John Wayne: The 'Duke' Cast a Long Shadow in Arizona MAY 2007 8 No Place for Whiners Arizona vintners earn new respect. BY K ATHLEEN WALKER Departments may 2007 PHOTOGRAPHS BY DON B. AND RYAN B. STEVENSON 2 DEAR EDITOR NIGHTLIGHT Rising over the Chiricahua Mountains, the May 3 ALL WHO WANDER 16 GUIDE Grape Expectations moon reflects its glow on spring How about them toad suckers? growth at the Keeling-Schaefer in Southeast Arizona 4 VIEWFINDER Vineyards in southeast Arizona. BY MICHAEL FAMIGLIETTI What do cowboys and photographers See story, page 8. have in common? DON B. AND RYAN B. STEVENSON FRONT COVER During a summer 18 John Wayne’s Arizona 5 TAKING THE OFF-RAMP The icon who made Arizona iconic loved its frontier feel. of record-breaking rain, gnarled Arizona oddities, attractions and pleasures. BY GREGORY M CNAMEE scrub oaks stand their ground 42 ALONG THE WAY amid a profusion of golden summer poppies and pink velvet- contents The world according to Hube. 2 2 PORTFOLIO Tumacacori pod mimosas on Atascosa 44 HIKE OF THE MONTH Mountains' hillsides in southern Highlands’ Wild Eden Arizona. See story, page 22. BY DOUGLAS KREUTZ | PHOTOGRAPHS BY JACK DYKINGA Sugarloaf Mountain offers a Chiricahua Monument high point. JACK DYKINGA BACK COVER At the eastern 34 Rain Run 46 BACK ROAD ADVENTURE edge of Keeling-Schaefer Hopi runners follow an ancient path in a Route 12 reveals hidden treasures Vineyards, dawn’s light bathes 2,000-mile-long relay for rain. on the Navajo Reservation. nearly ripe grape clusters awaiting BY CARRIE M. MINER | PHOTOGRAPHS BY GARY JOHNSON harvest. See story, page 8. DON B. AND RYAN B. STEVENSON 38 Grand Canyon Caverns Deep underground, imaginations run amok. BY KIMBERLY HOSEY | PHOTOGRAPHS BY GEOFF GOURLEY online arizonahighways.com Could Arizona be the next Napa Valley? Why not? Grape-growing enthusiasts from around the world have found our desert highlands to be the perfect starting grounds for the big, beautiful business of winemaking. See how and where with our expanded Arizona Wine Country guide. Visit arizonahighways.com and click on our May “Trip Planner.” HUMOR Remote-control technology really pushes our writer’s buttons. WEEKEND GETAWAY See how Verde Valley winemakers bring in the green with quality reds and whites. EXPERIENCE ARIZONA Plan a trip with our calendar of events. FRUITFUL FUN Kids of all ages dash for sweet treats during the “Fruit Scramble” event at the 4th Annual Natoni Horse Race on the Navajo Indian Reservation. See story, page 16. TOM BEAN FRONT COVER Navajo hoop dancer Tyrese Jensen, 7, competes in the 16th Annual World Championship Hoop Dance Contest held at the Heard Museum in downtown Phoenix. See story, page 32. JEFF KIDA BACK COVER A hiker amounts to a Tiny Tim on the window "sill" of Los Gigantes Buttes Arch near the Lukachukai Mountains on the Navajo Indian Reservation. See story, page 24. TOM TILL n To order a print of this photograph, see information on opposite page. Photographic Prints Available n Prints of some photographs are available for purchase, as designated in captions. To order, call toll- free (866) 962-1191 or visit www.magazineprints.com. DO NOT LICK Colorado River toads can survive Loved Love 100 times the dehydration it would I must comment on the piece “Love on the Edge” (“All MAY 2007 VOL. 83, NO. 5 take to kill a human. G.C. KELLEY all who wander all Who Wander,” February ’07) and the accompanying Publisher WIN HOLDEN photograph. What an incredibly beautiful sight to Editor PETER ALESHIRE “Oh, that,” I said, gesturing vaguely with my bird book. behold, two people with love in their hearts and our Senior Editor RANDY SUMMERLIN “That was a bullfinch.” Web/Research Editor SALLY BENFORD beloved Grand Canyon as their backdrop. That bird Book Division Editor BOB ALBANO “A what?” flying by is the icing on the cake. The poetry of the Books Associate Editor EVELYN HOWELL “A bullfinch. Big one.” Special Projects Editor JOBETH JAMISON piece itself is deeply moving. Thanks so much for all Editorial Administrator NIKKI KIMBEL He stared at me through narrowed eyes, trying to decide of it. Keep up the excellent work. I love it! Editorial Assistant PAULY HELLER whether I might be mocking him. The effort appeared painful, dear editor —Diana Minton, Arcata, CA Director of Photography PETER ENSENBERGER so he abandoned the thought and returned to surveying the Photography Editor JEFF KIDA bulrushes. Enough Fluff puzzled as to why you used a full-page Art Director BARBARA GLYNN DENNEY I watched quietly, confident I’d encountered a recreational Deputy Art Director SONDA ANDERSSON PAPPAN I’ve been reading Arizona Highways illustration of a scene that resembles Art Assistant DIANA BENZEL-RICE toad sucker. No doubt, he sought a Colorado River toad, a marvel since grade school in Tucson. I’ve just Monument Valley on the Navajo Indian Map Designer KEVIN KIBSEY of biology that can burrow some 2 feet into the mud after a turned 60 and find myself inspired and Reservation in northeastern Arizona. Production Director MICHAEL BIANCHI monsoon and spend years waiting out droughts. The toads shrivel fascinated by your wonderful metaphors, —Janice Fancher, Tubac Promotions Art Director RONDA JOHNSON to a wilted memory of themselves, like mummified pharaohs. Webmaster VICKY SNOW How About Them adjectives, verbs and revelations of your Heck of a good point. Hollywood movies do that all The drumming of just enough rain at just the right time Director of Sales & Marketing KELLY MERO soul. February 2007’s “All Who Wander” the time. Shame on us, and thanks for keeping us on summons them from their tombs. Struggling upward to emerge Circulation Director HOLLY CARNAHAN Toad Suckers? arizonahighways.com column, “Love on the Edge,” was easy: our toes. —Ed. into the rain-blessed world, they swell as their thirsty skin by Peter Aleshire, editor @ “. three jumping bean kids . .” Thanks Finance Director BOB ALLEN absorbs the moisture. Crooning passionately, they rush to find for turning Arizona Highways off the “fluff” That Was a Great Letter Information Technology CINDY BORMANIS How about Them Toad Suckers mates, then festoon every available pool of water with frog eggs. editor road and back into a magazine I treasure I want to add my feelings to those Inquiries or orders Toll-free: (800) 543-5432 Ain’t they clods? The pollywogs hatch in record time and tear through the each month. expressed in Larry Weaver’s letter, Phoenix area or outside the U.S. (602) 712-2000 Sittin’ there suckin’ miracle of metamorphosis from wiggler to frog in summer Or visit arizonahighways.com —Sandra Cortner, Crested Butte, CO “Poetry — Ugh!” (“Dear Editor,” February Them green toady-frogs. pools that last mere days. ’07). I couldn’t agree more with Mr. For Corporate or Trade Sales Dolores Field (602) 712-2045 Suckin’ them hop-toads, One other remarkable quality of the Colorado River toads has Don’t Feed the Wildlife Weaver’s thoughts on your writing style. Letters to the Editor [email protected] Suckin’ them chunkers, lately attracted the attention of the counter-culture — the 2039 W. Lewis Ave., Phoenix, AZ 85009 The magazine is great, but the mention In my opinion, it does not fit what Arizona Suckin’ them leapy-types, chemistry of self-defense. These toads can grow to 7 inches, of squirrel feeding in “All Who Wander” Highways magazine is all about, including Governor Suckin’ them plunkers. which makes them nearly 2 pounds of toothless, shell-less, JANET NAPOLITANO (“Love on the Edge,” February ’07) was the style expectations of the readership. Director, Department of Transportation —“T HEM TOAD SUCKER S” BY M ASON WILLIAMS croaking juiciness in a world oversupplied with raccoons, disturbing. It is unlawful to feed, approach Western magazine — Western style. No VICTOR M. MENDEZ coyotes, bobcats, dogs and other toothy critters. The toad’s or harass the wildlife in any national park. flowery words or sentences required. ARIZONA TRANSPORTATION BOARD Sitting. defensive system involves glands that produce bufotenine, a The National Park Service puts notices —Paul Premo, Scottsdale Chairman Joe Lane And thinking. squirt of which can cause paralysis and even death in animals. Vice Chairman S.L. Schorr to this effect in all their Grand Canyon Ouch. —Ed. Members Delbert Householder, Robert M. Montoya, I was just sitting . and thinking . when the croak of true This defense system has served the croakers well for millions visitor publications. Some people reading Felipe Andres Zubia, William J. Feldmeier, love sounded among the bulrushes. of years. Barbara Ann “Bobbie” Lundstrom this article may conclude that feeding Horn or Antler? Roused from my reverie, I tried to home in on the bullfrog’s Until lately. squirrels is okay since Arizona Highways In the February 2007 piece, “Do Fence Me International Regional Magazine Association call booming through the bulrushes in the languid lake Turns out, this toad’s poison mimics a hallucinogen if dried, makes it sound pretty benign. In,” Dexter Oliver states pronghorns “shed 2005, 2004, 2003, 2001, 2000 Magazine of the Year in Papago Park. Could it be a Colorado River toad? At this crystallized and smoked with a pipe. —Mary Gentry, Espanola, NM their strange, black-forked horns annually.” Western Publications Association moment, a great, slurping splash deflected my search for the Of course, you can overdose and get very sick. Mercifully, no 2004, 2002, 2001 Best Travel & In-transit Magazine Good point, poor role-modeling. Don’t feed the Horns and antlers are different. That’s why bullfrog, which immediately fell silent — likewise awaiting the known deaths attributable to toad-sucking have trickled into Society of American Travel Writers Foundation squirrels, folks.