Arizona rocks!

Monday, March 14, 2011

BENSON, AZ – On our last full day in Benson, we headed east and south to visit the Chiricahua National Monument, known for its amazing rock formations.

As we headed eastward, we had another chance to see the formations we had passed on the way to Benson last week near Dragoon. In the midst of the normal prairie landscape, for about a mile, are the most incredible, enormous rocks piled on one another or spilled across the ground like giant building blocks. Then the terrain resumes its prairie appearance again. It would be great to get a geologist’s explanation for this anomaly.

When we got to Willcox, we turned off the I-10 and headed south, through the town and into the desert beyond. It was another clear, sunny day with a perfect temperature. One could get used to this! We passed several ranches and glimpsed, among the grazing cattle, a few longhorns with their lethal-looking headgear.

The national monument – really a state park – brought us in to hilly country where there were actual trees of considerable height, able to grow in higher elevations where water was more accessible. Apache Indians had long inhabited these areas, and for a period of time tolerated the arrival of European settlers before they began to confront them, under the leadership of Cochise and Geronimo. They surrendered in 1886 and were removed to a distant reservation.

One of the first families to settle here were the Neil and Emma Erickson from Sweden, who built a homestead they called Faraway Ranch. Despite their isolation, they embraced their surroundings and explored them thoroughly, eventually starting up a guest facility to show them off to visitors, especially on horseback. They showed pictures of the area at county fairs and to chambers of commerce to generate interest in the idea of a state park, which was established finally in 1924.

Almost as soon as we got past the entry gate, the road began to rise and the trees became more dense. We stopped at the Visitor Centre to learn a bit more about the area and try to get an idea about the walking trails, succeeding with the first goal. We learned that thousands of years ago the region had been covered with a 2,000-foot layer of volcanic ash that, over time had developed deep vertical cracks. These were eventually sculpted by water, wind and ice into column-like structures, some with huge boulders stacked on top of each other. Grottoes had also been carved out.

Our second goal, to find maps or brochures describing the trails, wasn’t as successful.

So we followed the park map to the first lookout point, parked the truck and ate our lunch before heading out. We changed into our hiking boots, donned our Tilley hats, and loaded our water bottles and a snack into a backpack, which Val offered to carry. We walked over to look at the sign with information about the trails.

There was a choice of a 40-minute walk or a two- to three-hour trek, so we opted for the former so we could head further in to the park afterward to see more. After only a few yards in to the trail, we became confused and went back to see where we were supposed to go. Other hikers said they had been advised to follow the trail counter-clockwise for the short loop, so off we headed again.

It was spectacular. Both of us were armed with cameras, and they were clicking at every turn. Massive boulders were everywhere, carved into incredible shapes, some leaning on others, some teetering on top of bases that were so small it was hard to figure out why they didn’t topple!

On and on we went, awed and fascinated, but wondering, after a while, why we weren’t looping back yet and why we hadn’t seen any signs. When we finally did come across some, it was clear we were not on the 40-minute trail, as we’d been gone over an hour. At this point we had no choice but to carry on, grateful for our water supply and the cool, shady sections of the trail where we could stop and rest.

The path rose to the breathtaking heights (6800 feet) and then descended to the deep valley floor, where it was as forested as any Canadian nature trail, except for the odd yucca plant! After that, we had to make the ascent to the parking lot, which we reached with profound gratitude three hours after leaving it! I was totally wasted by this time, and so thankful Val had the stamina to drive us all the way back to our little trailer, where I collapsed into bed! I wonder if our leg muscles will function tomorrow!