Parker Canyon Lake

 Every once in a while, the Chance family takes off on a foray into no-man's land.  The last time it was a twenty mile dirt road to the little ghost town of Ruby down by the border.  This time it was to see if we could find Parker Canyon Lake and Dam around the Huachuca Mountains.

Any adventure in Arizona always includes dirt roads, usually narrow and steep.  This trip was no exception.  We headed out past Sonoita and Elgin on a road that just got narrower and narrower.  Don't ask me the name because I was in the back seat.  Just head south.  

Eventually we found the little lake, which resides in the Coronado National Forest.  I could not find much information other than it is a tributary of the Santa Cruz River and they stock it with fish once a month.  Apparently they have caught some big trout, bass and bluegill here, but at this time the lake is so low, there's not much being caught but moss.

The parking lot was full when we pulled in, but people were so spread out, there was lots of room to catch a view of the lake.

You can walk all the way around to the right and camp on the beach.  Keep in mind you are about five miles from the border.  

There was a small store, but I didn't go inside.  Instead I sat on a bench at the edge of the lake and took pictures.

They even have a boat dock where you can rent kayaks and little fishing boats.  As you can see, they were pretty busy.

This group tried to get this motor going for the entire time I sat there.  It just would NOT start.  The red jacket is the lady renting the boats.  This poor guy pulled that rope until he almost fell in the lake.  They never did get it running.  So why not give them another boat?

THIS motor started right up and they zoomed backward like pros!!  Except someone forgot to untie the rope attaching them to the dock.  Eventually they were on their way out across the lake.

Time to head on out to the REAL destination, the Coronado National Memorial.  Roads can be confusing here, but we finally turned down the long gravel one.  The sign said 39 miles to Sierra Vista, the far side of our destination.  

I expected 29 miles of that to be gravel ... and it was!!  The further we went, the narrow and steeper the road became until we were literally hanging on to the side of the cliff by the tiny tread on the tires.  Okay, maybe I exaggerate a little, but if height bothers you when driving, this road is not for you.

However ... the views were spectacular, something you will not see anywhere else.  If anyone wants to check it out, pack food, water and protection just in case.  As you can imagine, there are lots of people (immigrants and drug runners) crossing the border illegally right now and you never know who you might run into.  Do not stop for anyone.

In the interest of not writing a book, I'll finish this tomorrow.  You won't believe the views!!