International Fellowship of Motorcycling Rotarians North American Chapter

Organ Pipe Cactus Ride - 2009
The Organ Pipe Adventure

Note from our organizer, Bill Fee: We gather at the Space Age Lodge in Gila Bend, AZ on Thursday afternoon/evening, March 19. If the stars align in our favor, the Rotary Club of Gila Bend will have some sort of welcoming event for us that evening. In the morning, we head out south down AZ-85 toward Ajo and Why. Organ Pipe National monument is 77 miles south of Gila Bend. At the monument there is a scenic drive that is a 21 mile loop on mostly gravel roads. For those not interested in riding on gravel, after visiting the visitor center, we will head back north 22 miles to Why and turn east on AZ-86 and go 62 miles to Sells. In Sells there are a number of street vendors who set up each day for lunch in the center of town. The tortillas, chile, beans, and other Native American/Mexican style foods are home made and amazingly delicious and cheap! Drinks – no alcohol – are available, too. From Sells there are a couple of options: 25 miles east of Sells is Kitt Peak, a mountain covered with telescopes and a great example of a “Sky Island” above the surrounding desert. The Tohono O’odham Cultural Center at Topowa is 10 miles south of Sells and is a state-of-the art facility displaying to history and culture of the Native Peoples in what is now southwestern Arizona. After lunch and a side trip, we head back west on AZ-86 21 miles to Quijotoa, then turn north on BIA 15 for 61 miles to Casa Grande.

Francisco Grande Resort will be our destination for the night, it’s about 5 miles west of Casa Grande on AZ-84. I am working with Rotarians in Casa Grande on lodging and the possibility of them hosting some type of evening event. From Casa Grande we head northwest on AZ-238 21 miles to Maricopa and then southwest 42 miles to Gila Bend. This route will take us through the Sonoran Desert National Monument. From Gila Bend we head north on old US-80 31 miles to Arlington. It’s 65 miles to the next waypoint, Salome, and 12.6 miles of that 65 will be on I-10, the only interstate miles of the trip. From Salome we will continue 55 miles northwest to Parker. On the way we will pass through Bouse, home of Camp Bouse, the secret WWII Army base built to train men with a "new" tank designed for night warfare and the fisherman intaglio (geoglyph or earth figure), a large figure created in the soil by Indians many years ago. We’ll reach the Colorado River at Parker and proceed north to Lake Havasu City where we’ll spend our third night at London Bridge Resort Hotel.

March 19	Gila Bend, Arizona		Best Western Space Age Lodge Hotel Direct: 866-683-7722 Local Number: 928-683-2273 401 East Pima Street P.O. Box C Gila Bend, Arizona 85337 Stay @ Best Western Space Age Lodge.com
March 20	Casa Grande, Arizona		Francisco Grande Resort Phone (800) 237-4238 (520) 836-6444 • Fax (520) 421-0544 • 26000 W. Gila Bend Highway Casa Grande, Arizona 85222 Our contact person is Tina Cramp
March 21	Lake Havasu City		London Bridge Resort Hotel 888-824-0369 1477 Queens Bay Lake Havasu City, AZ 86403 Our contact person is Jenefer Johnson Dinner is at 7:00 at Martini Bay

Google Maps		William Fee 5770 E Santa Fee Tucson, AZ 85715 H-520.885.5663 M-520.471.4031	Click to join IFMR-Cactus