Cochise County - Southern Arizona, Wine Country, and More
Updated: Mar 31, 2021
There is a cherished Arizona Highways magazine from April 1958 about Cochise County. This edition highlights the beauty, mystery, big sky, and rich history of a remarkable southern Arizona county and adventure destination.
At the time of its publication, the now robust vineyard and wine industry's revival and growth was not covered as an attraction. Now, over sixty years later, Cochise County is Arizona's hub for vineyard agriculture and a destination for rural wine tasting and exploration.
An incredible asset to Arizona, the region is now known for the rough and exceptional growing conditions and terroir, as well as the excellent, award-winning wine now coming alive there. Like many, we often feel a longing to make the trek from our central Arizona home to revel in this magical landscape, the long horizons of Cochise County, and the planted varietals that thrive in sandy, desert soil.
More on the vineyards and wineries in Willcox, Arizona and within Cochise County can be found at ExploreCochiseCounty.com.
Arizona Stronghold
With a few days available for exploration, we hitch up our own Pin Drop Travel Trailer, a fully self contained, solar powered micro camper made in Arizona, and head south to revisit this Arizona wine region once again, to relive a bit of its history, and to embark upon the many changes of this Arizona stronghold.
As a jump start to the 300 miles that lay between the Verde Valley and Cochise County, we overnighted on the Control Road north of Payson, Arizona. This road cuts a line along the base of the Mogollon Rim and provides fire crews a defensible position to keep fires from climbing up the Rim. It also provides access to cabins hidden among the ponderosa pine trees, and some wonderful recreation and hunting spots accessible only by dirt. It's truly the remote getaway that the Pin Drop Travel Trailer's trusted brand is designed to explore. The night was quiet, with a sky full of bright stars, and the air cool and calm.
Heading South
Excited for the day ahead and the anticipated scenic changes only found in Arizona, departing cool pine forest and dropping down to the desert floor. We woke early, cranked on the two-burner propane stove in the Pin Drop galley kitchen, and departed our remote campsite with hot coffee and full bellies.
Blazing down the Beeline Highway, we wove our way through the freeway exchanges of the East Valley and headed east on Interstate 10. With a refreshing stop (COVID safe on the outdoor patio) at the employee-owned Barrio Brewery, we stayed on track for an afternoon arrival in the heart of Cochise County.
Arrival at Chiricahua National Monument
The Coronado National Forest has many thousands of acres reserved in Cochise County, most notable is the Chiricahua National Monument, where we landed one of the last campsites at Bonito Campground. Built by the CCC, this quaint campground (made for the conscious camper) has the lovely air and design for a simpler time. The few modern-sized campers that squeezed into the sites seemed out of place, too large for what the 1930’s could have imagined was necessary for a family camp. The Pin Drop Travel Trailer Road Runner model was an ideal companion, with its nimble, maneuverable shape, small footprint, and solar powered amenities that don't require a generator or an outlet.
While awaiting the sunset arrival, we prepared a hot cooked meal, opened cold beverages, and started a serene walk through the campground. Similar to what it likely sounded like 90 years ago, and just how we remember our childhood family camps in tents and a pop-up, this favorite campground was full of gathered families, quiet laughter, kids on bikes, and fireside chats.
The View From Massai Point
Morning sounds of desert birds and the salty smell of bacon and coffee floating through the campground preceded a brisk walk to the ranger station, enjoying the wildlife along the way. Before heading out on our next Arizona adventures, we took the scenic, winding road up to Massai Point for the view, and took another hike along the point’s edge. From this elevation, nearly 7,000 ft, one can see all the other sky islands rising from the desert floor. Beyond is Cochise Stronghold and the Dragoons, an area my wife and I explored many years prior in our historic 1952 Happy Home vintage trailer. It’s fun to now show this to our daughters, and entice them with tales of exploration into our state's history. To the north is an outcropping of granite said to resemble Cochise, though no photographs exist of this great leader. My kids have many questions, and we do our best to interpret this important story and graphic part of Arizona's history.
A Thoughtful Hike
Fort Bowie National Historic Site is our next destination, and a well-graded dirt road leads us to the trailhead. Exactly one year ago my youngest daughter and I camped at the birthplace of Geronimo.
Fort Bowie National Historic Site Hike
Now we were standing at the place of his surrender, which ended the Apache Wars in Arizona. A haunting weight hangs in the air, where military secured a precious spring in this barren landscape, and cleared a path for westward expansion. Afterhe scenic trek past the fresh spring that created territorial wars and out to the monumental remains of a fort and territorial stronghold, all of us, even the toddlers, returned thoughtful and reflective.
Fort Bowie National Historic Site Hike