On Friday, I decided to head north from my camp in Tonto National Forest to visit a few more national monuments. I ended up seeing all of Montezuma Castle, Tuzigoot, and Agua Fria National Monuments, and found a wonderful, free campsite in Agua Fria.
Casa Grande Ruins and Tonto National Monuments, Tonto National Forest Boondocking
On Friday, I decided to leave the camp at Gilbert Ray outside of Tucson and head north into the Phoenix area. On the way, I stopped to enjoy Casa Grande Ruins National Monument before finding a boondocking site in Tonto National Forest. On Saturday, I also took some time to drive to Tonto National Monument, where I was lucky enough to see both cliff dwellings!
To Tucson: Las Cienegas NCA, Saguaro National Park, Gilbert Ray Camp
On Friday, I decided to leave my camp at Gunsight Wash and head into the Tucson area. After one freezing cold night in the Las Cienegas National Conservation Area, I went on to visit both halves of Saguaro National Park and settle on a paid campsite at Gilbert Ray Campground in Tucson Mountain Park.
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument and Gunsight Wash
Although I had only spent about half a week in Kofa, I decided to take a break from recent rains over the weekend to go checkout Southwest Arizona’s Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. It turned into a surprisingly beautiful adventure! I also found a new boondocking campsite nearby for the week, at Gunsight Wash.
Through Imperial Dunes to Kofa National Wildlife Refuge
As Wednesday was my birthday, I decided to take the day to leave San Diego. As I went, I crossed through the Imperial Dunes area again, being a spot that I previously enjoyed traveling through. I finally ended up at Kofa National Wildlife Refuge south of Quartzsite, Arizona.
Garnet Peak and Reflecting on a New Year
With the holidays over, and 2016 having given way to a new year, I begin looking forward to my birthday on the 18th. Using the time for reflection and thinking ahead, I decided to visit Garnet Peak in Cleveland National Forest East of San Diego. With a short, brief hike, I arrived at the summit to take in the wonderful views.
Obsidian Butte, Salton Sea
On Saturday, I met up with some friends in San Diego and went out to another adventure at the South End of the Salton Sea. We ended up spending all afternoon, into the evening, exploring only one of the active volcanoes, Obsidian Butte, and the nearby shores of the giant lake.
Cabrillo National Monument
On Saturday, I decided to head to the Cabrillo National Monument, on the south end of Point Loma in San Diego. Even though I lived in San Diego for many years, I never ended up finding my way down to the national monument, so I was excited to take the time to do so, finally.
Sonny Bono Salton Sea NWR and Southern California’s Only Active Volcanoes
While in Southern California for the season, I decided to do a run over to the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge. I had recently discovered that a small series of active volcanoes–the Salton Buttes–were located within and nearby the wildlife refuge, and this became a goal of this adventure.
To San Diego: Peak 3339, Gasp Benchmark, Groan Benchmark, Rozzie Mountain
A couple of weeks ago, on Wednesday, I decided to leave my campsite outside of Zion and head back to San Diego. I spent the majority of the time with family and friends, running out to McCain Valley Recreation Area and Carrizo Gorge Wilderness to hike to Peak 3339, Gasp Benchmark, Groan Benchmark, and Rozzie Mountain. Finally, yesterday, I made my way back to camping out on the Carrizo Badlands Overlook for the week.