Fantastic Scenery

Wow! Larry and Jean took us to a nearby spot that we hadn't seen before. We'd driven in the vicinity before but never ventured past the locked gates barring our way. This time, we crawled under the gates and ventured in. It was well worth the walk. The scenery and views were spectacular to say the least.

Evidently, the property is owned by a gold and copper mining company located in the Globe/Miami area. At one time there used to be a small ranch there with a house and cattle operation. We heard that the caretaker skipped out and didn't notify the owners and rumor has it that the house was stripped of plumbing and wiring by some ne'er-do-wells looking to make a fast buck by selling the copper. Harrumph ... even in the boondocks we're not immune to these low-life idiots. Anyway, the mining company had the house bulldozed, probably to avoid any liability in the future.

The area has some of the prettiest scenery we've seen anywhere. Sycamore and Cottonwood trees were showing their Fall colors and the skies were a brilliant blue. We enjoyed our hike through the woods and along the beautiful washes along the way.

Camp Reno

It was a beautiful Fall day here. Our temperatures were in the mid to upper 50's with a freshness in the air that's truly invigorating!
We headed out this morning with Larry & Jean to check out the area around Camp Reno. Camp Reno was a short-lived cavalry post established in 1867 and then abandoned in 1870. During that short period of time marauding Apaches were brought under control after several major skirmishes in the surrounding areas. We've been there before so we thought that since it was such a beautiful day, we'd show it to Larry & Jean.
Here's a link to a post we did back in January'07 when we went there last and researched a bit of history of the place. Ralph and Laura's Backroad Adventures: Camp Reno and Sutter's Store
Nothing much has changed there except the road was a bit rougher than the last time but all in all it wasn't too bad. We hauled our metal detector along with us but after some searching we turned up nothing but some very old rusty cans, barbed wire and a sardine can key....not exactly treasure. Ah well, maybe next time.
Below are a few shots of the area, nice scenery and a super way to spend a few hours.

Reno Creek with sycamore trees wearing Fall colors

The old desert rats

Some cowboys were herding cattle in the area

Horse Shoe Bend Jeeping

Beautiful Jeep run, beautiful day! We headed out early this morning with Jean and Larry to see Horse Shoe Bend. It's really good to be back on the trail with them again. The trail leading there was pretty good with just a few rocky places, but all in all, pretty smooth sailing without any of the scary places found on so many other trails. Larry and Jean had been there before so while we were in the vicinity, we checked out a lovely little oasis in the desert, a bamboo grove with clear cold water flowing from a natural spring, tall walnut trees added even more shade.
After spending a bit of time at the oasis, we headed for the Salt River and Horse Shoe Bend. WOW! What a neat spot, the Salt River meanders through canyons on its way to Roosevelt Lake.
It would be a super place to camp, although it's a bit isolated, we'd want another couple or two to spend the night with us as well. On the way down the mountain the views of the Salt River were spectacular, just like something taken from a postcard.

The spring

Spectacular views along the way

The Salt River on its way to Roosevelt Lake

Jean waving hello

Larry and Ralph playing in the Salt River