Quitobaquito

It’s 4:30pm and I am sitting here writing this down while it still in my mind. Today was quite a day.

In an area where the rainfall level is less than 8 inches a year, is a pond that is over an acre in size. It is located in the southwest corner of the Monument about 20 miles west of the main highway (Hwy 85). This oasis is called Quitobaquito. The low hills surrounding the area contain about a dozen springs that supply the pond. In a place where the desert plants are in stress do to the lack of any significant moisture, lies a body of water. This body of water is surrounded on two sides with bull rushes. Swimming on the surface were 8 or 10 coots and a common merganser. During migration lots of birds use this place for a stop over on the way.

So today we went there. It was a major operation because Quitobaquito is located in the Red Zone. There are three alert zones here in the park. The white zone is the area around the visitor center, campground, and maintenance area. The blue zone requires more security. The public is not allowed and employees may not go into the area alone. The most restrictive area is called the red zone. Going into the red zone requires permission and accompaniment of law enforcement. Today, of group of people, including three rangers, several park resource people, and twelve volunteers were escorted into the Red Zone from 9am until 2 pm by two armed law enforcement rangers.

The entire entourage were under the control of the LE ( law enforcement) for that time period. The park resources people conducted the training for us, telling us about the history, prehistory, geology, and biology of this unique area, but the timing and even the trip itself, was under the control of LE. It was very interesting trip and an amazing place, but the danger was always in the back of your mind.

The road to and from the site was rough. Part of the time the caravan which consisted of LE vehicle, two vans and then two pickups traveled on Puerto Blanco Road which was very dusty and wash boarded. The other part of the trip was traveled on the road that travels along the fence that right next to the US/Mexican border. In the picture to the right, you can see the road in the distance assending the hill. The entire section of the border from Lukeville to the southwest corner of the park is “adorned” with a fence, for five miles it’s a twelve foot high steel fence with barbed wired on the top. The other thirty some miles of border is dominated by a strong steel fence. It was very odd to be 20 plus miles west of the highway by rough road, to get to this remote area and, across the border, very close, is the busy Mexican Hwy 2.