Heading to Benson Arizona

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We were heading to a Newmar Kountry Klub rally at Cochise Terrace RV Resort in Benson Arizona. The rally doesn't start for over a week, but we had opted to just come here early since the area looked interesting. We will be here a total of 16 nights. Our longest stop since going full time. The drive is only about 30 miles so we stick around the boondocking area at the Escapade until after lunch to try to get in Benson after check in time. I didn't want to wait too long since the NCAA basketball games were going to start mid-afternoon. I wasn't sure we would have over the air TV reception here so Chris got us into a site that had cable. This was the first time we had scrambled cable which requires a cable box. I was able to get everything ready in time to watch some basketball.

We have wanted to join the Elks for some time but generally you need to know an existing member so they can be your sponsor at your local lodge. Our neighbor at the FMCA rally a couple weeks ago had mentioned there was going to be a group initiation at the Willcox Elks lodge arranged at the Escapade. So when we were there last week, I signed up to become a member. The initiation was the a couple days after the Escapade in Willcox. Fortunately our coming to Benson put us within about half hour drive of the lodge.

We weren't quite sure what to expect but when we got to the lodge there was already a very large group of people and it kept growing until it was time for our ceremony. In all, there were 56 of us. The spouses all waited out in the main portion of the lodge while we entered a room that just barely held all of us plus the half dozen or so officers of this lodge. The ceremony is intended for one individual but would have taken ages to perform with this many people. So one of the women was selected to represent all of us and she went thru all the full pageantry and we all took the oath. Afterwards we went out to dinner with our new friends. Many of the Elk lodges around the country offer some sort of "camping" for Elk members for a reasonable price. I guess we will see how it works out.

Jack and Michael at Elks Lodge

Kartchner Caverns State Park is only 8 miles south of our campground. Most people go there to tour the cavern. We had gone there do do some hiking and a little geocaching. Our first hike there was an abbreviated one since Chris was just now getting over the cold I had passed along to her. We did find a couple caches and even saw the remnants of an old mining operation. A few days later, we came back to hike the Guindani trail. This 4.2 mile loop starts in the state park and then heads into the Coronado National Forest. It is a beautiful hike with great views of some of the Whetstone Mountains. There were quite a few flowers in bloom and even several small pools of water in some of the wash areas. 

Many Flowers in Bloom

View of Whetstone Mountains

Old Mine Artifact

At two points along the trail, we come to a gate with a sign asking that you close the gate behind you. The barb wire fence extended over some rough terrain for quite a distance. It wasn't at all clear what the fence was containing although cattle is a good guess. Nor was it clear which side of the fence the cattle were on. After getting to roughly the halfway point we had some great views. Even better was the fact that it was nearly all downhill from here. 

Another Flower in Bloom

View Near Top of Guindani Trail

 We saw a couple heading towards us with a dog nearby. We at first assumed the dog was theirs until we saw a whole pack of dogs accompanying 2 guys on horseback. All the dogs had elaborate radio collars around their necks. Some were a quite friendly and inquisitive as they passed by. Other were a bit skittish and needed a little coaxing to get them to pass. The cowboys commented there were 19 dogs in total. One of them, Buster, was apparently too afraid of us to even get close. It hightailed back down the trail from where it had just come. The two cowboys stopped and continually called for Buster, as we made a turn out of their sight, we started calling for Buster but never did see the dog. We suspect it went off trail either high or low to avoid us getting too close. Had Buster given us a chance, I think he would have liked us!

Cowboys Calling for Buster

Chris Snuck Past the Sign and Lived!

Windmill for Water Pump

Great View Looking Back

Another day trip was to Coronado National Memorial. It is about 50 miles south of Benson, right on the Mexico border. We had expected the area before entering the Memorial would be desolate but were surprised to see lots of businesses and homes. Not run down shacks, but large, expensive looking places. We stopped at the visitor's center and found the geocache located there was inside the building. The seasoned ranger used this opportunity to explain to the newbie about the fact there is a geocache sitting next to the desk.

More Flowers

We decided to drive up to Montezuma Pass Overlook as our first stop. After the first mile or so, the road goes from paved to dirt but it was in good shape. Some of the dips through washes were actually constructed of concrete to prevent washouts from heavy rains. There are a large number of switchbacks as you gain over 1300 feet in elevation. There is a reasonable size paved parking area up top with restrooms and a picnic table. There were also half a dozen Border Patrol vehicles parked up there. Two of the trucks were similar to a power company cherry pickers - with hydraulic stabilizers leveling the vehicles but instead of a articulating arm with basket, there was an arm with some sort of camera system high above. At first we thought they were just parked there without any agents around but then we noticed the cameras slowly rotating back and forth. One truck was aimed down the pass to the west and the other to the east. Good luck getting up here unnoticed!

Border Patrol is Watching

The Coronado Peak trail starts in the parking area and is less than 1/2 mile long but does gain 300 feet. We head up there and take in the views. The border wall with Mexico is quite visible to the east but less clear to the west. After the short hike we have our picnic lunch at the table with awesome views. At one point we see a border agent get out of the truck so we know they are not unmanned monitoring stations.

View to the West

View of Road Up to Montezuma Pass

Our Picnic Spot

After heading back down the switchbacks, we stop at Cave Trail parking area. The hike is only 3/4 mile one way,  it does gain nearly 500 feet. At the top is a cave that you can enter. It isn't guarded. There is no guide. You simply crawl thru the hole, scramble down about 35 feet of rocks and enter a pretty good sized cave. There is no lighting so you must provide your own flashlight or headlamp. Chris didn't want to venture in so I went in alone. We had seen others coming down the trail but nobody else was in the cave as I explored. I debated about hiding in some corner of the cave, turning out my light and waiting for somebody else to happen by. I'm pretty sure I could scare the heck out of most people. Probably a good thing I didn't follow through with that idea. 

Entrance to Cave

As long as you stay near the center of the cave, it was more than tall enough to walk around comfortably. Since there were no signs and Chris was waiting outside for my return, I stopped when I thought I was at the end. After I got back out, Chris asked if I had seen the opening to daylight on the far end. Nope I hadn't so apparently I missed a portion of the cave.

Flowing Columns

Looking Out with Chris Waiting in Opening