jonahlight1

The Sonoran desert covers most of the southern half of Arizona but varies greatly in appearance. Near the California border it's sparse, almost bleak in appearance. Dirt, rocks, hills made of dirt, hills made of rocks, the occasional palo verde or mesquite tree, ocotillos and creosote bushes. That's about it. As you make your way east the flora changes dramatically, cactus everywhere, and that's what I like. Darby Well Road (which turns into Bates Well Road) is just north of the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, and while the organ pipe cactus here aren't plentiful, they do make an appearance. In addition there are plentiful Saguaros, Barrel cactus, and various Chollas (including the teddy bear and jumping Chollas, which look amazing but are not a pleasant encounter).

I drove at least 5 miles in from the main road, mostly just looking for a T-Mobile signal. Luckily I found one at what might be the most scenic spot, 32.285692,-112.852141. The cell signal was decent but the speed made it almost unusable, hence my one bar rating. The road was washboard in spots but otherwise manageable. Beyond these coordinates you can descend into the valley to the East but you'll need 4wd. If you continue down Bates Well Road to the south and west the vegetation starts to thin out a bit and the views aren't as impressive.

The site itself was a large clearing among the vegetation, with expansive valley views on both sides. Not quite level but not too far off. There was a stone fire ring and almost no garbage. Nice. The nighttime sky was fairly dark with just a little light pollution coming from Ajo and Why. There were occasional coyotes at dusk and dawn, birds, rabbits, and they typical bugs, including the absolutely terrifying Tarantula Hawk.

This area is just outside the Barry Goldwater bombing range, and you'll get regular air traffic overhead, the most common being the A-10 Warthogs, which sometimes fly real low. If occasional screaming jets and distant but sometimes very loud booms (sonic?, bombs?) aren't your thing then this isn't your spot. I happen to enjoy them, and just about everything else at this location.

As of April 2021 the BLM website says this campground is closed. Not true. It's patrolled relatively infrequently, but they're aware people are using the site and not kicking anyone out. The pit toilets are not being maintained. My boosted cell service for T-Mobile and Verizon was fine. Maybe I was in the right spot but I didn't have to seek it out, it was the first spot I chose and it had service.

Broken glass everywhere. Everywhere. Some people also littered up a couple sites while I was there. A nice family next to me left a firepit, some wood blocks, and some plastic smelling garbage still burning. Some van campers left a box of "free dry goods". Another group let the wind carry their garbage far and wide and also left a pillow and some blankets. I get the sense that some people think they're paying it forward by leaving something they deem useful. If this is you, you're not. Litter is litter. Stop it.

BLM/NFS needs to either figure out a way to allow us to report litter/dog poop violators and deter these people from returning (cameras at the entrance recording license plates?), or provide trash services. Saying "pack it in pack it out" with no enforcement doesn't work.

As of April 2021 the BLM website says this campground is closed. Not true. It's patrolled relatively infrequently, but they're aware people are using the site and not kicking anyone out. The pit toilets are not being maintained. My boosted cell service for T-Mobile and Verizon was fine. Maybe I was in the right spot but I didn't have to seek it out, it was the first spot I chose and it had service.

Broken glass everywhere. Everywhere. Some people also littered up a couple sites while I was there. A nice family next to me left a firepit, some wood blocks, and some plastic smelling garbage still burning. Some van campers left a box of "free dry goods". Another group let the wind carry their garbage far and wide and also left a pillow and some blankets. I get the sense that some people think they're paying it forward by leaving something they deem useful. If this is you, you're not. Litter is litter. Stop it.

BLM/NFS needs to either figure out a way to allow us to report litter/dog poop violators and deter these people from returning (cameras at the entrance recording license plates?), or provide trash services. Saying "pack it in pack it out" with no enforcement doesn't work.