"Borders are scratched across the hearts of men,
by strangers with a calm, judicial pen,
and then the borders bleed as we watch with dread the lines
of ink along the map turn red."
Maryn Mannes
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| Pedestrian fencing dividing Sonora, Mexico and Organ Pipes National Monument |
While at San Simeon State Park, a full time RV'er inquired if we had ever been to Organ Pipe Cactus? "Where I asked?" "Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in Southern Arizona...right on the border of Mexico. The park is awe-inspiring and features a beautiful campground." Wow I thought...we gotta go there while we are in that part of the state...sounds like a perfect side trip to amplify one's experience...and with us having middle names of "InspireMe"...
But the story he shared with me sealed the deal. While he was camping there, the host woke up one morning to find an old man, fragile and thin, sitting on his patio chair. "The man was kind and polite...just needing a safe place to rest. He was from Guatemala, (a beloved country to Imkelina and her family), seeking a better life for him and his family. As there were so many US Border Agent patrolling the roads, this camper was surprised he had made it to Organ Pipe Cactus undiscovered." As of the result of this brief conversation, I knew I wanted to see this place, to help me grasp the risks and hardships that these "illegal refugees" endure to behold a glimmer of hope. When we were there, seeing the borderland, which in reality is a very daunting landscape, we were able to comprehend the desperation and despair that forces one to survive...for this great migration to see OZ is anything but painless and safe.
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| Cactus Wren |
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| Phainopepla |
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| Crested Organ Pipe |
Just a short drive from Ajo, AZ, Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is just a dazzling desert jewel. It is also an International Biosphere Reserve. Located in the extreme part of the state which shares a border with the Mexican state of Sonora, you have 330,800 stunning acres that celebrate life and landscape by showcasing the most pristine tract to the great Sonoran Desert of this American Southwest. The monument exhibits an extraordinary collection of wildlife, birds and plants, including the Saguaro, Ocotillo and it's namesake, the Organ Pipe Cactus rarely found in the United States. Here you can grasp that every seed is awakened and so is animal life...so we yield to all the flora and fauna the same right we give ourselves...to inhabit this land. The monument is a true desert experience.
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| 2.6 mile Palo Verde Trail to Visitor Center |
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| 1.2 mile Desert View Nature Trail |
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| Vista of Desert View Nature Trail |
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| Alamo Canyon Trail Views |
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| 1.8 mile Alamo Canyon Trail |
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| historic corral Alamo Canyon Trail |
Twin Peaks is a perfectly designed campground that allows everyone here to intertwine with the Sonoran Desert. And to assist you toward embracing your beautiful surroundings, the NPS offers daily interpretive talks at the Kriss EggleVisitor Center (named after a Law Enforcement Park Ranger killed by members of a drug cartel), ranger led hikes and tours throughout the Park and evening interpretive programs offered in the campground amphitheater. During one of these interpretive talks at the visitor center, we had the pleasure of connecting with a gifted photographer, a seasonal ranger at our beloved North Rim and a dedicated steward of our west, Gaelyn, the Geogypsy. And as we found out later, we actually were mirroring each other's adventure, i.e. stops at Kofa, Ajo and here. Imkelina and Sydney had a collection of hikes to enjoy...and if we would have stayed another week, she could have crossed each one off her list.
We experienced some beautiful sunsets and remarkable silhouettes through the moonlit nights. And although we had a little too much moonlight, they say the night skies here offer a true spectacle...you will witness the stars at peace, drifting slowly through the darkness and into our deepest being.
Alas, there may be a day when the human race will be able to hear the pleas of our land...to cherish, protect and share. No boundaries, No Wall, no rules, no violations
At Waypoint 31.94205, -112.81207
For me, the true attraction for was the wonderful interpretive visitor center and the desert landscape encircling the caves. The campground offered many panoramic views of the surrounding mountain ranges, the Whetstone, Dragoon and Chiricahuas. One afternoon, we were greeted with the foreboding signs of wild storm. And sure enough, that night we became engrossed in a wondrous display of lightning strikes, hail and ground shaking thunder, which freaked out Sydney, who spent the storm shuddering on Imkelina's lap. These snakelike strikes danced all around us for better than an hour. Quite impressive!
