Mogollon Rim (Az Summer at it's best)

Howdy folks ;)

Just wanted to share a couple pics of the Mogollon rim area, North of Strawberry Az, this is my prefered area to summer camp in Az, Dense trees, Not as crowded as the areas near to Flagstaff, and good moderate temperatures.

Ok, I lied seems I only have the one on the computer at the moment, will add more in a bit when I go dig out the camera!

anyway.. the area I like to go is along Forest Rd 300, which runs along the edge of the rim between Highway 87, and Highway 260.. it's not a smooth road, but is passable to all vehicles during the summer. Often in winter it is shut down because it is not plowed and the snow up there gets deep!

The Rim area has quite a few man made lakes, and as a summer escape from the heat, it's wonderful :)

Paradise Found!

Howdy folks :)  just sharing a couple pictures of the location I camped last in the Superstition mountains in Arizona.. a beautiful location on the crest of a hill, looking down into a valley.. with all the rain that Az got this winter, everything was so green, and there was an active stream flowing down the hill from camp.. it was just lovely :)

Apache Sunrise area

Visually, I think this has been my favorite for a forest camp.

from the first Showlow camp, I went through the town of Mcnary on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation, and then out the east side of it near the town of Greer, the forest was totally different than that around Show Low, even though it wasnt all that far away in miles. The trees were much larger, the woods felt more majestic, and there were open grasslands interspersed in the area. When I pulled off the main road I was greeted by a sign stating that I was now in an Active wolf recovery area (which thrilled me).

Pictures will be forthcoming, but today mostly getting down the words while I have power.

it was primitive camping at it's best, no facilities, there were springs nearby, and plenty of space to breath.. it was colder than Show Low, and the only real downside is that I had to deal with mice for the first time! he was a cute little bugger, but frustrated me to no end, and because of him I ended up leaving much sooner than I would have liked to. I also for the first time heard an Owl during the night, and I would just lay there smiling while he called and hunted.

I will go back once I seal the truck a bit better! there are so many gaps he could get in that it's not feasible for me to keep a mouse out for now. :)

Show Low Az. FR 300

I spent a few weeks in the Show Low Area, I really enjoyed the pines there, being close enough to town to get a good signal on the Aircard, and the ability to walk into the nearest Circle K (convenience store, 4 mile round trip).

the Area i was in was just off of Forest road 300, there was no attempt to find a campground or other developed area, I just found a side road off of the forest road and pulled under some trees.

because if was not developed in any way, and was so close to town.. the forest area was trashed in alot of ways. there were piles and piles of crap that folks has just dumped out the back of their trucks, so that was very disheartening. But I did like the area and will return. I spent almost 3 weeks at this location, it was monsoon season for Az, so got rain most afternoons and was able to capture gallons of it for cooking and basic needs. Plenty of wood around for fires, and the nights were very comfortable (50s).

I am not positive, but I believe I came across 2 tent camps where folks were living full time. I came across the tents while out hiking in the woods, off of any trail, they were fully set up and appeared well supplied from a distance, but there was no vehicle approach at all to them. I figure they were keeping a low profile from the FS, but close enough to town to hold a job. Neither resident caused me any problems

Rim Camp, FR 171

As you go up the Mogollon rim, there is a visitor center on the South side of the road, Right next to that (same turnoff) is Forest road 171, initially, there are day use sites that look out over the rim, but as you go further down the road you will see campsites.. At the turnoff to the visitor center, there is a vault toilet, but the sites are far enough down the road that you probably wont want to walk back to them often.

I enjoyed the sites, they were very large and relatively isolated from the other sites nearby, but being at the edge area of a large cliff made it very windy! I only stayed a couple days because of that. There were trails through the area, and I probably will go back, I just need to not expect to have my tarps set up!! unsure if I have pics, will try to find them later :)

Bear Canyon Lake, Overguard Az area

beautiful area, actually Forest Service campground, multiple vaults for camping use, really large area set aside for camping.

Dirt road back into the campground, somewhat washboarded because of the high volume of use, but saw it being graded while I was there so they pay attention to it. Saw rangers 4 to 5 times a week while I was there.

The approach to the lake can be problematic if your a kayaker/canoer, it's down a switchback trail of about a 1/4 mile. not too steep, but tight manuvering if your carrying anything large. The water is very picturesque, and I hear there is good trout there.. I barely tried, but didnt catch anything. there are 2 other approaches that can be used to the lake, one is forest road 208 from the west end, and the other goes to the back side of the lake. The area accessed by forest road 208 does have campsites but no facilities, the back of the lake is pretty much undeveloped and you can find plenty of spots there. the advantage of the backside is that there is an access road that would make bringing in a boat much easier, you cannot drive to the water, but taking the 1/4 mile on a smooth incline is easier than switchbacking.

by the time I left here, I had been approached by the Forest service and asked to host here the next summer. I still have the contact info, but so far unwilling to commit to that.

Strawberry camp, North of Payson Az

just north of Strawberry Az, pulled off on a forest road and spent a couple weeks there pretty much undisturbed by others.

No facilities, a pure dry camp, was low 90's during the hottest part of the summer days, and the nights were very comfortable. I was close enough to the highway that I would sometimes hear traffic, but overall it was quite comfortable. Plenty of forage for firewood, no mosquitoes, good sun for the solar panels.