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Sometimes you just keep getting kicked in the shin. That describes our semi-failed trip to Globe.
The plan was to take the BS up the Apache Trail past Roosevelt Dam and down to Globe for the night, then spend the next morning at Boyce Thompson Arboretum. Just a quick overnight, a nice meal or two at new places, and back home. Easy enough. Past me wasn’t prepared for what ended up happening.
After a quick fill-up on Superstition at the base of AZ-88 (Apache Trail), we headed northeast past the Lost Dutchman Museum and began the climb through the ravines and gorges to Canyon Lake and Tortilla Flat. All paved and in excellent condition.
After a bit you reach a scenic lookout where the pavement ends. The dirt road at this point is wide and reasonably well-maintained, but washboarded like crazy. It’s also fairly silty, so I went into Off-Road mode at this point as I could feel a fair bit of slippage and understeer in the turns. NBD.
After a few miles you get to the AZ Game and Fish station, and this is where the fun begins.
The road narrows considerably, and even with all the work AZDOT has done recently, it can get pretty sketchy.
It was about this time that because of the grade (both up & down) and the ridiculously tight hairpins that I felt that this was a good time to try out Trail Control. Gotta say, I love it, but with the caveat that because it uses a massive amount of engine braking, your fuel economy will go down the toilet. Soon enough though, and after passing a couple fools that thought taking their Altima and Crown Vic across the trail was a good idea, We got to the bottom of the gorge and reached Fish Creek Bridge.
Thankfully we encountered almost no traffic (aside from the aforementioned idiots), because my kidney had taken a beating and I needed a chance to deal with it...
The remainder of the drive back up (and down, and up) was nowhere near as adrenaline-inducing, once again thanks to AZDOT for the repairs and upgrades they've done over the years. On one hand, it makes it all more accessible, but on the other it means that one of the best drives in the region will be permanently nerfed. I'm sure the Sheriff's Office won't mind having to station a deputy at either end on the weekends to turn the fools around, though.
Once back on the pavement, we moved on for a fair bit following the river and passing by Apache Lake before finally reaching Roosevelt Dam, the largest stone block dam in the world at the time of its construction.
Just before the junction with AZ-188, you get your first view of the Roosevelt Bridge and Roosevelt Lake.
Completely missed in my planning for the trip (the first of many things I missed. Foreshadowing.), we made an unscheduled stop at Tonto National Monument, site of ancient cliff dwellings and other geologic and archeological goodies. While there, the rangers suggested a stop at Besh Ba Gowah, a prehistoric (no written records or history) site that was already long abandoned and in ruins when it was first seen by the Apache, who, because of the miners that were already there prospecting gold, silver (and later, copper) gave the Apache the idea to call it Besh Ba Gowah, literally "Metal Camp". The white man, boring as ever, just called the whole area "Globe".
Given the hour, we decided to head for dinner before checking in to our hotel. Now this is where things started going off the rails a bit. First, there's not a ton of places to eat in Globe-Miami. I mean, there are plenty of restaurants, but they're kind of limited on variety, and more importantly, opening hours. We did manage to find a great little Sonoran place in Miami (Guayo's El Rey, definitely recommend) that turned out to be closing early but still with enough time to get dinner in. While we were headed there, though, we saw construction notice signage along US 60 announcing repeated closures between Miami and Superior, including the next day (Tuesday) between 9am to 2pm, necessitating a 75-mile detour to get past it.
OK, not a huge issue, I guess, we just get out of the hotel and on our way to the Arboretum bright and early. So, checking the opening time for Tuesday, I see IT'S CLOSED! How I missed that is beyond me, but that seemed like how the trip was starting to shake out.
Now I'm thinking (always dangerous), what's the point of the hotel tonight? It's only an hour and a half or so home from the restaurant. Through Phoenix rush hour. Two and a half hours, then. I get one last bright idea, figuring it's blow up in my face as well. 60 West to the 202 loop SOUTH, all the way around to its terminus at I-10 on the west side, then east to 43rd Ave.
Amazingly, it was the smartest move I made all day. Absolutely clear sailing all the way, only one stop en route (kidneys, remember?), and back home by 5:30pm.
Lessons Learned:
The plan was to take the BS up the Apache Trail past Roosevelt Dam and down to Globe for the night, then spend the next morning at Boyce Thompson Arboretum. Just a quick overnight, a nice meal or two at new places, and back home. Easy enough. Past me wasn’t prepared for what ended up happening.
After a quick fill-up on Superstition at the base of AZ-88 (Apache Trail), we headed northeast past the Lost Dutchman Museum and began the climb through the ravines and gorges to Canyon Lake and Tortilla Flat. All paved and in excellent condition.
After a bit you reach a scenic lookout where the pavement ends. The dirt road at this point is wide and reasonably well-maintained, but washboarded like crazy. It’s also fairly silty, so I went into Off-Road mode at this point as I could feel a fair bit of slippage and understeer in the turns. NBD.
After a few miles you get to the AZ Game and Fish station, and this is where the fun begins.
The road narrows considerably, and even with all the work AZDOT has done recently, it can get pretty sketchy.
It was about this time that because of the grade (both up & down) and the ridiculously tight hairpins that I felt that this was a good time to try out Trail Control. Gotta say, I love it, but with the caveat that because it uses a massive amount of engine braking, your fuel economy will go down the toilet. Soon enough though, and after passing a couple fools that thought taking their Altima and Crown Vic across the trail was a good idea, We got to the bottom of the gorge and reached Fish Creek Bridge.
Thankfully we encountered almost no traffic (aside from the aforementioned idiots), because my kidney had taken a beating and I needed a chance to deal with it...
The remainder of the drive back up (and down, and up) was nowhere near as adrenaline-inducing, once again thanks to AZDOT for the repairs and upgrades they've done over the years. On one hand, it makes it all more accessible, but on the other it means that one of the best drives in the region will be permanently nerfed. I'm sure the Sheriff's Office won't mind having to station a deputy at either end on the weekends to turn the fools around, though.
Once back on the pavement, we moved on for a fair bit following the river and passing by Apache Lake before finally reaching Roosevelt Dam, the largest stone block dam in the world at the time of its construction.
Just before the junction with AZ-188, you get your first view of the Roosevelt Bridge and Roosevelt Lake.
Completely missed in my planning for the trip (the first of many things I missed. Foreshadowing.), we made an unscheduled stop at Tonto National Monument, site of ancient cliff dwellings and other geologic and archeological goodies. While there, the rangers suggested a stop at Besh Ba Gowah, a prehistoric (no written records or history) site that was already long abandoned and in ruins when it was first seen by the Apache, who, because of the miners that were already there prospecting gold, silver (and later, copper) gave the Apache the idea to call it Besh Ba Gowah, literally "Metal Camp". The white man, boring as ever, just called the whole area "Globe".
Given the hour, we decided to head for dinner before checking in to our hotel. Now this is where things started going off the rails a bit. First, there's not a ton of places to eat in Globe-Miami. I mean, there are plenty of restaurants, but they're kind of limited on variety, and more importantly, opening hours. We did manage to find a great little Sonoran place in Miami (Guayo's El Rey, definitely recommend) that turned out to be closing early but still with enough time to get dinner in. While we were headed there, though, we saw construction notice signage along US 60 announcing repeated closures between Miami and Superior, including the next day (Tuesday) between 9am to 2pm, necessitating a 75-mile detour to get past it.
OK, not a huge issue, I guess, we just get out of the hotel and on our way to the Arboretum bright and early. So, checking the opening time for Tuesday, I see IT'S CLOSED! How I missed that is beyond me, but that seemed like how the trip was starting to shake out.
Now I'm thinking (always dangerous), what's the point of the hotel tonight? It's only an hour and a half or so home from the restaurant. Through Phoenix rush hour. Two and a half hours, then. I get one last bright idea, figuring it's blow up in my face as well. 60 West to the 202 loop SOUTH, all the way around to its terminus at I-10 on the west side, then east to 43rd Ave.
Amazingly, it was the smartest move I made all day. Absolutely clear sailing all the way, only one stop en route (kidneys, remember?), and back home by 5:30pm.
Lessons Learned:
- Double-check all planned stops, activities, and dining options for hours and days before committing
- Trail Control is the real deal, don't be afraid to use it
- Off-Road mode is absolutely recommended off-pavement, especially where there's sand or silt over a hard surface
- Arrive at your trailhead with as full a tank as possible, because Trail Control can and will suck it up faster than you imagine
- Anticipate biological needs. Staying hydrated also means planning the excess fluid you consume. Old Guy Wisdom: "Never pass up an opportunity to use a restroom"
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