We're off again in the RV, this time for 6 to 8 weeks or until the money runs out. We left this past Saturday and headed to Southeastern Arizona to meet up with my sisters, Kathy and Jude. They wanted to explore the Chiricahua National Monument so we agreed to met them there for a small family reunion. The monument is about 40 miles south of Wilcox, AZ. Wilcox is in the middle of no where, so that makes Chiricahua NM south of no where. There is a small campground that limits the size of RVs to 29 feet, but we figured that at 30 feet we could manage to squeeze in. We were lucky that Kathy and Jude held the largest campsite for us or else we would have been looking for a different place to stay. Being south of no where, that would have been a challenge. Really small campsites and tight turns within the campground.
The monument is known for it's towering rock formations and great hiking opportunities. To make some of the longer hikes a little shorter and easier, the park service offers a shuttle service to the upper reaches of the monument allowing one to hike mostly downhill returning to the visitor center. This is the option we chose hiking from just shy of 7,000 feet down to around 5,000 feet. The 7 mile hike from the top twisted and turned though some pretty amazing rock formations including the highlite of the trail, the "Heart of Rocks".
I messed up with the settings on my camera and all the photos I took turned out fuzzy, but here are a couple shots to give you an idea of the area.
KATHY ON THE LEFT, CATHIE ON THE RIGHT
After backing partway out of the campground, we parted company with Kathy and Jude after 4 days and headed north. The plan, which could change for any reason, is to travel US Hiway 191 all the way to Montana. That means we'll be going through, Eastern Arizona, Eastern Utah, Western Wyoming and Montana. We haven't figured out our route when we decide to head back towards home, but we'll think of something.
We are currently in Springerville, Arizona where the forecast calls for a low of 15 degrees tonight. If we survive, tomorrow we will continue north with the next stop, Canyon de Chelly, where I try to get the camera settings right.
2 comments:
Boy, I can't wait until the wife and I can do something like this...
wonderful area! Have you seen our marks from 2010 in the Bonita Campingground, Echo Trail and on the hike? We think about you... this NP was our first stop on our travel tour after we left you, Gary and Diane from Anza Borrego Desert
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