HIPPIES, YUPPIES AND COPPER

We left the flat lands of Geronimo's old stomping grounds and traveled Highway 80 south to Douglas, AZ., border sister city of Agua Prieta, Sonora Mexico.  Our cruise into the city, with a first stop for Propane off the main Pan American Hwy,  revealed a small army of green and white Border Patrol cars examining the surroundings with field glasses.  Even at our next stop, Walmart, no less than three of the Border Patrol vehicles were on the alert.  Our Border Boys were either on the chase or this is one high area of illegal activity.  Either way, it's comforting to see a force *hopefully* keeping the drug cartels confined to the south.  If you're at all interested in the Mexican Cartel drug round-up activity, go to http://www.borderlandbeat.com/ for daily updates.

After stocking-up with supplies, we continue west on Hwy 80 along the border for a few miles and then up into the mountains, 5,500 ft, of Bisbee, AZ.

The wealth generated by copper minds in the late 1800's and early 1900's made Bisbee the most cultured town between St. Louis and San Francisco.

After 8 billion pounds of copper were mined from the Mule Mountains, they ceased all operations by 1975.  What saved Bisbee from extinction was a large influx of "hippies" in the late 70's.  Many of the hippies turned "Yuppies" and created a tourist mecca out of cast-off tailing's.

What's left of  Old Bisbee today is a turn of the century community with very narrow streets and almost as many curio, do-dad and rocks shops as Dollywood.