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- Joined
- Dec 8, 2014
- Messages
- 1,141
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- 3,982
- Location
- San Marcos, Texas
- First Name
- Steve
- Last Name
- Pylant
We hopped back on the BDR as we made a run for the border. This is kind of a tweener zone. You are riding between ranches and national forest stuff…..and riding between Arizona and Mexico. Came up through a little pass and looked down on Mexico, probably about 10 miles out from this view point.
I’ve always liked this tweener zone from an ecological standpoint….desert mountain scrub? It was easy going and we had the afterburners lit….for a few miles.
But then we got off of the wide gravel road and got on some two track to sniff out some bonus terrain. I had eye balled some off the beaten path stuff. We tip toed in….for about 16 miles of two track. Nice!!!
I camped one time right in this zone, I would say it was 1994. I had made friends with an older guy that I stumbled into previously on the trail somewhere in AZ. He was older, like the age I am now. He rode an old beater double-shock Yamaha air cooled 2 stroke 250. Makes me snicker thinking about me at my age now riding that piece of crap through here. But ol Mike was getting it done without complaint, he was smiling, it was what he could afford and I respected that. My normal riding buddies didn’t understand how I could adopt someone like him into our circle, but I like all kinds and he was interesting to say the least. He had picked up cooking in the ground when he lived in Hawaii and on that camp out we had a feast on mostly roasted vegetables. Not my norm, especially 20 year old me, but it really was a special experience and I actually liked some of the food. I think he had 3 buried fires going at once and I remember him kind of yelling at me while I was drinking beer to stay on top of the timer for my designated buried food. Me, distracted, at a moto camp drinking beer in the evening…..inconceivable.
That stuff/memories are all off my right shoulder as we made our way to the pass in the distance. Off my left shoulder is mostly dead end trails that gain elevation into the Huachuca Mountains, good hard enduro riding and some good caving. And there was one trail that actually went through into the Army Post. I think it was called Gate 9, a gap gate across a cattle guard with a pretty rough/rutted trail. I used that route often, it wasn’t really a short cut at all….but it felt cool to go that way, kind of a sneaker route and avoided the world. Even back then I liked the adventure of it and doing something most didn’t know about. I’ve often wondered what became of it after 9/11. I found an article on line that on the army post side, upper Garden Canyon Rd is now closed due to erosion in that area. Only firefighters are allowed to use it once you get so far up in there. Now I know. Makes me a little sad….even though I had no plans of going that way. Back to the ride….we headed for the border fence to parallel it for a bit. We might have been exceeding the speed limit, hypothetically.
Another thing came to mind…..I was curious about an old ghost town I remembered, Sonnyside. Thought we would poke up in that zone and see if there were any buildings left standing from when I was there 30 years ago. There wasn’t any internet back then, so I also decided to google it and see what the deal was. I remembered it having a funky Manson feeling to it back in the day. We went past “private” signs and sniffed around, cautiously.
Here is the gist. Samuel Donnelly had found religion but folks in California didn’t like his religious ideals, the elders of the typical churches weren’t having him and he couldn’t find a pulpit to spread “his” version of the word. In 1886 he went to Tombstone and tried to preach his salvation to that bunch, they weren’t having it either, the town riff raff or the town church folks. He was also getting into mining and ended up settling here at Sunnyside in the Huachuca Mountains and had a few converts follow him, like 20 to 30, and formed this “colony”. All the money was pooled and each person worked to the betterment of the entire camp. There were rumors of the typical kind involving a commune like this, the law got involved etc. In the end, nothing could be proven, the case against him was dropped in Cochise County in 1898. In 1901 Sam fell ill from Bright’s disease and died. By 1903 everyone had left for the most part. The google article I read about visiting the site present day said “We probably wouldn’t recommend the trip. Signs are almost non-existent, there are numerous opportunities to get lost, the road was terrible, and the area is rife with illegals and drug traffickers.” Cool story bro. The Super Enduro Strike Team didn’t have any trouble. But I was only able to find a couple buildings. Either I couldn’t find the others or the “private” property folks tore them down? Either way, we rolled out, rapidly. Hair was standing up a bit.
Alright, back to your regularly scheduled broadcast…..typical stuff the BDR traveler encounters as we got back on that track and were working our way up to Montezuma Pass.
From the pass looking towards the way we just came from:
And towards Mexico:
I dug up an old pic taken at the same exact spot….30 years ago. My good ol DR350 and an Army buddy’s XR250L that I talked him into buying. I loved that DR, it was like a rock star compared to the other plated bikes of the day.
I remember reading an article about the mountains when I lived in this area about how they grow 1” per year in this zone. I’m not so sure, look the same to me
. I googled it. The Himalayas continue to grow due to the Indian subcontinent plate going subduction under the Asian continental plate. I read the Himalayas grow .2” and as much as 2” in a year. They are also the youngest mountain range on earth. As for the Rockies and mountains in this zone, seems they are much older aren’t really pushing up much anymore. I read Colorado politicians have stunted growth in the area. Couple more pics looking west:
What’s up with all these names, Coronado, Montezuma? Coronado’s Expedition came through here in 1540 to find the Seven Cities of Gold. Ok, that’s legit I guess. The Montezuma name…..it is a misnomer. In the 1800s when whitey started settling the area and encountered cliff dwellings, they used the name of the Aztec ruler whose empire stretched across southern Mexico, 1300 miles away. The name stuck and got used other places like this pass. These next pics are looking towards the way we are headed, east, and the San Pedro River Valley. I believe it is the only river that flows out of Mexico into the US. It is kind of turd of a river, but water is life out here.
We switchbacked our way out of there and I snagged a pic of Bwdmax from a vantage point I thought was cool. You can see the border fence in the background as well, down on the valley floor.
I was still thinking about Bright’s disease, what the heck is that? Here you go…..inflammatory disease of the kidneys now known as acute glomerular nephritis. Oh ok, that’s right, now I understand. Or maybe I still have no idea. Try again. Basically it is when your kidney’s quit filtering properly, think dialysis. How do you know you have it….reduced urinary frequency, new high blood pressure, coughing caused by fluid in the lungs, blood in urine, facial swelling, lethargy. Got it. I mean I don’t got it, but I get it. Not a good plan in the 1800s in the middle of nowhere. I feel like we need a picture to go with this paragraph, I got nothing. So Bwdmax produced a pic of himself looking bright. I think this really helps.
We just Chevy Chased the town of Bisbee. If you haven’t been there, it is interesting. My old Army buddy (XR250L guy) dated a gal from there so I spent the night on her couch many times and soaked in the Bisbee scene. Back then it was really hippie. Now it seems more artsy fartsy, more money, you can tell they are really trying to capitalize on it. If you go there and need accommodations or motorcycle related assistance, you might look up Sterling Noren. He has a decent youtube following and opened a hotel there, The Jonquil, and hosts rallies every so often. Seems on the level. We just did a touch and go, stopped at the mine, then blew out of there.
This next section….we went east out of Bisbee a couple miles and sniffed out some more dirt. I thought it was just going to be a county dirt road….and it was for a bit. Then went to unmaintained two track. I wish we had gopro footage or drone. I didn’t know what was going to happen….but we ended up unleashing the Super Enduros in here. Holding our lanes, riding side by side, jumping, sliding, wheelies, general awesomness. It was unexpected and I kept figuring it wouldn’t last. But we probably went like that for 10 miles of non-stop/pay attention attack mode. We didn’t have our comms on, we were just jamming at a decent clip trying to survive the ditches, washouts, humps, sediment, cactus. We finally came out of the bush and could ride one handed and I comm’d us in so I could comment about how awesome that was and how great the bikes performed…..and as soon as I heard the beep of being connected, Gary was laughing and ecstatic about what we just experienced and was practically yelling at me with excitement. We were all smiles and basking in the glow of a dirt biker shared experience and the camaraderie that goes with it. Cloud 9 stuff. This is the only pic I have of that zone right before we released the krakens.
We ate a little slab and then found some more dirt and headed for that same old XR250L Army buddy’s house out in the barren desert where he settled down years ago. Basically the middle of nowhere….and then go a few more miles. He was from Oklahoma, can’t take the country out of them boys.
Touchdown. What happens when you haven’t seen an old Army buddy in 20 years…..apparently they turn into ZZ Top looking people. Dadgum. Pretty sure he couldn’t pass AR670-1 anymore….hair not supposed to touch your ears (I guess he has that covered) but your mustache can’t extend past the ends of your mouth. He’s way out there….like pluto. His wife has her own orbit as well. Classic desert dwellers. They are really good people and took really good care of us, solid I say. Tbones from one of their steer and all the fixings for supper. Had ice cold beer for me waiting. Stuff was getting deep reliving the glory days. I was worried about it leaving a mark. Day 2 in the books, one more to go for this ride.
I’ve always liked this tweener zone from an ecological standpoint….desert mountain scrub? It was easy going and we had the afterburners lit….for a few miles.
But then we got off of the wide gravel road and got on some two track to sniff out some bonus terrain. I had eye balled some off the beaten path stuff. We tip toed in….for about 16 miles of two track. Nice!!!
I camped one time right in this zone, I would say it was 1994. I had made friends with an older guy that I stumbled into previously on the trail somewhere in AZ. He was older, like the age I am now. He rode an old beater double-shock Yamaha air cooled 2 stroke 250. Makes me snicker thinking about me at my age now riding that piece of crap through here. But ol Mike was getting it done without complaint, he was smiling, it was what he could afford and I respected that. My normal riding buddies didn’t understand how I could adopt someone like him into our circle, but I like all kinds and he was interesting to say the least. He had picked up cooking in the ground when he lived in Hawaii and on that camp out we had a feast on mostly roasted vegetables. Not my norm, especially 20 year old me, but it really was a special experience and I actually liked some of the food. I think he had 3 buried fires going at once and I remember him kind of yelling at me while I was drinking beer to stay on top of the timer for my designated buried food. Me, distracted, at a moto camp drinking beer in the evening…..inconceivable.
That stuff/memories are all off my right shoulder as we made our way to the pass in the distance. Off my left shoulder is mostly dead end trails that gain elevation into the Huachuca Mountains, good hard enduro riding and some good caving. And there was one trail that actually went through into the Army Post. I think it was called Gate 9, a gap gate across a cattle guard with a pretty rough/rutted trail. I used that route often, it wasn’t really a short cut at all….but it felt cool to go that way, kind of a sneaker route and avoided the world. Even back then I liked the adventure of it and doing something most didn’t know about. I’ve often wondered what became of it after 9/11. I found an article on line that on the army post side, upper Garden Canyon Rd is now closed due to erosion in that area. Only firefighters are allowed to use it once you get so far up in there. Now I know. Makes me a little sad….even though I had no plans of going that way. Back to the ride….we headed for the border fence to parallel it for a bit. We might have been exceeding the speed limit, hypothetically.
Another thing came to mind…..I was curious about an old ghost town I remembered, Sonnyside. Thought we would poke up in that zone and see if there were any buildings left standing from when I was there 30 years ago. There wasn’t any internet back then, so I also decided to google it and see what the deal was. I remembered it having a funky Manson feeling to it back in the day. We went past “private” signs and sniffed around, cautiously.
Here is the gist. Samuel Donnelly had found religion but folks in California didn’t like his religious ideals, the elders of the typical churches weren’t having him and he couldn’t find a pulpit to spread “his” version of the word. In 1886 he went to Tombstone and tried to preach his salvation to that bunch, they weren’t having it either, the town riff raff or the town church folks. He was also getting into mining and ended up settling here at Sunnyside in the Huachuca Mountains and had a few converts follow him, like 20 to 30, and formed this “colony”. All the money was pooled and each person worked to the betterment of the entire camp. There were rumors of the typical kind involving a commune like this, the law got involved etc. In the end, nothing could be proven, the case against him was dropped in Cochise County in 1898. In 1901 Sam fell ill from Bright’s disease and died. By 1903 everyone had left for the most part. The google article I read about visiting the site present day said “We probably wouldn’t recommend the trip. Signs are almost non-existent, there are numerous opportunities to get lost, the road was terrible, and the area is rife with illegals and drug traffickers.” Cool story bro. The Super Enduro Strike Team didn’t have any trouble. But I was only able to find a couple buildings. Either I couldn’t find the others or the “private” property folks tore them down? Either way, we rolled out, rapidly. Hair was standing up a bit.
Alright, back to your regularly scheduled broadcast…..typical stuff the BDR traveler encounters as we got back on that track and were working our way up to Montezuma Pass.
From the pass looking towards the way we just came from:
And towards Mexico:
I dug up an old pic taken at the same exact spot….30 years ago. My good ol DR350 and an Army buddy’s XR250L that I talked him into buying. I loved that DR, it was like a rock star compared to the other plated bikes of the day.
I remember reading an article about the mountains when I lived in this area about how they grow 1” per year in this zone. I’m not so sure, look the same to me
. I googled it. The Himalayas continue to grow due to the Indian subcontinent plate going subduction under the Asian continental plate. I read the Himalayas grow .2” and as much as 2” in a year. They are also the youngest mountain range on earth. As for the Rockies and mountains in this zone, seems they are much older aren’t really pushing up much anymore. I read Colorado politicians have stunted growth in the area. Couple more pics looking west:What’s up with all these names, Coronado, Montezuma? Coronado’s Expedition came through here in 1540 to find the Seven Cities of Gold. Ok, that’s legit I guess. The Montezuma name…..it is a misnomer. In the 1800s when whitey started settling the area and encountered cliff dwellings, they used the name of the Aztec ruler whose empire stretched across southern Mexico, 1300 miles away. The name stuck and got used other places like this pass. These next pics are looking towards the way we are headed, east, and the San Pedro River Valley. I believe it is the only river that flows out of Mexico into the US. It is kind of turd of a river, but water is life out here.
We switchbacked our way out of there and I snagged a pic of Bwdmax from a vantage point I thought was cool. You can see the border fence in the background as well, down on the valley floor.
I was still thinking about Bright’s disease, what the heck is that? Here you go…..inflammatory disease of the kidneys now known as acute glomerular nephritis. Oh ok, that’s right, now I understand. Or maybe I still have no idea. Try again. Basically it is when your kidney’s quit filtering properly, think dialysis. How do you know you have it….reduced urinary frequency, new high blood pressure, coughing caused by fluid in the lungs, blood in urine, facial swelling, lethargy. Got it. I mean I don’t got it, but I get it. Not a good plan in the 1800s in the middle of nowhere. I feel like we need a picture to go with this paragraph, I got nothing. So Bwdmax produced a pic of himself looking bright. I think this really helps.
We just Chevy Chased the town of Bisbee. If you haven’t been there, it is interesting. My old Army buddy (XR250L guy) dated a gal from there so I spent the night on her couch many times and soaked in the Bisbee scene. Back then it was really hippie. Now it seems more artsy fartsy, more money, you can tell they are really trying to capitalize on it. If you go there and need accommodations or motorcycle related assistance, you might look up Sterling Noren. He has a decent youtube following and opened a hotel there, The Jonquil, and hosts rallies every so often. Seems on the level. We just did a touch and go, stopped at the mine, then blew out of there.
This next section….we went east out of Bisbee a couple miles and sniffed out some more dirt. I thought it was just going to be a county dirt road….and it was for a bit. Then went to unmaintained two track. I wish we had gopro footage or drone. I didn’t know what was going to happen….but we ended up unleashing the Super Enduros in here. Holding our lanes, riding side by side, jumping, sliding, wheelies, general awesomness. It was unexpected and I kept figuring it wouldn’t last. But we probably went like that for 10 miles of non-stop/pay attention attack mode. We didn’t have our comms on, we were just jamming at a decent clip trying to survive the ditches, washouts, humps, sediment, cactus. We finally came out of the bush and could ride one handed and I comm’d us in so I could comment about how awesome that was and how great the bikes performed…..and as soon as I heard the beep of being connected, Gary was laughing and ecstatic about what we just experienced and was practically yelling at me with excitement. We were all smiles and basking in the glow of a dirt biker shared experience and the camaraderie that goes with it. Cloud 9 stuff. This is the only pic I have of that zone right before we released the krakens.
We ate a little slab and then found some more dirt and headed for that same old XR250L Army buddy’s house out in the barren desert where he settled down years ago. Basically the middle of nowhere….and then go a few more miles. He was from Oklahoma, can’t take the country out of them boys.
Touchdown. What happens when you haven’t seen an old Army buddy in 20 years…..apparently they turn into ZZ Top looking people. Dadgum. Pretty sure he couldn’t pass AR670-1 anymore….hair not supposed to touch your ears (I guess he has that covered) but your mustache can’t extend past the ends of your mouth. He’s way out there….like pluto. His wife has her own orbit as well. Classic desert dwellers. They are really good people and took really good care of us, solid I say. Tbones from one of their steer and all the fixings for supper. Had ice cold beer for me waiting. Stuff was getting deep reliving the glory days. I was worried about it leaving a mark. Day 2 in the books, one more to go for this ride.
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I won't soon forget that little section of this trip.
I wouldn't mind having one as well. But... there's only so much money to go around... However, I am going to be upgrading the suspension on my GS though. At 32K miles, the OEM suspension is a bit "worn" 
Unfortunately, the guys at The BeemerShop are low on inventory and the new stuff won't get here until early to mid-April. So I don't know if I will have enough time to get it swapped out before we leave for our trip. Either way, it REALLY needs it!
