Fort Bowie Arizona

Fort Bowie

 

Fort Bowie in 2007

January 13, 2007

About an hour east of Tucson on I-10, I tired of jockeying with the 18-wheel trucks and the need to maintain speed so as not to tie up traffic.  At Willcox, AZ we decided to pull off the Interstate and take a break.  After a short nap in the IGA parking lot, we searched our map for a place of interest to explore.  On previous trips, we had explored much of the area and I was somewhat skeptical that we could find a place we had not explored before.  Then, we noticed the Fort Bowie National Historic Site on our map.  After quizzing our failing memories, we decided that we had never before visited Ft. Bowie.  We took Hwy. 186 toward the Chiricahua Natl. Monument and the intersection with the Ft. Bowie road heading north.  It was a well-maintained gravel road but complete with the obligatory wash-board bumps.  After finding the appropriate speed to minimize the rattling of silverware and dishes in the cabinet, we climbed up into the Dos Cabezos Mountains and Apache Pass. 

Fort Bowie 1894

 

From the pass, we had a clear view of the San Simon Valley to the Peloncillo  Mountains.  About 10 miles to the north, we could clearly see I-10 and the steady stream of trucks – like white, box-shaped ants moving east and west across the desert floor.  A roadside sign explained that the Butterfield Overland Mail route passed through Apache Pass.  We began to wonder why these Butterfield stages would make such a hard climb up and across this pass when they could have traveled on the much easier route now taken by I-10 on the desert floor.  As we read more of the historic markers, it became abundantly clear why they chose this route.  It was water!  Water is one of the major limiting factors in desert travel and Apache Springs near this pass provided a steady source of life-giving water.

Visitor Center

A sign explained that if we really wished to visit Fort Apache, it would require a 3-mile round trip hike up through Apache Spring and ending at Fort Bowie.  It was a very nice hike, filled with well-conceived historical signs filled with interesting information.  I’ll let photos of these signs tell the rest of the story.  But, if you are interested in more details, check out: http://www.desertusa.com/bow/index.html.

 

 

Apaches occupied much of west Texas until the Comanches moved in and forced the Apaches into the Western mountains -- where they could better defend against the horse-mounted Comanches.

 

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