If I Were Going...: Chiricahua and Pinery Canyon

Pinnacles at Chiricahua National Monument

It was time to go home. I had dropped Caty off at the airport and then driven east to the little town of Willcox where I spent the night in Rose’s Willcox hotel, an old motel with a large room. The next morning I was heading south to Chiricahua National Monument.

On my way to Tucson a few days earlier, I had flirted with the idea of going to Chiricahua. I put it into Google maps and followed the directions until I got to a sign that said, “Pavement Ends.” I had been to Chiricahua before and recalled a rather dicey (and long) unpaved mountain road (more on that later), so I turned around and headed on to Tucson. I would have more time to tackle Chiricahua on my way home.

As I drove, I realized that the correct entrance (if you like to drive on paved roads) to the Park is from Willcox to the west, not Bowie, where I had made the turn to the Park.

Getting to Chiricahua

I also later realized the road from Bowie was not the long road I was thinking of. That is Pinery Canyon Road that heads east to Portal, Arizona (more on that later, too).

Pinery Canyon Road continues past Chiricahua

Anyway, I am glad I waited until my trip home because the weather was so lovely when I went. At almost 10,000 feet, it was breezy, cool and dry. A nice respite from Tucson heat.

On my way to the National Monument, I had a couple of great bird encounters. First, I spotted a Great Horned Owl nest in a relatively short Mesquite tree just off the road.

Surprise!

I mean, these guys were at just about eye-level and probably less than 50 feet away. They didn’t seem to mind me as I snapped a few shots.

Right before the entrance to Chiricahua, I saw a Red-tailed Hawk nest. It was a bit farther away and harder to photograph, but I could see two birds in the nest eating something and there was another Hawk nearby on a tall tree snag.

Guarding the entrance

Along the route, I also saw some Curve-billed Thrashers that I was able to capture and some fast-moving Sparrows I wasn’t.

Common in the desert

In the Park, I saw far less wildlife, which was a bit surprising. Last time I was there, I saw my first-ever Mexican Jays and a Coatimundi plus lots of Deer.

Typical wildlife

This time, I saw a few Butterflies, a beautiful Flycatcher that flew away before I could get a picture and a very pretty Southwestern Fence Lizard.

A beautiful turquoise neck

The Park was virtually empty, so I could drive slowly along the leafy hillsides studded with massive pinnacles.

A pretty drive

The landscape is impressive.

The NPS website calls it a “Wonderland of Rocks”

The Park is small with only eight miles of road and just 17 miles of trails (I had hiked there last time).

View near the top

I stopped at the Visitor Center and inquired about the Unpaved roads. The Ranger said that everything was in fine condition. So, I could have driven in from Bowie. And, more important, I could drive Pinery Canyon Road if I chose to.

I chose to.

Pinery Canyon Road

I was a little reluctant at first because I recalled some fairly hairy blind curves on a two-way-but-less-than-two-lanes-wide road. But, the Park was so empty, I figured the road wouldn’t be too bad.

Pinery Canyon Road

Traversing Arizona Forest Road 42, the 19-mile-long dirt road offers access to the forested floor of Pinery Canyon and the high slopes of the Chiricahuas. The peaks, including Dos Cabezas, Swisshelms and Dragoons, are called “the sky islands.”

One of the mountaintops

Blooming lupine

The canyon is home to a variety of habitats including a riparian forest, oak/juniper woodlands and mixed conifers on the higher slopes.

The road wasn’t bad, but I am very relieved I encountered only four cars going the other way and none were in the sketchy sections. It was, however, rutted (very), bumpy (very, very) and dusty (very, very, very).

I had to drive across a couple of shallow flowing streams. They weren't dangerous, but I wondered if the next stream would be impassable.

A side stream (I didn't have to cross this one)

But, I kept going because I hoped to see some cool stuff and I didn't want to backtrack. However, had I reached a deep stream of too narrow/rutted section, I would have turned around.

Pinery Canyon is known as a premier birding spot, but I hadn’t seen much last time – the best sighting was a Yellow-eyed Junco.

How fitting that the first bird I saw on this drive was a Yellow-eyed Junco!

Nearby was an Ash-throated Flycatcher

Within minutes, I encountered several stopped vehicles in a wide flat area (I think there was a designated camping area nearby). The people – who turned out to be lovely folks from Michigan – were birding. When I asked what they were seeing, the response was kind of funny, “Well, I’m looking a Chickadees right now … pause … pause … but there’s a Spotted Owl up in that tree.”

Wha???? Talk about burying the lead!

They showed me where to look and, sure enough, a Mexican Spotted Owl was perched high in a tall pine.

A bit tricky to find

They told me that he has been in this clearing every summer for 11 years. You can bet that I pinned it in my car’s GPS!

The Owl was sleeping (as they do in the daytime), so there wasn’t much to photograph.

He did peek at us a little

This wasn’t a new bird for me; I had seen two in Miller Canyon, Arizona, in 2017. But, Spotted Owls are not common.

There were a number of birds flitting in and out of the trees, but they were so, so hard to see. I think I saw a Grace’s Warbler, which would be a Lifer, but the photos were a small yellow patch behind lots of leaves. I didn’t count it. I just missed some Chickadees (I might have even seen some) that I would have dismissed as Black-capped Chickadees. Who knew there were Mexican Chickadees?

I did see a Hermit Thrush that was doing a great job of hiding in plain sight

And an adorable little Brown Creeper that decided (for once) to be visible

Then (speaking of in plain sight), one of the Michiganians found a Hummingbird ensconced in a nest right in front of us.

I may have never seen it

But, it was frustrating and I couldn’t stay all day. So I moved on to Cave Creek and the nearby town of Portal, both of which are known for birding.

Pinery Canyon Road ends in Cave Creek, another birding hotspot

And, a beautiful one, at that

I stopped a few places, but saw more birders looking for birds than actual birds.

I saw a Townsend’s Warbler

I was told that there was a Blue-throated Mountain Gem Hummingbird in the area. I couldn’t find it, but may have heard it. Mostly people were looking for Elegant Trogons. Been there. Done that.

Next time I head south, maybe I’ll actually plan some time in Cave Creek. But, I had to head north. I was in New Mexico, so I had already lost an hour (Arizona eschews Daylight Saving Time). So, with just a short stop to photograph a Harris’s Hawk on – where else??? – a power pole, my drive to my next stop (Deming, New Mexico, just to sleep) was uneventful.

Harris's Hawk

One More Stop

I was going to dilly-dally heading home and contemplated staying the night in Albuquerque or Santa Fe, but Scott needed me to get home to be there for a delivery. So, the next day the only stop I made was a quick drive through of Bosque del Apache. This time, because it was early and still cool, I walked on the marsh boardwalk.