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| Hiking | 14.40 Miles |
2,455 AEG |
| | Hiking | 14.40 Miles | 6 Hrs 19 Mns | | 2.75 mph |
| 2,455 ft AEG | 1 Hour 5 Mns Break | 15 LBS Pack | | |
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| no partners | | A quick hike into the ranch.
In brief:
TH: 0820
Reavis' grave: 0910
Reavis Ranch: 1051
Depart Ranch: 1141
Grave: 1345
TH: 1439
The early morning weather in Mesa was high 50s. The weather report indicated winds at 8 mph. though the winds were much stronger than that. Very windy and 45F at the TH and stayed that way until around noon. Kept moving pretty well all day. Stopped for lunch at the old ranch foundation. Still a few shriveled apples hanging from some of the trees. Saw a small white tail buck above the upper meadow while heading back.
The ranch was founded by Elisha M. Reavis in the 1870s. He was born in Illinois in 1827 and came west in the 1850s to look for gold in California. He was married there and the couple had some children but split up around 1869 when he came to Arizona. He spent some of his time around Fort McDowell and apparently had peripheral involvement with Gen. Crook's 1872 Apache campaign in Tonto Basin, possibly as a horse wrangler. It is likely that he became aware of the valley in the Supers during this time and moved up there to squat around 1874. One must keep in mind that central Arizona was a very dangerous place at that time. Apaches and Yavapais were still frequenting the area up until the 1880s. Reavis apparently told a story that in 1878 he defended himself for a day or two in his cabin against Apaches, killed three, and convinced them to leave by acting crazy. He, of course, was the only witness. He lived as a hermit, selling his produce to the mines in the Globe and Superior area. He never saw his wife or children again, dying by the trail-side in 1896. A friend found his body half eaten by animals, his mules still tied up nearby and starving. A coroner was brought out but no determination could be made, so death by natural causes was assumed. They buried him near the trail. The ranch went through various hands afterward and virtually all of the improvements that can still be seen, such as the foundation of the ranch house, the apple orchard, farm tools, etc., were added much later. All Reavis left was his name. |
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"Aequanimitas."
- Antoninus Pius |
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