Sasco, Arizona January 10, 2015

                                 A shot up BLM sign

Location: To get to Sasco, Arizona, take Interstate 10 west of Tucson, Arizona, for about 23 miles to the Red Rock Exit. Exit the interstate and turn left. Immediately after exiting the highway immediately look for Sasco Road. The first part of Sasco Road goes through a recently built subdivision for the town of Marana, Arizona. Keep driving and soon the road surface becomes a graded dirt road. The road to Sasco might be passable for passenger vehicles with higher clearance. The problem is that Sasco Road does ford the Santa Cruz River which might present a challenge if it has rained recently.

History: Sasco is an acronym for the Southern Arizona Smelting Company. Founded in 1907 Sasco served as the primary smelting location for the mines at Silverbell and Picacho Peak. The town once had 600 residents a smelter, company buildings, saloons, stores, and the Hotel Rockland. In 1919 mining in the area declined resulting in a decline at Sasco as well. Today, no one lives at Sasco but there are extensive ruins throughout the area including a cemetery with victims from the 1918-1919 influenza epidemic.

Special Consideration: Residents of Arizona use the ruins of Sasco as well as the surrounding desert for target practice and "war games." When I visited on Saturday I heard many shots echoing in the area. Near where I parked there was a group of males firing shotguns as well as automatic weapons. It became apparent that walking around would not be a wise decision. Sadly, I also saw a significant amount of shell cases on the ground and trash related to target shooting. I also saw individuals had spray painted their name on some of the ruins. Nevertheless, I still want to return on a weekday when it is safer to explore the area. (Information from Arizona Ghost Towns and Mining Camps by Philip Varney).

                 Impressive ruins

                              Concrete foundations

                   More concrete ruins; you can see the vandalism I talk about.

                      More foundation

Museum of Mini Time Machines Tucson, Arizona January 6, 2015

                                   Miniature birds

Last summer while hiking on Mount Lemmon a visitor made a glowing recommendation for the Museum of Mini Time Machines in Tucson. He told me that surprisingly the museum was delightful for grownups as well as children. After the holiday season I decided it was time to visit. I arrived at the museum at 10 am in the morning. The museum costs about $9 per person while children under three are free (for individuals who want to visit multiple times they do offer various memberships). Miniatures are grouped into three different areas according to theme. These include the History Gallery, Enchanted Room (fantasy-themed) and Exploring the World. All together there are approximately 300 antique and contemporary dollhouses each with very detailed scenes in each one. The Enchanted Room was Quintin's favorite part of the museum because some of the displays were at his level. He became bored with some of the other displays because they were higher up. For me I enjoyed many of the displays in the History Gallery and Exploring the World. There is no food or drink in the galleries which can be an  inconvenience for visitors with young kids because of the constant need to exit the galleries.

The Museum of Mini Time Machines is located east on Fort Lowell Road (toward the Rincon Mountains). After 3 1/4 miles the road becomes Camp Lowell Drivel, The museum is on the left side of the road just passed Columbus Boulevard. It is open Tuesday-Sunday and closed Monday.(Information from www.theminitimemachine.org).

                    Quintin at the holiday display

                            Another good one of Q

                 Display in the Exploring the World section

                                      Industrial Revolution

                            My favorite house in the museum. A french chateau.

                      Miniatures from Thailand

Bisbee, Arizona Historical Stairs Exploration December 30, 2014

Staircases in Bisbee became prevalent for a number of reasons and they evolved over time. First, miners built old-town Bisbee in a valley in the Mule Mountains. The only way to accommodate  the many workers who came to the town to work in the mines was to build onto the surrounding hillsides. Second, workers built houses close together so paths and alleys were necessary.  To reach these houses from the streets at the bottom of the valley residents built dirt paths; however these paths became slippery and they flooded during storms. After a couple years residents replaced  these paths with wooden stairways and concrete sidewalks. During the Great Depression the Works Progress Administration (WPA) paved dirt roads and replaces wooden stairs with concrete. Many of the stairs have the stamp "WPA/ USA" still inscribed.

Today, Bisbee still has its historical structures and newer development has not wiped out its charm. As a result, the best way to see Bisbee is to wonder and explore its alleys and stairs. With over 351 staircases in Bisbee of varying length the possibilities for a wanderer are endless. Time has not been kind to some of these stairs and some of them  are crumbling and in disrepair. The annual Bisbee 1000 or Great Bisbee Stair Climb, raises money to maintain and repair this heritage. This is a 4.5 mile run that includes nine sets of stairs. However, many residents claim the funds raised for preservation have been mis-managed and have not been used to rebuild some of the stairs. This ongoing battle has led to contentious editorials and articles in the local paper. (Information from The Bisbee Stairs by David Ryan). I have included some of my favorite photos from my limited time spent exploring over the holidays.

Bisbee, Arizona Shrines Hike December 29, 2014

When I visited Bisbee as a teenager I remember being enamored with its beauty. As a result, I explored its many streets and staircases. What stayed with me after the visit were the shrines off of OK Street on a ridge top in the Mule Mountains. I got the chance to revisit the shrines of Bisbee when Tara and I visited the town in late December. The hike is short but steep in parts. To get to the shrines walk up Brewery Gulch to the end of Ok Street/ An unsigned trail takes hikers to the top of an unnamed ridge, From there follow the steep trail to the large wooden cross. The main shrine, near the wooden cross, was built and maintained by Adolfo and Maria Vazquez in 1980. (Information from www,dogsnotonmywindshield.blogspot.com).  Since then many different families have created their own memorials for loved ones. Near the wooden cross I observed a fire pit and garbage can so this area is undoubtedly popular during the summer. What was distressing is I also saw some vandalized memorials and trash in area. I departed the shrines then walked to a higher location for a better view south as well as the open pits. Enjoy my photographs.

                             A small memorial

                                        The main shrine on the hill

                       View south from higher vantage point. If you look closely you can see the extensive mining ruins.

Millvile, Arizona and Petroglyphs December 26, 2014

                     Stone foundation possibly a house


Directions: These directions are from Sierra Vista, Arizona. Take Highway 90 east from Sierra Vista to Charleston Road. Turn left onto Charleston Road. A couple miles after crossing the San Pedro River the parking lot for Millvile will be on the left.

Information: The visitor parking lot is open from dawn till dusk and all facilities are managed by the Bureau of Land Management. A three mile loop trail will take visitors by the mill ruins of  Millvile, Arizona, as well as Hohokam rock art. There are two rock art sites and the second one is off-trail and not accessible to visitors. Remember this is desert country and rattlesnakes do inhabit the area so pay attention. Also please respect the ruins as well as the rock art by not defacing the rock art or taking artifacts.

History: After Ed Schieffelin's silver strike in Tombstone, Arizona, in 1872, prospectors came from throughout the United States and world to strike it rich in Arizona. What prospectors were mining was silver ore which needed to be processed at a mill in order to extract the valuable minerals from the rock. The process needed water to be successful however, Tombstone did not have water available. The solution was to transport the ore by mule nine miles to sites on the San Pedro River. Millvile was a major milling site. At its climax Millvile had two mills one of which was a ten stamp mill called Gird's Mill.                                                                                                                                          The milling process was dangerous for a number of reasons. First, many workers were injured because of the large stamps used to crush the rock as well. Second, the milling process required the use of toxic metals such as mercury and copper sulfate to separate the precious metals from rock. Working with mercury is dangerous and even today there is no cure for mercury poisoning. The most deadly part involved working in the retort where heat vaporized mercury for recovery and reuse. The workers working in the retort suffered from mercury poisoning by breathing vaporized mercury.
          The milling communities would not survive. After the mines in Tombstone flooded pumps were installed to extract the water. This solved the problem of no water to mill the silver ore. As a result, there was no need to transport the ore to the San Pedro for processing. Soon workers dismantled the Gird Mill and moved it to Tombstone. Eventually all mill-towns along the San Pedro were abandoned. Today, the only remnants of Millvile are stone foundations. (Information from Bureau of Land Management signs).

       Gird's Mill

     Part of the Gird's Mill ruins

              Hohokam rock art

                                  Anthromorph

              Ruins for Gird's House

                                  Looking South along the San Pedro riparian area. The remains of the abandoned Southern Pacific line are on the right.

San Pedro River Walk Sierra Vista, Arizona December 26, 2014

          San Pedro River and Freemont Cottonwoods

After relaxing part of the morning, I decided to hike along the San Pedro River east of Sierra Vista, Arizona. I drove east on Highway 90 and parked on the left side of the highway at a small parking area for the main trail that travels north toward the ghost town of Fairbanks, Arizona, and south toward Hereford Bridge. I hiked a mile and a half north through the grassy riparian environment of the San Pedro Basin. Fast-moving fires can easily ignite in this grassy environment so please be careful. I returned south along the river on a well-worn game trail. This trail takes hikers underneath the Freemont Cottonwoods and along the river. The San Pedro River is known for its avian diversity. Today I saw a number of different species of hawks and sparrows. It appeared there was more water in the river than last year owing to the early fall monsoon moisture Southern Arizona received in October. I hiked two and half miles before returning to the car via the established self-guided loop and San Pedro House. The San Pedro is one of my favorite riparian locations in the west so I hope to explore more of it in 2015.

                    Freemont Cottonwoods and grass

                    The San Pedro River

                   Freemont Cottonwoods

                            The river

                       The San Pedro Riparian area

Garden Canyon Huachuca Mountains December 24, 2014

                       Lower picnic area

Location: To access Garden Canyon visitors need to drive onto the Fort Huachuca Military Reservation. At the guard gate entrance you will have to present photo identification. The security officers were nice and presented concise and accurate directions to the canyon. Remember you are on a military installation so don't pull off at random areas and walk around.

Presently the Garden Canyon Road is closed at the lower picnic area because large portions of it were damaged this past October when the tropical storms came up from Mexico. A timetable has not been set for fixing the road because of budget constraints. I parked at the lower picnic area and hiked the road. Immediately after leaving the lower picnic area the  road  passes by two playgrounds which are deserted and being reclaimed by vegetation. A mile passed the upper picnic area is the trail head for Scheelite Canyon. I have never hiked the Scheelite Canyon Trail and have read on other blogs that the trail is overgrown and hard to follow in places. Garden Canyon is well-known in Southern Arizona because of its plant and animal diversity. Birders come from all over to see endemic species such as the  Mexican jay, Elegant trogon, and the Sulphur redstart. On this hike I saw many White-tailed deer and a number of different species of hawks. Four to five miles up the road are two rock art sites which are on the National Register of Historic Places. The Garden Canyon Rock Art Site, four miles from the trail head, is on the right. Historians believe this site was a place of religious significant for the Apache Native Americans. The October storms washed out the bridge across Garden Creek but the short trail to the pictographs is hikeable. A half- mile from the Garden Canyon site is the Rappel Cliffs Rockshelter Site. Historians believe this site predates the Garden Canyon site because of the presence of simple geometric elements ie, dots, lines, anthromoprths (human figures) created from red and black pigments that are not Apache in origin. Total mileage for the day was eight to nine with 1400 feet of elevation gain.

                               The washed out Garden Canyon Road

              Upper Garden Canyon

                       Interesting light on pines

                     Garden Canyon Rock Art Site

                   Rappel Rockshelter Site

                              Petroglyphs at Rappel Rock

                          Rappel Rock

                     Rappel Rockshelter Site

                 Waterfall in Garden Creek

                           Upper Garden Canyon