ENJOYED SHOWING A COUPLE RV FRIENDS AROUND OUR SCENIC AREA TODAY

Pam & John from Oh, the Places they Go! rolled into our neighborhood a few days ago & are staying over at North Ranch for a few days.  Pam emailed a couple days ago inquiring about directions to the Wickenburg Massacre site.  Well anyone who’s been to the site knows it can be a hard find so rather than trying to explain where it was I suggested they follow Pheebs & I to the site in their Jeep.  And this morning that is exactly we did.

Met the ‘Oh the Places they Go folks in the parking lot across from the office at North Ranch at 10 & off we went with Pheebs & I in Libby leading the way.  Pam had suggested Pheebs & I come with them but I’m afraid I’m not a very good passenger.  For me half my fun is being in the driver’s seat where I belong.

WE SURE HAVE A LOT OF GREAT SCENERY HERE IN THE CONGRESS WICKENBURG  AREA

We slipped into & out of Wickenburg’s north end & soon found the east facing gate leading into the desert between mile markers 101 & 102 on highway 60.  It’s  about 3 miles of dusty road back into the area of the Massacre site & we were soon jostling our way along in a little 2 Jeep convoy.  The mostly narrow road winds through literally thousands of Creosote bushes so needless to say we all ended up with some nice new desert pin striping today.  Stopped at an old abandoned & long ago tumble down ranch for a leg stretch.

The Wickenburg Massacre site is another mile past the old ranch so we carefully picked our way through more Creosote shrubs on an even narrower road/trail than we had been on before only unlike the other road this one was mined with rocks.   A left had turn led us down into & through a sandy wash with old tree branches reaching out trying their best to add whatever extra pin striping they could.  A quick right hand turn up & out of the sand brought us another hundred yards right up to the scene of an old west 1871 stagecoach ambush.  We were at the Wickenburg Massacre site.

READING THE INFORMATION TAG ON ONE OF THE GRAVESITES

 

PAM WAS THE ONE WITH THE DOGGY TREATS TODAY

 

JOHN STANDS IN THE AREA WHERE THE SHOOTERS FIRED UPON THE STAGECOACH

 

JOHN TAKING A PICTURE OF PAM, PHEEBS, & I

AFTER A TUMMY FULL OF TREATS PAM IS PHEEBS MOST NEWEST FAVORITE PERSON

From the Massacre site we drove back down into the sandy wash & followed it all the way back to Vulture Mine Road in Wickenburg.  Last time Pheebs & I drove this same wash Libby had a full tank of gas & the added weight of 3 adult people.  With less weight today I noticed Libby had a harder time plowing through the soft sand & our 4 wheel drive was working overtime.  Pam & John in their Wrangler behind us noticed their 4 wheel drive working hard as well in the soft sandy river bottom.

THIS SOFT SAND REALLY GRIPPED AT LIBBY’S TIRES TODAY BUT HAVING BEEN THIS WAY A COUPLE MONTHS AGO I WAS CONFIDENT SHE WOULDN’T GET HERSELF STUCK

Pam had expressed an interest in seeing House/Indian Rock near our place in Congress so as soon as we reached the solid pavement of Vulture Mine Road in Wickenburg we cranked a left turn & headed straight for Congress.

IT’S A GOOD THING JOHN WAS WEARING BRIGHT RED TODAY OR WE MIGHT HAVE LOST HIM AMONG THE BOULDERS BEHIND HOUSE ROCK

Thinking just a few days ago I might not get to see House Rock again there I was with Pam & John standing in the cool shadow of House rock again.  Thought that was kinda neat.  From House/Indian Rock we headed about a mile back through the desert to our house on Ghost Town Road.  Kelly was on the front porch reading when we pulled in.  I showed Pam & John around the property & Kelly showed the folks through the house.  This was the first Kelly & I had ever met Pam & John & of course we liked them both right off.  Fellow RV Bloggers just seem to have a tendency to be that way.  John has an inquisitive mind like mine when it comes to figuring out why unexplainable things we come across in our travels are the way they are.  I think maybe we could open us up a Detective agency.  All & all it was a great day & I always thoroughly enjoy showing people around our many interesting & beautiful sites here in the Wickenburg & Congress Arizona area.

LOOKS LIKE JOHN HAD A FEW DOGGY TREATS STASHED AWAY AS WELL

GROANER’S CORNER:((   According to a local News Service, the inscription on the metal bands used by the U.S. Department of the Interior to tag migratory birds has been changed.
The bands used to bear the address of the Washington Biological Survey, abbreviated to read: "Wash. Biol. Surv."  Until the agency received the this letter from an Arkansas camper:
"Dear Sirs: While camping last week I shot one of your birds. I think it was a crow. I followed the cooking instructions on the leg tag and I want to tell you, it was horrible."  The bands are now marked Fish and Wildlife Service.

WE’LL SEE HOW TOMORROW GOES………

Couldn’t seem to get myself into blogging mode today.  With all the up & down ‘house sale’ stress & packing the rig for our upcoming long trip back to Canada shortly Kelly has not been feeling well.  With her Auto Immune condition stress is not a good thing for her.  We’ll see how tomorrow goes………….

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A Minister was walking down the street when he came upon a group of about a dozen boys, all of them between 10 and 12 years of age.  The group had surrounded a dog. Concerned lest the boys were hurting the dog, he went over and asked "What are you doing with that dog?"  One of the boys replied, "This dog is just an old neighborhood stray. We all want him, but only one of us can take him home. So we've decided that whichever one of us can tell the biggest lie will get to keep the dog."
Of course, the reverend was taken aback. "You boys shouldn't be having a contest telling lies!" he exclaimed. He then launched into a ten minute sermon against lying, beginning, "Don't you boys know it's a sin to lie," and ending with, "Why, when I was your age, I never told a lie."  There was dead silence for about a minute.  Just as the reverend was beginning to think he'd gotten through to them, the smallest boy gave a deep sigh and said, "All right, give him the dog."

“HEY HERE I AM BACK AGAIN”….. I LOVE WHEN THAT HAPPENS:)))))

ANOTHER FINE MORNING FOR A CRUISE THROUGH THE WICKENBURG HILLS

Chris, the fellow who cleaned the Mass Air Flow Sensor on our Motorhome last week sent an email wondering if I had seen or been to an old abandoned house just off Blue Tank Road.  When he described the house I knew the one he was talking about.  Pheebs & had spotted then driven up the rocky road in the direction of that house about 3 weeks ago but didn’t approach it because I had spotted a couple large white trucks working at something near the house.  This morning Pheebs & I headed off to have us a second look & with no white trucks in sight we drove right up to the house. 

ON YONDER RIDGE A FEW MILES AHEAD LIES OUR MORNINGS DESTINATION

Once a magnificently beautiful ranch style hacienda on a hill with a commanding view over the town of Wickenburg in a valley about 6 miles away the house is in tatters & ruins.  It has been totally vandalized.  We’ve come across places like this before here in the west & the question is always the same, ‘what happened to the original owners’. 

LARGE FIREPLACE STONES PULLED FROM THE WALL

I’M STADING IN THE TRASHED LIVING ROOM LOOKING TOWARDS WHAT WAS ONCE THE KITCHEN BEYONE THAT ARCH

INSULATION BATS STREWN ABOUT THE FLOOR AMID OTHER DEBRIS

NATURE DOESN’T SMASH WALLS LIKE THAT, PEOPLE DO!!  THAT IS WILFUL & WANTON INTENTIONAL VANDALISM

THIS WAS PROBABLY ONCE A NICE KITCHEN

IT’S EASY TO SEE THIS WAS ONCE A BEAUTIFUL HOUSE

Someone obviously invested a big pile of money in a dream then something went very wrong.  What always angers me though about these kinds of places is the willful & totally senseless damage caused by mindless vandals.  This house has been torn asunder inside & it’s not the forces of nature which have done that.  Drywall kicked, hacked, & punched through, every shred of glass smashed, insulation torn out & scattered about, stones pulled out of the fireplace, & appliances tipped over.  The intentional human damage just goes on & on.  I was young once & I know how these things happen & I guess that is why it angers me now all these years later when I see things like this………

BROKEN WINDOW GLASS EVERYWHERE

LOOKING THROUGH WHAT WAS ONCE A LIGHT & AIRY LIVING ROOM

I’M GUESSING THEIVES STOLE THE WOODEN DOORS, VANDALS SMASHED THE WINDOWS & WIND JUST GOT INSIDE THE HOUSE THEN & OVER TIME HAS WEAKENED & BLOWN OFF PARTS OF THE ROOF

WITH WICKENBURG IN THE VALLEY BELOW AN OLD COUCH LIES UPSIDE DOWN OUTSIDE THE HOUSE

THIS MULTI-CAR GARAGE HAD THE SMOOTHEST FINELY FINISHED CEMEMT FLOOR

THIS PHOTO SPEAKS FOR ITSELF

EVEN AN ELECTRIC OVERHEAD GARAGE DOOR OPENER

WHAT A SHAME TO SEE SUCH A FINE HOUSE TOTALLY RUINED BY VANDALS & OTHER TYPES OF LOW LIFE

After leaving the house ruins we continued east a bit further along the rocky Jeep road finally stopping atop a ridge where 3 Jeep & 1 ATV road converged.  Because of all the broken glass & nails etc around the wrecked house I hadn’t let Pheebs out of the Jeep so atop the ridge it was time for a leg stretch & a walk.  Great view of Wickenburg below to the Southwest.  Thought to myself how nice this must be at night  to see Wickenburg’s lights twinkling far away in the darkness.

DEFINITELY A NICE VIEWPOINT OVERLOOKING WICKENBURG ABOUT 5 MILES DISTANT

RUINED HOUSE TOP RIGHT

VULTURE PEAK  APPEARS TO LOOM OVER THE TOWN OF WICKENBURG….300mm TELEPHOTO

ANOTHER ANGLE OF THE RUINED HOUSE TO THE TOP LEFT

18mm WIDE ANGLE LENS VIEW OF WICKENBURG & VULTURE PEAK

MAYBE NEXT TIME IN THE AREA WE’LL TAKE THIS ROAD & SEE WHERE IT GOES

THE DRY HASSAYAMPA SANDY RIVER BED CAN BE SEEN IN THIS PHOTO

RETURNING FROM A SHORT WALK WE CAN SEE THE JEEP

PHEEBS WAS NEEDING A BIG DRINK BY THE TIME WE GOT BACK TO THE JEEP

CONTEMPLATED TAKING THIS ROAD HEADING IN THE DIRECTION OF LITTLE BOX CANYON & THE NARROWS BUT DECIDED NOT TO….NEXT TIME:))

Had it in mind to head back down to Blue Tank Road & make our way over to the south end of Wickenburg.  Been a couple months since Pheebs & I ‘Whoppered’ ourselves at Burger King.  Before getting back in the Jeep I had a feeling maybe I had better check my wallet.  I did…..I had $3:((  Well, that wasn’t going to get us a Burger King Whopper & McDonald coffee so that was the end of that idea.  Had I not checked my wallet Pheebs & could very well have ended up at Burger King washing dishes for the rest of the day.  Me drying & Pheebs washing.  Not so good for me but I bet Pheebs would have thought it a great idea.

WE TURN LIBBY’S WHEELS BACK DOWN THE ROAD IN THE DIRECTION FROM WHENCE WE HAD COME

PASSED BY THE RUINED HACIENDA ON OUR WAY BACK TO BLUE TANK ROAD

Sun was getting hot & my heart wasn’t really into a Jeep drive this morning anyway so we headed ourselves back on home.  I think the crash of our house deal last week has knocked more stuffings out of me than what I care to admit.  But not to worry I’m not going to go on about it.

VULTURE PEAK ON THE LEFT & WICKENBURG STRAIGHT AHEAD

SAW SOMETHING MOVING THROUGH THE BRUSH BELOW OFF TO OUR RIGHT

THESE 2 HORSE PEOPLE WERE BEING LED BY A 3RD HORSE PERSON UNSEEN IN THE GREENERY AHEAD OF THEM

Majority of our packing is done & there’s no further ‘house sale’ commitments holding us here so it’s just a matter of picking a date & route back to Bayfield now.  Of course at this time of year & especially with the weather being so unpredictably volatile lately the smart route is the northern I-40 route to East of Albuquerque somewhere then swing up to I-80 well above the warmer air coming up from the Gulf meeting cooler air in the tornado prone lower States.  But who knows we just might slide out our old southern route anyway just simply for a needed change of pace & scenery.  We’re beginning to monitor the long ranch weather forecasts now.

I’M GUESSING THIS FLOWER MAY BE A DESERT LILY LIKE THE ONE’S WE HAVE SEEN IN BORREGO SPRINGS CA.

Just another short friendly reminder to readers again that due to being hacked twice accepting ‘Friend Requests’ on Facebook I do not accept requests from anyone anymore.  I’m not a big Facebook user to begin with so please do not send me any of those ‘game requests either.  I only use Facebook to drop my daily blog post in & that’s it.

THE HASSAYAMPA RIVER BED LEADING TO LITTLE BOX CANYON & THE NARROWS

Sorry if I unintentionally mis-lead anyone in Wednesday’s post by implying we would never be back to this area again if we sold the house.  If it sells I would love to come back & see what any new owners have done with it.  We love this area just as we love the area down around Bisbee Az. or Borrego Springs California.  Back in 2011 & 2012 we looked at a lot of houses & properties down around Sierra Vista & if we had found something affordable that is where we would have stayed for a few years.  It was our 3 winter seasons ranch sitting in Cochise County that grew our love for that whole area just as our 4 years here in Congress has cemented our love for this whole region.  We haven’t been back to the Bisbee area for 4 years now & we were hoping to get down that way next winter again for awhile.  I would love to go around & see all our favorite spots just as I would like to do here in & around Congress & Wickenburg should our house sell at some point between now & next Fall.  I always so much enjoy seeing places I had once said good-bye too thinking I might never see them again.  In fact I might just be able to drive on out to ‘Aunt Jeans Rock Scramble’ & Indian/House Rock once more & say, “Hey, here I am back again”.  I love when that happens:))))))))

WHEN I SAW THESE DISTANT SMOKE SIGNALS I FIGURED WE’D BEEN SPOTTED & HAD BETTER SADDLE UP & GET OURSELVES ON OUT OF THE AREA

GROANER’S CORNER:(( There's a guy with a Doberman Pincer and a guy with a Chihuahua. The guy with the Doberman Pincer says to the guy with a Chihuahua, "Let's go over to that restaurant and get something to eat."  The guy with the Chihuahua says, "We can't go in there. We've got dogs with us."  The guy with the Doberman Pincer says, "Just follow my lead."
They walk over to the restaurant, the guy with the Doberman Pincer puts on a pair of dark glasses, and he starts to walk in.  A guy at the door says, "Sorry, mac, no pets allowed."  The guy with the Doberman Pincer says, "You don't understand. This is my seeing-eye dog."  The guy at the door says, "A Doberman Pincer?" He says, "Yes, they're using them now, they're very good."  The guy at the door says, "Come on in."
The guy with the Chihuahua figures, "hey why not?," so he puts on a pair of dark glasses and starts to walk in.  The guy at the door says, "Sorry, pal, no pets allowed."  The guy with the Chihuahua says, "You don't understand. This is my seeing-eye dog."  The guy at the door says, "A Chihuahua?"  The guy with the Chihuahua says, "What!!!! You mean they gave me a Chihuahua!?"