Travel Diary: USA SouthWest ( March & April 2025)

Desert Winds & Warm Welcomes: Our USA South West Sojourn

March 2024 was a month of unexpected turns, literal and figurative. We crossed into the USA on the 4th after a short, easy cruise to the border from our overnight stop in Santa Ana. The Nogales border post is a very busy crossing, given its close proximity to Tucson and the fact that many Mexicans cross the border daily to work and shop in the USA, so we were mentally prepared for a slow and possibly painful crossing.   In fact the opposite was true, on the Mexican side the road naturally channels into lanes divided by concrete barriers with nowhere to stop, which much to our trepidation means we never got stamped out of Mexico.  A number of travellers have subsequently told us, this is perfectly normal, so we trust and hope that we don’t encounter issues when we next return to Mexico.   The concrete lanes lead straight up to the USA controls where we were directed to join the X-ray lane so that Mr. Jones could be presumably scanned for hidden illicit items.  After that a friendly official showed us where to park for a physical inspection and the confiscation of a few food items we weren’t allowed to bring across the border, before guiding us into a building for passport control. 

 All in, the crossing probably took less than 30minutes and throughout the process we were met with nothing but friendliness.

Our first stop was to be the delightful Cactus Cottage, the home of our virtual friends, Brett & Yvonne.  They have also driven a Land Rover from South Africa through South America and have settled (for now) in Tucson.   18 months prior, in the South of Peru we had passed each in opposite directions on the main highway, spotted the ZA number plates and through some virtual sleuthing looked each other up. 

It felt like Christmas morning when we arrived; Yvonne had been kindly hoarding a mountain of Land Rover parts from the UK along with various Amazon orders for us, including our brand-new fridge. Later in the week the gathering got even more festive when more South African virtual friends, Graeme and Luisa Bell, joined the mix. The daylight hours were spent tackling much-needed repairs on the Landies, the evenings were a blur of laughter and swapping travel stories and enjoying a glass or two of “Franzia” around the fire.

After a fun and productive week, we were back on the road. Instead of the logical northern route, we doubled back south to the Mexico border to explore the Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge. It felt incredible to be back in the “bush,” surrounded by golden grasslands and mountain vistas.

Graeme and Luisa had raved about this little reserve and it did not disappoint, with multiple free camping opportunities, some wildlife viewing and the possibility to drive right up the Mexico border and see for ourselves the very large and imposing border wall that was being built.  At the wall we had a long chat with two agents who were guarding a section not yet completed and before leaving they gifted us a “corporate” memento – a badge in a clear plastic sleeve.  To whom these get handed too and why, we did not establish.

The cruise along the border and wall brought us out at the frontier town of Sasabe, population of 9!  Unfortunately it wasn’t a Saturday otherwise we are sure we could have had  a very interesting afternoon in the bar.

As our journey took us through the Coronado National Forest, the dry grasslands gave way to wooded hills and deep valleys. We took it slow, covering less than 100km in a day, just to soak in the side tracks and wonderful vistas..

When heavy rain and freezing temperatures hit a few days later, we played tourist in the historic mining town of Bisbee, warming up with burgers and Mac n’ Cheese. We ended that day at a wild camp on the west side of Coronado, tucked off  Hunter Canyon road.

After a freezing night in the mountains where we saw a light dusting of snow and even ice rain, a tip from our friends (the Bells), led us to Hot Wells near Safford – the idea of hot pools in the middle of the desert was irresistible. We did get a bit lost in the final few kilometres and had some adventure on the way which meant Mr. Jones found himself on some 4WD tracks he wasn’t expecting, but he took it all in his stride. 

It had become apparent to us that we would most likely be doing lots of wild camping while in the USA, which meant we would be needing to use our shower setup.  The hot water geyser was a victim of the storage in Cancun which we had yet to replace, so after making another Amazon purchase for delivery to Brett & Yvonne we looped back to Tucson to install it along with a clutch master cylinder for Mr. Jones. They had new traveller friends visiting so this time around we shared the driveway camping space with a German couple. 

Once Mr. Jones was officially back in peak form, we hit the road and headed toward Saguaro National Park where we cruised up and over Gates Pass in order to check out the cacti that can live up to 150 years!  Saguaro NP doesn’t have any camping but just outside is a BLM area called IronWood Forest where we spent a couple of days soaking up the desert silence with only the occasional interruption, for the call of a coyote or the sound of an ATV passing in the distance.

One of the best parts of traveling through Arizona is the access to BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land. It allows for “free use” camping, which has led to some interesting encounters.  One truly memorable one, being one evening when a truly local yocal pulled up next to us in his lifted and pimped pickup (after nearly rolling it in the wash next to which we were camped), to warn us about border crossings, illegal immigrants and to advise us to keep our guns “locked and loaded”.

As we worked our way toward Phoenix, we took care of some “housekeeping” for Mr. Jones—new “takkies” (tyres) were ordered for fitment in town and  Stuart rebuilt Mr. Jones snorkel head which had thanks to rust fallen off on one of the rough desert tracks.

In Phoenix we met up with Tania niece and enjoyed some family time.

We ended the month on a stunning clifftop in Tonto National Forest. However, with a forecast of sub-zero temperatures at the Grand Canyon which is the direction we were trying to head in, we decided to backtrack south once more to the Hot Wells hot springs. We’d much rather have hot pools than cold feet!.

The beginning of April saw us crossing state lines and shifting landscapes at a dizzying pace. We found a stunning little camp area in the mountains outside Safford at the Gila Box River. From there, the drive through the Gila National Forest on the scenic 78 and 180 was breath-taking, including a stop at Catwalk Canyon, where the boardwalk engineering through the canyon walls is truly something to behold.

However, the road has its way of humbling you. By the time we reached Petrified Forest National Park, the lush juniper forests of New Mexico had given way to dry, flat grass plains. While the park was interesting, we found ourselves missing the inspiration of lesser-known places like Tonto Basin. We spent the night just outside the park, dwarfed by a sea of oversized RVs, a stark reminder of our more modest, agile setup.

Leaving the Petrified National Forest, we embraced the kitsch of Route 66, stopping at a few small towns along the way to wander around before taking the obligatory photo  “Standing on the Corner” in Winslow, Arizona—yes, just like the Eagles song. But the high was short-lived.

The drive along Interstate 40 to Flagstaff was tedious, and upon arrival, we spent the afternoon on a frustrating hunt for a tyre shop that could perform a wheel alignment on Mr. J. It turns out most modern computer systems don’t even recognize him as a vehicle option! We eventually got it done the next morning for a “flippin’ expensive” $115 at a shop that specialises in extreme suspension lifts for the oversized US pickups. So with the wheels straight, we were finally ready for the big one: the Grand Canyon. 

The South Rim of Grand Canyon is, as promised, awe-inspiring, but the sheer volume of people can be draining. After stopping at a number of viewpoints, we skipped the sunset shuttles to a “must see & photograph” viewpoint in favour of finding a quiet spot outside the park boundary to camp and enjoy a beer along with some peace.

That peace is often hard-won. We’ve learned that “pretty & free spots” often come with a catch—usually a lack of cell signal. After a “meltdown” over lost connectivity in the Kaibab National Forest (Grand Canyon BLM) and a beautiful but signal-free night in a canyon near Big Wash (BLM mid-way to Vegas), we realized just how much we rely on being “plugged in,” even when we’re trying to escape

At this point we were well and truly on the tourist route with Las Vegas up next but first we camped for a couple of nights on the shores of Lake Mead before joining the crowds marvelling at the engineering feat of Hoover Dam.  Americans are not usually well known for grammatically correct English but in this case they score 50%, by correctly calling the wall holding back the water a Dam but incorrectly calling the water body a lake instead of a reservoir.  South Africans on the otherhand probably score 0% for the distinction as we call both the wall and water behind it:  a dam.   An interesting piece of useless trivia, which we were forced to acquire after being confused over why the dam and lake had two different names.

Arriving in Las Vegas felt strangely significant. Mr. Jones has crossed the equator five times, been shipped twice across oceans and traversed multiple continents, yet driving down the Las Vegas Strip brought home exactly how far we’ve come from South Africa and so we couldn’t help ourselves but take a cruise down “The Strip” with Tania hopping out each time we got stopped at a traffic light to take a picture with Mr. Jones in the foreground of an iconic hotel or feature.  We traded the dust for a hotel room, enjoyed the luxury of an en-suite bathroom, sipped cocktails, and soaked up some live music. 

It was a necessary recharge before the “real” desert reclaimed us when another cold front with relentless wind and dust arrived. The reality of  free camping and “Van Life” in this environment is: 

• The Dust: Mr. J is constantly coated in a permanent indoor layer of it.
• The Hygiene: When it’s freezing and windy, outdoor showers are a non-starter or if taken are very brief. At one point, Tania went 10 days without being able to wash her hair.
• The Isolation: We spend days tucked into narrow, sandy tracks where only a 4×4 like ours could go—great for peace, but tough when you have zero cell signal.

Leaving Vegas and entering Utah brought a new set of challenges and wonders. We navigated the “State Liquor Store” laws to secure our wine and dodged 11-inch snowfalls in the higher elevations by hunkering down in the Beaver Dam Wash.

The National Parks here—Zion and Bryce Canyon—are spectacular, though Zion’s crowds made it difficult to truly soak up the grandeur unless we were deep on a trail. Bryce, however, stole our hearts; it felt even more special than the Grand Canyon.  As with all the previous national parks we camped (for free) within a few kilometres of the park boundary, this time on National Forest land, but here at least we could gather wood for fires and enjoy the silence without being buffeted by wind.

Southern Utah is packed with 5 National Parks, all renowned for their stunning and unique landscapes ranging from massive sandstone arches and deep canyons to colourful hoodoos but one thing they all seem to have in common is various tinges of red rocks, sometimes interspersed with some white.

Leaving Bryce Canyon we took the back roads to Escalante and past the Capitol Reef National park before heading in a North Westerly direction to Moab, which is bordered by the Arches and Canyonlands national parks.  

Moab is world renowned for its off-roading with many trails traversing through both the national park and the surrounding BLM land, probably nowhere else in the world will you find so many Polaris ATV and pickups with heavily modified and lifted suspension systems. Mr. Jones is a very capable off-road vehicle but as he is also our home we have no desire to do heavy off-roading with him but we did spend a very nice day exploring some trails bordering Canyonlands and navigating the switchbacks of Mineral Bottom road—similar to Sani Pass but a bit gentler.   The fun day on the trail ended even better when we found a “gem” of a campsite on smooth rock overlooking a small canyon. This meant no dust, clean feet, and because the wind wasn’t blowing we even opened the awning – heaven!

Our little rock campsite turned out to be an even bigger blessing when it rained overnight and turned much of the surrounding red dust into red mud. Stepping out of Mr. Jones in the morning into that would have tested our sense of humour!

To highlight the popularity of these National Parks, Arches has a timed entry system which means that you have to book in advance an hourly slot of when you will enter the park.  You then arrive at the gates just before your allocated entry time and join a queue of vehicles, 100+ long.  On the hour every hour they let this batch in and at the sometime hope a similar amount leave.  As with all the other parks, the scenery is spectacular (in this case various forms of sandstone arches) but the crowds are equally “spectacular” but despite this Arches will remain in our memories for years to come, thanks to two experiences.  Firstly, we met a young couple in the parking area of one of the main arches and spent a long time chatting, at the end of the conversation she gifted us two items: a yellow rubber duck (it’s a Jeep thing) and a guide book to all the off-road trails in the Moab region. The duck now adorns Mr. Jones dashboard which is appropriate seeing as in South Africa the registration papers classify him as a “jeep” and the book adorns a coffee table at home in South Africa.    The second experience that fondly resides in our memories is, stopping at a less famous arch area and taking a walk into a slot type canyon where there were a number of smaller arches, for once there weren’t many people and we could soak up the atmosphere and play with taking arty pictures without having to grab a gap when someone moved away after taking a selfie in front of whatever feature was behind them.

And that wraps up the two months we spent in the Southwest, it is beautiful, brutal, and breathtakingly big. 

For more insights into the months travels please follow the links below: