim Road, with dramatic views off the rim, there was more evidence of fire some time in the past with large tree trunks laying like pick-up sticks. They'd been down so long all their bark was gone and the wood bleached by the sun. There was regrowth in some areas, but in other areas and on the slopes below the rim there was very little green. I'm guessing the modern era has been simply too dry to regrow the forest in this area. The view was nonetheless something to behold and I pulled off next to the rim, sat on a big log and had lunch, gazing off into the distance.

Here is the view I had while enjoying lunch.

A few more miles and the road dipped back down into a forested region and I soon arrived at AZ-87. I do recommend taking the time to visit this area and explore. The Rim Road was well maintained and suitable for all vehicles. My photos do not do justice to the majesty of the views off the rim.

View all photos in my Mogollon album

Journey continues in Part 2.

[Updated December 8, 2018 to correct information on railroad location and stock driveway in first paragraph about Datil Well. Thanks to Larry Watkins for catching my error.]

Spring Shakedown 2015 - Part 2

Important Note: I am organizing this trip report into separate sections to both make it easier to read and to organize the geographical areas for your future trip planning.

• Part I comprises part of Wednesday and part of Saturday covering El Malpais National Monument. This breaks the timeline, but puts all of El Malpais in one section.
• This section, Part II covers the rest of Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday morning in the Apache and Gila National Forests.
• Part III covers El Morro National Monument from Saturday evening through Sunday afternoon.
• Part IV is a photo gallery of the inscriptions of El Morro National Monument. I separated this out as they will be of only limited historical interest for most folks.

---

II. Apache and Gila National Forests

Wednesday, May 20th (continued)

Quemado Ranger District, Gila National Forest

Leaving El Malpais via highway 117, I took SR-36 to Quemado [kee-MOD-oh] where I stopped at the Apache NF District Ranger Station for advice. The nice lady there explained my options and gave me a report of good road conditions for Apache National Forest. 

I took SR-32 south from Quemado, then turned east on SR-103 which changed from pavement to gravel just before Quemado Lake. The lake was extremely low as this area of the state has been exceptionally dry. There were still a number of folks fishing and campgrounds were nice enough. The one closest to the lake, Juniper, had lots of RVs all in one small area as it offers full hookups. There were several more campgrounds and there were very few people in those. The El Caso campground is farther from the lake and has several small units in a riparian area and there is no fee. However, I drove on as it was only 4pm and I wasn't ready to stop. Though I wish I'd taken a photo or two of this area.

The forest road 13 was in great condition and I thought I'd check out the Mangas Look Out. By the time I got there it was 5:30. The ranger said the tower cabin was closed until 8am, but I could climb the stairs if I wanted. I did climb the very steep stairs. The view was wide, as you might imagine, but the atmosphere was hazy.

Mangas Mountain Lookout tower

Northerly view from upper step of the tower.

Looking southwest from the tower. Note the light colored clearing in the center; I'll refer to it later.

Curiously, I saw two groups of very weathered backpackers walking in this area (more worn looking than your typical Rocky Mountain backpackers with which I'm more familiar). They were hiking along the road intent on going somewhere, but I couldn't figure out where as there didn't seem to be any specific attractions in the direction they were going. Later I realized I'd been driving back and forth along the continental divide. Looking at my maps I discovered the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail runs through the area I was exploring. I bet that explains the hikers.

I drove back down the 4 miles to the valley and found a nice level spot in the Valle Tio Vinces Campground, that the lady at the ranger station recommended. It is "partially developed," i.e., there is a vault toilet. I settled in all by my lonesome, had dinner, then about dusk a pickup truck came in, parked across the road and unloaded wood, I thought, and built a small fire. Turns out the other campers were three brothers from Magdalena, NM who were up in the mountains hunting for elk antlers. We conversed for a few minutes and I wished them good night and good luck in their gathering. I wasn't until the next day that I suddenly wondered what they were going to do with the antlers - I guess I was a but slow on the uptake. (The next day I saw a general store in Reserve with a big banner: We Buy Antlers. So maybe that is the simple answer.)

I went to bed and realized it was very, very quiet. The brothers made no noise and this area must not be under any flight path. Before I drifted off, though, a distant pack of coyotes sang me a lullaby.

Thursday, May 21st

It was 26º when I awoke in the morning, but the furnace kept me warm.

After breakfast I took a nice walk up the hill to the south of the campground. It was very pleasant to stretch my legs and attempt to photograph some birds.

View of my campsite as I walk up the hill.

Yellow Groundsel, I'm not positive I identified the species correctly.

Mistletoe can weaken trees, but it is an eye-catching red and there was not much of it around, fortunately.

The ground was vey rocky at the top.

There were a number of flycatchers working the woods. This drab bird is a common species.

This chickadee appeared to be molting. It was bug hunting in scrub oak.

Another view of the Ponderosa Pines around Valle Tio Vinces.

I broke camp and drove down forest road 214 to HWY 12, turning right toward Reserve, NM where there was a district ranger station for Gila [HEE-lah] National Forest.

The road south, leading to SR-12, cuts through this large clearing that was visible from the Mangas L.O., remember?

Reserve Ranger District, Gila National Forest

On the way to Reserve I checked out Apache Springs Campground, in the woods off the highway. It was nice, but there is no access to the creek. I checked the creek for dragonflies at the bridge, even though it was cool and cloudy. I saw a blue darner, but that was all. I also spotted a hawk land at the tippy-top of an evergreen tree.

Red-tail lighted briefly atop this tree; can you ID the species from its cones?

I found the Reserve District Ranger Station just west of town on SR-12. There I solicited advice on where to explore from here and for a recommendation for where to have lunch. Yolanda gave an enthusiastic review of Carmen's back at the highway junction and added that as it was Thursday, the special would be tacos for a dollar each. Turns out they also had rolled, cheese enchiladas for $1.50 each. I ordered two tacos and two enchiladas. She also recommended the red chile sauce, so I made that selection for the enchiladas. Wow. Delicious! The tacos didn't need any extra salsa, as the ground beef was specially seasoned and the lettuce & tomato had a light dressing, too. If you're ever in the neighborhood, stop there for breakfast, lunch or dinner. And yes, the red chile was outstanding.

I filled my tank which was half empty by this time at $3.36 per gallon, quite a bit higher than the $2.49 at Costco near my house. But I did get a free weather report... cloudy, cool, sprinkles and maybe a bit of rain. Not the clear & sunny report I read before starting my trip. Oh, well.

As the "highway" climbed up from Reserve, there was a pretty view of distant mountains to the west.
I believe this is the Blue Range, that I'll drive through later in the trip.

Sure enough as I drove south from Reserve on SR-435, I ran into a few sprinkles, then a bit of rain. I headed toward Snow Lake, which I'd been told was a lovely area. The road is "paved" for the first several miles, then gravel actually in better condition. The forest along the way was a patchwork of slight wildfire damage and no damage.

FR-28 cut through this large grassland, home of the T-Bar Ranch.

Once on top of the mesa, following 28 south, the devastation was much more severe. I turned off on 142 toward Snow Lake amid further fire damage. A few miles in I saw what I thought was a coyote run across the road, then a second one ran across right in front of my truck. My casual impression was that it was a sturdy looking coyote, holding a very bushy tail strait out behind as it loped across the road and up the hillside, but didn't think any more about it at that time.

Snow Lake

Snow Lake is nice, and not as low as Quemado Lake. It is in a grassy valley surrounded by unburned forest. There is a campground situated above the lake and there is a loop of sites, suitable for tents or campers, with a nice view of the lake, but without trees it would be vulnerable to winds.

I decided instead to backtrack a bit, then continue south on 28 to the Ben Lilly Campground along Willow Creek. Yolanda at the ranger station said it was a small campground with only 5 sites, but her very favorite in the area.

Ben Lilly and Willow Creek

The campground was lovely and I had my pick of sites next to Willow Creek. As I sit here in my camper, typing this report on my iPad, I'm the only one in this tiny campground. (Note: if you use an iPad for writing, I can recommend the new Logitech Ultrathin Magnetic clip-on keyboard cover. However, I had problems on this trip as the batteries were low. It takes 2 common coin batteries.)  I found my spot about 3pm, took a short walk up the creek and on my way back it started raining lightly. I sat in the cab until it let up, then raised the camper roof. It is now 4:30 and it has been sprinkling or raining on and off. I can hear the creek and a few birds singing.

My campsite. Willow Creek is between my camper and those fir trees.

The sun came out for a while about 5pm allowing me to walk around a bit before the sky darkened again. I saw a notice posted that endangered Mexican Wolves have been released this area of the Gila. Hmm, that got me thinking about those two unusual coyotes I saw earlier in the day. For more information on the release of these wolves, click here.

Here is a view of Willow Creek where it ran past my campsite.

Friday, May 22nd

It was 26º again this morning. After breakfast it had warmed up enough for me to take a walk farther up the road. The map showed ended at private property about a little ways along. As I was leaving the campground I wished good morning to my neighbors, a couple who had pulled into the campground just as it was getting dark and set up a small tent. This friendly couple, Mark and Maria, had planned to backpack, but didn't realize their route was in a burned out area, so they stopped here instead. They were wondering where to go to continue their trip. I said if they were going to the southern part of the Gila that I strongly recommended the Gila Cliff Dwelling National Monument. They hadn't been there before and were happy for the recommendation.

I had a very nice walk up the road and back.

I find it interesting this species of cactus thrives both in the hot lava fields and cool mountains.

This junco perched cooperatively for my camera.

It was more of a challenge capturing an image of this warbler.

On my return the Forest Ranger pulled in to the campground for a routine check. I was able to get an update on road conditions from Ranger Tory and ask her if maybe the coyotes I saw had actually been Mexican Wolves that have been released into the area. From my description, she believed I had indeed seen wolves. Cool!

I thought I'd have to backtrack to Reserve, as a sign south of town stated that State Highway 159 was closed between Willow Creek and Mogollon. Tory, however, said it was indeed open and in fact she'd driven in on it this very morning. She said it was a bit rocky in places, but no 4WD was needed. Very good. She also encouraged me to drive into Arizona and explore the national forest there, and not be discouraged by the big wildfire of 2011.

Glenwood Ranger District, Gila National Forest

I broke camp and got on "highway" 159, aka Bursum Road. Once I climbed up out of the canyon, the wildfire damage from the Whitewater-Baldy Fire Complex was extensive all along the ridge.

Looking across the fire damage toward the north.

From the same spot as the previous photo, but looking south up the mountain.

More information on the Whitewater-Baldy Fire Complex

Once I crossed the divide and descended into the canyon, it was much less severe. But all along the canyon bottom was evidence of flooding in the form of cobble size rocks covering everything along the bottom. I should have taken a photo, but for some reason didn't.

I spotted this butterfly next to Silver Creek along the canyon bottom.

The road continued into the old mining town Mogollon [muggy-own] which was probably a quaint little village before the flood. They've had time to make some repairs. And this Memorial Day weekend was to be the official re-opening of the historical mining town (though I was a day early, so even the one cafe was still closed.)

Northwest of Mogollon was this old mine - I believe it is the historic Fanny Hill mine.

Alpine Ranger District, Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest

SR-159 led to US-180 which I took north into Apache NF, crossed some lovely scenery into Arizona, and drove into the town of Alpine. I stopped at the district ranger station there which is officially the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest. Andrea helped me with my enquires and she was very knowledgeable, interesting and informative. She confirmed that the Wallow fire of 2011, though very damaging to some areas, only lightly touched others that were already recovering, and that there were many other areas that escaped the fire all together.

She helped me put together an itinerary that would take me through some scenic areas and provided advice on campground and dispersed camping. She suggested I drive along the East Fork of the Black River where there were a series of small campgrounds. From there I should cut back east, cross US-191 and continue on forest roads through an area where Big Horn Sheep were regularly seen (though she didn't know what time of day they usually appeared.) From there return north to Alpine, then up another forest road where there had been lots of elk sightings.

I took her suggestions heading west on highway 249 just north of Alpine, then south on forest road 276 and into the valley of the East Fork of the Black River. This was indeed a nice area along the small river. There were many open campsites, though many were already taken for the holiday weekend, too. The problem from my perspective was the gusty winds were kicking up dust from the road and carrying it into the campsites. The best site I found felt like it was in the middle of a wind tunnel, so instead of camping, I turned left on FR-24 to look for a dispersed campsite out of the wind.

This TV was sitting on the shoulder of the road next to the East Fork of the Black river.
When I drove up it flew onto this limb to pose for its photograph.

A short distance along 24 I turned north on the unimproved road 405, where there were a few RVs dry-camped in the meadows. I continued on and took a left fork onto 405C that was too rough and narrow for big trailers and found a pretty little glen shielded from the wind by a nice hill and some trees.

My secluded and sheltered campsite.

Saturday, May 23rd

It was a chilly 25º this morning and instead of my usual after breakfast hike, I drove back to 24 headed south through the forest to turn onto eastbound road 26. This was a lovely area of Ponderosa pines, rolling hills and meadows either untouched by the fire or only lightly touched, though the ridges and hill-tops enclosing the broad valley had been throughly scorched.

Close-up of a Wild Iris along a side road.

Looking up from the iris bed, one can see the fire came through here only
enough to blacken the tree bark and not hot enough to kill the grasses.

There were numerous side roads one could take for dispersed campsite, though there were no running creeks or views to enhance one's site. The area north of the last half of the road before you get to the US highway is closed for part of the year to allow the elk a quiet area to raise their calves.

The Blue Range

I crossed US-191 and continued east, now on 567, named Red Hill Road. Within a couple of miles the terrain changed dramatically. Where I had been driving through verdant, forested hills, now the land dropped away into a large, rugged and much dryer canyon land. Where before one could only see a short ways into a meadow or wood, here the vista was across many miles of deep, ridged valleys. There were the red hills off to the right, after which the road is named, and a very dramatic, red sandstone formation next to the road on the left.

The vista a few miles east of US-191.

The Blue Range in the distance.

I was intrigued by the red sandstone formations, so took many photos.

An early glimpse of the formations.

Another photo as I drive closer.

This Wooly Paintbrush was perched on the high side of the road cut.

A close view of the formations.

Looking back at the red sandstone formations.

The road continues to wind its way down through this scenic area that reminded me of the southern Arizona mountains such as the Chiricahua. South and west of the road is the Blue Range Primitive Area.  Even though without official "wilderness" designation, motorized transport is still prohibited except along a narrow corridor. The Blue Range is the last primitive area in the national forest system.

As the road reached the bottom there was the Blue River and a green, riparian area very similar to that found in the Chiricahua Mountains. There is a tiny campground there called Blue Crossing - a gem hidden in a thick grove of narrow-leaf cottonwoods. I will want to camp there on a return trip. I did stop for about an hour to walk about, try to take photos of the many birds I could hear in the trees and brush, look for dragonflies (none) and have lunch.

The first resident of the campground that I saw, in a dry wash.

Though Flickers generally feed on the ground, this one was in a tree (to get away from me, I guess.)

This is one of the heavily shaded campsites where I stopped for lunch. No one else was around.
The creek is about 20 yards off to the left.

On my way out of the campground I paused to photograph this quail.

From the crossing I proceeded north on County Road 67004 which follows the Blue River for about the first half of its length. This is a dry area, lightly forested, with interesting sandstone formations. There is also some private land along the road.

One of many formations along the lower portion of the road.

This long-eared fellow scampered across the road and paused in this tree to pose for me.

I returned to Alpine via US-180 and thought I'd try the road where Andrea said there'd been a large herd of elk. She'd suggested going to Nutrioso, then south on CR-2269; I decided to simply start at the south end of that road where it is forest road 81. As I started up the road I realized why she'd suggested starting from the north - the first several miles were though an area that had been badly devastated by the Wallow fire. The road was OK, though narrow and there were run-off bars placed across the road frequently.

I was actually glad I came this way as it was instructive to see the damage and note the aspen returning. Andrea had said the Forest Service planted grass seed by air after the fire and the grasses were healthy. Andrea also said they'd planted wheat and barley in this area as high energy, quick growing fodder for the elk. They don't expect the grains to survive over the years, but to fill the gap until the native grasses are restored. I didn't see any elk at all, however.

Fire damage northwest of Alpine.

Looking south, back up the road from where I took the previous photo.

I continued up US-180/191 to Springerville where I filled my gas tank and my stomach. I then drove east on US-60 toward Quemado. I hadn't initially intended to backtrack my route home, but by wandering around the way I ended up doing, that was the only logical route unless I wanted to add many miles through less interesting territory.

US-60 a few miles after crossing back into New Mexico. Rain on the horizon, but I never ran into it.

Note: the timeline of the trip actually jumps back to Part I at this point in the narrative. 

The next published post, however, will cover the time after that at El Morro National Monument.