02-17-12

Yesterday afternoon I took Bob down Tyson Wash to check out the petroglyphs

and grinding holes.

We stopped at an old ruin on the way. 

Today we took a ride with Junior and Dave to see if we could get to Alamo Lake the back way.

Bob has a new GPS system and wanted to try laying out a route and following it so that is what we did. We drove up to Bouse got on Swansea Road and followed it to Midway. From there we followed the track that Bob had laid out which took us through Swansea Town sight where we struck the Pipeline road and followed it north.

We missed one turn in a wash and had to turn around but we soon got into the proper wash

and arrived at the Bill Williams River. We crossed the river

and continued north on another pipeline road.

There was some confusion as we were using two different GPS’s and turned east on a wash that appeared to be the correct one but after we entered the wash we missed a turn that may have taken us to the lake but instead we wandered around in the hills for a while. Eventually we stopped for lunch

and after some discussion and checking maps and both GPS’s we decided that we didn’t know where we were. Our fuel supply was getting down to about half a tank each. So we decided to retrace our trail and return to the river. We stopped to check out an interesting rock outcrop.

When we got back to the pipeline road we decided to follow it to the north for a ways to see if we could find the trail to the lake. We went a mile or two but didn’t cross any roads that looked like they would go to Alamo Lake. Eventually at the top of a hill we turned around and headed back to the river.

When we arrived at the river we encountered a couple with a disabled Rhino. They asked if I could tow them across the river as the others with them had UTV’s and they didn’t think they were up to the task.

I was delighted to help but of course I had to have the episode well documented.

After we were all across the river we headed out the wash to Johnson Ranch Road, then to Lincoln Ranch Road and finally back to Swansea Road and thence to Bouse and home.

It was an interesting but unfulfilling ride. One which we will have to try again with sufficient fuel to complete the journey. There are many roads in the area and it is easy to become confused and use up extra fuel. From where we turned around it is twenty-five miles one way to the lake. If the trip is completed without any wrong turns it will be well over 150 miles from Quartzsite to the lake and back. It may make a good future camping trip.