Just returned from a great trip out to Roper lake at the foot of Mt. Graham (10,717'), about 8 miles south of Safford. For grins we drove halfway up the mountain and climbed 4,000' in ten miles.

Roper is a nice little lakeside campground with a natural hot spring feeding a rocked in spa. Met several fellow campers, nice folks one and all and everyone was packin. We all agreed it was better to have and not need etc., etc.. I'm not sure which mountain view is more spectacular, looking up or looking down so here is one of each along with a shot of our campsite. The new (2006), F-150 pulled us along at 65 MPH and got 17 MPG and I can live with that. (o;

Sir.
Nice pics of some pretty country. I have hunted quail on the south side base of Mt Graham in the Fort Grant area. Was on the O Bar O Ranch. Down in the desert and 85 degrees and looked up at top of the Mount and it would be clouded in and snowing. Definately is an abrupt change in elevation from bottom to the top. What kind of a camp trailer is that and what does it have for features?
Looks like you had a good camp trip.
Bill@Yuma

Nice! Now, to follow on this trip, next summer, take your rig and family all the way up to the top of the Pinalenos, to Riggs Lake, a great getaway during monsoon season... a "Sky Island" adventure, similar to what you can find in the Catalinas, closer to home such as at Summerhaven, but, with a little lake...

If it wasn't so for I'd join you. Neat little TT you got there.

I just got back from 5 days at a Missouri Forest Service campground that I take care of. It's an old grist mill that the FS bought in 1950 on Marble Creek.



It was deer season and I did a little hunting, but didn't bag anything.



I was out your way in May and tent camped at Lyman Lake SP and at a Forest Service CG near the Grand Canyon.

I need to spend more time out west.

Bob

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Bob
KDØQCE

I'll put Riggs on our short list. We are just beginning to explore with the new rig. I camped a lot as a kid and did the marine version for 35 years on boats. The Aliner pop up draws a crowd wherever we go. Even had one guy watch me pop it up, come over and ask, "Can you do that again?"

Lots of the places we have gone or will go to have fishing so come January I will be getting my license and some gear. I don't know squat about fresh water fishing so any advice for these mountain lakes would be appreciated. Seems like we always meet the nicest folks while camping, they all have dogs and guns so we have a lot in common right off the bat. (o;

Beautiful views. I've just added Roper Lake to my list.

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I just got back from a week in Safford. Many relatives in the Safford-Thatcher area including some that live about 1/2 mile south of Roper Lake. The weather was beautiful, 30's at night, 70's during the day.

Very nice..........makes me want to get the Scamp out of the carport

Very nice. I love the great outdoors but I just can't get my wife and son to go camping or hiking.

Just returned from another great trip up to Mt Graham. We hadn't anticipated how crowded the Southern Arizona campgrounds would be due to the extended spring break. We beat the crowds by heading up Mt Graham and found the Arcadia campground empty. Now that may be because we were smart enough to go there but it is probably because at just over 7,000 feet it was well above the snow line. The shady places had 4" to 6" of snow and some spots were still a foot deep. Temps ranged from 60 when the sun was out to mid twenties at night. Averaged about 45 all day with a little snow falling around noon and hail, snow and rain blasting down on Friday night. I lit off the coffee pot every morning at seven and the campfire immediately there after. Kept the fire burning all day and well into the night. The forrest service had taken a few trees down so firewood was plentiful and free for the taking.

Here is our little A-liner tucked in to the trees


Relaxin by the fire, temp around 38 degrees, campground empty, MP9C on my hip. (o;




Here is where some of our tax dollars have gone...and thank you! (o;

Just returned from 3 days and nights at Patagonia Lake, very nice campground 12 miles north of the border. Saw lots of Border patrol but no illegals...maybe they are boycotting Arizona, after all, it's all the rage now. (o;

The campground features a 265 acre lake put in by the local rancher who wanted a place for his kids to learn to water ski. He turned it over to the park service on the condition that his cattle continue to have free range, and they do. Watch where you step at night as they are all over the campground. The fishing is good if you know what you are doing (I don't when the water is fresh - ask me about chasing tuna). Hookup sites with water and electricity go for $25 a night, regular sites are $17. This gets you clean restrooms with hot showers and flush toilets. It can get a little rowdy on weekends (forget about holiday weekends), but they quiet everyone down at 9. All in all a nice spot just 2 easy hours from home and we will be back soon. (o;

mwtdvm:

I tried to answer you PM and hope you got it. If not let me know here. (o;

Steve

Peppersauce is located on the back side of Mt Lemon, outside of Oracle, 5 miles down a dusty but passable dirt road. The campground is a heavily wooded canyon with a creek that while dry now, roars during the summer monsoons. We set up in a nice site next to the dry creek and had the campground all to ourselves. Friday the camp host alerted us to the incoming weekend crowd including 35 boy scouts that would be right across the creek in the group site. We moved to the other side to a larger site away from the crowd but by Saturday morning all 16 sites were full and we headed home, a mere 45 minutes away. At $10 a night, water and pit toilets it is a beautiful nearby spot that we plan on returning to often. Another bonus is that my favorite shooting spot is just another mile and a half up the road.

The camp host was bitten by a rabid bobcat two years ago. It jumped up and bit him on the stomach as he was coming out of his RV. The cat ran off and attacked a 12 year old in the group site at which point his son in law shot it. He had some very graphic pictures of his wound and the very large, mangy dead cat. He said the rabies shots were hell on earth and now carries 24/7. A rare event to be sure but I kept the MP9c (JHP's) within reach.

Here are a couple of shots of our sites, some of the biggest Sycamore trees I have ever seen.

Anyone here every do any camping in the Blue Range Primitive Area???

Not in the Blue, per se, but nearby, a couple times. Once, we found a pullulation of shaggy mane mushrooms, coprinus comatus, and abandoned our bear hunting in favor of mushroom collecting, and made an 80 mile round trip to Alpine to get some butter to saute some of our harvest. One Labor Day weekend on another bear hunt, we arrived after driving with the AC on in the truck most of the trip from the Valley of the Sun, to find many other campers abandoning their camps and inadequate equipment because of a heavy, wet snowfall capping a summer afternoon... This is very difficult country, steep, almost impenetrably overgrown in most places, subject to the aforementioned extremes of weather, and a fire trap just waiting for ignition. There are a few remaining Mexican Gray wolves that have survived the depredations of the local redneck ranchers.

Another great camping trip, this time to Hawley Lake in the White Mountains. We did three days and nights at Hawley and went hoping for thunderstorms and boy did we get our wish. Hawley Lake is at 8,500' and the thunder storms were as intense and violent as any I've seen. We were awakened at 4 AM on monday morning to best storm of the trip. An inch of rain fell in about an hour and the gap between lightning flash and the roar of the thunder was something less than one or two seconds...dozens of times! Hawley is in the Apache Reservation and camping is $8 a night. They have water, porta potties and trash pickup. You can pick up all the firewood you want but watch your step as hundreds of cattle free range the campground and surrounding meadows.

...nice post Capt. I'm a long time RV'er and a shorter time "packer". We haven't been to AZ yet but we will join snowbird friends down there one of these winter seasons. Love the pictures, excellent motivators for getting out there...

I've lived in Maine my whole life but about 4 years ago I bought 75 acres just north of Douglas by the Leslie Canyon nature preserve at the southern end of the Chiracauhuas. The elevation is about 5000 feet so I it doesn't get super hot for very long. I've got about 7 years to go and I can't wait until I can move out. I spend about two weeks out there in April every year. It truly is wonderful country!

According to Wikipedia, "Hawley Lake is notable for being one of the coldest spots in the State of Arizona, in all seasons."

Sounds like a great place to be!

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I would not be surprised after seeing the winter shots posted in the lake store. Snow piled up over the roof and I'm told the lake freezes solid every winter. It sure was a nice get away from the heat of Tucson, most days in the mid 70's cooling down to the low 60's at night.

We stayed close to home, 20 minutes down the road to get to Catalina State park. This was our first outing in the new trailer and everything worked just fine. We enjoyed the luxury of power and water hook ups which came in very Handy as it was warm. The AC can turn the trailer into a meat locker in about 20 minutes so kept it on low. Three of our friends came out and joined us for dinner. The campground was virtually deserted and the summer rate was only $15 a night. Thats Pusch Ridge (the western slope of Mt Lemon), in the background. I tucked back into what passes for trees at 2,700' - the Saguaro's are taller than the Mesquite trees. It sure is a lot easier to back a dual axel trailer (vs the Aliner single axel). Just a few weeks until we take off to Utah, Colorado and New Mexico and the new trailer should takes there instyle. (o;

Capt Steve,

Looks like a nice rig, I wish I could get away for a trip in my Outback.

In Colorado I like to camp in the White River National Forest. Deep Lake Campground is real nice, it's at 10,000+, north of I-70 and east Glenwood Springs. No AC needed there.

I take care of a FS campground about 40 miles south of here "Marble Creek Campground" I need to go there and camp, when we get cooler weather.


Be safe on your trip.

Bob

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Steve -
ultralight action spinning rod with light (4 lb) test monofilament. Assortment of Mepps "Roostertail" spinners, also Blue Fox and Vibrax spinners. Colors can be very important in different areas, so don't buy a lot until you see what works. A few of the smallest size (sinking) Rapalas in natural colors. That assortment can get you some fine eating out of most rivers, streams, lakes. Can also cast a fly with a water bubble weight. Ultralights provide great fun on these smaller fish!

Looks like a nice setup, Steve. Details on the trailer? Size, # sleeps, weight? What did you do with the a-liner? If you want to bring it to Tulsa, I've got a place you can park it.

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The trailer is an 18', 2008 Fleetwood Pioneer, sleeps five if you're friendly but it will just be me, my bride and the pooch for our travels. It weighs 3,600 lbs dry. It had only been used 4 times in the last 2 years and naturally, is extremely clean and very well equipped. There are a couple of pics on the "The new trailer " thread from a a couple of weeks ago. I sold the Aliner for $6,700, (paid $7K a year ago), the buyer, who's in California and had been looking for quite a while, hasn't even seen it yet. He sent his buddy to look at it, 3 digital pictures later (e mailed) and I had a check in 2 days. He's supposed to come pick it up this week. I'll burn more fuel hauling this one but for all of the bells and whistles I'll do it gladly. We be happy campers!

Jst1mr: Thanks for the fishing tips, they will come in handy on our next big trip.

Our first trip to Roosevelt Lake and we had a great time. We met new friends while camping in Greer last month and they invited us to join them at Roosevelt where they camp often. As an added bonus they have a beautiful 21 Centurian competition ski boat that they keep at the lake. The engine in this thing, at 5.7 liters, is bigger than the engine in my truck. Needless to say it scoots and we spent all day Saturday cruising the lake, which is 26 miles long. The water is still mid 70's so Jay even got in some skiing.

The drive up was 2.5 hours of some of the most beautiful country Arizona has to offer but none of it flat. One stretch of highway 177 between Winkleman and Superior had three ten percent grades that twisted and turned for miles. The campgrounds are huge, nicely laid out overlooking the lake, with flush toilets and all the usual amenities, (table, fire ring, shade Ramada etc.), all for $6 a night. We will definitely be going back soon.

Here is a shot of the lake:

Just returned from 3 days at Roper Lake, just south of Safford. This was our third trip out there so we have it pretty well dialed in. We had two couples join us but as they are not campers they elected to rent a couple of the small cabins. We did all the cooking/entertaining at our site, just a couple hundred yards from the cabins and right on the lake. On Tuesday I took them up Mt Graham, still snow on the ground above 7,000'. The main purpose was to gather firewood and we picked up about a quarter of a cord. Nice to have a truck with the shell on the back. (o;

Nice easy drive over and back, 165 miles each way and most of it I-10. Cruised along at 55-60 and even with some head winds and lots of climbing managed 10 mpg. Most of the snowbirds have taken flight so there weren't many rigs on the road and even fewer in the campground. My bride headed on up to the White mountains with one of the couples as they have a nice cabin reserved in Pinetop but I have to work tomorrow so the pooch and I came home. )o; Oh well, only 8 more shifts and I am through with the job. When my bride returns, she has the camera, I'll post a couple of pics. Way too much fun!

Here is a shot of the wood we picked up on Mt. Graham. The USFS goes through and clears/cuts and stacks it up for later pick up. You can have you want for free as it is just that much less for them to haul away. About 1/4 (mas y menos), of a cord and once seasoned should burn real nice. (o;

Just returned from a quick, 4 day 3 night trip down to Bog Springs in Madera Canyon (about 40 miles south of Tucson). The CG only has 13 sites and fills quickly on Friday night but being retired we went down Wednesday morning. If your travels take you anywhere near Tucson, Bog Springs is a largely undiscovered gem. It sits at 5,000' surrounded by three peaks at 9,700', 8,500' and 7,800' and yet is only 13 miles from the City of Green Valley (in case you forgot anything). Deer, Black Bears and wild Turkey's are just some of the prolific wildlife to be enjoyed. At $10 a night it is a bargain with water in the sites and bear proof food storage/trash and vault toilets. The best time to visit is October through May though they can get snow Dec thru Feb. June through September the heat and snakes can be a problem.

What did the fire damage look like around Greer?

Capt Steve: This is a very nice, informative thread, and I thank you for posting it. Makes a fella think.....

I have a house for sale right on Swift Trail if anyone is interested. Makes for a quick trip up the mountain or over to Roper or Dankworth.

Greer is one of our favorite areas but we haven't been up there since the fire. Friends reported that most of Greer is OK. Too late to get up there this year but next spring we will be back. Hawley Lake is another favorite but it too is closed for the winter, 8,500' will do that.

I've got a couple of acres at Vernon. Couldn't afford Greer or Nutri or Alpine....The whole reason I bought it was the area by Greer, etc...and The Blue....Oh well...maybe it will be nice for my great grand kids someday.

I was in Eagar a couple weeks ago, and no recent fire damage is in evidence along the main drag routes. Greer, I think, was much more severely damaged...

I was in Greer a few weeks ago, most of the town is OK. There are a few burned out houses in the southern portions of town, but it seems most of the damage was on the mountain east of town. Lots of road closures to the east of 373, probably the area of most structure damage. I was in Alpine a few months ago, very little damage in town, but extensive fire damage evident in the surrounding forest and on the mountains, very sad. We had a ranch there a number of years ago, one of the most beautiful places on earth, now nearly destroyed by a couple of dummies leaving a fire unattended, and the Forest Service deciding to let it burn, until it got far beyond their ability to control it.