[sac-forum] Possible alternate Northern AZ site....
- From: "Thad Robosson" <starstarcracker@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: sac-forum@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 24 Jun 2002 07:13:55 -0700
Hey All,
My father, who is aware of the recent dilema regarding our Cherry Rd site,
called me Saturday to let me know about a possibility. My wife and I (she's
been a real doll lately) headed up Sat. evening to check this out. Here's what
we found....
Head up I-17 to 260 (Cottonwood, Verde Valley)
260 West to 89A
89A North 2.8 miles to Forest Road 761. You'll go straight through the
Cornville Road stoplight, and there is a fairly obvious "FR761" sign just
before it. Be prepared to turn Left (North)
Once on FR761, head in 4.2 miles to cattleguard. 1.7 miles North of the
cattleguard, there is a turn off to the right.
The site is about .1 miles off the main road at coordinates 34° 49.613N, 111°
57.865W, 4050 ft elevation. This is roughly 6 miles North of Cottonwood.
Here are more details...
The road and area ARE open, but there is no fires allowed, not even smoking.
The site is relatively flat, but there is quite a bit of the clumpy grass type
vegeation in a dusty, powder like soil. Get there early enough to see where
you'd like to park. Tarps or section of astroturf is recommended.
The site is down in a slight bowl, and while I wasn't there after dark, I'm
pretty confident that there won't be (m)any lights, and lights from the road
shouldn't be too obvious due to the high bank on the sides of the road. We
were on that road for an hour, and only saw 2 other vehicles, probably
ranchers. Which leads to....
Cattle. It appeared that North of the cattlegaurd had been grazed, but we
didn't see any really fresh "signs" of recent cattle "movements". South of the
cattlegaurd, it's cow pie city.....be careful (of the cows) if you're the kind
of driver who speeds down dirt roads even if.....
The road is mega bumpy, but it is easy to follow. It is passible in small, low
clearance cars, but it is teeth jarring bumpy at times. Make sure that your
scope is tied down (and your teeth too.). 5~10 mph is called for in spots.
Figure just under 2 hours from Phx, with the last 1/2 hour on the dirt road.
Site is 20 miles further than Cherry Rd, which puts it at approx. 98 miles from
the 101/I-17 interchange.
Anyone up for this site on the July 6th weekend? It was nice and cool around
sundown....
Thad
Thad Robosson
Double star enthusiast
Member Saguaro Astronomy Club
ATM group chairman
Owner/operator Twin Points Observatory
33 27 N, 112 19 W
Phoenix, Arizona, USA
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