Gardner Canyon, Sonoita AZ

Because it was a warm sunny day we decided to hike in Gardner Canyon.  That’s about a dozen miles from camp and if it weren’t for the washboard road it would have been a quick drive.  But no, it took an hour.  It was worth it!  So out here you go on a Forest Service Road and it’s a slightly beat up gravel road that goes for miles, then turn off to another FS road that’s rougher, turn off again to even rougher yet.  So out here maybe 7 miles from the last vestige of human occupation, a ranch, we find a bicyclist sitting by the side of the road with a Golden Retriever at her side.  Carlene rolls down the window to say hello and I roll down Skye’s back seat window for the same.  Very soon the woman asks if Skye can come out to greet her dog and conversation ensues.  She asks where we’re from and when we say  Vermont she looks taken aback and says she is too.  Town?  She used to live in Richmond, now in Waterbury Ctr.  A couple minutes later we realize we know each other by name through the many mutual friends we have.  I know at least one reader will recognize Tami Bass.  Her 10 yr old dog, Parsha, runs along on bike rides with her up to about 6 miles, so they were out on the Arizona Trail for the morning.  She is out here for a few months, much like we are.  After a good long chat we went along our way and did our hike on the AZ Trail southbound starting about a mile from where we had met Tami.

When we got back to the truck we met the rancher who was replacing a water trough and tending the road at the gate.  Turns out he is also the Patagonia Fire Chief and a half dozen other things in the area.  He told us of 2 fatalities up there recently, guys who overturned their UTV out on the forest roads.  A couple UTVs had passed us while we were talking with Tami.

This trail has some history with it, gold mining in the area in the late 1800s.  You see frequent signs of mining and water supply along the trail.  This part of the AZT follows the water supply route in the mountains.  It also primarily followed the contours for a couple miles with only modest grades.  We made a 5 mile round trip.  It was in the 70s so it we still felt well exercised.  Skye has not needed any playtime this evening!

Sunrise today.  Much better than today’s sunset, which I didn’t bother to photograph

Skye loves to rip these yuccas

With Tami & Parsha

Near a tunnel

The sign Carlene was reading in the previous photo

Skye “let me by!”

Looking over towards camp

Hot day, gimme shade

Cattle in the road on the way back to camp

Hanging out at camp

There’s something on the breeze 

Sniff, sniff