Car Camping the Dragoon’s, Hiking the Chiricahua’s

Once a year or so Lauve and I enjoy a weekend camping with some of our hiking friends. This year Dave Hamra, Laura Walton, Dave & Sherry Hansen, Gwen Hyatt and her friend Brian. We settled on camp sites at the Triangle T Guest Ranch in Dragoon, AZ (http://www.azretreatcenter.com/). It’s a “past-its-prime” ranch where movie stars used to come and parts of the movie “3:10 to Yuma” was shot. The setting is in Texas Canyon along (actually, within ear-shot of) I10 east of Tucson. There are beautiful boulders everywhere. In fact, for those who are old enough, the opening credits of The Lone Range with Silver rearing are near these big boulders.

Friday and Saturday nights, we pitched our tents in a Mesquite Bosque on the Ranch grounds. It was cool enough to need jackets around the cocktail table. Dinner was simple - sandwiches from Beyond Bread.

Dave, Sherry, Lauve, Laura, Dave

Saturday, we did a short loop hike in Chiricahua National Monument. The trail winds through endless hoodoo’s different than what we were used to – they were square-ish rather than cylindrical.

This is cactus bloom season

Have to have beer and chips after the hike

Saturday night we ate at the Ranch’s Rock Saloon and Grill, also past-its-prime, but the brisket was good, the beer cold and they played country music.

Sunday morning we cooked bacon and pancakes – a great smell around a campsite.