I took Sadie and Zeke with me. They settled in quickly in the back of the Honda.
My plan was to hike the Escudilla trail in the Apache-Sitgreave National Forest on Saturday. Kevin and I did this trail back in 2008 with the hiking club. It and most of the forest of the Blue Range were burned during the Wallow Fire (May 29, 2011 – Jul 8, 2011) when the Malboef cousins carelessly let their campfire burn when they left for a hike. Their two dogs burned to death in that fire, too. The fire became Arizona's largest wildfire, destroying 538,049 acres. Escudilla Peak before the fire was one of Arizona's top fall hikes because of the aspen. I wanted to see if that rating still stands.
I didn't leave until after 9am. I got on SR92 to Sierra Vista, then continued north on SR90, the I-10E to US 191 east of Wilcox. US191 is a beautiful route along Arizona's eastern rim, reaching an elevation of over 9200' just before reaching Hannagan Meadow. It's almost seven hours of driving from our home near the border, but the scenery and the towns along the way are a demonstration of Arizona's history: open cattle ranges, cottonfields near Safford and Solomon, the largest open-pit copper mine in Morenci, and the high mesas of the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest. It's a scenic drive for most of its miles (US 191 shares 20 miles of I-10 at Wilcox) and I've driven most of the road that leads to the Canadian border. There is so much to see along the highway's 1624 miles; I could plan a road trip and take a month to see it all.
The road begins its climb from Safford (2953') along the 40 miles of meandering road to Clifton (3478') and Morenci (4747'). US Highway now is called the Coronado Trail (although the Spanish conquistador never took the route, preferring the lower valley to the east for his horses). The first 30 miles are curvy and one can't drive fast. It takes two hours to drive the 70 miles to Hannagan Meadow, and I take even longer with the dogs so that we can stop and stretch our legs along any of the many trailheads along the way.
The Wallow fire of 2011 becomes evident north of the Blue Vista, a drive-around turn-off with rest room and picnic area, but there is new growth visible. Aspens are now taking over where once mature firs and Ponderosa Pines grew, their charred trunks still rising above the seven-year-old aspens. The aspens were in the prime, glistening golden in the late afternoon sun. This is what I came to see, and I was rewarded very well.
I even got to spot elk along the way. The same herd was in the same area the next morning. They were grazing along the road and seemed oblivious of my curiosity. The dogs didn't even bark. Fire damage became more intense as I neared Alpine and Nutrioso.
It was much colder at the higher elevation. Predicted lows tonight in the area were expected to dip in the upper 30s. Brr! I made Springerville my destination for the night, hoping to get a dog-friendly hotel room. The White Mountain Motel came up on my Google search, but it claimed "no vacancy" when the website said there was one room left. What were my options now? Springerville, an old logging town of around 2000, is 2000' lower than the Escudilla trailhead, meaning it would be warmer for the night.
I stopped at the McDonald's in town for a quick meal. There are several restaurants off Main Street, but I wasn't in the mood to spend a lot of money on a meal. The town was dark, with the waning gibbous moon not rising until 9:20pm. The only option of walking the dogs anywhere was at the city park, off a residential area on Mohave Road. Posted signs stated that the park closes at 9pm. I parked in the lighted parking lot and walked up a road that leads to the city cemetery and views of the Round Valley around me. I had to use a flashlight to see the road. A cop stopped me as he was driving uphill.
"Have you seen a gun?" he asked me.
And here I thought he was stopping me because Zeke was off-leash. "A gun? No sir" I replied.
"A man shot himself around here. He's in the hospital now and still alive" explained the cop, but now police officers were scouting the dark park for the gun. What a way to be welcomed to town! I hope the man makes a full recovery. Suicide is no laughing matter. I managed a mere mile of walking. Tomorrow's hike would make up for the deficit.
I drove around the Springerville-Eager towns (both are sister towns that run into one another, with a combined population of just over 7000), trying to find an RV park. On the west side of Springerville, off US60, I saw the bright lights of Avery's, a BBQ place I remember reading about on Yelp. I'm no BBQ fan, but I stopped in to check out the place. Avery's is a combination gas station/convenience store/restaurant/bar/RV park/U-Haul renter. I checked into the bar to see what beers were on tap and saw ten craftbeers, most which I hadn't tried yet. Three were from the closest brewpub in Pinetop, another logging town 50 miles to the West. I was sold. While locals were enjoying a night of country dancing, I sat at the bar slowly tasting the beer. I was too full of cheap fast food to eat anything else, but I enjoyed the bar. Everyone working at Avery's was very pleasant and informative. I can see why the establishment gets a solid five-star rating. Closing hours are posted as 8:30pm, but one of the owners told me "We close when the last people leave." When I left the bar to crash for the night at 10:30pm, there were still people at the bar and cars in the parking lot.
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