Thread: Life on the Arizona-Mexico border: A look at life in my neck

Life on the Arizona-Mexico border: A look at life in my neck of the woods

by Cherlyn Gardner Strong on Aug. 20, 2010

My topic is usually the paranormal here on the Tucson Citizen website. However, we bloggers are granted the freedom to write off-topic. Today, my topic is my life on the Arizona-Mexico border.

It is my hope to provide a different perspective of life on the border for anyone interested in considering a different perspective. I do have a lot to say about it.

I live in Santa Cruz County, but not in a city. I am in the forest east of Nogales, along the border. My experiences on the border likely don’t match those living on the border in Cochise or Yuma counties. Although I did live for one year in Three Points (Pima County) and can certainly speak for those folks. I can honestly say that life there is impacted to some degree by illegal crossers, especially those who live further to the south, around the Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge.

Yet, life where I live in the rugged mountains, surrounded by the Coronado National Forest, it is much different than it was for me in Three Points.

Life on the rural border is different for everyone, all along the Arizona border. One cannot state that the problems that they face on a daily basis are exactly the same for someone else who may live just 5 miles away from them along the border. That is a fact. This is the main reason that there is no simple solution to the very complex border issue. It depends somewhat on where you live along the border. You can’t count on location to determine what those issues might be either. The traffic from Mexico does tend to shift occasionally all along the border to prevent smugglers and illegal crossers from getting caught. At the moment, I live along one of those well traveled routes.

How I ended up here

When I found a remote rental home advertised in the forest on the border, I jumped on the opportunity for a couple of reasons. First, it allowed me the solitude to write in one of the most beautiful areas in Arizona. Secondly, my great great grandfather, Thomas Gardner, was an Arizona pioneer. He was one of the first white settlers in Santa Cruz County, initially settling not very far from where I live.

My great great grandfather immigrated, legally, from Scotland. He married Gertrudis Apodaca, from Mexico. Their son married a woman from Mexico. Their son’s son married a woman from Mexico. Coupled with my Mexican lineage on the maternal side of my family, my lineage is clearly Mexican.

I suppose my moving to the area provided me with a chance to live like my great great grandfather. There are differences, of course. I have modern day conveniences, like electricity, running water, Internet, phone and a motorized vehicle. These things were not available to him back in the mid-1800s. He dealt with frequent attacks by the Apache. I don’t need to worry about that today. My situation is different.

Not long after I gave my deposit on the house, rancher Rob Krentz was murdered in Cochise County, near Douglas. After reasoning with my husband, I insisted that my dad was born in and grew up in this area, and I felt it was still safe. I’ve camped in the area since I was a small child. Douglas is some 100 miles away, depending on which route is taken. Cochise County does have different border related issues than Santa Cruz County.

Additionally, the home is safe with security doors and windows. There is a high level of Border Patrol presence. We also own registered firearms.

I was very comfortable with the decision, so we proceeded with the move. The first trip we made with our possessions to the home, we found ourselves pulled over by the Border Patrol on the way back, just a couple miles into our return journey to Tucson. Our vehicle was checked for illegals and for drugs. The agent addressed my husband by name, without my husband offering it, since our plate was run by the agent prior to being pulled over. We informed the agent that we were moving to the area and he said that it would take a while for the agents in the area to recognize us as residents.

After a friendly chat with the agent, we stopped in Sonoita to grab a bite to eat. After dinner, we drove through the Border Patrol checkpoint north of Sonoita. A commander approached the vehicle and asked what we ate for dinner. Based on that question and the conversation that followed, the agents had been watching us, and they had done some homework on us. Although the experience was initially unsettling, we did realize that they were just doing their jobs. Then, we were further enlightened by the Border Patrol.

We were told two things during that checkpoint stop. First, we should expect to be approached by a representative of a drug cartel. To handle this visit properly, we are not to show fear, nor are we to assist them in any way. Second, we should expect one or more late night visits from an illegal or illegals. We are not to assist them either. We were assured that the Border Patrol agents are always 30 seconds away by phone if we need them, for which I am thankful.

Despite the warning, neither scenario we were warned about has happened. However, it has happened to each and every one of our handful of neighbors who are spread out in this remote wilderness. We are told that it is only a matter of time. It could happen while we are out gathering firewood, away from the house and far from any phone. There is no cell phone service available in the area.

Living in the forest is quite a unique experience. It also requires putting up with some inconveniences.

Inconveniences

We live south of the warning signs, so the forest is not the most popular tourist area. Additionally, the United States Postal Service recently halted mail delivery to the homes. The mail carrier had a scary experience involving an illegal border crosser. So, mail is sent to a group of lock boxes in the forest. I was informed by the post office that the lock boxes do get broken into. Therefore, I have my mail sent to town, about 20 miles away.


Warning Sign

It is certainly baffling that the government acknowledges a problem with the warning signs and also refuse to deliver mail to the homes, due to dangers faced by mail carriers. Yet, according to what is presented by the media, the border is safe as it has ever been. Well, the mail used to be delivered to the houses, so the fact that the mail carriers won’t deliver mail to the homes tells me that this statement is not entirely true.

A UPS driver also had a scary experience here. Due to that, there is some talk of UPS also halting service to the area. UPS still delivers at the moment. Their brown truck resembles a brown streak these days. It roars through this area like a Pony Express rider with a band of Apache in pursuit. UPS driving at high speeds through the area must minimize their chances of a dangerous encounter with an illegal.

There aren’t very many visitors around here otherwise. Occasionally, rockhounds, birdwatchers, hunters and campers do visit, generally without incident. We generally don’t get much other daily traffic around these parts, except for the few local residents and the Border Patrol. The Border Patrol drives by countless times a day. They also drag the road every day to clear any footprints on the dirt road from the night before, so they can better track illegals. The perimeter of our property has had many footprints cleared away. The footprints that have appeared overnight weren’t ours. None of these feet have found their way in the darkness to our front door.

The agents still don’t know us, due to some turnover and shift changes. A routine trip to the grocery store is nearly always interrupted by the Border Patrol pulling us over. They run our license plate, but our address does not show up where we live. The MVD mailing address does not match our home address, since we can’t get mail delivered to the house, which does add to the inconveniences.

We put up with being pulled over, and sometimes searched, because the agents are just doing their jobs.

The trip to Nogales is rather interesting, since much of the activity occurs between here and there. This is the same stretch where two off duty Nogales police officers were threatened by the drug cartels. The officers were told to not interfere with drug smuggling operations while off-duty.

One trip to the grocery store made me nervous. My husband and I spotted a white vehicle that had backed far off the road. It didn’t look like the vehicle owner was camping. At the same time, we saw a Border Patrol agent on an ATV quickly approaching behind us. He pulled off the road near the white vehicle. We assumed that he was preparing to question the vehicle owner. As we proceeded a couple miles ahead, two Border Patrol trucks appeared from nowhere with their sirens blaring. We pulled over, and four agents rushed our vehicle with their hands ready to pull their guns from their holsters. All they found were me and my husband with our three Chihuahuas. We, and our dogs, all have the proper identification, should we be asked for it.

They said that we were pulled over because another agent radioed in that a white vehicle, like the color of ours, was spotted “loading upâ€

Great article, thank you
very interesting

This is secure border fence?

Thank goodness for Bloggers like this woman . The MSN,Napolitano are saying the border is under control and crime has decreased in AZ..

I used to do a lot of Backpacking in the wilds of AZ and I am not happy I no longer feel safe enough to enjoy our beautiful National Parks/BLM lands in AZ.

Great story! Thanks for sharing it. I'm very surprised that the border marker hasn't been hit with graffiti.

Originally Posted by USPatriot

Thank goodness for Bloggers like this woman . The MSN,Napolitano are saying the border is under control and crime has decreased in AZ..

Napolitano reminds me the Iraqi Information Minister who said there were no Americans in Baghdad and that they were winning.