dragoon mountains 9 comments
Where did the winter go? My lack of posting might seem to indicate that not much has been happening. In a way that’s true. Not too much exciting in the way of news. However, plenty of days out hiking around the region. Evenings playing music. Spare time in the past few weeks making art for the Central School’s fundraiser Mystery Ball (more about that in my next post).
My time in Arizona draws near to an end. Another three weeks or so and I’ll be on the road again, camping my way toward the northeast. A few more weeks beyond that and I’ll be back to working on the old house in Nova Scotia. I have a pretty ambitious season planned – more house restoration work, new garden patches, some trail improvements to make it easier to wander over the property. While I’m determined to enjoy the last days here in the southwest, I must confess that I’m anxious to get back to work at Round Hill.
Just a few photos this time. All of these were taken on the west and north sides of the Dragoon Mountains in Cochise County. I don’t believe I’ve ever written about them in past years, but this is one of the areas where I have taken a good many hikes with friends, or alone with my dogs. The mountains are a wild jumble of granite boulders unlike just about anything I’ve seen while traveling in North America – with the one exception of the Alabama Hills outside of Lone Pine, California. There are some strong similarities to that landscape of gigantic weathered granite boulders.
Aside from the fantastic geology, the Dragoons are of particular historic interest as well. They were the last refuge of the Chiricahua Apache peoples led by Cochise. The range forms a natural fortress, which is known to this day as Cochise Stronghold. When hiking along the network of trails it is easy to imagine how Cochise’s people were able move about the confusing canyons and washes, successfully evading capture for many years. It is also a place of natural mystery – of great mounds and peaks in strange zoomorphic and anthropomorphic shapes contorted by the ever-shifting shadows.
9 Responses to 'dragoon mountains'
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hi, bev – the winter passed by rather quickly, yet here i sit this morning looking out upon a light snowfall. just the landscape will be frosted for a few hours – the streets remain clear. it will all end by lunch when the temps rise. underneath this layer of white are full blooming heathers in pink and mauve, primroses in every color, golden crocuses, and a fragrant viburnum in pale pink bloom. such a contradiction!
it hardly seems reasonable that you will soon be on your way across country again. time is moving quickly, something i heard in my childhood happens to us as we age! i, too, am eager to see all the work you will be doing on the homeplace and land. it is always remarkable to see the vast progress at season’s end. i wonder how the pups are doing. i know you had some concerns about your older one – is that sage? i hope all 3 of you have enjoyed your winter retreat and will have a safe journey home.
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robin – While similar, I find the Alabama Hills a little darker and more devoid of vegetation, but then they are overshadowed by the magnificent backdrop of Mount Whitney. Fantastic landscapes, indeed. The winter did seem to pass quickly this year – perhaps that had to do with my much shortened route west last autumn. I really missed that period of wandering that has been the prelude to each winter away from home. I hope to do the longer route this coming autumn, but that seems such a long way off just now!.
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Sky – It’s always good to think of the plants that are so impatiently waiting for the snow to melt back. I miss that aspect of the transition from winter to spring. It seems so true that time appears to move more quickly as we grow older. My wanderings across North America seem to heighten that sense of the passage of seasons. Just the other day, I was remarking to a friend on how I feel such a strong pull to the north and the south with the coming of spring and autumn. When one lives such a nomadic life, there is an almost constant feeling of “being ready” to move on. I have not really lost that feeling over the past four years. Now it seems more natural than being settled in one place to watch the seasons come and go. I don’t really know what that means, but it is just a part of me now. My younger collie, Sage, is doing very well. She just turned three and has grown to be tall and strong and such a rock climber! Sabrina is getting very old and I’m almost at the point of having to make some decision about what to do. Still, she enjoys her dinners and lying in the sunlight watching the day go by. She shuffles around and can’t do stairs anymore, but life still seems to hold some interest for her, so I just carry on giving her the little bit of assistance she needs to hop a step or two. If there is one thing that I learned from caring for Don and my dad, it is that we usually know that, when the time comes, we know what is right. -
it is such a hard decision to make, bev, or was for me. i was finally able to separate out the selfish part of myself from the part who had to be responsible and step up and do the right thing. but the pain and sadness after two such circumstances may, in fact, contribute greatly to why we don’t have another dog now. i had a beautiful sable and white sheltie who lived 17+ years and a darling wire hair fox terrier who lived 15+ years. the sheltie was an extraordinary companion. the terrier was delightful entertainment. 😀 i adored them.
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Wow. I wish I could walk there.
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Sky – Yes, it’s a really difficult decision. It would be the kind of decision that Don and I would make together. This time it’s also made more difficult by the fact that Sabrina and I went through so much together after Don died. I already know that losing her is going to be hard because she is the last “living link” to Don. I dread facing all of this alone, but at some point, I will have to do so. However, I will still have Sage, and eventually, probably a new young collie.
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Dale – It’s a beautiful place. I wish you could walk through and just be there. -
Just beautiful shots. Was it a tour or did you just happen upon some people? Looks as if there is no particular path other than winging between the boulders. Thank you for the history, also. I will pass that link on to my son, who is my historian of Indian lore.
My neighbor had a dog when her husband was alive, who outlived her husband by a good number of years. It was terrible for her to finally have to make the decision you spoke of, both because she loved the dog and because it was a link to her husband. Both Sage and Sabrina are beautiful dogs.
Thank you for sharing your winter with your photos.
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Hi Joan – Thanks! The photo with the people was taken while I was hiking with a few friends back in December. I generally hike alone or with a couple of friends.
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Hi Bev
I really enjoyed your photos of the boulders I always find these unusual formations really interesting. I will have to try to get out to the Alberta badlands this summer..
Regards
Guy
Such a magnificently beautiful place. I’ve hiked around the Alabama Hills outside Lone Pine, and I do see the stunning similarity.
Hard to imagine you’ll be on the road heading back to the northeast already, Bev. Where did this non-winter go? So soon over.