Chiricahua National Monument, AZ

March 7-9, 2016

Following our brief foray into Mexico, we headed for the hills! We are a little desert weary and were looking forward to some green!  The Chiricahua (pronounced chee-ree-ca-wa) mountains did not fail to deliver.  After about six weeks without a drop of rain, we were excited to see clouds, then,  rain clouds on the horizon as we approached the mountains....

...and then, yes, actual rain!!!

 

 ...which quickly, and, only briefly, turned into wet snow!
We were beyond excited...Hmmm...

The campground at Chiricahua is small, basic (no hookups as in most federal parks) and restricts vehicles to under 29'.  We were glad we didn't exceed the limit when we saw the pronounced "dip" in the road...
We are finding that every campground seems to have its own culture.  The Chiricahua culture is one of serious hiking...The scenic road into the mountains which leads to several beautiful and relatively short hikes was closed for work, so the only hiking had to be done from the visitors centre, a half-mile walk from the campground....Everyone seemed to be heading out on 15-20 mile daily hikes.  Well, I guess we were the exception! We were quite content to limit ourselves to 4-5 miles/day...in the mountains' rarefied air, it was plenty!

 
 The Chiricahua, whose highest peaks tower at an impressive 9700', are known as a "wonderland of rocks" and, apparently, as the "standing up rocks" to some of the first inhabitants of the region.  They lived up to both names....

Mimi at the balancing rock....OK, not Mimi...

After a day of doing our best mountain goat imitations, on our second day, we opted for a level 4.5 mile hike to join a tour of "Faraway ranch", a homestead  with a fascinating history.  After its humble beginnings as a cabin in 1879, in 1886 Neil Erikson and Emma Sophia Peterson, both young Swedish immigrants, married and set out for Bonita Canyon to homestead. The Erickson Homestead, established in 1887, soon became the Erickson Ranch as they gradually took over the smaller homesteads in the canyon. They planted fruit trees and vegetables, and raised cattle. The Erickson Ranch period, 1887–1917, was significant in the areas of agriculture, architecture, industry, social history, conservation and the end of the frontier.  In 1903 Neil became a forest ranger with what soon became the US Forest Service.   He was promoted to District Ranger in 1917. He headquartered at the ranch until he received his promotion which required him to relocate, leaving the ranch in the hands of the eldest daughter, Lillian, who was a college graduate and part-time school teacher. She managed the cattle ranching operations and branched out into guest ranching, letting rooms, and providing guests with horses to ride and guided trail tours for a fee. In 1923 she suffered a head injury in a fall from a horse which compromised her vision immediately and took it completely 19 years later. Nevertheless even into her 80s she continued to run the ranch with the help of series of foremen and hired hands. Guest operations continued into the mid-1960s. In 1974 she moved for a time to a rest home in the nearby town of Wilcox but returned to the ranch and continued to manage it in some capacity until her death in 1977.  Quite a woman indeed!

During our hikes, we saw some wildlife, especially birds, two new to us, the acorn woodpecker and the Mexican Jay.

We also saw several white-tailed deer  

 But, most exciting of all, we spotted a white nosed coati mundi, my new favourite critter!
 

"The Coati is a raccoon-like omnivore, but is more slender and possesses a longer snout. It is a nosy, busy little creature with an insatiable appetite. The Coati is gregarious and noisy as it travel about in groups of from 6 to 24, holding its tail almost erect and chattering with others.
This grizzled gray-brown mammal grows 30 to 55 inches long and stands 8 to 12 inches high at the shoulder. It can weigh from 10 to 25 pounds. Males are almost twice as large as females.
The Coati has a long snout that is white near the tip and around the eyes, which often have dark patches above. The Coati has small ears, dark feet and a long, thin tail (as much as 2 feet long).
Coatis are diurnal, spending most of the day foraging for food, which includes insects, lizards, roots, fruits, nuts and eggs. They are very fond of fruit, especially the manzanita berry."

During our last evening, we walked up the hills behind the campground to admire the sunset reflecting on the "standing up rocks",

  we discovered a heart-shaped canyon...

 and, lucky Dave was treated to the antics of a local performer....funny, he was the only one in the audience...