The Idiots hope they haven’t tried the patience of their readers too much with multiple similar episodes about their week-long stay at Chiricahua National Monument. Here’s one last entry on their sojourn in nature before heading off to the bright lights and excitement of Green Valley Arizona.
(That is intended to be humorous – Green Valley is largely a retirement community in southern Arizona and the terms “bright lights”, “excitement”, and “Green Valley” are rarely used in the same sentence unless it is a statement something like “People seeking bright lights and excitement can safely remove Green Valley from their list of destinations.”)
But for a week, the Idiots woke up to this view from their “breakfast nook” of The Beast. Active bird life and frequent visits from Arizona Whitetail deer punctuated the restful panorama.
Wandering away from the vehicle, one is likely to encounter coveys of Montezuma’s quail… not particularly striking and low on the intelligence scale – but their tendency to lay low when feeling threatened, then to explode into action when approached, can make them exciting sightings for those with cardiac conditions…
Sycamore trees have striking, smooth and mottled bark – and their well-formed leaves contribute to the color palate of the southwest landscape.
Another cliché that draws its popularity from an underlying truth is “It doesn’t matter what you know but who you know.” Back when the very idea of National Parks and National Monuments was being developed under the presidency of Teddy Roosevelt, there was a great contest over what areas should be included – and more importantly, who would choose the areas to include. Congress attempted to limit the president from putting areas under protection. A bill introduced by an Iowa congressman granted the president the power to designate areas as National Parks and Monuments.
It is likely most congressmen voting for the law envisioned Presidential protection for battlefields and historical sites, but almost immediately presidents found they could protect favorite wilderness areas, Someone knew somebody – and in 1924 Calvin Coolidge designated a large section of the Chiricahua mountains as a national monument. The law remains in effect and it is common for presidents, particularly Democrat presidents, to name new areas or expand National Monuments into National Parks.
In the 1930s, theUS fell into the Great Depression and FDR created an employment program called the Citizens Conservation Corps – the CCC. Young unemployed men who may have otherwise been driven to desperate measures and even criminal activities could enlist in a quasi-military experience, living in dormitories and following orders, but typically operating shovels rather than rifles.
One of the operators of the Faraway Ranch who married into the family who lobbied for protected status for the Chiricahua mountains happened also to be an MIT-trained engineer. The CCC built a camp near the ranch in Silver Spur Meadow… and the engineer was put in charge of crews building the road and trails for foot and horse traffic. Today we have inherited the bounty of this serendipitous combination of great engineering and vision with a generous supply of pick-and-shovel manpower. The trails in the monument don’t just get one from place to place – they wind and twist and reveal beauty around every corner.
The remains of the CCC camp stand as reminders of America’s worst financial times – and of men escaping from poverty by working at menial labor for lodging and food and a few dollars to send home to their needy families. Many veterans of the CCC described their experiences with great fondness and nostalgia, describing a journey from poverty, unemployment, and even homelessness to camps with adequate food and healthy work and the opportunity to feel they were contributing to worthwhile endeavors.
Along with the history, the Silver Spur Meadow trail provides little tidbits of natural history to those willing to take the time to stop and look and listen…
The area we now call southern Arizona was originally inhabited by those who appreciated the abundant wildlife and varied microclimates. Native Americans lived in the area for many centuries and current belief is that, in most years, these hunter gatherers could meet all their personal and community needs in a few hours each day by moving from place to place, exploiting the varying bounty provided by the environment through the seasonal changes.
Some even believe that the easy, peaceful existence of these hunter-gatherers provided so much leisure time that it produced a culture of raiding and conflict – bored young men seeking excitement and wives often raided other bands and tribes. Some historians speculate that the Apache could have mounted a much more effective resistance to the Spanish and American military invasions but they were limited by their tendency to break into small bands in conflict with other Apache.
Everything changed when Europeans invaded the area. They weren’t interested in acorns and venison – they wanted gold and slaves. Today there are only remnants of the Native cultures that inhabited the area. A few (clever) visitors enjoy the real “gold” of the area – the gold of grasses and cottonwoods and sun off the cliffs and monoliths of “The Place of Standing Rocks.”
