Another Cochise County pilgrimage

This Thanksgiving we took a trip to Cochise County. Ever since we found the hotel where my grandparents met in 1917 (and discovered that it is still in business) we have been wanting to go for a visit. But we went dirt-roading first, visiting the old Butterfield Stagecoach Station on the northern edge of the Dragoon Mountains, then drove into the mountains to check out Dragoon Springs. The Station was essentially a stockade with 10-foot unmortared stone walls and two teeny (5x5') rooms. It was really only used for 2 years due to the Civil War, Apache raids and the success of the Pony Express.

The temperature? 75 degrees (23.8 Celsius). What a lovely day!

Dinner at the Hotel Cochise was down-home delicious. The dining room was filled with local folks, the owner Carla's kids and a trio of bikers who had made the trip from Phoenix.

More photos can be seen on my photogallery at Flickr.

Here is my Aunt Margie's account of how grandma (Julia) and grandpa (Allan) met:

In 1917 Julia met a young man on the steps of the Cochise Hotel. Her father didn't want to introduce her and told her he was "some Eastern chap from Harvard." Brother Philip arrived late for his train and in his hurry his suitcase fell open with everything falling out. The young chap sprang to help repack and the introduction followed. Of course Allan proceeded to court Julia.

Cochise County weekend

We just got back from a long weekend in Cochise County. Sunday we made sort of a pilgrimage to places my grandmother's family frequented when they lived in the Stronghold and Tombstone: Cochise Hotel, NY Ranch, and Dragoon. We also visited great grandpa's grave in Willcox. We stayed at the Triangle T Guest Ranch, a mixed success because the new owners are still ironing the bugs out.

The Cochise Hotel was a lovely surprise because it is in such good shape. They still take guests and serve dinner. Their website shows the interiors and we have vowed to stay there. I was impressed that unlike other "frontier" hotels there doesn't seem to be a speck of pretension or polyester lace.

Then today we decided to see someplace new so we went to the Muleshoe Wilderness area in the Galiuros (north of Willcox). It was beautiful place with strong contrasts: moonscapes with just volcanic rocks and yucca to the lush, verdant canyon floor. In a few minutes we went from bosque was so thick you couldn't see into it in places -- to endless grasslands. Six springs run year-round at the Muleshoe so it is a miracle of a microclimate in the middle of the desert. We saw whitetail and mule deer and countless birds. The caretaker at the Nature Conservancy center told me that there were no non-native animals: 4 types of unique fish, leopard frogs, bear, bighorn sheep, mountain lions, coatimundi, foxes, and birds, birds, birds.

Trip photos!