Prescott, AZ, White Spar Campground, and Congress, AZ

Posted May 11, 2013

April 7-15, 2013

The days in Naco & Bisbee began to get too hot for us Northerners, so we upstakes and drove north to Prescott, AZ. Found a large, sunny, pull-through site at White Spar Forest Service campground, where we'd stayed in 2010. It was in a cool forested area, but this site was out in the open, and away from other sites, so it gave us privacy and plenty of sunlight for the solar panels.

Click on any photo to see it full size

White Spar National Forest Campground, Site 6

Electronic Girl

On a hike in White Spar

 On a hike in White Spar

Taking a break on a hike in White Spar

Our truck has been trouble-free. And a good thing, too. Here's the closest garage:

Garage in Prescott, AZ

The campground host, we later found out, had just turned 80 years old, and he'd been full-timing for 31 years! That's the record so far. Gave us trail maps of the area, warned us about where the snakes lived, and that there were javelinas in the area. We never saw any; however, Alex, a young tent camper in a nearby site, said he'd heard something heavy snuffling around outside his tent in the middle of the night, and when he checked in the morning, he found javelina prints. When we learned that Alex had only blankets to keep him warm during the 20 degree F. nights, we lent him our down sleeping bag...and as a result got to know him a bit better. He was living in his tent at White Spar (3 miles from Prescott), awaiting the start of the semester at Prescott campus of Emory Riddle Aeronautical University, where he'd been accepted to study Aeronautical Engineering, and eventually to become a pilot. He'd just mustered out of the Marine Corps after 5 years and several deployments--two to Afganistan.

He came over to our site the next night and showed us pictures of his tour in Afganistan. He was proud of his tour there, emphasizing how the Marines didn't really go on the offensive against the Taliban, but rather tried to keep the local population safe from them--the 'Hearts and Minds' strategy. Had a pleasant visit and an interesting evening with him. When he left, two days later, he gave us a Marine Corps pin to show his appreciation for the sleeping bag. 25 years old, a first generation Korean American, he had a humble, but self-assured way about him. Very nice kid, and we wish him well.

Nice hikes here through cool pine forests--love that aroma of dead pine needles and the gentle whooshing sound of the wind through the tall trees. We also explored Prescott--especially the thrift shops--and Leah came away with some awesome stuff. Good food, too. ...and good coffee!

Saw this in a restaurant. I can relate.

After a week or so, Leah wanted to go back to the desert, but it was too hot. So we settled for a drive to  Congress, AZ, a desert town just on the other side of the mountain range from Prescott. Beautiful drive.

Heading down to Congress (left, in distance) from the top of the Hwy 89 pass.

Just so happens that the new winter home purchased by the Bayfield Bunch was located in Congress, and we wanted to see what they had bought.

Background Note: the Bayfield Bunch is the title of an RV blog I follow, written by Al Bossence, of Bayfield, Ontario. He and his wife, Kelly, have been wintering in their motorhome for 7 or 8 years in Arizona. Last year, they bought a house and property for only $29,000 just outside Congress, AZ.  
You can do a search of their blog to see a picture of the house.

Congress is a very small town with a very interesting general store: Congress Depot Marketplace, run by the nicest folks: Judy and Jerry Stone. All sorts of stuff on sale, from soap and one-of-a-kind wooden bowls to furniture and clothing, Pizza (really good) and homemade cherry pie (also delicious). Turns out Judy and Jerry know Kelly and Al (of the Bayfield Bunch) well, since some of the Bunch's furniture for their new house in Congress came from Congress Depot Marketplace. Anyway, we took a drive out past their house, and it really is nice looking, especially for the price! Farther on down the same road, we came to an old, pioneer cemetary, where a disproportionate number of the interred were young children. Life must have been hard in the desert in the 1800s.

In this same area, there was a small RV encampment of modern-day gold miners. In fact, as Judy Stone told us, prospective gold miners were lined up to get into the encampment; gold mining was that popular. She showed us some of the gold nuggets found by the miners--they trade them to Judy for various goods, I guess.

We considered dispersed camping near Congress--there was some--but decided against it because of the heat.

Stay well...