Dirtbag?

“Do you know where I want to be right now? It’s right here, nowhere else, not in the future and not in the past.” Just live for the moment”
Yvonne Chouniard

Dirtbag; “A person who is committed to a given (usually extreme) lifestyle to the point of abandoning employment and other societal norms in order to pursue said lifestyle. Dirtbags can be distinguished from hippies by the fact that dirtbags have a specific reason for their living communally and generally non-hygienically; dirtbags are seeking to spend all of their moments pursuing their lifestyle.”

I have been called a Dirtbag, Drifter, Bum, Hobo, Scallywag, rascal and Pimp. Out of all of them I prefer “Dirtbag”. In climbing/mountaineering circles it is not a bad thing; Quite the opposite. In fact, being a “DB” puts me in very good company, take Yvonne Chouinard for instance. He started out as a self-taught blacksmith because he wanted to make his own climbing equipment.

The man lived the dirtbag lifestyle, hung out in wilderness areas all over the west, pioneered numerous climbing routes, Then founded the Patagonia clothing line. He is now a Billionaire. From “DB” to Billionaire, not bad.

Another well known “Dirtbag” was Fred Beckey(RIP). Fred was never rich, or famous(except among climbers)but he traveled all over the world pioneering climbing routes and the man probably knew more about the mountains of the American west than any other person.
I admire both of those old “Dirtbags” and only hope that I can live up to their standards of dirtbagism.

See you on the trail!
Tomahawk

Geronimo! my 1st parachute jump in the Army

Airborne all the way!

Fort Benning Georgia, November 19th 1976, three days before my 19th birthday, I was “Chuted up” and sitting on board a C123 Provider Aircraft as it taxied out of the loading area for takeoff. I was the 2nd man in a “stick” of ten jumpers who were embarking on their first jump at the U.S. Army Parachute School. The 123 lifted off and the pilots swung the aircraft wide of the drop zone then came about and lined up with the Target area (DZ) for the Drop.

I had been watching the open Jump door as we took off and was waiting for the red light to come on above the door which indicated that we were approaching the Drop zone, suddenly the light flashed Red and a split second later, using hand and arm signals and a loud and thunderous voice, I heard the Jump Master shout “six minutes” and throw up six fingers, followed almost immediately by “Get ready”, with that, all of us student jumpers unbuckled our safety belts and waited for the next command.

“Outboard personnel stand up!”, I watched my fellow students and comrades in arms stagger to their feet under the awkward weight of the parachutes and harness, then brace themselves. “Inboard personnel stand up!” with that command my good buddy Dave Parker slapped me on the arm, gave me a sideways look, and we stood up, as I said earlier that I was to be the 2nd man in the stick out the door buy Dave was to be the first.

I don’t know how it worked but Dave and I went through Basic training, Infantry school and Jump school together. If we had wanted to do it the Army would have said no. I first met Dave at the Military processing center in Chicago and like Forest Gump both of us just followed orders and that seemed to work out pretty good.

After a brief moment the Jump Master yelled and signaled “Hook Up!”, with that command we attached our static lines to the anchor line cable that runs the entire length of the aircraft, snapped it shut and placed the safety wire in the proper receptacle.

“Check static lines” we all checked our own static line and glanced at our buddies to make sure all was correct. “Check equipment” I did a quick check of my gear as I had been taught by the “Black hats” , canopy release assemblies, reserve chute, harness release, etc. then made a check of Davey gear , static line, parachute pack then, we all looked at the jump Master and waited for the next command.

“Sound off for equipment check” with that command the last man pushing the stick shouted 10 OK!, followed by all of the others down the line 9 OK!, 8 OK!, 7 OK!, 6 OK!, 5 OK!, 4 OK!, 3 OK!, Then Me, 2 OK!, followed by Dave, All OK!

“Stand in the Door”, Dave slid his static line out to the jump Master and took up a perfect door position as we had been taught over the past three weeks of this course. I watched with anticipation for the green light above the jump door to come on, signaling that we were over the DZ. Even after 35 years I can still vividly see the ground 1,250 feet below as it flew by and the sight of my then best buddy standing in the door waiting to execute his first ever parachute jump.

In a flash the green light came on and I heard the jump master shout “GO!”, and watched him slap Dave on the leg, my friend exited the 123 and I saw him tuck into a perfect body position and he seemed to hang there for a second, then he was gone!

I cannot remember sliding my static line down the cable or handing it to the Jump master but I do remember taking up a door position and leaping out of my first war bird in flight after I felt the slap on my leg and heard the “GO!”

Being a bit of a smartass for most of my life up to that point, I had made up my mind to shout Geronimo!!! As I made my first jump, I did in fact shout the name of that famous Apace warrior but it was drowned out by the sound of the rushing wind, and the Aircraft.

I tucked into a perfect body position and counted “One thousand, two thousand, three thousand, four thousand” and waited for the opening of my T10 parachute canopy. In the 4 seconds it takes your ‘Chute to open you fall approximately 250 feet through the air. Once open you need to check your canopy for malfunctions, tears, holes, twists (Mae West) etc.

After my T10 opened I had around 1000 feet of air and the rest of my fellow Airborne students to negotiate, Even in my excitement, I remembered to “pull a slip” on my risers in the opposite direction of drift to minimize my landing shock, I saw the ground rapidly approaching and got ready to perform a parachute landing fall (PLF) using my 4 points of contact, balls of the feet, calf muscles, thigh, and back muscles. I hit the ground in a near perfect PLF, rolled, got up and ran into then around my canopy to collapse it.

Woohoo! Airborne!, Private Tom Moore AKA “Tomahawk”, roster number 62 had just completed his first parachute jump from a military aircraft in flight and survived. I pulled the release pin on the harness release assemble and shed that burden then, rolled up my canopy and packed it into the aviators kit bag along with the harness. Next as instructed, I attached my reserve ‘Chute to the handles of the Kit bag, threw it over my head and then took off at a double time to the rally point.
I looked for my buddy Dave at the rally point and saw him standing in line at the parachute turn in point, grinning like the Cheshire cat of Alice in Wonderland fame. After I turned in my gear, I jogged over to see my buddy, we shook hands and slapped each other on the back for a job well done, followed by some good natured ribbing by our fellow students and comrades in arms.

And so it went for 4 more jumps to earn the Silver Wings of a U. S. Army paratrooper, It was a fine day for this young soldier as one of my instructors pinned the wings on my chest, as I’m sure it was for all of the others.

My Army career next took me to Fort Bragg, North Carolina where I was a member of Scout platoon 2/505th Infantry before going to Germany where I served in the 11th Aviation group pathfinder Platoon. During my time in the Army I had the opportunity to earn parachute wings from France, Germany, and Holland and to attend the U.S Army parachute riggers school at Fort Lee, Virginia. In total I made 49 parachute jumps from planes and helicopters.
I never really liked making jumps and would never do it as a sport like the sky divers do. It was the extra money and the adventure which drew me to it.

Huachuca Mountains ; Rascal Bear

Rascal Bear

One fathers day a few years ago, I was camping in the Huachucas – Again – , It was hot and humid. I spent most of the day laying in my hammock listening to audio books I loaded onto my Mp3 player. In the evening, I decided to head down to the spring to wash up a bit.

Just after I finished up at the spring, I to notice a fairly large ( for the Huachucas) Black Bear (Ursus Americanus), sitting in the willows just a few paces away. His head was covered in pollen (maybe from grazing dandi lion flowers) and he was sniffing the air. Wow!, kinda cool…I had not brought my camera along so I ran up to my camp to get it in the hopes that “Yogi” would be there when I returned.

Camera in hand, I headed back to the spring in hopes of getting a few pics of this Bruin, Alas! he was gone, I did track him a bit and noticed that he headed up a side canyon which did – in a round a bout way – lead to my camp.

Knowing a bit about Bears, I realized that this rascal was heading to my camp to pillage my food supplies. I beat feet back up the trail to my camp and sure enough, there was “Yogi” with his muzzle buried in my food bag. He had chewed through the suspension rope and dropped the bag from the Apache pine I had secured it in. That was a savvy old bear.

Once, I got his attention with yelling and some rock throwing, I was able to drive him off and salvage most of my food stuffs. This old rascal, only chewed up a cabbage, some cucumbers and a bag of popcorn. Not too bad. This bear came back 2 more times before I was able to land a couple of decent rocks on his head and tail bone. Last seen “Yogi” was heading up the mountain at a fast pace, huffing and puffing all the way.

I salvaged the remainder of my foods, bundled it up, then hung it high in an Apache pine. All in all it was a pretty good experience and marks the 4th or 5th bear encounter I have had in those Mountains.

I also saw another Elegant Trogon….

Kathmandu Nepal

Katmandu Nepal, is a place that had been on my mind for a long time. I had a plan to go there and start a small Kukuri knife export business. In November of 2004 flew to Kathmandu from Doha Qatar  where I had been working as a military contractor . As we were flying in I caught my glimpse of the Himalayan mountains covered in snow, that view even after 14 years is still clear in my memory and ill never forget it.
As soon as the doors of the aircraft were opened I immediately noticed the aroma of incense, it was strong and smelled a little like sandal wood.
I followed the crowd through the tiny Kathmandu airport to the passport control desks, there were 2 lines/desks and above each desk was a sign – 1 read “visas” and the other said “non Visas”, I noticed right away that the non visa line had only 3 people in it while the Visa holders line was long and stretched out quite a ways.
I could have kicked myself for Having gotten my visa at the Nepalese embassy in Qatar , Had I known it was a visa upon arrival I would not have wasted the time and money to get the visa before i left – oh well, live and learn.
anyway, after standing in the visa line for a while I decided to slide over to the relatively empty non visa line and just play dumb, I walked up to the counter and handed my passport to the smiling Nepalese immigration officer and said “Hello” he replied in same and said “Oh sir, you already have a visa and should be in that line” indicating the line I had just left. Damn! but then he said, its “ok, Ill take care of it here” and stamped my passport and visa , then handed back my passport, wished me a pleasant “welcome to my country”.
I said thank you and hit the door, Hooray!! my little subversive action had worked and I didnt have to wait in the long assed visa line.
Coming out to the Baggage claim area I looked for and found my Blackhawk Phoenix back pack, grabbed it then went outside past all of the tour operators selling cut rate tours and vehicle services etc.,I Hailed the 1st taxi I saw  and hit the road for my hotel.
While in Qatar ,I had booked a room online at the Marco polo hotel outside of Tamel in Kathmandu, on their website it looked like a decent place but when i arrived and checked in it was a real 3rd world shit hole hotel, and i decided to look for another room in the AM. anyhoo, after stowing my bag and grabbing my camera i hit the town.
After working in a middle eastern country for almost a year i was suffering from alcohol and pork with drawls so I went looking for a decent restaurant where i could get both. I managed to locate a chinese restaurant near Tamel close to the Royal palace. This restaurant had some beautiful decor but the reason I chose it was because of the sign out front that said “English here goodly spoken”, that to me was the selling point.
I went inside and ordered a bottle of Kukuri rum and everything pork on the menu! it was an excellent meal and id recommend the establishment if I could remember the name.
The kukuri rum was about 1/2 gone when i finished eating so i poured the remainder into my nalgene bottle, added a coke and some water, slung the bottle over my shoulder, paid the bill and hit the door.
Nepal is the home of the pagoda and i visited a few just taking a look but personally i didnt find them interesting.
As I wandered around the City and took in the sights , I decided to try some beetle nut a fella was selling on the street – that was a mistake! that stuff is horrible and i almost passed out!
hahaha, Aftter chewing it and spitting red for about a minute or so I had to call it a day and spit that stuff out. Ill stick to skol or copenhagen snuff.
After about an hour or so of wandering around I was getting tired of all the Beggars and hawkers bugging me for money or to buy something so I went back to the hotel and polished off my Nalgene bottle of rum and coke. After drinking the whole bottle I was about 1/2 in the bag so I figured it was a good time to crash. Tomorrow is another day!
In the morning I headed out to get some breakfast and scout out a new hotel, while looking at the Knives in a kukri shop the owner told me about the Marco polo guest house just next to his shop. I went up to the desk and ask about a room, the gentleman told me they were expensive but he had different rates depending on your budget.
Being curious by nature i asked him how much the expensive rooms were he said “5000 rupees” ( if i remember correctly), i did a quick mathematical extrapolation in my head and realized that was only like $7.00 USD!!! I took a look at the rooms and it was 100% better than the other place and much cheaper so I booked a room for the remainder of my stay in Nepal.
The only thing is this guest house didn’t provide was towels, soap, or toilet paper. I went to a nearby grocery store and bought all of those things plus a bunch of dried Yak meat , bottled water, whisky, cookies, and what looked like trail mix.
I headed back to the guest house to drop off my purchases and saw a fellow standing out front passing out business cards to a trekking company he worked for.
He said hello as I approached and handed me a card. I struck up a conversation with him and he seemed to be a decent guy so I asked him if he w employed, he said “no” so I offered him a job as my personal guide while i was in nepal, he agreed and said his name is Raj, we talked a bit more and decided on his pay.
Raj was a bit hesitant about asking for money but we agreed that he would get 500 Rupees  a day, plus lunch and a pack of American Marlboro cigarettes per day. Raj also asked me if I had any extra clothing I could leave for him when I left Nepal, I said sure.
We agreed to meet the next morning for breakfast at a local place which caters to westerners, I cannot recall the name of the joint but the food was excellent and all of the waitresses were deaf – interesting.
anyhoo, after chow Raj and I headed out to scout out some Kukuri Knife shops and just look around the city. I had a great time and was impressed with the fact that Raj had been on mount Everest as a sherpa and had photos and documents to prove it.
we went scouting around the kathmandu valley and checked out the funeral pyres burning along the river, took a look at the royal palace and the police barracks then did a bit of shopping at a carpet store, I bought 3 rugs and shipped them back to the USA as gifts for friends. I checked out the Kukuri factory and several knife shops and bought blades to fill orders from friend in Qatar and elsewhere.
It was getting late in the afternoon so I asked Raj if he was hungry and of course he was so we got some Nepalie style grub and sat around talking about his adventures as a mountain guide and sherpa.
After dinner I asked my new friend if he was interested in going for a bit of whisky or a beer, he said yes so we went to a local beer palace hidden on the back streets of Kathmandu. It turned out to be a Napalese brothel with lots of patrons and working girls.
we drank Beer and whisky, ate food, danced, smoked all kinds of cigarettes talked to folks for about 6 hours in that place. I was getting a little hammered so I suggested to Raj that we depart the area so I could head to my room for sleep.
I was a little afraid of the Bill but it was not too bad – after all of the food, drinking etc. it was only about 14 bucks American.
Kathmandu seems to close down after dark so we wandered the streets back to my hotel seeing all through a mild alcoholic haze. Upon arrival back at the Maco polo guest house I invited Raj to come up and share a drink on the roof of the hotel.
we passed by my room and snagged the bottle of whisky I had bought earlier in the day and headed to the roof to take a look.
In Kathmandu the stars were still shining bright regardless of the pollution and the city lights, My friend and I sat on the roof star gazing and talking about camping, our wives, friends, jobs etc. all the while polishing off my whisky.
after quite a while I woke up freezing my ass off still on the roof, apparently I had passed out , I looked about for my friend Raj and saw him in a similar state close by.
I tried to wake him up to no avail so I went to my room to get a blanket to throw over him before I went back to sleep myself. After sleeping for several hours I woke up and went to check on my friend Raj but he was gone.
We hooked up later in the day and took a tour of the Kukuri factory which makes these knives for the Famous Ghurka soldiers of the British, Indian and Nepalese armies.
The rest of my stay in Nepal was similar to the first day or so, touring, eating, drinking, buying knives, and just hanging out. I had a great time there and plan to return to visit my Ghurka friends.
Ayo Gurkali !!

Altoids tin stove; my version of a Bengazi boiler

I like to show you a stove/cooking set I use to carry with me when traveling to foreign lands. I don’t know about you but I like to travel light and have a serious aversion to packing too much stuff on my back.

My Luggage usually consists of a Timbuktu Messenger bag or day pack, and a Northface river duffle with pack straps. So, I try to keep my load of gear small and easy to manage.
Long ago while hitch hiking around the American west I met an interesting Individual who went by the colorful if not poetic name of Frying pan Jack.  He was the self proclaimed King of the HOBOs and among the many things that he taught me is that you should never carry more on your back than you can easily run with. Or, in his words “A flat out dead run”.
So This set im talking about falls in line with this way of thinking and with my “travel light freeze at night” life style. The stove, spoon and cup are U.S. Army issue and can be purchased online at most Companies dealing with military surplus.
I had a lid made for the cup in 1991 by a guy in Texas who specializes in Knives and unique equipment items, I have long ago lost his address or I would list it here. I have been using the Canteen cup and spoon since 1978, the rest of the set I picked up in my travels and it has served me well.
Over the years I have developed recipes in my head which I can cook up in this cup and they range from coffee to rice pilaf. It is also an excellent way to purifying water by boiling if the need be, or heat up water to clean a wound in the field or for shaving.
This set is compact and light weight and will easily pack into your luggage no matter what type you use. Placing the set in a commercial stuff sack or plastic bag will keep all the other items in your luggage clean.
The set consists of a standard U.S. Army Issue Canteen Cup with a custom made lid, an army mess kit spoon, an Army canteen cup stove (model 91) and a small metal altoids box to use as a burner unit.
I also have a small 4 oz Nalgene bottle for stove fuel. This type of set up can be used with different types of fuel from a candle, to military type Trioxane heat tabs, to burning small sticks or any type of alcohol to include Tequila or Mekong whisky.
When there was no other fuel available I have even heated a cup of water by placing my Lit Zippo Lighter in the stove. All of these fuel types can easily be found in department stores around the world.
Before pouring the alcohol or other fuel into the Altoids burner, I fill it with sand to keep the liquid from splashing around, and to lengthen the burn time.
I got the idea from reading about the Long Range Desert group in WW2, The LRDG would use empty fuel cans filled with sand as burners and then pour in whatever fuel was available, the sand supposedly stretches the burn time of the fuels used.
This small set is not unlike the alcohol stoves that can be made from Pop or Beer cans. I like this set better and have used it all over the world in all types of weather and climates.

Laplander stove

Laplander stove ;
About 40 years ago I was running around the north woods of Wisconsin near Hayward. I met an old gentleman who name escapes me now but he was an interesting and colorful character.

This old guy made his living by doing things in nature; for example he would cut fire wood in the fall to sell, hunt, trap, do day labor on farms etc. in summer he would fish for subsistence and collect plants to sell to the local flower shops etc. ditto on the day labor.
I admire the fact that he did not have a full time job or any job for that matter. He was not what folks would call successful by the modern American standards but to me he was rich beyond my wildest dreams.
To be able to earn a living from nature and to be content with that is something I have always wanted.
Anyway, He showed me what he called a “Laplander stove”; pretty simple really because it is just a log with slots cut into it.
To make one choose a log about 4 hands high and 2 hands wide at the top, cut a cross into it going down about 2 hands. I used my cross cut saw for this pun intended.
Next fill the slots loosely with birch bark, twigs, pitch wood etc. to help light the “Stove”, these can be difficult to light but once you get them to burn you will have over 3 hours of good burn time with a “Stove” of this size. The flat top is excellent for setting your cooking pots or billy cans on for a brew or for cookin’ up some grub.
These Laplander stoves are also great to use in deep snow because they will not melt down into the snow as a conventional fire will do.
You can also use them in wall tents, tipi’s and other types of shelters. I especially like these fires because it really simplifies your equipment and eliminates the need for a wood burning stove in an extended survival trek.
If you do not have a saw you can split a log with your axe or parang and stick the ends in the snow then light it in the same fashion. The next time you are out and about in a winter environment give the fire method a try – I’m sure you will see the simple benefits of this type of “Stove”.
The only tricky part is getting it lit.

Friction fire – Bow and Drill

                                                     Friction fire – Bow and Drill

  There seems to be a lot of interest in Friction fire making, especially the Bow and Drill or “Bowdrill” as folks commonly call it.

I have always found the B&D fire making method to be pretty easy once you make a set to fit your body and apply the proper technique. I don’t think that there is any evidence to show they American Indians or any other Native people elsewhere in the world used this method to make fire. Hand drill, yes, Bamboo fire saw, yes, fire thong, yes, fire plow, yes, B&D nope. I’m curious as to how it came about and why it is popular with outdoor types today.

A B&D set consists of 5 components;

1. Tinder bundle – can be made out of any combustible materials that have been softened, I like to use cotton wood cambium or juniper bark. Other materials I have made into tinder bundles include milk weed and dog bane fibers, grass, aspen cambium etc. there are countless things to be found in the outdoors that will work.

You can also add extra combustibles to your tinder bundle if you cannot find enough of one type of material; things like thistle or cattail down, birch bark, and pine pitch are excellent fillers.

.

socket, (bearing block, top rock etc) – My socket is the handle of my old Green River Butcher Knife I have been carrying for 20 years. I also have sockets made from Mule deer antler, and have a few lying around made of Cow bone, and some of various hard woods. I have also seen a few made from stone.

2. spindle(or Drill) – the spindle for your personal should be about as big around as your thumb and as long as your hand and should be made from a wood that can be easily dented with your thumb nail. Good types of wood in North America are Alder, cedar/juniper, sycamore, cotton wood, or willow. I have a personal list of over 200 different woods I have made friction fires with over the years, some are hard woods like oak, and maple and my list includes Poison Ivy vine. yup, poison Ivy. I cut a large piece of the poison Ivy then tied a cord to it and threw it in the creek for 5 days, after that time I dried it out and made spindles/fire boards with it. The result was an odd colored wood but it worked and made an ember easily enough.
3. fire board – the board is made from the same material as the spindle and needs to be about 2 fingers wide, 1 finger thick , and about as long as your foot.
4. Bow – your bow can be made of any type of wood you like but it needs to be from arm pit to finger tip in length. some folks like a flexible bow with an acute bow in it but I prefer a straighter stiffer bow with no flex.

Recently in Arizona, I went out in the desert and made a complete set entirely from the soap tree yucca plant to include the tinder bundle.

The Huachuca Potato ( S.fendleri )

Eureka, I’ve found it! (maybe), for 2 years now I have been searching for the Elusive “Huachuca Potato” . It is a wild mountain relative, of the more common potatoes we all use. This Particular type of ‘tater ( Solanum fendleri ) is  a native of the U.S. Southwest and northern Mexico.

I first heard about this Potato during a chance meeting with a Botanist while I was out hiking one day. We talked about all of the unique species that are found only in the Chiricahua and Huachuca mountains. Supposedly this species has been crossed with domestic types in hopes of making common potatoes resistant to the Columbia root-knot nematode. Wild potatoes growing high above the desert in southeastern Arizona may hold the genetic key to stopping this pest.

This Botanist mentioned the “Huachuca potato” as one of the oldest known cultivated crops in these mountain ranges. That is a pretty cool bit of local history.  I began researching this plant and discovered the types of habitat and elevations where it could possibly be found.

The other day while exploring a wash – one of the only true washes I have ever found in the Huachucas, (washes have a stone floor – arroyos have a sandy floor – google it. ). At an elevation of around 7000 feet, I found a sandy area in the bend of the wash. The area had been well rooted through by Javalina, and I was curious what they had been eating.  Taking my walking stick, I raked around in the sandy soil and unearthed what looked like a small red potato!

Needless to say I was a bit excited, I looked around some more but failed to locate any other tubers.I dug a small hole in the soil and filled it with water from my Nalgene bottle then replanted the little red ‘tater.

I’m going back to the location in mid may (if I’m in the area) and see if it (or other plants ) had sprouted. I Can’t wait!

Big cats of the Huachuca Mountains

Not long ago I had a conversation with a Biologist on Fort Huachuca about the Big cat sightings  in recent years. There Have been Jaguar sightings in the Pelloncillos, Chiricahuas and the Huachucas, 5 Oscelot sightings in the Huachucas, and Jagarundi sightings in SW Arizona.
The region where I live in SE Arizona is part of what is called the Madrean Archipeligo , it is an area that covers the southwestern USA and North Western Mexico. The Biodiversity of this region is something that has always amazed me. This region possess such a wide range of flora and fauna that it seems almost impossible.
Where else in the world will you find everything from the Grass hopper Mouse (genus Onychomys ) , to the Jaguar (panthera onca) ?, Or on the flora side, you find dandelions to palm trees! Plus, Cochise county boasts that it is the Humming bird capitol of the world, and that 38% of all butterflies found in the USA are found here. The Army base of Fort Huachuca – according to a biolgist – claims over 1000 plant species endemic to the area.
But my main purpose of this is to make note of the recent wild cat sightings in the area around the Huachuca mountains. Personally, I have seen many Bobcats and have been privilaged to see Pumas on a few occasions. One night , while camped in a place I call “Bear camp” because of all the Bear (Ursus Americanis) encounters I have had there –  I heard the roar of what sounded like a big cat. I did some research on it and found out that the Jaguar – sighted many times in arizona; is the 3rd largest cat in the world and, the only North American species the roars.
There are still many wild animal mysteries yet to be uncovered in these Mountains, even though the 3 major players have been removed from the ecosystem. 1. The Apache, 2. the Grizzly bear – extirpated in 1929 and 3. the Jaguar – so rare as to be considered extirpated.
For the Most part, the Huachucas are pretty wild and rarely explored except by myself of the occasional illegal alien or drug runner. Most Americans are lazy, and subscribe to the idea that if they have to walk , they are not going to go. This is good because it keeps useless environment abusers in town where they belong.

A small black bear in the Huachuca Mountains

While camping in the Huachuca Mountains in south eastern Arizona’ I had a couple of Bear encounters which surprised me a little and entertained me greatly.

I was taking a nap in my tent when this old boy woke me up with his huffing. I suppose he didn’t like me intruding into his back yard. The bear was behind my tent so I had to unzip the door to stand up and see what was going on. There was a fairly good sized black bear in a cinnamon color standing on his hind feet looking at me huffing and drooling.

I reached back into my tent to grab my camera, but smoky took off for a pine tree and started to climb. I don’t know why but he climbed about 30 feet up an Apache pine near my camp, and continued to huff, puff, and drool while staring at me. I was lucky he let me get this great picture.
The Huachuca mountains were formerly Grizzly Bear Habitat; the last grizzly was extirpated from these mountains in 1929. The Sonoran grizzly use to range all over south eastern Arizona, Too bad they are gone. The Grizzly along with the jaguar, lend an element of dangerous excitement to the wilderness. This helps keep you on your toes!