On site we visit Faraway Ranch and are given a tour of the ranch house built by the Erickson family in 1888. From 1917 until 1973 it was operated as a guest ranch offering trail rides into Bonita Canyon. We return to the visitors center where Peggy buys a fancy walking stick and begins a collection of National Park medallions to stick on it.
As we tour the desert we notice that the mountains are actually islands in a sea of prairie. We cross Apache Pass (5,110 feet), the most used pass in Arizona to get to California. The Spanish called it Perto de la Muerte (the pass of death) because of all the violence that happened there by Apache ambushes.
I drop Peggy (with her walking stick) and the dogs off at the trail head to Ft. Bowie while I drive around to the visitor center. Her 1.5 mile hike takes her past the cemetery, the site of the Battle of Apache Pass, the Indian Agency, Apache Spring and the ruins of Ft. Bowie. It was built in 1862 to protect both the pass and Apache Spring, the only water for miles around. It was abandoned in 1894 after Geronimo was captured and sent to Florida.
As we drive through the town of Bowie we see a sign pointing to Hot Well Dunes Recreation Area. It's only 19 miles across the desert so we decide to give it a try. The pavement ends a mile outside of town and a few dusty miles later it turns to just two ruts. A few miles later we come to a wash we can't cross so we back up and spend the night here, 10 miles from anywhere. After another beautiful orange sunset, the stars come out and it is so quiet you can hear the sand being shifted by the wind.
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| Faraway Ranch built in 1888 |
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| "The Original Homeland Security" |
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| Ft. Bowie Cemetery |
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| Remains of Ft. Bowie |
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| More remains |
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| Guess Who??? |
