Adventure 338: Bisbee, AZ/Post C

Hard Hats required.

Our tour guide, a forty year veteran of the Queen Mine, told us that rats and cockroaches were welcome in the mine because they had such sensitivities to the earth that if they ever started moving fast, it meant the miners should take heed. I think this is true in our political world as well. Midst all the bluster, obfuscation, pettiness, and payback, the flat fact is that the Democrats currently couldn't pass salt at a congressional luncheon. So what we need to do is watch the rats. When the Republicans start leaving the mine, that's when we'll know the chaos is real. Until then, live on and move on. In that vein (Get it?), our tour of the mine this morning reminded me of reality. Those in power make the rules. Money men of old justified copper mining because the country needed the mineral to aid progress. Today's money men will justify rolling back regulation because we need energy independence for our national security. In the short run, it just may work. Environmentally, who knows? But to paraphrase Ben Franklin, it's good to be a rational man in the event we have to make up reasons for the things we want to do. Regardless of the environmental destruction around Bisbee, and the slow up take to reclaim the land since 1975, the Queen Mine is awe inspiring. Our tour took to the eight hundred foot level, one of many. Our guide said there are hundreds of miles of shafts honeycombed inside this mountain. And the harvest was staggering: Between 1877-1975 miners extracted 8,032,352,000 lbs. of copper, 2,871,786 oz. of gold, 77,162,986 oz. of silver, 04,627,600 lbs. of lead, and 371,945,900 lbs. of Zinc. Those are just the numbers for this mine. There are three more like it in the area. And, Oh, my! the work in the early years was grueling. No air, candle light, hand tools, and ten hour days. It would take three or four days to pound and chisel one hole. Several were required before the miners could pack dynamite into the holes to blow a hole about eight foot by eight foot, by eight foot. Then the miners would have to shovel and load the debris to clear the area. The dust, a silica base, filled the air, and shortened miners lives. It sounds unbearable. Even when the early drills came to the industry, they were so unbelievably heavy, the work was still daunting. And when they introduced water and air compressed drills, the miners worked faster, but now in dark and wet conditions. I'm glad my grandfather, who mined coal in Pennsylvania and other ores in Colorado, didn't pass down mining as the family business. I can see why he turned to lumber jacking. I guess the prospect getting killed by a falling tree far outweighed the slow death of black lung, or the very real prospect of being crushed by several tons of rock in a cave in. When the tour was over, I was glad to see the light. I can imagine the same was true of the miners who worked under ground  In addition, to the mine tour, we did manage to walk above ground nearly four miles and climb twenty-two floors. Like I said, there are no flat roads in Bisbee. We scored the trifecta by eating dinner at Thuy's Noodle shop. Thuy is a delightful Vietnamese woman who is simply a fabulous cook. The bottom line is that everywhere we ate in Bisbee was excellent. Judy commented that perhaps we've been eating a little too high on the hog. My respsonse: Visit Bisbee if you can because life here is good, especially today.

 This train took us deep under ground.

 These stairs lead to a Stope, which is a rich vein of various minerals.

 The yellow air duct is an advantage the original miners didn't enjoy.

 The shift bosses had to check various work sites in the mine, so they rode this bike.

 This 3/4 ton ore cart was filled and pushed a few hundred feet by very strong young men who would then return and push another all the live long day.

 An example of the first drills used which could drill the required holes in a few hours.

 This modern version could drill the same hole in a few minutes.

 Examples of the early, very heavy drills.

 Every so often there is a chamber held up by timbers. These chambers were staging areas where the miners kept equipment and supplies.

 This front loader, which is hooked to a one ton ore cart, could clear several tons per hour.

 This gray streaked piece of ore is called "Leavit" (Which means leave it, it ain't worth nothing).

 Judy thought she deserved some Flan after her long shift in the mine.

Pork spring roll at Thuy's.

Fresh roll at Thuy's.

Chicken Pho.

Hot Rod of the day. We'll see you next time we're in Bisbee.

Adventure 337: Bisbee, AZ/Post B

This is the real Judy around 5 A.M.

Judy commented (Quite alternative factly, I thought) that we are living a "fake life". I pinched myself, shimmied a little, and checked everyone of my hard earned injuries. Each of them reported in with an appropriate amount of pain. I felt them definitely-right here, right now. There was nothing "fake" about it. So, I respectfully disagree with my Bunny. For example, we actually walked 17,847 real steps today, which totaled a legitimate 6.8 miles, and we scaled 45 floors. The floors were surely real (There isn't a flat road in Bisbee). And the mountain trail we scampered up pitched itself upward at about eighteen percent. Near the top, all of my life time injuries began wailing in chorus (As they usually do), and I'm sure I heard my Bunny ask, "do we really have to go all the way up to the cross?" But Judy's claim got me thinking. What is real about this life we live. I think I've found the answer (At least in part). It's clear that we really, really love to eat. In fact, it could be said we live to eat. Really. Wherever we are, our radar is tuned to excellent eats. In that regard, Bisbee is top notch. This morning, we shared a breakfast burrito; lavishly smothered with a delicately flavored green chili sauce. We added a zucchini, carrot, raisin muffin to munch on as we waited for the burrito to be prepared. Then we did our hike because we have to exercise to earn these calories. We then rested for a while, and took another walk around town to look at the houses which perch off the sides of the hills like earrings on a dance hall girl. That, of course, earned us lunch, so we ordered a home made meatloaf sandwich from the Cornucopia Cafe, which we took to go, and enjoyed back at our comfy table in Frac accompanied by a crisp, sweet apple we bought at Trader Joe's in Tucson, and washed it all down with a ice cold Stella Artois. Clearly, our real life is eating. Tonight, we'll enjoy the rest of this exotic curried cauliflower dish Judy made a couple of days ago, and tomorrow morning we're going to try out a savory oatmeal recipe we found that is cooked in chicken broth, garnished with green onions, green chilis, and a fried egg. And then, to top off our stay in Bisbee, we're going to the Thuy Noodle Shop for dinner tomorrow night.  Oh, and we'll probably enjoy a gelato some time tomorrow. So when my Bunny says we're living a "fake" life, I ask her. Don't we always think about food wherever we are, whoever we're with? In fact, I would submit that while dining with friends or family, the table talk often surrounds what we'll eat next. Fake or not, life is food, especially today.


 You can't take a bad picture in Bisbee. The place oozes art.

 A small, tasty muffin.

 This beyond excellent burrito is worth coming to Bisbee all by itself.

 Hot rod of the day.

 The homemade meatloaf, an inch and a half thick, surrounded by nine grain bread was excellent. We've eaten in three local spots here in Bisbee. All have been worthy.

 Selfie of the day.

 See that cross up at the top. That's how we earned the calories.

 This house had so much art attached to it, I thought maybe the whole thing was a canvas.

 The town of Old Bisbee as seen from the top of the trail.

 The view on the other side: The Lavender Pit copper mine.

 Tai Chi figure.

 Fish eye view of the Copper miner.

That's really my bunny strolling down the lane.

Adventure 336: Bisbee, AZ/Post A

Frac at Kartchner

It's Sunday, so it must be time for a sermon. We attended Mass this morning at Our lady of Lourdes Catholic church in Benson, AZ. Father Mateus, a visiting Franciscan, opened his homily by admitting that he hated to cook, which was a problem now that he had moved to the Friary after thirty years as a parish priest in Tucson. Each friar at the friary has to cook one day a week. He dreads the thought. From that admission, he transitioned into a treatment of the Beatitudes, calling them an "eight ingredient recipe for holiness". Note his ingredients: "Admit your limitations. As people poor in spirit we must realize we can't do anything without God. Show more compassion. Mourn for others; generate love by risking vulnerability. Hunger for righteousness. Promote peace. Become a mediator. Quell anger and ill temper. Bring mercy and forgiveness to others; quit pointing the fingers of accusation. Walk more humbly (Become meek) before God. Be clean of heart. Avoid darkness. Seek purity. Be a soldier of righteous living. Bring faith to a world gone cold. For happiness is ours if we live in Christ."  Nourished by Father's thoughts, we enjoyed our regular Sunday breakfast back at the trailer before we set out for Bisbee, a copper mining town with much the same history as Tombstone minus the historic gunfights. While Tombstone was built on a silver vein, Bisbee mined copper. Right next to our RV park is a giant hole the locals call the "Lavender Pit". The town and surrounding area now houses just under 6,000 residents. More than 14,000 lived here in its heyday. Today, there are several excellent eateries, a plethora of residual history, several art galleries, a few hotels, the normal array of trinket shops,  and a topography that lends rumor to a rough past. We would recommend a visit (More to come, since we'll spend three nights here). We wandered around the town for a couple of hours after we set the trailer up. Our walk totaled three miles, and included quite a bit of up and down. We saw quite a few "senior' tourists like ourselves, more than a few desperate characters (Both male and female) wandering about, ardent and serious shopkeepers in every window, and one gaggle of young girls selling Girl Scout cookies. We bought two boxes because Emily, a very precocious four year old, asked us outright. It was a well spent $20. Ten dollars for two boxes, and ten dollars to support the military. After a shower and a short rest, we walked back downtown to the "Screaming Banshee Pizza Parlor", which was simply fabulous. Judy said it reminded her of her own homemade pizza, which I must tell you, is high praise indeed. Back at the trailer, we enjoyed samples of both kinds of cookie for desert. In all, it was another blessed day in which life is good. Now, if we can just follow that recipe.

 In the distance, Bisbee nestled midst the Mule Mountains.

 Site #23 in Bisbee.

 The view from our bedroom window.

 Quite a hole: The Lavender Pit.

 Be happy.

 Selfie of the day.

 We'll tour the Queen Bee mine tomorrow.

 One of several sidewinding store fronts that swerve up and around the hillside opposite the mine.

 Yes, it is.

 This bicycle shop called the "Bicycle Brothel" is filled with vintage bicycles. Quite cool for a biker like me.

 The BisBEE theater.

 Protest Posters: This one, a Hispanic woman says "Defend Dignity". The other of a Middle Eastern woman says, "Resist Fear".

 Half home made fennel sausage with white sauce, half roasted veggie with red sauce. Thin, crisp crust. Delicious.

 Local art entitled "You're fired".

Bisbee at night from our bedroom.

Adventure 335: Kartchner Caverns State Park/Post B

Main Street

"Stop right there, you sniveling sidewinder, and I'm not talking to you Abdul." I can only imagine that Ike Clanton uttered this statement right before the gunfight at the OK Corral in Tombstone, AZ. (Who knows in this make it up as you go reality? It could be an alternative reality). This morning, we drove to Sierra Vista to get the oil changed in Fric. We did a little shopping at a very cool Food Co-op and had some Beef Bulgogi for lunch at Mom's Kitchen, which offers a medley of German, Korean, and Japanese dishes along with a couple of obligatory Southwestern burritos. The bulgogi, while quite tasty, didn't quite match up to the authentic Korean food Kiyoong prepares for us at home. On our way back to Kartchner, we decided it would be easier to tour the legendary town of Tombstone without Frac behind us. We were right. Tombstone, once the county seat of Cochise County, was incorporated in the late 1870s. As many as 14,000 arrived in search of their fortune (There are 1,300 or so today). Between 1877-1890, they dug almost 80 million dollars worth of silver from the mine. In its heyday, tombstone boasted 110 saloons, 14 gambling halls, innumerable dance halls, a myriad of brothels, quite a few grubby miners, a mass of swindlers, a few gunfighters, and some "ranchers" (Like the Clantons) who made a tidy living rustling cattle from the Mexicans just a short thirty miles away as an easy way to provide stores for the local eateries. The famous Earp brothers arrived some time in the 1880s and immediately tensions developed between them and the ranchers. The money men of the time (Republicans, ironically) found it profitable enough to build a rail line to transport silver (Actually two because the Copper barons of Bisbee tired of dragging their wagons to the Tombstone line, so they built their own rail road, which often ran parallel to the other. Greed has no bounds). The rail lines also made it easier for those eager  to get to the territories. At the time of the famous gunfight, the silver mine was close to tapped out because of a fire that burned the huge and very expensive water pumps the mining bosses had installed after they inadvertently struck the water table. By that time, it was too expensive to replace the pumps, so the big money guys pulled up stakes, the town dried up, and all that was left was spoiled water, mine debris, and a few pine board buildings. Tombstone almost died completely in the early 1900s, and would have if it hadn't been the county seat (It gave up that designation around 1927. Today, the place is a vibrant tourism trap gladly accepting nearly 450,000 visitors a year. The town, once a devil's brew of dubious behavior, is now a very staid community. The wooden sidewalks are empty by dusk, which is a far cry from the 24/7 hubbub of the late 1800s, but the locals are still "miners" and "hucksters". Judy and I walked the town, entertained by the authentically dressed actors who all wore side arms, leather vests, and dusty boots. Every face sported some version of bushy facial hair, and a Tombstone scowl. All were hawking tickets for stage coach rides, mine tours, theater tickets, or BBQ. There were even women dressed in full length gaberdine dresses. It was all quite authentic, and truly American. A tourist could find himself fleeced and floured just like any poor sap miner of old. We held tight to our money pouch and enjoyed the spectacle for free. It's part of the really fun things we get to experience on our adventure. Everywhere we go in America, we see people (Another irony: all descended from immigrants) enjoying a life that is good, especially today.

 Flashback: Hot rod of the day. 1955 Chevy Coupe Convertible.

 The county courthouse, which is now an Arizona State Park (Great museum).

 Visitors can tour the town in a stage coach.

 Great wood art.

 Street entertainers. This guy danced to fiddle music.

 Imagine: 110 saloons. Talk about supply and demand!

 This old gal was hawking tickets for the mine tour.

 I'm pretty sure Paul Ryan and Nikki Haley will have to buy new boots.

 Spooky.

 Much of Tombstone is on the historical register.

 Draw!

Teachers (single women) made $75.00/month, and were under contract not to be seen downtown eating ice-cream (Drinking anything stronger than milk meant immediate dismissal).