Devil's highway - Page 2

wallache · 12-25-2011, 12:25 PM

Xskydiver · 12-25-2011, 03:57 PM

Shortly after Camp Gripp there's a stone grave on the side of the road. It's called Oneal's grave. You see, Oneal was found dead here, face down in a puddle of water. He is the only known drowning victim along the Diablo. His is NOT the only grave along the way. It is the most visible one as it is right next to the road. Passers by pay their respects by leaving tokens among the rocks. The common theme is either ammo or coins. We spotted coins from the Netherlands and several calibers of ammunition.

It was getting dark fast. We wanted to get off the refuge before making camp because you can't gather firewood on the refuge. We ran into a BP agent on patrol and asked him about a place to camp. He said we were almost off the refuge and were close to Tinajas Altas. This was on my list of things to see so we decided to camp near there. I wanted to see the circle 8 grave site but missed the turn in the dark. It's where family of eight are buried after having been murdered. The agent told us to look for a scarecrow that marks the turn to our camp site.

This is one creepy bastard in the middle of the night. We made the turn and started looking for a soft spot to camp. After a few minutes of driving around we headed a short way down a wash and decided to stop for the night.

Mike955i · 12-25-2011, 04:42 PM

In! I've wanted to make this run for a few years, thanks for your persistence in making this happen.

Dirt2007 · 12-25-2011, 07:03 PM

Nice RR. If I googled right it starts at I-8 East of Yuma and goes to Oja?

Xskydiver · 12-25-2011, 07:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dirt2007

Nice RR. If I googled right it starts at I-8 East of Yuma and goes to Oja?

That's right. It's about 125 miles from Yuma to Ajo. The traditional direction is East to West. It's worth planning a couple of days out there. There's quite a bit to explore. I'll go again.

dave6253 · 12-25-2011, 08:37 PM

Xskydiver,

Great report. This road has also been on my bucket list for awhile, but the deep sand kind of scares me. I can't wait to see the rest. I've read those metal grates in the road were to support military tanks. Dunno...

I had given up on getting a permit for the bike and was planning a trip with my friend's 4x4. A fellow inmate sent me the press release awhile back saying they would now allow street legal motorcycles. He suggested we attack it together, but I don't know. I'm skeered of the deep sand.

Even though permits are now issued, the Cabreza Prieta NWR is closed for a large chunk of the year for some special sheep mating grounds.

Xskydiver · 12-25-2011, 09:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave6253

Xskydiver,

Great report. This road has also been on my bucket list for awhile, but the deep sand kind of scares me. I can't wait to see the rest. I've read those metal grates in the road were to support military tanks. Dunno...

I had given up on getting a permit for the bike and was planning a trip with my friend's 4x4. A fellow inmate sent me the press release awhile back saying they would now allow street legal motorcycles. He suggested we attack it together, but I don't know. I'm skeered of the deep sand.

Even though permits are now issued, the Cabreza Prieta NWR is closed for a large chunk of the year for some special sheep mating grounds.

It's closed from March to July. You really need to go in the winter anyway. Summer temps get easily over 100 even into the 110s is not uncommon for the area. Where the landing mats are is still on the refuge not the bombing range. The roads there are too narrow for tanks anyway. I don't think they use tanks anywhere on the range. At least I didn't see any evidence of them.

As far as the sand goes, there's definitely a learning curve. I'm pretty comfortable with sand on my 525 but this is a whole different animal. Next time I'm going to have my suspension set up better, have a stabilizer, and pack the weight much lower. That should help.

Pantah · 12-26-2011, 07:45 AM

Great discovery for me. Thanks! I think I'll save the Devils Road to Yuma for another time as I will be solo, but I believe I can make a loop through Organ Pipe. I'd like to take Bates Well Rd into Organ Pipe Monument from Ajo. I think just short of the refuge there is a road that goes south through the park to the border then turns east to Hwy 85. Then I could turn north on 85 and maybe visit the park HQ.

Should be a nice day trip from Cave Creek. Thanks for the and pics.

Xskydiver · 12-26-2011, 08:43 PM

Ok, this is what my leg looked like BEFORE the trip started. I had a minor disagreement with an ATV a few days earlier. I got my leg smashed and the ATV got launched end over end down a small mountain. Overall I'd say it was a draw.
Now it seemed like everytime I departed the bike unexpectedly, I resmashed my leg against the crash bar. By the time day one was over it was swollen almost twice this size and was twice as dark. So, after setting up camp and some sweet camp chow, I treated myself to an Advil dessert and an Ace wrap.

Xskydiver · 12-26-2011, 09:03 PM

Here's what our camp looked like in the morning. Pretty good since we just kind of stumbled our way down the first wash we found. A couple of times during the night I got startled awake by the sound of a truck that sounded like It was about to drive right through my tent. (not an unreasonable fear given the amount of tire tracks found in nearly every wash out here) In the morning we could see the road was just above is. I'm guessing it was agents driving back and forth. Incidentally we had accidentally found the only soft ground for some distance in any direction.

RedRockRider · 12-26-2011, 10:53 PM

squonker · 12-27-2011, 08:57 AM

Cool. Thank you!

manfromthestix · 12-27-2011, 09:21 AM

Cool report, that's beautiful country. I grew up in New Mexico and really miss the desert. Ain't no desert in Virginia or anywhere close

.

Knowing the desert, I learned to stay out of "dry" washes if there was even a remote chance of precipitation. I saw some phenomenal flash floods come up in NM in a matter of minutes and under a blue sky. One day my brother rode his bike off a six foot drop-off into a wash that had been stone dry when we'd ridden there the day before and eroded out like hell the next day. Weren't you a little concerned about camping in the wash?

Anyway, hope you were packing some heat given all the BP and illegals traffic in that area. I'm more skeert of crazed humans than I am of sand and mud

. Hope your leg feels better!

Doug

azcycle · 12-27-2011, 02:58 PM

bajaburro · 12-27-2011, 03:52 PM

did that trip in the 80's with a bronco 4x4.there were two of us in case of trouble.with all the violence along the border i don't think i go now.press the button for help,i can hardly believe it.

12-25-2011, 03:57 PM	#17
Xskydiver ^OP Gnarly Adventurer Joined: Aug 2006 Location: Willcox, AZ Oddometer: 205	Shortly after Camp Gripp there's a stone grave on the side of the road. It's called Oneal's grave. You see, Oneal was found dead here, face down in a puddle of water. He is the only known drowning victim along the Diablo. His is NOT the only grave along the way. It is the most visible one as it is right next to the road. Passers by pay their respects by leaving tokens among the rocks. The common theme is either ammo or coins. We spotted coins from the Netherlands and several calibers of ammunition. It was getting dark fast. We wanted to get off the refuge before making camp because you can't gather firewood on the refuge. We ran into a BP agent on patrol and asked him about a place to camp. He said we were almost off the refuge and were close to Tinajas Altas. This was on my list of things to see so we decided to camp near there. I wanted to see the circle 8 grave site but missed the turn in the dark. It's where family of eight are buried after having been murdered. The agent told us to look for a scarecrow that marks the turn to our camp site. This is one creepy bastard in the middle of the night. We made the turn and started looking for a soft spot to camp. After a few minutes of driving around we headed a short way down a wash and decided to stop for the night. __________________ "Adversity doesn't build character. It reveals it." Xskydiver screwed with this post 12-01-2012 at 09:26 AM Reason: Spelling

12-25-2011, 04:42 PM	#18
Mike955i Studly Adventurer Joined: Jun 2005 Location: Phoenix, AZ Oddometer: 957	In! I've wanted to make this run for a few years, thanks for your persistence in making this happen. __________________ Just another Dharma Bum, drifting in the void

12-25-2011, 08:37 PM	#21
dave6253 ad-ven-cher-uhs Joined: May 2006 Location: Phoenix, Arizona Oddometer: 2,537	Xskydiver, Great report. This road has also been on my bucket list for awhile, but the deep sand kind of scares me. I can't wait to see the rest. I've read those metal grates in the road were to support military tanks. Dunno... I had given up on getting a permit for the bike and was planning a trip with my friend's 4x4. A fellow inmate sent me the press release awhile back saying they would now allow street legal motorcycles. He suggested we attack it together, but I don't know. I'm skeered of the deep sand. Even though permits are now issued, the Cabreza Prieta NWR is closed for a large chunk of the year for some special sheep mating grounds. __________________ My 25 Ride Reports! dave6253.smugmug.com

12-26-2011, 07:45 AM	#23
Pantah Red Sox Nation Joined: Oct 2004 Location: India Wharf Oddometer: 8,891	Great discovery for me. Thanks! I think I'll save the Devils Road to Yuma for another time as I will be solo, but I believe I can make a loop through Organ Pipe. I'd like to take Bates Well Rd into Organ Pipe Monument from Ajo. I think just short of the refuge there is a road that goes south through the park to the border then turns east to Hwy 85. Then I could turn north on 85 and maybe visit the park HQ. Should be a nice day trip from Cave Creek. Thanks for the and pics. __________________ Straight ahead and faster -Bo Weaver 1970 "There I was..." -Griffin Niner Three Hotel

12-26-2011, 08:43 PM	#24
Xskydiver ^OP Gnarly Adventurer Joined: Aug 2006 Location: Willcox, AZ Oddometer: 205	Ok, this is what my leg looked like BEFORE the trip started. I had a minor disagreement with an ATV a few days earlier. I got my leg smashed and the ATV got launched end over end down a small mountain. Overall I'd say it was a draw. Now it seemed like everytime I departed the bike unexpectedly, I resmashed my leg against the crash bar. By the time day one was over it was swollen almost twice this size and was twice as dark. So, after setting up camp and some sweet camp chow, I treated myself to an Advil dessert and an Ace wrap. __________________ "Adversity doesn't build character. It reveals it."

12-25-2011, 12:25 PM	#16
wallache Gnarly Adventurer Joined: Oct 2008 Location: PHX, AZ Oddometer: 369

12-25-2011, 07:03 PM	#19
Dirt2007 Beastly Adventurer Joined: Jan 2007 Location: Who needs a stinkin GPS Oddometer: 1,465	Nice RR. If I googled right it starts at I-8 East of Yuma and goes to Oja?

12-26-2011, 09:03 PM	#25
Xskydiver ^OP Gnarly Adventurer Joined: Aug 2006 Location: Willcox, AZ Oddometer: 205	Here's what our camp looked like in the morning. Pretty good since we just kind of stumbled our way down the first wash we found. A couple of times during the night I got startled awake by the sound of a truck that sounded like It was about to drive right through my tent. (not an unreasonable fear given the amount of tire tracks found in nearly every wash out here) In the morning we could see the road was just above is. I'm guessing it was agents driving back and forth. Incidentally we had accidentally found the only soft ground for some distance in any direction. __________________ "Adversity doesn't build character. It reveals it."

12-26-2011, 10:53 PM	#26
RedRockRider Studly Adventurer Joined: Aug 2011 Location: St. George, UT Oddometer: 823	__________________ RedRockRider - WR250R, TW200, Versys, Vulcan 900 LT, Zuma 125 Southwest Utah: Dual Sport Riding from St. George http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=725976

12-27-2011, 08:57 AM	#27
squonker Eat my shorts Joined: Dec 2006 Location: Bee Cee Oddometer: 3,659	Cool. Thank you! __________________ Ride Report: Canada North to South 2008 here Drive Report: Ice Road Trucking 2005-2011 here Ride Report: Northern Vancouver Island: here

12-27-2011, 09:21 AM	#28
manfromthestix Lost in Space Joined: Dec 2004 Location: Lexington, Virginia Oddometer: 1,818	Cool report, that's beautiful country. I grew up in New Mexico and really miss the desert. Ain't no desert in Virginia or anywhere close . Knowing the desert, I learned to stay out of "dry" washes if there was even a remote chance of precipitation. I saw some phenomenal flash floods come up in NM in a matter of minutes and under a blue sky. One day my brother rode his bike off a six foot drop-off into a wash that had been stone dry when we'd ridden there the day before and eroded out like hell the next day. Weren't you a little concerned about camping in the wash? Anyway, hope you were packing some heat given all the BP and illegals traffic in that area. I'm more skeert of crazed humans than I am of sand and mud . Hope your leg feels better! Doug __________________ "If it doesn't blow smoke and make noise, it isn't a sport!" - radio ad for shop in Bozeman, MT

12-27-2011, 02:58 PM	#29
azcycle Chihuahua Wrangler Joined: Apr 2010 Location: Tucson, AZ Oddometer: 675	__________________ 1981 BMW r65 - Photos

12-27-2011, 03:52 PM	#30
bajaburro Ancient Adventurer Joined: Jan 2006 Location: Huntington Beach CA Oddometer: 1,490	80's did that trip in the 80's with a bronco 4x4.there were two of us in case of trouble.with all the violence along the border i don't think i go now.press the button for help,i can hardly believe it. __________________ ancient adventurer

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