An Old Spanish Trail map.
Ore-laden wagons and stagecoaches of the late 19th century first scribed the rutted trails linking the mining towns of Benson, Tombstone, Bisbee and Douglas. It’s no coincidence each of these towns is approximately 20 miles apart, equal to a rough day’s ride by horseback. Now mounted on our motorcycles, the six-hour equine journey is now reduced to a 30-minute pleasure ride on a smooth road between towns.
WE'VE BEEN RIDING MOTORCYCLES for a combined 50 years, shooting photo- graphs and documenting stories along the way. Our paths intersected in Bisbee seven years ago, with a love for motorcycling and adventure. The two of us decided to hook up as a “band of brothers” riding the back roads in the Southwest, Mexico, Thailand, and Canada, seeking out small communi- ties with big hearts and souls. Curt was the wordsmith, and Chuck the primary pho- tographer. When you get on a motorcycle and rev
that engine, you connect with the machine and the road in a different way. You’re more vulnerable, subject to the elements and the unknown. Your awareness peaks. You want to go somewhere just to see where the sun sets. And with adventure, comes hunger. Hunger for food and for stories. Officially finished in 1929, the 2743 mile
Spanish Trail was the first national coast to coast highway system, though only 70 per- cent of the roadway was a patchwork pave- ment consisting of concrete, brick, stone and asphalt. The remaining was a combi- nation of graded dirt, gravel, and wooden plank. One stretch near Mobile, Ala., required a ferry crossing. This route played an important role for Americans to explore and mobilize from San Augustine, Fla., to San Diego, Calif.
66 BMW OWNERS NEWS February 2016 The onset of World War II required a
domestic defense route to move materials and equipment from the eastern seaboard to the west coast, propagating a plan to link most of the Old Spanish Trail and finish paving roadways across the U.S. from Savannah, Ga., to San Diego, Calif., thus forming the transcontinental route US 80, also known as “The Broadway of America.” The section of Highway 80 cutting
through southeast Arizona served mining towns brimming with extreme wealth until the rich mineral deposits played out. The powerful copper and silver companies pulled up stakes, leaving small town resi- dents forlorn and melancholy to fend for themselves. Then US 80 was demoted to State Route 80, a mere exit ramp from the new Interstate 10, squeezing these aban- doned communities once again by rerout- ing traffic away from their main streets. Reinventing a townsfolk way of life
wasn’t a trendy topic back then, but a cru- cial need to survive existed if you didn’t relocate to another mining town such as Morenci to the north. The reinvention evolved into many forms, depending on the town. Benson turned to ranching and farming, while Tombstone looked to tour- ism, cashing in on its colorful, poetic past. In the mid-seventies, Bisbee’s
transformation began with a crazy new breed of residents, “the hippies,” creating an artistic community. Douglas invited international commerce as a gateway to Mexico. All these reinventions were slow to mature, calling on strong individuals with pioneer spirits to create a living in the small economically challenged towns. All
the
people we interviewed shared a thread of commonality as to why they chose to start up a business in rural southeast Arizona: A better life for their children or themselves with an opportunity to make a difference in their community. We motorcycled back roads off one of
the longest remaining pieces of old US 80, seeking out the brave entrepreneurs who prepare beautiful food or farm using sus- tainable methods, plus a few other charac- ters thrown in for fun. Midday on Interstate 10, exiting at Ben-
son signals a powerful urge for travelers to eat something before entering the next large metroplex. In the past, billboard advertising caught the hungry eye. Now you can surf the internet on your smart- phone for guidance. As Mi Casa Restaurant owner Andy Sutton explains, the restau- rant website draws travelers one mile from the freeway by making certain great reviews from patrons whet the appetites of passengers approaching the Benson exits.
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