Wilderness Wandering

Willcox , AZ

We left White Sands NP heading towards Tucson and Saguaro NP via Chiricahua National Monument. Our friends Brad and Connie had told us what a special place Chiricahua is.  It was about a 4-1/2 hour drive. We had a campsite reserved for Thursday night, but we got a day ahead of schedule. We hoped to be able to get a site in The Bonita Canyon Campground.  Our Google Maps route took us 9 miles on a very bumpy, washed out gravel road. Tim was not a happy camper. 

We arrived and located the Camp Host Delores, who was delightful, but unfortunately, she couldn’t find a spot for us in the small campground. 

As a compromise, she offered that we could camp in the parking spots by the entrance to the park. So we drove over there and put our camp chairs out by a tiny cemetary where the family that deeded the land that became the park are buried. We sat and drank our Old Fashioneds and watched a herd of mule deer crossing the slope in front of us as the sun set.

We were all tucked in bed for the night when we got “the knock” from a Ranger saying we could not park overnight where we were. He was nice about it though and told us a few places where we could stay. We located one only a few minutes away, gazed at the beautiful night sky for a moment and  knocked out for the rest of the night. 

We got to the VC as it opened and got a trail map and got a passport stamp even though it isn’t a National Park. We were about to discover that it certainly could be though, and it is on a short list of future possible National Parks. 

Chiricahua is what is known as a sky island- an isolated mountain range that rises from the surrounding grassland. The park has amazing pinnacle formations. 

We drove the narrow 8 mile scenic Bonita Canyon Drive to the end of the park where it summits at Massai Point. Then we returned down the road a bit to the Echo Canyon Loop trailhead. We did The Big Loop hike.  It  was a 9.5 mile strenuous hike, but unbelievably gorgeous! We started high and dropped into a canyon and then climbed the other side of the canyon. When we were low, it was desert like and when we were high, the trail was covered with pine needles! The north facing slopes were snow covered and slippery. I did a butt scoot down a particularly icy part. We were passed by two teenage boys, one was wearing crocs!!

After the hike, we were ready to relax. We drove back past the VC to tell them how much we enjoyed the hike. Shout out to all the National Park Service people we have met in our travels. We haven’t run into a single one who wasn’t pleasant and helpful, but the woman who helped us at Chiricahua was a gem! Tim plans to write a letter of commendation!

Then we went to the campground and parked in a lovely shady site. It got chilly very quickly once the sun set. Tim made us a nice campfire and we slept very well. 

Next morning we got an early start on our way to Tucson! If you are ever in the area, it is worth your while to stop here!!