Wednesday’s forecast was sunny 60s, so we headed out early (better organized) and took I10 east to Wilcox, to pick up scenic Hwy 183 to Chiricahua National Monument. Hwy 183 moves through wide-open grasslands bordered by the Chiricahua Mountains, a nest of steep canyons where Cochise and his Apaches held out for years against the U.S. Army.
Our National Park pass had expired so we bought a new one and drove up to the high point to admire the views over the weathered rock formations:
It was a bit nippy with the wind to have our picnic lunch there so we headed back down to the shelter of Bonita Canyon to make lunch on the camp stove. We were immediately befriended by a Mexican Jay, which has the coloration of a blue jay but otherwise looks and behaves like a crow. I made the mistake of tossing a bread crumb his way – about a dozen of his buddies materialized looking for their own bounty. We read up on them later at home. Apparently the travel in groups, and if one is threatened the other all swarm and harass the threat. Also, the have a very well-defined range which barely extends into the US in southwest Arizona.
After lunch, we made our way down towards the border through Sunizona, Elfrida, and MacNeal towards Bisbee, where we picked up Hwy 92 through Palominas and Miracle Valley. Here we went up through Montezuma Pass, east to west this time, and descended down into the Santa Cruz valley. When we encountered the CPB holding pen (see previous post) we took Forest Road 61, a dirt road through beautiful lonesome countryside that skirts the Mexican border. We worked to make sure we could clear this area before nightfall, lest we encounter somebody doing something they didn’t want witnessed.
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