The Biggest Adventure of All
October-December, 2020
We spent the summer camping and hiking all over central New Mexico and northern Arizona. From the Mogollon Rim to the White Mountains, the Manzano Mountains, El Malpais, San Franciscos and the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, we spent weeks exploring areas we'd only briefly visited in the past. It was good, it was TOO good! And it gave us a taste for something more!
Chiricahua Crest Trail
October 2-3, 2020
In 2011, the Horseshoe II fire tore through the upper Chirichuas. But now nine years have passed, and we decided it was time to return to the Chiricahua Crest Trail to scout the area for a future trip.
Life on the Edge
The Mogollon Rim and the Grand Canyon
As the terrible awful summer of 2020 wears on, we are spending as much time as possible far from Tucson. After a few days along the Rim with our ham radio camping buddy, we wandered north to Sunset Crater and the Grand Canyon.
General George Crook National Recreational Trail
A Walk Back in Time
The trail follows parts of a military road blazed in the 1870s from Fort Apache, near Whiteriver on the White Mountain Apache Reservation, to Fort Whipple in Prescott. It became one of the first major roads in Arizona, and for decades served as a supply and communications route.
The White Mountains and the Mogollon Rim
August 6 to August 19, 2020
In the summer of 2020, Arizona was hit by a triple whammy: a deadly pandemic, catastrophic wildfires and a near-total failure of the monsoon coupled with sustained record-breaking heat. We stayed home just long enough to clean up, fix up and restock and then headed north once again, with no particular destination in mind.
The Far Side of the San Franciscos
July 10 - 23, 2020
A few days before our long-planned trip to the Pecos Wilderness, we learned that New Mexico was requiring a 14-day quarantine for out-of-state visitors. On a whim, we redirected to the back side of the San Francisco Mountains, and found not only relief from the heat, but far more possibilities camping and hiking options than we ever imagined.
Ham Radio Field Day: Mogollon Rim
June 25 - July 1, 2020
By mid-June, the Bighorn fire had morphed into a monster of over 100,000 acres, and seemed hell-bent on consuming the entire Santa Catalina range. We decided to go ahead with our plans to head up to the Mogollon Rim for Ham Radio Field Day, if for no other reason than to get out of the smoke.
First Big Trip With the Big Rig
June 8-18, 2020
With careful planning, we might still be able to realize our dream of spending most of the summer on the road far from the heat of Tucson. And while the cats are not exactly thrilled with our travel plans, they are learning to adjust.
Las Cienegas and Empire Ranch
May 20-22, 2020
A couple of days of unseasonably cool weather provided a great opportunity to take a short trip with the new rig to a place we'd originally planned to visit in March.
Haigler the Hard Way
May 13-15, 2020
Several streams plunge from the lip of the Mogollon Rim to the floor of the desert — the Verde, East and West Clear Creek, Horton Creek, Fossil Creek — but Haigler Creek first wanders tantalizingly west through the Tonto National Forest before joining with Tonto Creek in the Hellsgate Wilderness. This is a lightly populated area with very limited access.
Crystal Spring
May 13-15, 2020
Triple-digit heat is upon us — all the way up to 106° F on Wedesday! With all the campgrounds on Mount Lemmon closed, how to cool off at high elevation without driving for hours?
Mogollon Rim
April 29 - May 1, 2020
A forecast of days of +100-degree temperatures sent us fleeing north to higher ground, using the camper to scout possible RV spots along the Mogollon Rim.
High Creek
April 22-24, 2020
We're finding out that there are lots of ways to enjoy the outdoors and still keep plenty of space between us and the hoards of people flocking to popular hiking and camping areas during the nationwide quarantine.
Buehman Canyon
April 17, 2020
So what's the deal with Buehman Canyon? In 2018, the Pima County Board of Supervisors purchased 3200 acres of land around the canyon $1.5 million. However, so far as we can tell, the public has zero access to these public lands.
Catalina State Park - Cargodera Canyon
March 14, 2020
We continue to discover the hidden wonders of Catalina State Park. The park is much larger than we realized, and with the help of a good digital mapping program, we have discovered that there are many many more trails besides the famous and hopelessly overpopulated route to Romero Pools.
