Trip South - Benson, AZ

 We spend 10 days at the Escapee Park in Benson, AZ while waiting for our spot in Tucson

We do a couple hikes, one behind the water tower

 There are arches made from rocks dispersed around the Park and we find one on the trail

 

 

A nice view of the Park from up here

 

 

Tucson and I walk around the park each morning

Tucson really likes it here

He even gets to meet a squirrel up close and personal

and this young Coopers Hawk keeps an eye on him

 

 

No fishing today

Tucson did not like being filmed and  gave them an eyeful

 

 

 Another walk takes us by some interesting desert creatures

a Giant Anteater

a large bird of prey keeping an eye out on the mountains

and a couple seals

The town of Benson is small but quaint - a replica of  the old Train Depot is now a visitor center and museum

Benson was created out of the union of the Southern Pacific Railroad and the mining regions of the San Pedro Valley. The Southern Pacific, coming overland from California, chose the Benson site to cross the San Pedro River. It was necessary to establish a junction point to obtain ore from and ship freight to the mines at Tombstone, Fairbank, Contention and Bisbee. Copper and silver ore was brought in covered wagons to Benson and then shipped out on the railroad.

Here Gary is next to the "Angel Buggy", used to transport Nitro Glycerin to the Dynamite mixing buildings, it you hit a bump along the way, you became an instant angel

a great overhead train track

you can use the train simulator to run the trains

There are several Murals around town

I even ran into some friends from Desert Trails staying here that we have seen in a few years, had a nice visit and plan to meet up again in Tucson.. 

 

The woman at the Visitor Center recommend touring the Mescal Movie Set .

 

 

The film history of the Mescal area dates back over 70 years with scenes from Winchester 73 with Jimmy Stewart, The Big Country with Gregory Peck, and Cimarron with Glenn Ford.  The physical set was built as a town in 1968-1969 for Monte Walsh, starring Lee Marvin and Jack Palance. 

Mescal Movie Set t was home to the movies Tombstone, The Quick and the Dead, and over 80 other westerns. Notable actors filmed walking its dusty boardwalks were Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, Lee Marvin, Sharon Stone, Clint Eastwood, to name a few.

The Mescal Set was an alternative town set for many episodes of western TV series, including Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The Magnificent Seven, and Little House on the Prairie.

Ours is the last tour before a Halloween Trick or Treat event

Looks the the Headless Horseman doesn't want to miss out, but not sure how he will eat the candy

There are some stunts and shows put on

a fun little outing.  Tomorrow we head out to Tucson.

We enjoy a full moon

 

and one last sunset

Trip South - White Rock, NM to Benson, AZ

Next stop is Albuquerque, NM to visit friends from Desert Trails in Tucson.  Everything was full so we stay at a Boondockers Welcome spot, it's a full house.

They have a beautiful oasis garden we are free to use

 We are just here for 2 nights, our main purpose is visiting our friends Nate and Jeanne

We have a nice lunch and visit,

Tucson enjoyed the backyard "grass"

Time to move on - next stop Deming, NM

We find out where a lot of the shipping containers are.  This train was a couple miles long.

A rest stop at the Rio Salad0 Sand Dunes

We pass through the funky town of Hatch, NM - renowned for their green chiles

and we make it to Deming to the Escapee Park for the night.

We head out the next day towards Benson, AZ.  For some reason the highway department wants Gary to know that exit 15 is only 1 mile away.

Fortunately no dust storms today

and we make it to Arizona!

Past Texas Canyon - watch out for Indians

and we make it to the Escapee Park in Benson, AZ

We get a great spot

and right across from the Rec Hall and Laundry.  

Will be here a week until our reservation in Tucson starts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trip South - Bandelier part 2

 

We find out there is a 2nd Section of Bandelier - Tsankawi - just down the road from the Visitor's Center so we check it out before leaving.

It is easy to drive by as it looks like just a trailhead. 

We come to an interesting rock formation.  The trail at Tsankawi includes narrow trenches and ladders.

Around the corner is our first ladder

Gary makes it up

Quite a view

Let's see where it leads us

It follows the ridge

 

 

Looks like they were a peaceful people

I think we missed a turn somewhere

 

We finally find ladder no. 2

I spot a sign to the left and check it out.  looks like we had lost the trail at sometime, will remember to go back this way!

 

We take it to the next level

An even better view

Finally a level smooth trail

I spot my first pottery shard

And then more

 

I follow the trail a bit further and follow the trail sign

The trail gets a bit narrow

And there is a 3rd ladder

We decide to go back the way we came as it is easier and we need to move on to Albuquerque

We.spot more pottey

And some Pueblo ruins

What is left if the Village of Tsankawi, built in the 1400s A.D. by ancient Pueblo Indians sometimes known as the Anasazi.

 

We go back down ladder 2 and follow the trail we missed.  Don't know how that happened.   The trails have been worn into the rock 8 to 24 inches or more as the people traveled from the mesa tops to their farms in the canyons below

Then back down ladder 1

What a great hike!