You can find Part 1 here:
https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/post-your-photos/234754-travel-apache-tra...illa-flat.html
You'll have to forgive me, as this part has a lot more pictures than the other two in this 3-part series. I can't help myself! While there's plenty to see on the paved part of the Apache Trail, things get
really interesting after the dust starts.
Imaging being on the crew that laid these power lines. I've always thought they looked like epic zipline rides. They'd be the last zipline you ever took, and I'm not talking about the possibility of electric shock.
1.
(click any picture for more sizes)
Oh look, there's kind of a guardrail here. I feel much safer now.
2.
3.
The first time I drove the trail, I didn't stop at this vantage point. I spent the next two weeks kicking myself for it. At the end of those two weeks, I came back and drove it again. The car was still dirty from the first time.
4.
I loved that car, but
a drunk smashed it a month later. It was still dirty.
Anyway, that's all fixed now. I moved to Arizona without tinted windows or working A/C, but it's all fixed.
5.
It's a dirt road, sure, but it's well-maintained. Believe me, I've seen cars on these trips far less suited to this road than my Monte Carlo.
Now, here are the views from that point.
6.
That's the same road winding off into the distance, after reaching the bottom of this canyon.
7.
There's only one way to go from here: down.
8.
This is Fish Creek. During winter (the time of my first two visits), there may really be fish in the creek. There are even two massive, but weak, waterfalls coming down the cliffs beside the road.
9.
10.
Come July, there are no fish. Maybe fried fish. On the plus side, the 110°+ temps keep the more casual tourists away. You know, the ones who would drive down this road at 5 miles per hour with white knuckles on the wheel.
It doesn't cut down on the boats, though.
Yes, people tow boats down this road.
11.
This bridge is a source of endless photographic opportunities.
12.
13.
To give you a sense of scale, there's a dude standing on top of a boulder on the opposite side of the creek in this shot. You might have an easier time finding him in the full-size shot.
14.
This last shot is a little further down the road, looking back into the canyon. The point I took the picture from is visible in the far lower-right corner of picture #7. The point I took #7 from is just beyond the right side of this shot.
15.
To be continued!