More Travels 4-Shutdown!

Government Shutdown Looms Large

Route #87 took us out of the desert to Payson, Arizona. Here and there the trees reminded us it was October, especially the aspen east of Show Low, that fluttered in the brisk morning breeze with dramatic shades of bright yellow. Each time we passed a National Forest Service site--pullout, overlook, campground, viewpoint--we looked to see if it was closed due to the government shutdown that began midnight on Monday--actually 12:01 Tuesday. Andy corrected me. Day trippers had to leave immediately; hotel guests had two days to depart.

A deserted house reminds visitors of the harshness of the
landscape of east central Arizona.



Autumn moves in as we go up in elevation
on the White Mountain Scenic Road.

We crossed the Apache Reservation on Routes #260 and #273. Trees bent in the wind. I shivered when I stepped out of the car for a photo at Sheep's Crossing. Scottsdale had recorded 96 degrees yesterday. It's definitely fall here. At 2:00 p.m. just past Sunrise Park Ski Area in the Lee Valley Recreation Area, the car thermometer read 58 degrees. Huge grasslands spread out on top of the mesa. Cows grazed peacefully, dotting the ridges and meandering along the tree line.

The yellow leaves of aspen trees flutter in the
strong breeze at Big Lake. 

"Nothing's closed here," said Andy, as we pulled into Big Lake picnic area and boat launch. "This is too remote. Not many tourists come here, so unless the government is shut down for weeks, this probably won't be closed." The huge expanses of grasslands interspersed with spreads of Ponderosa pine, blue spruce and Douglas fir, reminded us of South Dakota. "It also reminds me of West Texas," said Andy. "You know, Alpine, Marfa, Marathon... that area."
"But only the grasslands," I agreed.

Big Lake in the Lee Valley Recreation Area
still had visitors, campers, fishermen and hikers.

"We're high here," said Andy, "probably over 7,500 feet in elevation." Brochar Campground still had trailers. Five or six vehicles had parked at the boat launch, and the gate to Apache Trout Campground stood open. One man strolled along the road, another split wood in the campgrounds, boats dotted the lake and a huge American flag fluttered from the boathouse. There were gates here that could be chained and locked, but nothing was barred. "Maybe 'necessary' government workers are spread too thin to close everything," said Andy. "Or maybe this comes under an exemption for self-sustaining areas. And then roads that lead to private homes and ranches have to be accessible, as well."But, regardless of the reason, White Mountain Scenic Road remained open. And that was lucky for us.

About 400 volcanic cones dot the distance from the shelter
at Point of the Mountain Scenic Overlook.

"This IS bear country," said Andy, as we pulled in at Point of the Mountain Scenic Overlook. "You were right about bears, and they have just re-introduced Mexican wolves."
Far below us at 6,985 feet we could see Springerville, Arizona, only 15 miles from the state line of New Mexico. The Little Colorado River wound between the hills beneath us. One interpretive sign said 400 volcanic cones can be identified from the Viewpoint, and it was easy to pick out the lava flow. Fire had destroyed whole slopes of Apache National Forest. Burned trunks of Ponderosa pine lined entire hillsides. But adjoining hills were lush with dark green foliage interspersed with yellow aspen.
"Here's the Little Colorado," said Andy, as we crossed the cattle guard, "and here it's really LTTLE."

Not affected by the government shutdown, Lyman Lake,
a state park for fishermen, is open to campers and vacationers.

The water level of Lyman Lake at Lyman Lake State Park was low. "But this is the driest time of year," said Andy. "It could easily be higher in the spring."  We didn't stay long enough to pay the $7.00 usage fee, but the couple of pictures were pretty with the late afternoon sun reflecting off the water.
Far out in the country, between Springerville and Lyman Lake was a huge complex of buildings, surrounded by lights. The sign read ASPC Apache Unit I. "So that's why Springerville exists," said Andy. "It's a prison--Arizona State Prison Commission."

Strong winds churn up the water of Becker Lake
outside of Springerville, Arizona.

That and the lumber yard and the power plant give Springerville three reasons for being... way out here in the middle of nowhere.
A mile in on a dirt road, the 357-acre Wenima Wildlife Refuge protects a small native endangered freshwater fish called the Little Colorado spinedace. We read the dedication sign and started up one trail but then thought better of it. Thick grasses flattened by a tractor could easily be home to snakes, and here in the valley with the sun going down, it was still 70 degrees.

The Historical Park in Springerville displays this windowless
box, Clay Hunter's home for 60 years.

Becker Lake Wildlife Area was set aside by the Arizona Game and Fish Department for catch-and-release trout anglers. A brisk wind whipped up the water, so the 70-degree temperatures felt colder than that. We walked part of the trail that skirted one side of the lake as anglers pulled off their rubber wading pants. It was already 5 p.m.... time to head "home" for the night.

Andy rings the dinner
bell before we head out for
Mexican cuisine.

But before we actually headed "home" for the night, we followed the signs to the White Mountains Historical Park. Here buildings as old as the 1890's were preserved to honor the town's colonial heritage. They even had the 1919 Ranger Station from the National Forest Service. But the most unique and unusual display was the windowless trailer box 1890 home of Clay Hunter. A hunter and trapper from this area, he lived in this box for more than 60 years. I'd have claustrophobia!