Willcox, Arizona is partially known for its wineries. The area produces 74% of the wine grapes in Arizona. We had wine tasted here in the past and were pleasantly surprised. Unfortunately, because of the stay at home orders, the wineries were closed and not considered essential. The governor must not be a wine aficionado.
Willcox, Arizona
Willcox is in Cochise County, Arizona. It’s located in the Sulphur Springs Valley, which has occasional seasonal lakes. The Willcox Playa is a remnant of Lake Cochise, but for the most part is a large, dry and dusty lake bed. We previously stayed in Dragoon, Arizona and explored the area. We needed somewhere with a low population and low COVID-19 exposure to hunker down for a week.
Trains run day and night through the area, but they don’t use their horns, making it peaceful, relaxing rumble when they go by.
At an elevation of 4,167 ft, Willcox’s higher altitude gives it a milder climate and more rainfall than Phoenix or Tucson.
There were still plenty of spring wildflowers in the area even though it was late April.
From Elephant Butte, New Mexico we traveled about 4 hours though an insane amount of bugs to reach Arizona. This was the jeep windshield after 2 hours of driving and after cleaning it at a gas station. Disgusting.
Grande Vista RV Park, Willcox, Arizona
They had full service, fast Wifi and were not crowded. The staff were amazing. A budget and quiet RV park away from the masses.
Our Roadmaster tow bar and baseplate were installed by Camping World when we first purchased the RV. The entire baseplate was detaching from the Jeep. Apparently they did not properly torque or apply Loctite Red to the bolts during installation. Thank goodness we didn’t lose the jeep while towing it. We called Roadmaster and they sent a repair kit for free. It took us a couple of hours, but we feel better knowing it was secured correctly. Sandy enjoyed doing the heavy lifting and torquing. Youtube videos are so helpful, but, thank you Dave Parker for all those car repair projects when we were teenagers.
Chiricahua National Monument
Chiricahua was closed like so many other National Parks and Monuments during this pandemic, even though they are the ultimate in social distancing activities. We visited in the past, so it was a great opportunity to explore adjacent areas that were open.
A few high clearance only roads provided access to some low use hiking trails.
It was nice to see claret cup cactus blooming again.
The back country was scenic and a nice getaway from the blowing dust and heat of Willcox.
A few deer were in the area.
Fort Bowie National Historic Site
Even though the Fort Bowie facilities were closed, the hiking trails were open. It was a pleasure talking to the volunteers, who still show up and are always filled with so much information.
An easy 3 mile hike at 5000 ft elevation.
Along the way there were wildflowers and remnants of building.
The cemetery was established before Fort Bowie and has been well preserved. The original cemetery contained 112 graves.
In 1862 Fort Bowie was established by the California Volunteers. In 1868 a more permanent fort with a hospital, barracks, corrals, and a trading post were created.
There were numerous engagements with the Chiricahua Apaches eventually cumulating with the surrender of Geronimo in 1886. The Apaches were then banished to Florida and Alabama. The fort was abandoned in 1894.
Leslie Canyon National Wildlife Refuge
It was established to protect the endangered Yaqui chub and Yaqui topminnow fish. The hiking trail was open, but the rest was closed.
It seemed odd there was water in southern Arizona, but then we’ve been to Death Valley and found water too.
The drive was on dirt roads, remote, close to the Mexico border with lots of signs warning about smuggling and illegals, but scenic none the less.
Even though it was 95 F, there were still wildflowers blooming.
The area is desolate, rural, hot, and remote, but it is beautiful and a pleasure to revisit.
