Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge

Buenos Aires NWR
Photo by: David McErlean

Sweeping desert covered in cactus as far as the eyes can see. Hundreds of miles of dirt trails that stretch into the open desert. Empty camp sites marked by a lonely sign.

What was once used for camping, hiking, mountain biking, and hunting, is now an empty desert, patrolled by U.S. Border Patrol. The border war in the United States against illegal immigrants and drugs has made the area too dangerous for recreational use.

Named for the pleasant breeze that blows through the area, the Buenos Aires started in 1909 as a private ranch. U.S. Fish and Wildlife bought the ranch on August 1,1985 and established the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge in Pima County, Ariz. to save the Masked Bobwhite Quail and other endangered wildlife, according to Congressional records.

Water Barrels in Buenos Aires NWR
Photo by: David McErlean

The Buenos Aires is now a major gateway into the United States for illegal migrants and drug mules. With around 118,000 acres of land, it is one area that people try to enter the United States. They are able to walk right over the border and blend into the desert before any Border Patrol agents even know of their existence. Getting lost from Border Patrol isn't always the best thing though. With so much land to cover, migrants find themselves lost in the park for days, unable to find any water source. The park is covered with empty water bottles left by passing migrants as they finish the last drops to their supply.

To help migrants from dying in the desert on their journey north, the Buenos Aires NWR has allowed Humane Borders to place water at three locations in the park. Marked by a blue flag raised 30 feet off the desert floor, two 55 gallon drums filled with drinking water wait for passing people in need of water.

In an effort to see how difficult water is to find in the desert, I went on a mission to find all of the listed water sources in the Buenos Aires. With the use of a map, compass, and a truck, I was able to find the listed water drums. The locations were full of water and in plain site, but the vastness of the desert landscape made me realize how next to impossible it would be to find the water after a day of running in the hot sun.

Read my story, A Quest for Water, for more information on the Humane Borders water tanks in the Ariz. desert at BorderBeat.