SEARCHING THE CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS FOR OLD FORT RUCKER

OFFICER'S QUARTERS AT FORT RUCKER

Our beautiful warm sunny weather continues here in southwestern Ontario & what a treat that is for everyone as we head into the finest time of the year. A month from now we should be peaking with our splendid autumn colors. Two months from now it will probably be dull, depressing, drizzly, wet, & cold, with long gray days back to back. Three months from now Christmas will be just around the corner so who cares & four months from now if you go outside without being all bundled up.......you will probably freeze up & die!! Some of you may remember this past winter that we had ourselves a cushy little 7 week ranch sitting job in southeastern Arizona. We were located in a great area rich with western history & were able to take many interesting day trips in the car. Located just a couple short miles from McNeal, Arizona we were about twenty minutes to Bisbee or 25 to Douglas. Tombstone was about half an hour & another 15 minutes took us to Sierra Vista. The Chiricahua Mountain range started about a half hour's drive to the northeast of the ranch & that's where we headed off one sunny wild west morning in search of the elusive & hard to find old Fort/Camp Rucker. BUILDING RUINS

Before we had ever heard anything of a Fort Rucker though we had taken a drive one day along a scenic winding road up into RUCKER CANYON. We told some folks later about that drive & they said, "did you find the Fort??" We were lucky to find our way back to the main road let alone a Fort but our interest was peaked at the thoughts of finding an old army camp somewhere in the Chiricahuas. Looked on the internet for information regarding Fort Rucker's location but it was vague. FRONT DOOR TO FORT RUCKER'S BAKERY

It was a couple weeks later while touring around Coronado National Memorial (OUR CORONADO BLOG) (OUR CORONADO PHOTOS) south of Sierra Vista on the Mexican border that a chance encounter with a park ranger shed some light on the exact whereabouts of old Fort Rucker. RUINS OF THE COMMISSARY WITH BAKERY BUILDING IN THE BACKGROUND

Click on this FORT RUCKER BLOG for our search in the Chiricahua Mountains & FORT RUCKER PHOTOS for our web album of pictures that day. OLD BARN IS STILL USED TO HOUSE CATTLE

Shortly we'll have us a look at the ghost towns of Gleeson, Pearce, & Fairbank.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A woman is like a tea bag......you don't know how strong she is until you put her in hot water!!

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.

NICE WEATHER DAY IN BAYFIELD AND A LOOK BACK TO SOME OF OUR ADVENTURES IN SOUTH-EASTERN ARIZONA A FEW YEARS AGO

ON THE STREETS OF TOMBSTONE ARIZONA
One of the big advantages full time RV’ers have over Snow Birders is the simple fact they live in and use their rig’s systems on a regular basis therefore always being familiar about the working of things. 

THERE ARE 2 OLD IRON BRIDGES IN THE HULLETT MARSH AND THIS IS THE ONE AT THE END OF SANCTUARY LINE….THE OTHER BRIDGE IS AT THE END OF CONSERVATION ROAD

A BIG ‘SHADOW COWBOY’ WAVE FROM THE SANCTUARY LINE BRIDGE THIS MORNING
It started out innocently enough today when I thought I would simply sanitize our fresh water tank.  Key joke word there being ‘simply’'.’ Not being full timers it’s not something we are accustomed to doing on any kind of a regular basis.  I think the last time we did it was a year ago about this time and therein awaited the problem.  My brain wouldn’t even give me the slightest clue where to start and I had to ask Kelly where the instructions were on how to do it.  Seems to me I had to do the very same thing last year as well.  I wasn’t off to a good start and it went down hill from there.  A job that would take a seasoned Full-timer about 15 minutes cost this aging Snow Bird a good hour and a half this afternoon:((

I BETTER GET GOING HERE, TRAINS A COMING
I won’t bog you down with my frustrations today because I am still pretty upset with myself but I can tell you that what transpired was not the fault of the Motorhome.  All me and with my poor memory having more holes in it than a Swiss cheese and my ever increasing impatience with anything even remotely mechanical I caused myself a lot of stress.  I don’t know when it was my problematic impatience began but I don’t remember it being this bad years ago but here’s the bottom line, ’we’ did finally manage to successfully complete the fresh water tank project and everything is fine and honky-dory now.  Everything that is except me and me will not be Okay until me has a good night’s sleep and starts Tuesday morning off on the right foot again.  Well that’s what me hopes anyway……..
I AM STILL CATCHING FRONT YARD POND FROGS AND TRANSPORTING THEM TO THE BIGGER PARK’S POND……17 TRANSPORTATIONS SO FAR INCLUDING THE FROGS IN THESE PHOTOS TODAY

ONE FROG IS REAL AND ONE ISN’T

A TAD OUT OF FOCUS BUT I’VE INCLUDED THIS FELLA ANYWAY


HE’S KEEPING A REAR VIEW EYE ON ME
Desert USA is an on-line South-western magazine we have been receiving now for a number of years and I often like the articles because we have been to a lot of places featured in it.  The latest edition was no exception when I read the title, Ghost Towns In Southern Arizona.  We have been to nine of the 13 ghost towns mentioned.  We’ve been to Superstition Mountain, Fort Bowie, Pearce, Courtland, Gleeson, Tombstone, Fairbank, Millville and the ever so hard for us to find, Charleston.  Through the Apache Pass to Historic Fort Bowie.  I wrote daily posts about all those places along with many photos and have included a few links such as Tombstone and  The Ghost Town of Gleeson Arizona.  We have walked the streets of Tombstone half a dozen times, found Johnny Ringo’s grave at the western foot of the Chiricahua Mountains as well as Wyatt Earp’s brother’s grave in Wilcox.  Johnny Ringo's Grave and Warren Earp's Grave in Wilcox Arizona.  I took some rare photos through a broken door of the crumbling Gleeson Saloon, we have walked among the old graves of Fairfield, hiked the long way in and out of Fort Bowie along trails Cochise once walked.  Cochise's Council Rocks  Had to take our shoes and socks off to wade across the San Pedro River to find Charleston after walking through the remaining ruins of Millville.  Today We Found The Ruins of Charleston Arizona. We have walked in the footsteps of Geronimo and his Apache warriors.   We’ve been to and through Pearce Arizona half a dozen times even twice spending time partaking in their ‘Pearce Heritage Days’ celebrations.  The old general store there is only open 1 day a year and we were lucky enough to be there on one of those days.  As we walked through the store I’m sure we had old ghosts walking along beside us.   Here’s a look inside that store….Old Pearce Heritage Days.  Made our way through what is left of Courtland with it’s few crumbling brick walls and old jail cell still intact.  Courtland Arizona  That South-eastern area of Arizona is such a fascinating place and we were so fortunate to spend many months Ranch Sitting there over a period of 4 years.  My links to Old Fort Rucker and Our Search for Cochise's Council Rocks.  Oh the memories and oh the thousands of photos I took.  Even now I still get excited thinking back to that marvelous era and that whole historically fascinating area.  The links above are only but a few of my many blog posts and photos of our memorable adventures in the great American Southwest and hopefully this winter we will be back once again on the dusty desert trails of many more great memories:))
THE HISTORIC RUINS OF FORT BOWIE

 
KELLY SITS LOOKING DOWN ON THE RUINS OF OLD FORT BOWIE

SOUTH-EASTERN ARIZONA IS ONE OF OUR ALL TIME FAVORITE PLACES

TOMBSTONE ARIZONA



THE OLD CEMETERY IN FAIRBANK ARIZONA

GHOST TOWN RUINS OF COURTLAND ARIZONA

JOHNNY RINGO’S GRAVE

THIS OLD SALOON IN GLEESON ARIZONA IS WHERE JOHNNY RINGO WAS LAST SEEN DRINKING AT THE BAR

GLEESON ARIZONA CEMETERY

THE COCHISE STRONGHOLD IN ARIZONA’S DRAGOON MOUNTAINS



A RUGGED AREA OF THE DRAGOON MOUNTAINS

THIS INDIAN FELLOW  WE MET AT COUNCIL ROCKS TOLD ME HE WAS A DESCENDENT OF GERONIMO


IS IT ANY WONDER WHY WE KEEP RETURNING TO THE GREAT AMERICAN SOUTH WEST YEAR AFTER YEAR AFTER YEAR
GROANER’S CORNER:((  A guy walking along the beach finds a bottle and picks it up.  A genie pops out and says, "Thanks for letting me out. For your kindness I will grant you one wish."  The guys says, "I've always wanted to go to Hawaii, but I can't because I'm afraid to fly and ships make me deathly sick. My wish is for you to build a road from here to Hawaii."  The genie says, "I'm sorry, but I don't think I can do that. Just think of all the work involved. Think of the huge pilings we'd need to hold up that highway and how deep they would have to be to reach the bottom of the ocean. And think of all the cement that would be needed. Plus, since it's such a long span, there would have to be gas stations and rest stops along the way. No, that's just too much to ask. Impossible."  The guy says, "Well, there is one thing I've always wanted to know. I'd like to be able to understand women...what makes them laugh and cry...you know, what makes them tick."  The genie thinks a second, then asks, "You want two lanes or four with that highway?'
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Kids can sometimes ask the toughest questions.
Son: Father, Can I ask you a question?
Father: Ok ask. Son: When a doctor doctors a doctor, does the doctor doing the doctoring doctor as the doctor being doctored wants to be doctored or does the doctor doing the doctoring doctor as he wants to doctor. --------------------- - How is it one careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire? - Why does a slight tax increase cost you two hundred dollars and a substantial tax cut saves you thirty cents? - Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die - The only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth. - There are two kinds of pedestrians: the quick and the dead. - I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people die of natural causes.