MOUNTAIN LAKES 2014 Something to Wet Your Whistle

JULY EXPLORE THE CANYON!

ESCAPE • EXPLORE • EXPERIENCE — JOHN WESLEY POWELL —

The Best of the SOUTH RIM [IN 4 HOURS OR LESS] “The beauties form, of and sound color in the Grand unite Canyon.”

PLUS: YARNELL, ONE YEAR LATER • AN OX NAMED CUDDLES • STRAWBERRY, AZ BUTCHART BUTTE • SOMETHING RETRO UP ON THE NORTH RIM • HUMPHREYS PEAK CONTENTS 07.14 North Rim Grand Canyon National Park 2 EDITOR’S LETTER > 3 CONTRIBUTORS > 4 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR > 56 WHERE IS THIS? Flagstaff Camp Verde Strawberry 5 THE JOURNAL 46 THIS ONE’S FOR HARVEY Yarnell Eagar People, places and things from around the state, including Chuck Among the many notable explorers of the Grand Canyon, PHOENIX Stretch, an old-school filling-station attendant on the North Rim; a Harvey Butchart is the most prolific. Over the course of sev- saloon in Camp Verde that defies the notion of “bar food”; and eral decades, he hiked more than 12,000 miles and climbed Tucson Strawberry, our hometown of the month. 83 inner-Canyon summits. In spite of those numbers, there weren’t any memorials to mark his accomplishments. That St. David 16 ON THE EDGE is, until 2008, when a 7,611-foot peak near Point Imperial POINTS OF INTEREST IN THIS ISSUE There’s a lot to see on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. You could was officially designated Butchart Butte. easily spend days up there and never run out of things to do. Most TEXT AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY ELIAS BUTLER people, however, are in and out in less than four hours. It’s for them that this story is written. 50 PULLING THEIR WEIGHT BY ROBERT STIEVE Andy Mayberry is a gentleman farmer, a sixth-generation GET MORE ONLINE Arizonan and a well-established family-practice physician in www.arizonahighways.com 26 LAND OF LESS THAN 10,000 LAKES Benson. But it’s his 2,200-pound oxen that garner the most Visit our website for details on weekend getaways, It’s true, Minnesota has a lot of lakes — at least 10,000, probably more. attention — and do most of the work. hiking, lodging, dining, photography workshops, We have lakes in Arizona, too. There aren’t as many as there are in BY KELLY VAUGHN KRAMER slideshows and more. PHOTOGRAPH BY JOHN BURCHAM Minnesota, but they’re still spectacular. Plus, we don’t have as many www.arizonahighways.wordpress.com mosquitoes. 52 SCENIC DRIVE Check out our blog for regular posts on just A PORTFOLIO EDITED BY JEFF KIDA about anything having to do with travel in Eagar to Big Lake: Although you will see a few signs of the Arizona, including Q&A’s with writers and pho- 36 AFTER THE SMOKE CLEARED Wallow Fire along this 21-mile back road, you’ll also see tographers, special events, bonus photos, sneak peeks at upcoming issues and more. swaths of grasslands, crystal-clear water and many remind- On June 30, 2013, a seemingly routine wildfire broke out ers that the White Mountains are still spectacular. www.facebook.com/azhighways southwest of Prescott. But within 24 hours, the Yarnell Hill Fire had become anything but ordinary when 19 Join our Facebook community to share your 54 HIKE OF THE MONTH photographs, chat with other fans, enter trivia heroic hotshots lost their lives fighting the blaze. The contests and receive up-to-the-minute informa- tragedy was front-page news around the world. It wasn’t Humphreys Peak: It’s not the most difficult hike in Arizona, tion about what’s going on behind the scenes at the only story, though. A team of unsung heroes was but at 12,633 feet above sea level, it is the highest, and for Arizona Highways. peak-baggers, that’s what matters most. working relentlessly behind the scenes, and a year later, Arizona Highways is on Instagram it’s still fighting the effects of the fire. Follow us @arizonahighways to see our travel BY KATHY MONTGOMERY photos from around the state. PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID ZICKL www.pinterest.com/azhighways Join our creative community on Pinterest to share 42 RIDING HIGH photo inspiration, outdoors ideas and more. Ranching in Northern Arizona has never been easy — not for cattle, not for cowboys. Although it’s a more efficient line of work than it was 60 years ago, there are some, including our writer, who long for a time when all the work was done on horseback. BY JO BAEZA

◗ After a storm, fog envelops the Superstition Wilderness east of Phoenix. | GEORGE STOCKING CAMERA: CANON EOS 5D MARK II; SHUTTER: 1/400 SEC; APERTURE: F/11; ISO: 100; FOCAL LENGTH: 32 MM FRONT COVER Sunrise illuminates the buttes of the Grand Canyon, as seen from the South Rim. | ADAM SCHALLAU CAMERA: CANON EOS 5D MARK III; SHUTTER: 0.6 SEC; APERTURE: F/14; ISO: 100; FOCAL LENGTH: 25 MM BACK COVER A monsoon storm empties into the Canyon at sunset in this view from Lipan Point. | GEORGE STOCKING CAMERA: CANON EOS 5D MARK II; SHUTTER: 1/100 SEC; APERTURE: F/10; ISO: 125; FOCAL LENGTH: 70 MM

PHOTOGRAPHIC2 JANUARY 2013PRINTS AVAILABLE Prints of some photographs in this issue are available for purchase. To view options, visit www.arizona highwaysprints.com. For more information, call 866-962-1191. www.arizonahighways.com 1 editor’s letter contributors

JO BAEZA “Ranch life was more intense in the 1950s,” says Jo Baeza, whose essay Time at the Canyon this month (see Riding High, page 42) recounts her time on a Northern JULY 2014 VOL. 90, NO. 7 Arizona cattle ranch. “You knew when you rode out in the morning that 800-543-5432 www.arizonahighways.com here are 106 windows in Kolb in our story, too, but he logged more than that day could be your last. Your horse could step into a badger hole or PUBLISHER Win Holden get spooked for no reason. If you broke a leg, it would take a long time Studio. That’s a lot of windows, it’s not the ride you’re 12,000 miles, climbed EDITOR Robert Stieve T until you think about where the thinking of. There’s a 83 inner-Canyon sum- MANAGING EDITOR Kelly Vaughn Kramer for someone to find your tracks, and even longer to get you home.” old building is located. “Kolb Studio is new tour that takes off mits and navigated SENIOR ASSOCIATE EDITOR Kathy Ritchie And she clearly misses that lifestyle: “All the humans and animals were ASSOCIATE EDITOR Noah Austin four stories hanging off the edge of the more than 100 rim-to- interdependent. We relied on our horses, our dogs and each other to from Yaki Point. EDITORIAL ADMINISTRATOR Nikki Kimbel Grand Canyon,” says Dave Uberuaga, “It’s a wonderful river routes. And along PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Jeff Kida get the job done. I loved every day in the saddle.” In 1965, Baeza left the ALEC PEARCE the superintendent of Grand Canyon ride along the rim,” the way, he spent the CREATIVE DIRECTOR Barbara Glynn Denney ranch and moved to Pinetop-Lakeside, where she’s been ever since. National Park. He means that literally. Dave says, “without equivalent of three ART DIRECTOR Keith Whitney Her most recent book, Arizona: The Making of a State, was published in 2012 to coincide with the DESIGN PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Diana Benzel-Rice Of all the historic structures on the South the scariness of riding years inside the park MAP DESIGNER Kevin Kibsey state’s Centennial. Baeza is currently working on a history of Pinetop-Lakeside. Rim, Kolb is closest to the edge. The only down into the Canyon. — that’s at least 6,570 PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Michael Bianchi way to get any closer is to hike down. Even if you’ve never times more than the WEBMASTER Victoria J. Snow DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING Kelly Mero Thus, the 106 windows. been on a mule, it’s average South Rim CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Nicole Bowman PAUL GILL Considering the location, location, easy — you just get on visitor. FINANCE DIRECTOR Bob Allen The White Mountains have location, it’s understandable why Emery and go. The mules are Sadly, Harvey died INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Cindy Bormanis been a favorite shooting

and Ellsworth Kolb would have installed so well trained that MARKOW PAUL in 2002, but his legacy location for Arizona-born CORPORATE OR TRADE SALES 602-712-2019 so many windows when they built their you can actually let go of the reins, look lives on in the form of Butchart Butte, SPONSORSHIP SALES photographer Paul Gill for REPRESENTATION Kathleen Hennen 40 years. “After the Wallow photography studio in the early 1900s, around and take pictures.” which was dedicated a few years after Hennen Publishing & but that excess comes with a price. Oxen are like mules. Although you his death. According to Elias Butler, it’s Marketing Group Fire, it was like losing a good 480-664-0541 Because of the accumulating decades and probably wouldn’t want to ride on one, a summit that’s “easily seen but not eas- friend,” he says, “but, to my LETTERS TO THE EDITOR [email protected] the harsh realities of weather on the Rim, they’re very good at following orders. In ily reached.” Nevertheless, our writer 2039 W. Lewis Avenue surprise, the new aspens are Phoenix, AZ 85009 the windows are deteriorating. And so is fact, by definition, an ox is a steer that’s recently attempted to climb it. already more than 6 feet tall, MOREY JOHN the rest of the building. been trained to work. In This One’s for Harvey, you’ll read and the fields are covered GOVERNOR Janice K. Brewer To help preserve it, the Grand Canyon Andy Mayberry is fond of oxen. about Elias’ adventure. You’ll also learn with carpets of wildflowers in the summer.” Gill’s photos accompany this month’sScenic Drive DIRECTOR, DEPARTMENT Association is raising funds to rebuild “When he purchased two Holstein calves about how rare it is these days to get your OF TRANSPORTATION John S. Halikowski (see page 52), which goes from Eagar to Big Lake. The fire changed the view at the lake, but the balconies, fix the roof and restore the for his daughter seven years ago,” Kelly name on anything in the Grand Canyon ARIZONA TRANSPORTATION it’s still plenty scenic. “The lake’s landscape is now a new and different challenge,” Gill says, BOARD CHAIRMAN Stephen W. Christy wooden frames around all of those win- Vaughn Kramer writes in Pulling Their — Butchart Butte is only the second sum- “with great creative opportunities at every turn.” In addition to Arizona Highways, Gill’s photo- VICE CHAIRMAN Kelly O. Anderson dows. And that’s just the beginning. The Weight, “he knew what they’d ultimately mit to be named in the last 37 years. It’s graphs have appeared in Nature Conservancy and Nature’s Best Photography. MEMBERS Hank Rogers restorations are expected to keep things become — gentle, working, Volkswagen- uncommon, but if you spend more than Joseph E. La Rue intact for years to come. Meanwhile, sized members of the family.” And so four hours at the Canyon, it’s possible. William Cuthbertson Kolb Studio is still open, and it’s one of they have. And if you spend 26,280 hours up there, Deanna Beaver Jack W. Sellers the featured destinations in this month’s Cuddles and Fluffy are their names, the odds are even better. cover story. and there’s irony in that, because the two Here’s to you, Harvey. Arizona Highways® (ISSN 0004-1521) is published monthly by the Arizona Department of Transportation. Subscription price: $24 a year in the U.S., $44 I’ve been to the Canyon a few times behemoths weigh approxi- outside the U.S. Single copy: $4.99 U.S. Call 800-543-5432. Subscription cor­respon­dence and change of address information: Arizona Highways, P.O. — 109 as of this writing — but it wasn’t mately 2,200 pounds apiece Box 8521, Big Sandy, TX 75755-8521. Periodical postage paid at Phoenix, AZ, until a trip last summer that I learned and can pull up to 15 percent and at additional mailing office. CANADA POST INTERNATIONAL PUBLICA- TIONS MAIL PRODUCT (CANA­DIAN DISTRIBUTION) SALES AGREEMENT NO. this unlikely statistic: About 75 percent of their body weight for 10 41220511. SEND RETURNS TO QUAD/GRAPHICS, P.O. BOX 875, WINDSOR, ON N9A 6P2. POST­MASTER: Send address changes to Arizona Highways, P.O. of the visitors to the South Rim spend hours a day. They work hard, Box 8521, Big Sandy, TX 75755-8521. Copy­right © 2014 by the Ari­zona Depart- ment of Trans­­por­­tation. Repro­duc­tion in whole or in part with­­out permission four hours or less in the park. The num- but not too hard. That’s is prohibited. The magazine does not accept and is not responsible for bers are different on the North Rim, because Mayberry is a gentle- unsolicited­ mater­ ials.­ where the average stay lasts for a few man farmer. “My dad was PRODUCED IN THE USA days, but on the south side, the masses a cowboy, and he always KISH DAWN tend to zoom in and zoom out. Naturally, wanted me to cowboy,” the DAVID ZICKL the Canyon demands more time than son says. “I became a doctor Photographer David Zickl has driven through Yarnell and Peeples Valley many times. He says that, but if you’re on a tight schedule, and instead.” DEREK VON BRIESEN that before last year’s Yarnell Hill Fire, “the grass fields and horse farms along State Route four hours is all you can spare, there are When he’s not seeing patients, May- COMING IN AUGUST ... If you like what you see in this 89 were so green, the area looked like Lexington, Kentucky.” When Zickl visited Yarnell for some things you can do, and that’s the berry is usually at home on his farm, fol- Some of our favorite summer drives; magazine every month, check out this month’s story on the town’s recovery from the fire (seeAfter the Smoke Cleared, page gist of our piece. lowing the plow. It helps him wind down the story of elk in Arizona; and a portfo- Arizona Highways Television, an 36), he was surprised to learn that more than 100 structures had burned to the ground, “but I Kolb Studio, which takes about an from the pressures of his day job. “This is lio by Marie Baronnet, the French pho- Emmy Award-winning program was equally surprised to see homes right next to those structures that were untouched. Their hosted by former news anchor Robin hour to tour, is on the list, and so are my downtime,” he says. tographer we sent to Monument Valley. yards and trees were green, and the homes were unaffected by the fire. It was surreal.” Sewell. For broadcast times, visit Another surprise, he says, was how few Yarnell residents have left: “They all worked together the Hermit Road (3 hours), Bright Angel Harvey Butchart liked downtime, our website, www.arizonahighways. Lodge (1 hour) and the hike to Santa too, but instead of farming, the math ROBERT STIEVE, EDITOR com, and click the Arizona Highways to help each other rebuild. With only about 600 residents, everyone knows everyone. It seems

Maria Spring (3.5 hours). We have mules professor would hike the Canyon. In all, Follow me on Twitter: @azhighways BARNES ELLEN Television link on our home page. like a special place to live.” Zickl is a frequent contributor to Arizona Highways. — NOAH AUSTIN

2 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 3 letters to the editor [email protected] THE JOURNAL 07.14 PAT ON THE BACK I just received the current issue [May 2014] of Arizona hometowns > local favorites > history > photography > odd jobs Highways, and the history of Prescott is wonderful. dining > nature > lodging > things to do However, the wildflowers shone above everything else. Who would have thought that the backside of a flower was more beautiful than the flower itself? Well, this is the effect the photographer [Paul Gill] presented with his wonderful shot of the sunflower’s backside. Also, I love the photo of the various flowers, and in the middle TK of the wilderness spread, there were bluebonnets. Being from Texas, it’s my favorite flower, and I’m glad to see they grow in other areas. Jennie Lou Crowder, Luling, Texas (via Facebook)

May 2014

LOWERING THE BLOOM my picture one morning at the station to year since, Katie Lincoln has given me A picture might be worth a thousand use in an article, but it was never used. the wonderful gift of a subscription. I words [May Flowers, May 2014], but 13 He did send me a letter, though, and a am a writer, of poetry in particular, and photos of wildflowers are not worth 15 photo, which I still have. My boss the I can spot good writing in any genre. pages of Arizona Highways (back cover first summer at Grand Canyon was the I’m happy to report that Kelly Vaughn included). And two pages for a sun- school-board president, and he suggested Kramer’s story about the Pinal Mountains flower? Perhaps the 15 pages could have I think about teaching at the Canyon Loop [Scenic Drive, April 2014] pleased me contained, say, 60 photos showing the when I graduated. My first teaching job very much — it excited me enough to range of flowers found throughout the was in Albuquerque, New Mexico, but contact you and offer her praise. state. And now that smartphone cameras after three years there, I applied at Grand Charlotte Mears Stovall, Madison, Mississippi are widely used, the technical informa- Canyon and was accepted as the second- tion accompanying the photos has a grade teacher. It was great to live in the A REEL PLEASURE limited audience at best. Although pretty, park that I loved so much and experience When I was 10 years old, in 1953, I lived flowers are not what makes Arizona (and it in all its seasons. I made friendships in South Phoenix. The movie I really Arizona Highways) unique. that I still enjoy to this day. wanted to see was War of the Worlds, the Ron Rinehart, Mesa, Arizona Linda Rolf, Littleton, Colorado original one. It wasn’t playing anywhere near us, just at the Paramount theater in BACK TO SCHOOL PROPER ENGLISH downtown Phoenix. After much plead- After reading Letters to the Editor in the Thanks for the April 2014 edition of ing with my mother, she took me there April 2014 issue, I decided to chime in Arizona Highways and all the previous for the afternoon matinee. When we with my own Grand Canyon school story copies. I very much regret that due to my entered, I had never seen a theater like [Life on the Edge, February 2014]. I was the serious illness I will be unable to renew it. The ceiling had clouds that looked as second-grade teacher at Grand Canyon my subscription — my wife is going to if they were moving. The floor was made Elementary from 1972-75. I taught with need the money! I have thoroughly enjoyed of wood. Before the picture started, all Mrs. Guthrie, who was the first-grade reading the magazine and wish you and the kids were stomping their feet on teacher there my first year. I wondered all your staff the very best for the future. the floor. The movie was sensational. It if perhaps the classroom shown in the Duncan Jackson, Nailsea, England seems like yesterday, and my memories photo was the same one I taught in. are still vivid. Your article [Historic Places, Before becoming a teacher, I worked at EDITOR’S NOTE: I’m very sorry to hear about your February 2014] and photographs of the Ripple Effect Grand Canyon National Park for four illness, Duncan, but I thank you for taking the time Orpheum Theatre brought it all back summers while attending Northern to write. You epitomize the consideration, cour- again. Wind-sculpted sand dunes dominate Arizona University. My friend Pat and tesy and good manners that we see in so many of Ed Stubinger, Mohave Valley, Arizona the scenery near Lake Havasu in I were the first females to work at the our subscribers. Godspeed. Western Arizona. The lake was formed by Parker Dam, which was completed south entrance gate — our claim to fame! contact us If you have thoughts or com- We wore airline-stewardess-type uni- WRITE ON! ments about anything in Arizona Highways, we’d in 1938 on the Colorado River. forms with fitted jackets, straight skirts I’ve been reading Arizona Highways since love to hear from you. We can be reached at editor@ For more information about Lake arizonahighways.com, or by mail at 2039 W. Lewis Havasu, visit www.golakehavasu.com. and trench caps, all in Park Service green. 1972, when a classmate in college knew Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85009. For more information, CAMERA: PENTAX K-7; SHUTTER: 1/250 SEC; A National Geographic photographer took of my interest in Arizona, and every visit www.arizonahighways.com. JAMES KERRICK APERTURE: F/16; ISO: 100; FOCAL LENGTH: 10 MM

4 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 5 hometowns � �

local favorites Randall House PINE The Randall House, one of Pine’s original homesteads, is a popular breakfast and lunch restaurant. Owned by Barbara Frazin-O’Connor and her husband, Patrick, the restaurant retains much of the house’s old charm, and the homemade confections keep the Randall House bustling with Pine residents and visitors alike. Barbara says she bought the house because she wanted to start a café: “The location, to me, was just perfect, and the idea of having it in an old house was just too cute to pass up.” How has the Randall House evolved? The original part of the house was built in 1880. It was a two-room log cabin, and over the years, as the family grew, the cabin was expanded, and more bedrooms and a kitchen were added. Today, the bedrooms are set up as dining rooms. Describe the Randall House. When you first come in, what people notice is our pastry case, where you can see all of our homemade pies and home-baked treats: everything from cookies to pies to THE JOURNAL bear claws to muffins. We bake all of our pastries from scratch. We have a little seating area so people can feel at home. Throughout the house, we have some artwork by local artists, along with various antiques and collectibles: old scales and muffin tins, as well as a collection of salt and pepper shakers. What separates the Randall House from other restaurants in Pine? I think we offer not just comfort food, but a comfortable place to relax. It’s not like the typical diner food, and it’s kind of a place for the community to get together and meet with their friends over a cup of

MARK LIPCZYNSKI coffee and have homemade food. We also welcome pets when it’s warm enough to sit outside. It’s nice to sit out among the trees NAMED FOR THE PLENTIFUL WILD STRAW- high temperatures range from the low Other nearby attractions include Blue and enjoy the small town. We like to treat STRAWBERRY berries that early settlers found there, 50s in December and January to the low Ridge Reservoir and Tonto Natural Bridge. our guests as if they’re family visiting from Strawberry has become a popular tourist 90s in July — or the proximity to outdoor And history buffs can check out the out of town. — DANIELLE GROBMEIER FOUNDED: 1886 | POPULATION: 961 | AREA: 9.5 square miles destination, as well as a summer-home hotspots. Strawberry is a stone’s throw Strawberry Schoolhouse, a one-room log location for people who spend the cooler ELEVATION: 5,889 feet | COUNTY: Gila from the Fossil Springs Wilderness, an cabin built in the 1880s. It’s considered the The Randall House is located at 3821 State Route 87 months in Phoenix or Tucson. It’s hard to 11,550-acre wonderland that’s one of the oldest standing schoolhouse in Arizona. in Pine. For more information, call 928-476-4077. www.rimcountrychamber.com argue with the climate — average monthly most diverse riparian areas in Arizona. — NOAH AUSTIN

6 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 7 history photography � � � �

What You See The Big Chill Is What You Get Before air conditioning became commonplace after World War II, Photo Editor Jeff Kida talks to icehouses made it a little easier to survive summer in Arizona. Jerry Sieve about the importance They also helped keep the beer cold. of scouting — and taking advantage of opportunities. t’s hard to imagine how Arizonans battled the heat — much grew, and soon there were several icehouses operating in the less enjoyed an ice-cream cone on a hot summer day — before area. One of them was the Arizona Ice and Cold Storage Co. JK: You teach photography at Paradise air conditioning came to be. Fortunately, in the late 1800s and Local businessman Jack B. Martin founded the company in Valley Community College. What con- I early 1900s, Arizona’s ice industry took off, and in 1879, Tuc- 1922. According to reports, it was one of the largest ice-making cepts do you emphasize? son’s first ice-making machine started producing the cold stuff. facilities in town, with 32 delivery routes, as well as other dis- JS: One of the first things I teach is In the decades that followed, Tucson’s downtown exploded tribution methods, including vending machines and cold- awareness of light and depth of field. I with deals between vendors and entertainment venues, which storage facilities. Martin eventually sold the company, but he also take students out in groups to scout sought ice to serve cold beer and frozen treats. Competition also stayed on board as its manager until 1959, when he retired. locations, and I’ve noticed that young The era of ice- photographers do more “looking” than houses came to an “seeing.” We have a tendency to scan our end when air condi- surroundings, and photographers need tioning and refrig- to slow down and notice opportunities. eration became more commonplace after JK: How does this photo illustrate that? World War II. JS: This is near Tonto Natural Bridge. I The Arizona Ice had scouted it previously and thought and Cold Storage there was potential there, but this scene facility, located on — with the water from the spring runoff, the 1000 block of and the resulting greenery — only hap- East 17th Street, pens for a brief time each year, so scout- closed in 2002. ing was critical. It’s an early morning shot, It was later con- so the soft light allows the details to verted into the Ice come out of the greenery. Direct sunlight THE JOURNAL House Lofts, which would have killed the shot by adding too includes more than much information and contrast. 50 apartments. — DANIELLE GROBMEIER JK: Talk about “control” in photography. Arizona Ice and Cold JS: Much of photography is about Storage Co. employees control — over time of day, lens choice, pose next to a delivery camera angle, etc. If you don’t take truck. The company helped keep Tucson cool for much those things into account and control

ARIZONA HISTORICAL SOCIETY HISTORICAL ARIZONA of the 20th century. your situation, you’ll have a hard time sharing your vision with others or making an artistic statement. Slow down, be

aware of your surroundings and how JERRY SIEVE ARIZONA HIGHWAYS ■ Arizona’s William bronco contest ever tonwood, Flagstaff, Our July 1964 issue this light is affecting the scene, and look for Water cascades down vegetation-covered rocks in spring Owen “Buckey” held,” according to Prescott, Topock, the featured Kanab windows of opportunity. near Tonto Natural Bridge in Central Arizona. O’Neill, a soldier in The Coconino Sun. Painted Desert and 50 Years Ago Canyon, a 100-mile- month Teddy Roosevelt’s ■ On July 4, 1887, the Wupatki National long chasm near Rough Riders, is first railroad train, Monument. the Arizona-Utah in history killed in action in the operated by Southern ■ On July 27, 1913, border. The issue also aperture, f/2.8 Spanish-American Pacific, chugs its way Phoenix’s police chief creature without ADDITIONAL included a history of PHOTO GO WILD War on July 1, 1898. into Phoenix. decries the decreasing scaring it off. If to f/8, will READING the state’s railroads, you want to cap- yield a shallow Look for our book ■ On July 3 and 4, ■ Easy Rider is length of women’s Photographing Arizona Highways 1911, Flagstaff hosts a released on July 14, skirts and says he stating that “the a wild animal ture the details, depth of field, Photography “grand parade” fea- 1969. In the movie, will enforce a city golden road of prog- TIP usually requires a use a smaller causing the Guide, available ress of Arizona” could long telephoto lens aperture, any- background at bookstores turing cowboy stunts, the stars ride motor- ordinance that forbids and www.shop relay races, ballgames cycles through various exposing more than be attributed to the so you can zoom where from f/11 behind the arizonahighways.

and the “biggest places in Arizona: Cot- 2 inches of ankle. railroad industry. in close to the to f/22. A larger BRUCE D. TAUBERT animal to blur. com/books.

8 JULY 2014 To learn more about photography, visit www.arizonahighways.com. www.arizonahighways.com 9 odd jobs � � FILLING STATION ATTENDANT Chuck Stretch, North Rim, Grand Canyon

YOU WON’T FIND CHUCK STRETCH in one place for very long. If he’s not at his Arizona home in Gold Canyon or at a beachfront bungalow in Ko Samui, Thailand, you might find Stretch in THE JOURNAL California, tasting Napa Valley’s latest wine releases. But come summer, one thing’s for certain: Stretch will be at the Grand Canyon’s North Rim Sinclair service station, pumping gas. Donning an old-school gas-station attendant’s uniform — complete with a bow tie and a cap- tain’s hat — Stretch’s summer gig is a step back in time, before self-service became the norm. “People pull in, and I fill their gas, clean their windows, check their tires — a lot of rental cars come from Vegas, and they have a hard time up here,” he says. There’s something wonder- ful about Stretch and his joie de vivre — it’s inspiring. “I’m just a happy guy,” he says.“People have a lot of questions, so I act like a tour guide. It’s about making it an enjoyable experience.” That, and he genuinely adores the North Rim: “I love the big, huge trees we have here — the ponderosas, the aspens, the blue spruce — and I love the Canyon itself.” — KATHY RITCHIE

The Sinclair station is located near the North Rim Campground at Grand Canyon National Park. For more information, call the park at 928-638-7888 or visit

www.nps.gov/grca. MARKOW PAUL

10 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 11 dining nature � � � � Horn of Plenty Whiskey-brushed Angus burgers, herb-crusted rack of lamb, pan-seared Gunnison’s prairie dogs have dark trout ... the menu at the Horn Saloon shatters stereotypes about patches on their “bar food.” What’s more, the bar is in Camp Verde, of all places. cheeks and near their eyes.

They often THE HORN SALOON IN CAMP VERDE may for- to behold, with stained concrete floors, thought if Cottonwood can sustain all are a ever change the way you think about bar ochre-painted walls and a lacquered pine that, Camp Verde can have one little res- yellowish food. Or strip-mall restaurants. Or Camp bar inset with turquoise. Comfortable taurant.” color. Verde, for that matter. leather chairs surround tables of polished The original concept was a wine bar camp verde The restaurant is wood or granite. Southwestern Indian with a twist. named for a brawling jewelry and pottery fill display cases. “I wanted to be the Cracker Barrel of 1870s-era bar, built at the edge of Fort Indian rugs hang on the walls. wine bars,” Barb says. But instead of a Verde, that served warm beer and whis- Owners Barb and Steve Goetting country store, Barb envisioned something key that was “downright dangerous.” But moved to the area about 10 years ago along the lines of a Southwestern trading the modern-day Horn Saloon has about from the Washington, D.C., area — Steve post, with good food to accompany the as much in common with the original had always wanted to move to the West wine list. as it does with Cracker Barrel, which — and settled on irrigated land along the The business plan evolved to include inspired the modern remake. Verde River. craft beers, and the food “just took off.” Though located in an unassuming “We were tired of going over to Cot- Executive chef Peggy Fuller, who has strip mall, the Horn Saloon is a pleasure tonwood [for dinner],” Barb says. “We a passion for locally sourced ingredients, came to the Horn from Sedona’s Elote Café, and the menu reflects that sophis- tication. There’s a burger on the menu, but it’s whiskey-brushed Angus with grilled They can be onions, smoky bacon, fresh avocado, identified by their white-tipped tails. Havarti cheese and roasted-chile aioli. The dinner menu includes dishes such THE JOURNAL as herb-crusted rack of lamb and pan- seared trout. Even so, the restaurant has remained Gunnison’s faithful to its roots, with 16 craft beers nature factoid and 20 wines on tap. The wines are Prairie Dogs kegged under pressure using a combina- f the five species of prairie dogs were not endan- tion of nitrogen and carbon dioxide. That prairie dogs, Gunni- gered or threatened enough in prevents oxidation, so every glass is son’s prairie dogs are Arizona to warrant protection. served as the winemaker intended. The Othe smallest. Unlike The service’s report indicated system also allows patrons to order pre- other prairie dogs, Gunnison’s that populations in certain mium wines by the glass. are not known to kill their young, parts of Colorado and New Plans are in the works for a winery but they’re dying in other ways. Mexico, but not those in Arizona, across the street in the renovated Boler’s Recreational shooting, along need protection under the Bar, now a gallery with a wine- and beer- with poisoning of prairie dogs Endangered Species Act. The tasting area. Eventually, Barb envisions a to protect agriculture, has animals’ burrows are consid-

Sunday kitchen for the space — a kind of contributed to a decline in the ered to be healthy for plant life BRUCE (2) D. TAUBERT “summer camp” for high-school kids who species’ population, which is in areas the rodents occupy. GILA TOPMINNOWS would prepare dinners under Fuller’s concentrated within the Four Often, abandoned prairie-dog Gila topminnows are historic inhabitants of Arizona. The 2-inch- direction using fresh, local ingredients. Corners areas of Arizona, New burrows are repurposed by long, guppy-like fish are named for their habitat, the Gila River, and they’re the only native-to-Arizona fish to give birth to live Mexico, Colorado and Utah. other burrow-dwelling animals. Another fresh take on an old idea. young. Populations of topminnows decreased drastically after — KATHY MONTGOMERY Various groups have attempted The prairie dogs’ burrowing also European settlers built wells and introduced non-native fish to to have the species listed as introduces air to the soil and their habitats. Now, unless ongoing recovery efforts are success- endangered, but in 2013, the allows water to more easily ful, the species could be headed toward extinction. Gila topmin- The Horn Saloon is located at 348 Main Street in Camp nows were listed as an endangered species in 1967. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service penetrate it. Verde. For more information, call 928-567-7229 or visit — DANIELLE GROBMEIER

PAUL MARKOW PAUL www.thehornsaloon.com. determined that Gunnison’s — DANIELLE GROBMEIER

12 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 13 lodging � � PULL ASIDE • STAY ALIVE JOHN BURCHAM JOHN Starlight Pines B&B

IF IT REALLY IS ALL IN A NAME, then Flag- porch. The four guest rooms that fill the two-course affair. The grapefruit brulée staff’s Starlight Pines Bed and Breakfast Victorian-inspired home are each named takes fruit to a whole new level, and the THE JOURNAL is spot on. The town’s after the Tiffany-style lamps that grace the Grand Marnier French toast sends guests flagstaff star-laden dark skies are antique furnishings. The Dragonfly Room is out on a high note to explore Flagstaff or just a little more spec- understandably the most popular, with its do a little more porch-swinging. NEVER DRIVE INTO A DUST STORM! tacular from the inn’s residential loca- wood-burning fireplace and 6-foot antique — JACKI MIELER tion, and the pines are as abundant as claw-foot tub. The owners at Starlight Starlight Pines Bed & Breakfast is located at 3380 E. the views of Mount Elden. Both are best Pines also take the “breakfast” part of their Lockett Road in Flagstaff. For more information, call Dust storms in Arizona can reduce visibility viewed from the swing on the wraparound name seriously, serving up a decadent 800-752-1912 or visit www.starlightpinesbb.com. to near ZERO in a matter of seconds. things to do in arizona � � Car Show/Block Party event, which also includes Cowboy Celebration birds and butterflies at viewing July 4, Kingman demonstrations, live music July 26, Sedona hotspots in the area. Many • Avoid driving into or through a • Turn off all vehicle lights, including The family friendly “Cars and and Indian fry bread. Infor­ Red Rock Country marks the events are free, but field trips Stars” event includes a car mation: 928-445-3122 or www. 10th annual National Day of require fees and registration. dust storm. emergency flashers. show, stunt-riding, live music sharlot.org the Cowboy with historical Information: www.swwings.org and kids activities, followed by re-enactments, storytelling, • Check for traffic around your vehicle • Take your foot off the brake; set the a fireworks show. Information:­ Cornfest roping, live music, and Western Photo Workshop: and slow down. emergency brake. 928-727-7866 or www. July 18-19, Camp Verde art and artists. Information: Navajoland gokingman.com The Verde Valley, known for its 928-204-2390 or www. September 3-7, Navajo Nation • Completely exit the roadway if you • Stay in your vehicle with your seat sweet corn, hosts this annual sedonamainstreet.com Canyon de Chelly and the Na- Indian Art Market family event, which features vajo Nation Fair are among the can; do not stop in the roadway or belt buckled. July 12-13, Prescott live music, vendors, family Nature Festival highlights of this photographic emergency lanes. Native American artists activities and historical talks. July 30-August 2, Sierra Vista journey through Navajoland, • Wait for the dust to clear. showcase sculpture, paintings, And, of course, roasted, but- The Southwest Wings Birding which is led by Navajo photog- ceramics, jewelry and hand- tered sweet corn. Information: and Nature Festival features rapher LeRoy DeJolie. Informa- woven baskets and blankets 928-301-0922 or www. tours, exhibits and presenta- tion: 888-790-7042 or www. at this Sharlot Hall Museum visitcampverde.com tions about Southern Arizona ahpw.org PullAsideStayAlive.org 14 JULY 2014 Janice K. Brewer Governor 14-162

14-162 Ad Arizona Highways v2.indd 1 4/18/2014 12:51:36 PM THERE’S A LOT TO SEE ON THE SOUTH RIM OF THE GRAND CANYON. YOU COULD EASILY SPEND DAYS UP THERE AND NEVER RUN OUT OF THINGS TO DO. MOST PEOPLE, HOWEVER, ARE IN AND ON THE EDGE OUT IN LESS THAN FOUR HOURS. IT’S FOR THEM THAT THIS STORY IS WRITTEN. BY ROBERT STIEVE

16 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.comNavajo Point | GEORGE STOCKING 17 John Muir saw the Grand Canyon and called ONE it “God’s spectacle.” Most visitors to the natu- ral wonder have a similar reaction. But unlike Mr. SHOSHONE Muir, who settled in and enjoyed the view, the POINT TIME REQUIRED: masses take a quick look, make a few photos and 2.5 HOURS move on. It’s hard to figure, but approximately With 4 million visitors a year, 75 percent of the visitors to the South Rim spend the South Rim is about the last place you’d expect to less than four hours enjoying the splendor. The experience any solitude. numbers are more intuitive on the North Rim — Especially in four hours or less. That’s what makes Shoshone the average visit up there is several days — but on Point so special. Despite its the south side, people tend to zoom in and zoom proximity to the hubbub — it’s a 20-minute drive from the out. With that in mind, we put together a hand- village — the point can be as quiet as Toroweap, one of the ful of ideas on how to make the most of your pre- Canyon’s most remote look- cious time. And we enlisted the help of some local outs. You won’t necessarily have Shoshone to yourself, but experts, including park superintendent Dave unless a wedding or a birthday party is taking place (that’s Uberuaga, geologists, park rangers, and Canyon not unusual), the “crowd” will aficionados from the Grand Canyon Field Institute likely fit in a station wagon. Or, maybe you will be alone, and and the Grand Canyon Association. It’s an impres- what an experience that is. “To see the Grand Canyon sive brain trust, and their input, along with our from Shoshone Point is like two cents, led to the 10 things you’ll read about in taking a walk back in time,” says Helen Ranney, a director the next six pages. You won’t be able to do every- for the Grand Canyon Associa- THREE thing on our list in one visit, but you will be able tion who was married not far from Shoshone Point. “I can’t to tackle one or two. Or maybe three. Regardless imagine what it must have felt like for those early explorers HERMIT ROAD of what you decide, make sure you begin with a TIME REQUIRED: as they walked the last mile 3 HOUR/75 MINUTES toward the rim. They would (WITHOUT STOPS) stop at the Visitor Center, where you can catch Shoshone Point | SHANE McDERMOTT have had no idea what was up a showing of A Journey of Wonder, and end with a ahead through the forest, and then, bam, there’s the Grand gate and hit the trail without a juts out from the plateau. Kolb, a pair of entrepreneurial all the way down to Indian toast on the front porch of El Tovar. What you do Canyon.” permit. However, if you want This is where you’ll want to TWO photographers who realized Garden to process their film. in between is up to you. Unlike some of the other to get married at Shoshone hang out. The 180-degree they could make a killing by They did that every day, and viewpoints along the Desert — there are basic facilities, panorama includes Yaki Point, setting up shop on the South ultimately photographed tens View Drive (State Route 64), including bathrooms, picnic Newton Butte and Zoroaster KOLB STUDIO Rim. They lived and worked of thousands of tourists. Their Shoshone Point isn’t well tables and grills — you’ll need Temple, among other land- TIME REQUIRED: 1 HOUR in the now-historic building, most impressive images, how- marked. In fact, there’s no sign a permit from the national marks. And in the distance, if and eventually became local ever, weren’t made with a still at all. Instead, there’s a small park. Either way, adhere to the you know where to look, you If you’ve ever hiked the legends. But their work wasn’t camera. Their greatest claim parking area on the north side rules of Leave No Trace. can even see Phantom Creek Bright Angel Trail, there’s a always easy. to fame came in 1911 — with of the road, between mile- From the parking area, an on the North Rim. What you good chance you’ve walked In the early days, there a 50-pound, hand-cranked posts 244 and 245. There’s easy 15-minute hike winds won’t see is people, and on past Kolb Studio — it’s the wasn’t a national park. Thus, motion-picture camera. also a locked gate just beyond through an open forest of the South Rim, that’s saying Victorian-era building that sits there weren’t any ameni- That year, they loaded their the parking spaces, which will ponderosa pines to the rim something. precariously on the rim of the ties, including water — the gear into a couple of boats make you think you’re about to of the Canyon. When you get Information: Backcountry Infor- Canyon, just before the trail- boys had to develop film in a and launched an epic, 1,100- go somewhere you shouldn’t. there, veer left until you come mation Center, 928-638-7875 head. It was built in the early muddy cow pond near their mile expedition down the Shoshone Point | LARRY LINDAHL Don’t worry, it’s OK to hop the to a narrow promontory that or www.nps.gov/grca 1900s by Emery and Ellsworth studio. Later, they would hike Green and Colorado rivers. It

18 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 19 Hermits Rest is the farthest mate characterization. It’s the the South Kaibab kicks off Canyon Field Institute. “It’s some restrictions. Because THREE point on the drive, and it’s one route most hikers use when with a series of tight switch- one of the most scenic trails in the trailhead is located at of the most unique structures they’re going rim to rim or rim backs. After several zigs and the Canyon.” Yaki Point, where parking isn’t HERMIT ROAD on the South Rim. It was de- to river — they take it because zags, it arrives at the aptly As you’re hanging out on allowed, hikers must use the signed by legendary architect they’re in a hurry. Although it’s named Ooh Aah Point. It’s the the ridge, enjoying the scenery, park’s free shuttle buses to get TIME REQUIRED: 3 HOURS (75 MINUTES Mary Jane Colter to look like a freeway of sorts for long- first of an unlimited number there’s an interesting bit of there. In the morning, several WITHOUT STOPS) an old miner’s cabin, complete haul hikers, the South Kaibab of mind-blowing panoramas. trivia you might want to share express buses (just for hikers) with a giant fireplace and front is a great option for anyone Moving on, the trail goes with your mates. The South leave from the Bright Angel Go West. Those two words porch. Today, it’s used as a gift wanting to experience the through another gantlet of Kaibab Trail, you can tell them, Lodge. If you miss those, you were marching orders for a shop and bookstore. There’s a Canyon from within. To hike switchbacks and quickly was built in 1924-25 as a way can take the Blue Line out to generation of young adventur- restroom, too, and ice cream. the entire trail takes about arrives at Cedar Ridge (eleva- of bypassing Ralph Cameron’s the Visitor Center and transfer ers in the mid-1800s. It’s still The last two are good options 10 hours (round-trip), but that tion: 6,120 feet). Bright Angel Trail. Cameron, to the Green Line. The South good advice today, especially before making the short back- number doesn’t comply with “The short distance of this who owned the Bright Angel Kaibab Trailhead is the first on the South Rim, where going track to Pima Point, a place the “four hours or less” limit of hike is filled with 270-degree at the time, charged a toll to stop on the Green. It’s a bit of west (lowercase “w”) means that’s unusually quiet. this story. There are, however, views, remarkable floral anyone who used his trail. The a hassle, but after a few oohs a road trip on the Hermit Road. “As one of the westernmost several turnaround points that diversity — Douglas firs to new trail, which cost $73,000 and ahhs on your way down to It’s not the adventure it would scenic overlooks on the edge make great day hikes, includ- cactuses — and some of the to build, offered Canyon visi- Cedar Ridge, you’ll be glad you have been 150 years ago, but of the developed South Rim, ing the 1.5-mile route (one most death-defying trail tors an impressive alternative. made the effort. it’s still quite a ride. Pima Point has a remote way) to Cedar Ridge. construction in the park,” says You’ll see. Information: Backcountry Infor- There are two ways to do feeling that’s lacking in many From the trailhead at Yaki Jack Pennington, the program Although there’s no toll on mation Center, 928-638-7875 the Hermit Road: shuttle bus of the more crowded destina- Point (elevation: 7,260 feet), coordinator for the Grand the South Kaibab, there are or www.nps.gov/grca or private vehicle. It’s always tions closer to Grand Canyon nice to have your own wheels, Village,” says Mike Buchheit, but that option won’t be avail- director of the Grand Canyon able again until December 1 Field Institute. “With a com- — the road is closed to private manding view of the Colorado vehicles from March 1 to River and seemingly endless November 30. That leaves the peaks and side canyons that bus, which is easy to use. It’s trail off toward the horizon, also free. Whichever way you Pima Point is a perennial Yaki Point | KERRICK JAMES go, you won’t be disappointed favorite for photographers and — in its 7 miles, the Hermit the just plain curious.” was a harrowing trip — wrecks, it was like to live and work on Road features nine incredible In addition, Pima Point is floods and rockslides were the edge of the Canyon. The viewpoints overlooking one of one of the best places on the common — but they survived, Grand Canyon Film Show, the the Seven Natural Wonders of rim to hear the river. It seems and their documentary helped Kolb brothers’ documentary, the World. unlikely, but on a calm day you introduce the world to the is still shown daily. In addi- The bus takes off from a can hear the splash of Granite harsh and spectacular reali- tion, the studio, which is listed transfer station just below Rapids echoing off the Canyon ties of the Colorado River and on the National Register of the Bright Angel Lodge. From walls. The sights, the sounds ... the Inner Gorge of the Grand Historic Places, features les- there, it heads west and stops it’s enough to make you miss Canyon. In the years that sons on the brothers and the at all nine overlooks on the the bus. Not that it will matter. followed, from 1915 until his national park. It’s one of the outbound to Hermits Rest Another one will come around death in 1976, Emery narrated best man-made experiences (on the return, the stops are shortly. the film every evening for the on the South Rim. However, limited to Pima, Mohave and Information: Grand Canyon lucky tourists who would the studio is feeling the effects Powell points). Depending on National Park, 928-638-7888 make their way to his studio. of the last century. That’s why how much time you have, the or www.nps.gov/grca “Going in there is like taking the Grand Canyon Association best way to experience the a step back in time,” says Dave is raising funds to restore the west end is to hop off the bus Uberuaga, the superintendent old building. To learn more, at one (or more) of the look- FOUR of Grand Canyon National visit www.savekolb.org. outs and hike along the Rim Park. “For me, it’s very much Meanwhile, the studio is Trail to the next stop. You can like it was 100 years ago, espe- open in the summer from keep doing that until your legs CEDAR RIDGE cially the room in which they 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., daily. Pri- need a break or you run out of TIME REQUIRED: 4 HOURS took photos of visitors coming vate tours are also available time. The distance between (INCLUDING SHUTTLE RIDE) up the trail — it’s exactly as through the park service. any of the two points will take they left it.” Information: Grand Canyon your breath away, but the best The South Kaibab has been Today, you can visit the Association, 800-858-2808 or option is the 1.1-mile hike from described as “a trail in a hurry studio and get a taste of what www.grandcanyon.org Hermits Rest to Pima Point. to get to the river.” It’s a legiti-

20 JULY 2014 Moran Point | JACK DYKINGA www.arizonahighways.com 21 is a mere 270 million years old, wranglers are the real deal. Like in the 1950s, had a 10-item FIVE to ancient Elves Chasm gneiss, river guides, they’re passionate menu that ranged from malts which is 1.84 billion years old. If about what they do. Their lives (30 cents) to phosphates (15 you do the math, that’s about are focused on the mules — cents). Although the additions TRAIL OF TIME 1.5 billion years. Not bad for an they treat them like pets.” stayed true to the intricate TIME REQUIRED: hour of hiking. This time of year, through design of architect Mary Jane 2 HOURS ROUND-TRIP Information: Grand Canyon Halloween, the Canyon Vistas Colter, it’s hard to know what National Park, 928-638-7888 Ride departs at 9 a.m. and she’d think of the place today. If you want to make the most or www.nps.gov/grca 1 p.m., daily. From November 1 She didn’t leave much to of your time on the South Rim, through March 14, there’s only chance when she was con- there’s no better way than the one ride a day, at 10 a.m. ceptualizing the lodge and its Trail of Time. In about an hour, Although the mule portion surroundings. SIX this little walk in the park cov- of the ride is two hours, you’ll For example, as part of her ers more than 1.5 billion years. need to set aside three hours creative process, she built a A living exhibit, of sorts, the CANYON VISTAS for the trip — that includes 6-foot-long model of the com- Trail of Time follows the Rim travel time to and from the plex that included the main Trail from Verkamp’s Visitor MULE RIDE barn. In addition, all riders must lodge and each of the cabins, Center out to the Yavapai TIME REQUIRED: 3 HOURS be in good physical condition, as well as every tree and bush Geology Museum. It’s set up weigh less than 225 pounds that would be planted around with a series of brass mark- More than 600,000 people (fully dressed) and be at least them. She wanted to see how ers, spaced a meter apart. have explored the Canyon 4 feet 7 inches tall. There are everything would fit together. Each marker represents a from the back of a mule since a few other requirements, but No doubt her obsessive million years of time. Viewing mule rides were first offered more than anything, you can’t tendencies tested those who tubes and other interpretive in 1887. That’s a number be afraid of mules. Gee! Haw! worked with her, but the final materials help visitors connect equivalent to the population Information: Grand Canyon product speaks for itself. The the rocks in the Canyon to of Boston. No one knows how National Park Lodges, 888- exterior is exquisite, and so is their place along the geologic many mules have been up and 297-2757 or www.grandcanyon the interior. timeline. Think of it as a geol- down, but the sure-footed lodges.com “There are nice murals from ogy lesson in the world’s most pack animals — part burro, Fred Kabotie in the lounge,” impressive laboratory. part horse — are as much a says Tom Ratz, a Grand “It’s an excellent example part of the South Rim culture Canyon historian. “One of the SEVEN of informal science educa- as El Tovar and Kolb Studio. murals represents Hopi life tion aimed at improving our Although the overnight rides to at the mesas, and the other visitors’ understanding of the Phantom Ranch get most of BRIGHT ANGEL mural is of people at the Bright connection between human the attention, there is a shorter Angel area riding mules down time scales and the age of the option for visitors on a tight LODGE into the Canyon.” Earth,” says Donna Richardson, schedule. TIME REQUIRED: 1 HOUR Even more impressive is the the deputy director of inter- The Canyon Vistas Ride is fireplace in the lobby. “It’s a pretation for Grand Canyon a 4-mile, two-hour tour that There’s something special geologic fireplace built around National Park. “Park visitors follows the east rim of the about the Bright Angel Lodge. a hearth,” Ratz says. “The love to touch the rocks, study Grand Canyon, from Yaki Point It’s not as old as El Tovar, but stones at the bottom of the the waysides and try to under- out toward Shoshone Point. it evokes the past on a higher hearth are river stones, and stand this scale of time. Set in It’s a relatively new route, and level. You can feel it in the those going up the side of the the context of incredible views it’s considered more interest- lobby — it hits you the instant hearth are Inner Gorge rocks. along the edge of the Grand ing than the old trail, which cut you walk through the door. You The rocks represent all the Canyon, the exhibit provides through the woods and wound can feel it at the front desk, layers of the Grand Canyon an opportunity for visitors of all up at The Abyss. On the new too. You also feel it wander- along Bright Angel Creek, on ages and backgrounds to think route, there are six stops ing the halls, standing in front the north side, and they’re about geologic concepts and where the wranglers will talk of the magnificent fireplace, actual stones taken out of the engage with these exhibits.” about things like Zoroaster eating breakfast in the dining national park. It’s a visually But don’t let the science granite, the Havasupai people, room ... every turn is a step interesting thing to look at, scare you. The walk alone ponderosa pines and South- back in time. In fact, other than and it’s educational, too.” is a great way to experience western willow flycatchers. a few additions, the lodge isn’t Above all, the Bright Angel the Canyon. The timeline just “The new route offers a bet- much different than it was Lodge is one of the South makes it more interesting. Con- ter chance to see the Canyon,” when it opened in 1935. Rim’s iconic landmarks. Like sider this: In the course of 2.83 says Dave Uberuaga, the One of those additions was El Tovar, it’s on the National miles, the Trail of Time goes superintendent of Grand Can- a steakhouse, and another Register of Historic Places. Navajo Point | GEORGE STOCKING from Kaibab limestone, which yon National Park. “And the was a soda fountain, which, Unlike El Tovar, which looks

22 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 23 as if it belongs in Yellowstone, well, that’s even better.

the B.A. looks right at home on The rest of the route contin- NINE the edge of the Canyon. ues along the Grand Canyon Information: Grand Canyon Greenway, a paved trail that National Park Lodges, 888- runs from Grand Canyon SANTA MARIA 297-2757 or www.grandcanyon Village to the South Kaibab lodges.com Trailhead. The Sunset Tour SPRING TIME REQUIRED: 3.5 HOURS continues past the trailhead to Yaki Point, which is the only lookout on the Desert View Hermits Rest is a mecca of EIGHT Drive that doesn’t allow pri- sorts on the west end. Just vate vehicles. That’s a bonus about everything that hap- SUNSET TOUR for bicyclists. The views aren’t pens out there goes through bad, either. Mary Jane Colter’s architectural TO YAKI POINT In addition to a good look at masterpiece, which was built in TIME REQUIRED: O’Neill Butte and Clear Creek 1914 to look like Louis Boucher’s 3 HOURS ROUND-TRIP Canyon, the views from Yaki cabin — Boucher, who lived stretch from Great Thumb alone on the rim for 20 years, From shuttle buses to mules Mesa in the west to the Pali- was the “hermit” of the Hermit to hiking boots, there are sades of the Desert in the east. Creek Basin. Today, Hermits many ways to move around Throw an Arizona sunset into Rest is the most distant stop and explore the South Rim. the mix and you’ll see why this on the Hermit Road, and it’s the Bikes are another good option. tour is one of Bike and Bean’s place where hikers go when They’ve been around for as most popular. they’re looking for some quiet long as anything else, but until “Like the mule rides, the adventure. Ironically, that’s not recently, it was BYOB, with bike rides are new,” says Dave why the trail was built. the last “B” being “bike.” That Uberuaga, the superintendent The Hermit Trail was built all changed with the arrival of of Grand Canyon National to move people, pork chops Bright Angel Bicycles, which Park. “Not all of our visitors and bottles of Porto to the takes care of everything but have the time, or the inclina- Hermit Camp, a luxury site the pedaling. tion, to go below the rim. The for tourists that predated The “Bike and Bean,” as the bikes offer another option for Phantom Ranch by 10 years. In Desert View | JACK DYKINGA locals know it, offers a variety those folks, and it’s a great its heyday, the camp featured of tour options, but one of the way to see the Canyon.” a tramway from Pima Point, best is the Sunset Tour to Yaki The ride back retraces the 11 tent cabins, phones, showers Hermits Rest, the 2.5-mile also important to hike with at that offers an entirely different Lipan Point, which offers the yon is dramatic — you can see Point. Because of the nature ride out, but it won’t be the and a Fred Harvey chef, among route to Santa Maria drops least a few other people. Louis look at the Grand Canyon. broadest panorama on the the Colorado River make a big of things on the South Rim, the same. The light on the Grand other amenities. Although the steeply for 1,640 feet. There Boucher hiked alone, but that There are several developed South Rim. From the edge, you bend to the west — the panora- trail is mostly level — from one Canyon will be different — it’s camp shut down in 1930, the are switchbacks to help you was different. He was a hermit. viewpoints along the way, as can see Wotans Throne, Jupiter mas have to share a spotlight end to the other, it climbs only always changing — and there’s rim-to-river trail is still open, down, but time and erosion Information: Backcountry Infor- well as a few unmarked pull- Temple and Hance Rapids, one with Desert View Watchtower. 142 feet. If you want to burn a good chance you’ll see and segments of it make great have taken a toll on the trail, mation Center, 928-638-7875 outs, including Shoshone Point. of many adrenaline rushes The watchtower is another calories, hike rim to rim. This some wildlife. Elk and mule day hikes, including the trek to and even the downhill can be or www.nps.gov/grca Among the most popular stops along the Colorado River. Mary Colter-designed structure ride is about scenic beauty, deer, in particular, like to feed Santa Maria Spring, which can rough. The payoff, of course, are Grandview Point, which “It’s a spiritual place,” says that’s on the National Register which you’ll get immediately at around dusk, and because be done in four hours or less. is an opportunity to hike into offers panoramic views of the Helen Ranney of the Grand of Historic Places. As Virginia out of the chute. they’re accustomed to about “The hike to Santa Maria Hermit Creek Gorge, where Colorado River, and Moran Canyon Association. “I don’t L. Grattan wrote in Mary Colter: TEN From the bike shop, the 4 million passers-by every year, Spring provides cool morning you’ll find solitude, spectacular Point, which is one of the best know why, but Lipan Point Builder Upon the Red Earth, tour heads into the woods and they’re not as skittish as the shade and a refreshing, thirst- Canyon views and maybe even places in the park to get a geol- feels comforting and contorted “The Indian watchtower at Des- winds out to the rim of the ungulates in other places. quenching treat (if filtered),” some fossilized animal tracks DESERT VIEW ogy lesson. all at the same time. The ert View was not a copy, but Canyon. It doesn’t matter how The Sunset Tour to Yaki says Wayne Ranney, a geolo- — lizard-like tracks have been Old rocks are a dominant Colorado River and the inner what Colter called a ‘re-cre- many times you’ve made that Point, which is 6 miles round- gist and the acclaimed author found throughout the Canyon, DRIVE feature no matter where you’re Canyon seem so accessible ation’ of an Indian watchtower.” approach, there’s nothing like trip and takes three hours, of Carving Grand Canyon. “It’s but they were first studied in TIME REQUIRED: 4 HOURS standing at the Canyon, but at from Lipan. You can almost At a height of 70 feet, with an looking into the Canyon. Even takes off from the bike shop a lovely day hike without the detail in the Coconino sand- Moran Point, three main groups hear the river if you stand there observation deck that offers at places like Mather Point, at 5 p.m., June through August. crowds of the Kaibab or Bright stone along the Hermit Trail. Like the Hermit Road, Desert are in plain sight: the Layered long enough.” a seven-story look in every where hordes of tourists are Because it gets dark on the Angel trails. The little shelter Keep in mind, this route View Drive is one of the most Paleozoic Rocks, the Grand The next stop on the drive is direction, the tower is a worthy often jockeying for position, it’s ride back, the tour is restricted with ivy-covered posts is an is remote and rugged, so scenic routes in the world. But Canyon Supergroup and the Navajo Point, which boasts the denouement to a scenic drive something special. But arriving to riders 16 years and older. added treat.” you’ll need to adhere to the instead of going west, it goes Vishnu Basement Rocks. If the highest elevation on the South that doesn’t really need one. quietly on a comfortable cruis- Information: Bright Angel It’s not for everyone, though. 10 commandments of hiking, east, from Grand Canyon geologic names don’t impress Rim (7,460 feet). A few miles Information: Grand Canyon er-style bike with a 21-speed Bicycles, 928-638-3055 or From the trailhead, which the most important of which Village to the Desert View you, the views in front of you later, you’ll come to Desert View. National Park, 928-638-7888 twist-shift gear mechanism ... www.bikegrandcanyon.com is located a half-mile west of is to take plenty of water. It’s Watchtower. It’s a 25-mile drive will. And so will the lookout at Although the look into the Can- or www.nps.gov/grca

24 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 25 PORTFOLIO

LAND OF LESS THAN 10,000 LAKES It’s true, Minnesota has a lot of lakes — at least 10,000, probably more. We have lakes in Arizona, too. There aren’t as many as there are in Minnesota, but they’re still spectacular. Plus, we don’t have as many mosquitoes. A PORTFOLIO EDITED BY JEFF KIDA

26 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 27 PORTFOLIO

PRECEDING PANEL: Conifers and a lone aspen line the shore of Bear An American coot Canyon Lake in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests. The lake is stands in Big Lake in on the Mogollon Rim and is a popular fishing and hiking destination. the White Mountains. TOM BEAN The plump, chicken- CAMERA: Canon EOS 5D Mark II SHUTTER: 1/500 sec like birds can be found f/10 800 115 mm year-round throughout APERTURE: ISO: FOCAL LENGTH: Arizona. Hulsey Lake, in the Apache-Sitgreaves DEREK VON BRIESEN National Forests, CAMERA: Canon mirrors its surrounding EOS-1Ds Mark III foliage. The small, SHUTTER: 1/200 sec scenic lake is a popular APERTURE: f/8 pit stop for those ISO: 800 visiting nearby Escudilla FOCAL LENGTH: 560 mm Mountain. LAURENCE PARENT CAMERA: Linhof Technika IV SHUTTER: 1/4 sec APERTURE: f/32 ISO: 50 FOCAL LENGTH: 150 mm

Sunflowers sprout along the shore of a small reservoir at Buckskinner Park. The reservoir is about a mile south of Williams and is regularly stocked with trout. PAUL GILL CAMERA: Canon EOS 5D Mark III SHUTTER: 1/5 sec APERTURE: f/22 ISO: 100 FOCAL LENGTH: 27 mm

28 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 29 PORTFOLIO

30 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 31 PORTFOLIO

PRECEDING PANEL: A summer monsoon storm brews over Big Lake, considered one of the White Mountains’ best lakes for fishing. For a scenic drive to the lake from nearby Eagar, see page 52. PAUL GILL CAMERA: Canon EOS 5D Mark II SHUTTER: 1/30 sec APERTURE: f/11 ISO: 100 FOCAL LENGTH: 27 mm

Kaibab Lake, near Williams in Northern Arizona, is a perfect place to spend a few hours — or a few days — on the way north to the Grand Canyon. PAUL GILL CAMERA: Canon A peninsula with a EOS 5D Mark III solitary ponderosa SHUTTER: 1/6 sec juts into Hawley Lake APERTURE: f/22 A dragonfly perches on White Mountain ISO: 100 on a blade of grass at Apache Tribe land. FOCAL LENGTH: 24 mm the Sedona Wetlands Mild temperatures Preserve, a good place make the lake an to spot summer tanagers, ideal summertime American avocets and destination. other Arizona birds. DEREK VON BRIESEN JOHN SHERMAN CAMERA: Canon CAMERA: EOS-1Ds Mark III Nikon D7000 SHUTTER: 4 sec SHUTTER: 1/2000 sec APERTURE: f/16 APERTURE: f/5.6 ISO: 100 ISO: 640 FOCAL LENGTH: 31 mm FOCAL LENGTH: 400 mm

32 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 33 PORTFOLIO

Pine trees line the perimeter of White Horse Lake in the Kaibab National Forest. The lake’s campground features 94 single-unit sites and offers hiking, mountain- biking and wildlife-watching opportunities. PAUL GILL CAMERA: Canon EOS 5D Mark III SHUTTER: 1/4 sec APERTURE: f/22 ISO: 100 FOCAL LENGTH: 16 mm

34 JULY 2014 On June 30, 2013, a seemingly rou- tine wildfire broke out southwest of Prescott. But within 24 hours, the Yarnell Hill Fire had become any- thing but ordinary when 19 heroic hotshots lost their lives fighting the blaze. The tragedy was front- page news around AFTER THE SMOKE CLEARED the world. It wasn’t the only story, though. A team of unsung heroes was working relent- lessly behind the scenes, and a year later, it’s still fighting the effects of the fire.

BY KATHY MONTGOMERY PHOTOGRAPHS BY DAVID ZICKL

36 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 37 THE NEXT AFTER FRANCES LECHNER EVACUATED, 80 EMAILS volunteers, animals, cleanup, counseling, fund- PRECEDING PANEL: Maria a day flooded her inbox. On July 1, an email from raising and thank-yous. and Walter Adams fled INSTANT, THE the Yavapai County Community Foundation got her Four days later, 12 people assembled north of their rented home dur- ing the Yarnell Hill Fire. attention. The organization was matching donations Peeples Valley at the home of Kathleen Stowe, When they returned, all FIRE DROPPED up to $25,000 for fire victims. The media release said a founding member of Weaver Mountains Care that remained was the stone fireplace. OVER THEM LIKE disbursement would be overseen by a committee of Resources, recently organized to fill a gap in social “expert staff and community volunteers.” services. Five others participated by phone. By the OPPOSITE PAGE: Debi The next day, the matching amount rose to end of the meeting, the group had elected Lechner, and Steve Keehner A GIGANTIC HAND. didn’t have homeown- $125,000. Lechner sent out an email to other people Jones, Shephard and Stowe, along with chamber-of- ers insurance, but active in the community, suggesting they meet to commerce president Chuck Tidey, to the steering volunteers helped the IT WAS PITCH elect such a committee. Paul Jones, a pastor at Yar- committee of a group that didn’t yet have a name. Keehners rebuild their burned house. nell Community Presbyterian Church, got the email As steering-committee chairman, Tidey made BLACK AND LOUD, and arranged a tax-exempt bank account to accept contact with Yavapai County emergency-manage- BELOW: Veteran volun- teer firefighter Bob funds through his church. Yarnell Community Cen- ment coordinator Denny Foulk at a meeting for Brandon and his crew AS IF THEY ter executive director Scott Shephard responded evacuees in Wickenburg. It took Foulk by surprise. narrowly escaped the with a proposed organization consisting of a steer- It was Foulk’s job to seek out community leaders to fast-moving blaze. Afterward, Brandon WERE STANDING ing committee with subcommittees to handle organize a recovery committee. It was the first time joined the rebuilding BEHIND A JET. donations of money, food and clothing, as well as a committee had come looking for him. effort. AND EVERYTHING WAS ON FIRE.

ROM HAPPY WAY, STEVE AND DEBI KEEHNER Ilah was to connect with them. He didn’t know watched their beloved oaks until it was too it until later, but he was part of a larger team that dark and smoky to see. included the Granite Mountain Hotshots. They had spent the day, June 30, driv- Brandon listened to the chain saws and watched ing around, watching the fire burning on the slurry bomber fly over at regular intervals. About Yarnell Hill. midafternoon, the dozer came rambling through the As they watched, smoke built up and woods, Jurassic Park-like, knocking down trees. Then, seemed to burst into flames and take off without explanation, it did a 180 and left without toward Peeples Valley. They had checked on finishing the job. friends there who were evacuating, and they Shortly afterward, Brandon noticed the slurry headed home about 3 p.m. bomber had changed course. His lookout came By then, “you could see [the fire], feel down to say he’d just heard a weather report. The it,” Debi recalls. “It was getting hard to breathe. We winds were changing, but he didn’t understand started loading our dogs, stuff out of the safe, photo what that meant. Falbums, and just all of a sudden it was there, right at “We looked up behind Boulder Mountain, and the the edge of the hill.” fire was standing straight up, about a hundred feet The Keehners fled in two vehicles, crossing State high,” Brandon recalls. “We were thinking, ‘That’s Route 89 and driving up Happy Way to a good van- not right.’ Because the fire was way north of us.” tage point. They couldn’t see the neighborhood of The sky darkened. Brandon was about to press the Glen Ilah, but they saw the glow and heard propane siren that was the crew’s signal to abandon when tanks exploding. They scanned Yarnell until they the incident commander for the area pulled up and spotted their oaks, relieved to see green. told him to move the trucks. Brandon protested that he needed to gather his crew, but the commander BOB BRANDON COULDN’T SEE THE HOOD OF HIS TANKER. insisted, “You have to do it now.” The veteran volunteer firefighter had attended a The next instant, the fire dropped over them like briefing that morning at the command post set up a gigantic hand. It was pitch black and loud, as if at Model Creek School in Peeples Valley. Brandon they were standing behind a jet. And everything helped start the Peeples Valley Fire Department in was on fire. the early ’90s and served as its first chief. He had Brandon picked his way through the darkness, stepped down from active involvement, but now he finally connecting with his crew, and they got out. wanted to help. It wasn’t until he learned that 19 Granite Mountain His crew was charged with creating a firebreak Hotshots had died that he realized how differently it west of Shrine Road. A bulldozer coming from Glen could have ended.

38 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 39 Cross, the Salvation Army, Southern Baptist Disaster ing with other homes for the uninsured. Using his Relief. The Keehners politely declined help. But a employer’s backhoe, Steve dug footers. He helped crew leader from Samaritan’s Purse persisted until pour concrete and did whatever else was needed. they relented. “That was nice,” Debi says. “To feel we were giving “This one gal came up and thanked me for letting back and not just taking, taking, taking.” her help,” Debi recalls. Her brother was Jesse Steed, They spent Christmas Day working on their own one of the 19 hotshots who died. His aunt was there, septic system, and they moved in on January 3. Debi too. They came because it was what Jesse would picked out donated furniture she loved from the have wanted, she told Debi. He’d be there himself, if United Way fire-relief warehouse in Prescott with he could. the help of warehouse manager Crystal Ogden, who “I lost it,” Debi says. “The strength these people set aside pieces she thought would go well with had to come in and do what they did gave me what they had already picked out. strength.” WALTER ADAMS LOVED HIS NEW HOUSE, WHICH HE BY AUGUST, THE FIRST RESPONDERS HAD MOVED OUT OF calls “totally, uniquely Yarnell,” and set about mak- the community center, and the remaining agencies ing steel sculptures for the yard. had relocated to the Presbyterian church. With the Inside, he and Maria were surprised to find center set to reopen and the recovery effort shifting things they had lost. from disaster relief to rebuilding, Shephard stepped “Even a washcloth that was my husband’s favorite: down from the steering committee. striped lavender, green, blue,” Maria says. “What do The remaining members invited Brandon to we find in the bathroom? It was just amazing.” replace him and serve as reconstruction director It took Maria a long time to feel at home in the to oversee rebuilding for uninsured primary home- house. She still sifts through the rubble and ashes of BRANDON HAD owners, using donated funds and volunteer labor. her former home. Brandon had misgivings about working with the “A couple of things miraculously survived,” she MISGIVINGS uninsured. says: porcelain knickknacks and a vase from the Then he met Foulk, who talked about the respon- Hungarian town of Kiskorös. ABOUT WORKING sibilities of a disaster-relief team. In a disaster, Foulk “That’s where I was born,” Maria says. “We came said, you first help the people who have nothing. over during the revolution in ’56. We were refugees. Brandon knew he had something to offer beyond When I went to visit Hungary, I brought that [vase] WITH THE experience in construction. Years earlier, he had lost home with me. A lot of my Hungarian things are his home to a fire on Christmas Day. gone except for that one little thing. It was crazy.” UNINSURED. “I prayed about it,” Brandon says. “I made the dedication to myself and to God that I would do it.” IN MARCH, THE LAST OF NINE HOMES FOR UNINSURED THEN HE MET primary homeowners passed its final inspection, WORKING EVERY DAY FROM EARLY MORNING UNTIL IT completing phase one of the recovery. The steering FOULK, WHO was too dark to see, the Keehners kept too busy to committee also transitioned, with Brandon stepping Two days after the fire WALTER AND MARIA ADAMS LEFT HOME WITH HOT ASHES nothing but food. On top of that, somebody paid our attend the community meetings. Through neighbors, down to make way for someone with skills useful in tore through Yarnell, and smoke blowing over them. They took whatever rent for a year.” TALKED ABOUT they heard about the Yarnell Hill Recovery Group. Frances Lechner took the next phases. the lead in forming a they could pack and four dogs, two of them rescues. Word was they would be rebuilding homes, starting The Keehners began decorating their new home, steering committee to When they returned, nothing but the stone fireplace BY THE TIME THE EVACUATION ORDER WAS LIFTED ON THE RESPONSI- with the uninsured. including a banner that reads, “In loving memory handle donations and organize volunteers. remained of their home. July 8, the Keehners knew their home was gone. That Yeah, right, Debi thought. Somebody’s going to build me of our heroes,” with the Granite Mountain Hotshots Maria had lived in the house for 18 years, Walter didn’t soften the blow when they saw the blackened BILITIES OF A a house? Why? emblem surrounded by the names of the 19 fallen for 10. They were renters with no renters insurance, oaks and all their possessions reduced to nothing There were meetings that were mostly a blur and firefighters. They vow never to forget them. and the owner chose not to rebuild. but rubble and ash. DISASTER- house plans designed by building-committee chair- It’s still hard sometimes, Debi says. “But it’s a new Through the newly formed Yarnell Hill Recovery Steve had lived in the house since he was 12 or 13. man Marco Cecala, a neighbor who lived around life, a new everything. You have to have a new frame Group’s housing office, Stowe arranged for a donated When they had married 40 years earlier, Steve and RELIEF TEAM. the corner. Then, one day, trucks pulled up haul- of mind.” camper until the Adamses could find a new home. Debi had bought it from his parents. Their daughter ing trailers that read, “Apostolic Christian World If she could turn back the clock and undo the Walter got some clothes from the group’s donation had slept in the bedroom Steve had slept in as a child. IN A DISASTER, Relief.” destruction of 19 lives, she’d do it in a heartbeat. center. They picked up weekly groceries, even food “The guy who built it never should have been “They wanted to know where they could park “But it’s not in the cards, and for whatever reason, for their dogs, at its food bank. allowed to have a hammer,” Steve liked to say. They FOULK SAID, YOU the trailers,” Steve recalls. “They were here to build this is where I’m supposed to be,” she says. “Maybe Then Stowe found the couple a home. The owner could never get insurance. Now, they didn’t know houses.” it was the good Lord’s way of saying there are a lot had been a seasonal resident for nearly 30 years. what they would do. Steve had a good job. But with- FIRST HELP THE Once again, the Keehners rolled up their sleeves, of good things out there if I open my eyes and heart “We came over and met [the owner],” Walter out insurance, it wasn’t enough to rebuild. becoming laborers on their own home and help- and let people in.” recalls. “We knew her for an hour. She told us rent’s So they did the only thing they could: They set to PEOPLE WHO $300 a month. It will never raise, and we have the work. option to buy. Everything was here. We needed Volunteers descended in waves: the American Red HAVE NOTHING. To donate to fire-recovery efforts or learn more about the Yarnell Hill Recovery Group, visit www.yarnellhillrecoverygroup.org.

40 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 41 N THE FULLNESS of August, armadas of clouds sally across the sky. Like ghostly warships, RIDING they spew thunder and light- ning. Rain pounds the parched prairie and runs in rivulets into arroyos, then into stock tanks where cattle and prong- horns water. When the daily thunder- storms retreat, a stream of cool air HIGHRanching in Northern Arizona has never been easy weaves across the high plains. Cattle lift — not for cattle, not for cowboys. Although it’s a I their nostrils, scent the air and go back to grazing. Birds feel a sudden ancient more efficient line of work than it was 60 years ago, impulse. The hearts of old horses living out their years in stiff-legged retirement there are some, including our writer, who long for beat faster. A ranch wife hanging out the a time when all the work was done on horseback. wash feels a cold hand brush her face and thinks about stocking her pantry for Especially when late summer rolls around. winter. On the range, a man on horseback BY JO BAEZA checks his cattle. The grass is beginning to head out. The wayward breeze that spoke to the cattle, the horses and the woman speaks to the man. He begins to calculate how many pounds his steer yearlings can gain before heavy frost sets in. The living isn’t easy in Northern Ari- zona — not for cattle, not for ranchers. Range cows have to travel some for food and water. Depending on range condi- tions, the country will support eight to 12 mother cows per square mile. A work- ing ranch is 100 sections or thereabouts. The cow pony breaks into a fast walk as the rancher turns toward home. He thinks he’ll go into town and call a buyer. Maybe take his wife out to din- ner. There’s a lot of work ahead for both of them. Fall roundup is the culmination of a year’s work on a ranch. Sixty years ago on a Northern Ari- zona ranch, fall roundup began with a cool breeze in August. Ranching is a more efficient business nowadays, but I

Cowboy Van Williams moves cattle through an Arizona pasture. | JEFF KIDA

42 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 43 Ranch hands brand a calf near the flanks, heading off all the cattle that Redlands Camp on the Babbitt try to break out. Bess and Annie help Ranch in Northern Arizona. them work the flanks. I ride the drags, | PETER SCHWEPKER the dustiest, most aggravating position on a drive. In an hour or so, the herd called Nightie, nickers to the young settles down and strings out. horses in the corral: The circles were lon- When the cattle are penned, I go to ger and the cattle were wilder in our day! We the house and warm up some dinner. throw them some hay, and they mill After dinner, Sam, Samuel and I hold around, then go back out to pasture. the herd while the boss cuts out what We each have four horses in our he wants to sell. The cattle are tired and string. A wrangling horse is kept up cranky. So are we. Someone is likely to each night. We’ll be making circles get yelled at before the day is over. every day from now on, starting with Before we call it a day, the horses are the Woodruff pasture in the east and fed and turned out to roll. We eat a bite working our way back to the home and go to bed. We have to sleep fast, as ranch. There we’ll put the cattle we daylight holds another circle. It will be a want to sell in a holding pasture and repeat of the first day, over new country. turn the others back out. After that, We ride when our lips crack from the we’ll work the west side of the ranch. dust and heat, when our noses and ears are numb with cold, when our boots ctober. My day begins with slosh with water and it rains down our the sound of hooves out- necks. We ride from sunup to dark. We side my bedroom window count every day a blessing and love our as Sam drives the remuda own misery. Othrough the gate and into the corral. By the end of October we throw fash- My partner brings me coffee in bed to ion to the wind. We’re wearing long rev up my engine. I make biscuits, fry underwear, flannel shirts and warm thick slices of bacon and baste the eggs jackets. Sam wears a plaid cap with in bacon grease. The men hang morrals earflaps. The breeze that whispered made from gunnysacks on the horses. across the high plains in August is a We eat while the horses are eating their blast of north wind coming down off grain. I clean up the kitchen while the snow in the Rockies. Wobbly formations men catch and saddle the horses. of geese fly over us. Mornings are nippy. The saddle Friends from town come to help us horses snort and crow-hop around the round up the holding pasture and cut corral a little when they feel our weight. the cattle one more time. The yearlings feel blessed to have known a time when repairing the bottom wires that prong- milk, pinto beans, salted pork, potatoes, work, we turn it out to run free. Our The windmill and corrals take shape in and big calves are held in dry corrals so all the work was on horseback and the horns have pulled up, fixing water gaps dried apples, Grandma’s molasses and retired cow horses spend their last the growing light. We jog four abreast to we won’t have to take a “shrink” on the sun was our clock. that have washed out in flash floods, Day’s Work tobacco, he’s happy. The days just being horses. If they come in, the top of the ridge above the ranch. The price. The mother cows bawl to their tightening gates so they’ll hold when cracks around his mouth are stained we feed them, but they prefer to fend boss lights a smoke and tells us what calves all night. There’s little sleeping eptember. A cow buyer we’re working cattle. with tobacco juice. He doesn’t need for themselves. The working life of our our drives will be. We listen, because he this night. At the break of dawn, stock from Texas drives up to Our year-round cowboys are Sam glasses, but he wears store-bought teeth. horses is 12 to 14 years. A horse with stiff won’t repeat it. He always takes the out- trucks drive up to the loading chute. I the ranch in a Cadillac. My Yellowhair at headquarters and E.P. He keeps two gray saddle horses, Old joints and slow reflexes is a dangerous side circle, the longest, hardest one. put on a big pot of coffee for the buy- husband takes him on a VIP “Ep” Casner, who stays at the west Smoky and Little Smoky, at the camp. horse on a cattle drive. We trust our We spread out over the country, close ers, livestock inspector, truckers and S tour in our Jeep Wagoneer. The buyer camp. Sam sees more with one eye His main jobs are keeping the windmill horses. They won’t step on a rattlesnake enough to catch sight of each other now cowboys. The cattle are pushed through sees a uniform bunch of Hereford calves than most cowboys do with two. Sam’s pumping and checking on the cattle that or into a badger hole. They’re tough, and then. Our horses will tell us where the alleys, and the weighing begins. By and yearlings that will gain on wheat boy Samuel hires on for roundup. That come in to water. “Eppie” has a family range-bred ponies who know what to our partners are if we watch their ears. midmorning, the cattle are on their way over the winter in Kansas, Nebraska makes five, counting me. I’m a long back in Texas, but they stay in Texas. watch for. I ride alongside a wash while the men to Kansas. or the Texas Panhandle. He agrees to way from being a cowboy, but I’m a fair Sam and Samuel drive the remuda in The old turned-out horses may be throw little bunches of cattle down to Slowly, the mother cows turn away take the old bulls and cows, along with hand with a horse. Our partners are a from the horse pasture to be shod. We running in the farthest corner of the me. By noon I have about 100 head of from the corrals and walk back to their the others. They close the deal with a couple of Australian shepherds, Bess and have 18 head and need all of them. The ranch, but they always know when cows, calves and yearlings. We meet at a home ranges. They will give birth to handshake, and a delivery date is set. Annie. They would rather work than eat. saddle horses know what’s in store for the work begins. A half-dozen gimpy dirt tank when the sun is high. more calves in the spring. The shoes are We’re gambling it won’t storm before Ep lives in a one-room cabin made them. They grunt and groan and lean old veterans line up at the corral gate, It looks like we’ve made a clean drive. jerked off the saddle horses. They can November 1. of railroad ties with his dog, Brownie, on the horseshoer, but they don’t throw reporting for duty. They are dim-eyed, We let the cattle water out, then push rest and blow, chase rainbows and play. Old-time cowboys call fall roundup his tomcat, Snip, and a few chickens. fits. The truth is, our cow ponies take as sway-backed, yellow-toothed and sand- them down the trail to the headquar- We’ll ride all winter, checking on cattle, “the work.” It begins before the buyer’s He cooks on a wood stove and sleeps much pride in their work as we do. footed, with tails dragging the ground ters ranch. The boss rides point to slow fences and water. The big work is over dust settles. The cowboys ride fence, on an Army cot. If he has coffee, canned When a horse gets too old for the and matted manes. The oldest, a black down the leaders. Sam and Samuel take for another year.

44 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 45 THIS ONE’S FOR HARVEY LEE DEXTER Among the many notable explorers of the Grand Canyon, Harvey Butchart (pictured) is the most prolific. Over the course of several decades, he hiked more than 12,000 miles, climbed 83 inner- Canyon summits and

navigated more than 100 HE FIT IS PERFECT. Harvey Butchart’s namesake temple in Grand Canyon rim-to-river routes. In National Park reflects his style with an exactitude that would have pleased spite of those numbers, the late explorer and mathematician (1907-2002). Its distinctive summit is eas- ily seen but not easily reached. No guidebooks tell you how to get there. The there weren’t any plaques only nearby trail lies several miles away — a useless distance in this terrain, or memorials to mark his unless you’re a raven. accomplishments. That TSurrounded by the Grand Canyon, Butchart Butte makes a dashing tribute to a man who was, by all accounts, not quite as dashing as his own accomplishments. A reserved math is, until 2008, when a professor, Butchart moved from Illinois to Flagstaff in 1945 to take a job at Northern Arizona 7,611-foot peak near Point University, then called Arizona State College. For more than 30 years, Butchart taught calcu- Imperial was officially lus and linear algebra while raising a daughter and a son with his wife, Roma. However, it was during weekends and summer breaks that Butchart compiled the num- designated Butchart Butte. bers that brought him notoriety. He spent nearly three years’ worth of days below the rim, Lightning from a monsoon Recently, our writer went during which he hiked more than 12,000 miles, climbed 83 inner-Canyon summits (28 of storm frames the Grand which were first ascents, the most by anyone), navigated more than 100 rim-to-river routes Canyon’s Butchart Butte, as out and climbed it. seen from Cape Final on the and wrote the national park’s first backcountry guidebook, titled Grand Canyon Treks. North Rim. The butte was Text and Photographs Butchart’s quest to become the Canyon’s most prolific explorer came at a price. He named in 2008 for prolific trekked into the then-unknown backcountry with the benefit of neither guidebooks nor Canyon climber Harvey by Elias Butler Butchart. modern, lightweight gear. His excursions sometimes led to broken heels, broken ribs and other misfortunes. In 1955, Butchart lost a best friend to drowning during an attempt to ride OPPOSITE PAGE: Tom Myers approaches Siegfried Pyre on the hike to Butchart Butte (not shown).

46 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 47 Whereas most people consider a down-and-out Canyon hike a major accomplishment, Butchart regarded the discovery of his own routes to the river as such. The trails? They were for the mules.

Pete Borremans the flooding Colorado River on air mat- Butchart faced the same problem here when he searched for soft red shale leading to Butchart Butte. To our left, the wilder- rappels down a tresses. He also nearly lost his marriage by a purported route used by a miner named Harry McDonald. ness of Kwagunt Canyon fell away, and off to our right, Lava sandstone chute below Atoko Point spending so much time hiking. Somewhere along this stretch of rim in 1891, McDonald had Canyon carved its own sudden drop. We were walking a geo- on the way to Despite the setbacks, he couldn’t stay descended to the Colorado along a route no one had been able logic high wire. Butchart Butte. away. His light frame and speedy gait to relocate. Butchart investigated over several trips. He labored Yet this was easy walking. Other than an ancient stone knife made him perfectly suited for canyon- in and out of dark gullies that led nowhere until the Canyon blade we stepped past, isolation cloaked the landscape here: eering. People who accompanied him gave up its secret: a hiking route that bypassed the cliff. no footsteps in sight, nothing but the warm, resinous smell of expressed awe at his physical endurance, and younger men We could have followed in Butchart’s footsteps, but Ohl- piñon pines and the skeletons of their ancestors bleaching in would sometimes vomit trying to keep up. Whereas most peo- man and Borremans decided on a new route. They wanted to the sun. ple consider a down-and-out Canyon hike a major accomplish- rappel a nearby chute that would drop us through the vertical It was afternoon by the time we circled Butchart Butte and ment, Butchart regarded the discovery of his own routes to the Coconino sandstone layer and onto the relatively flat Hermit found its weakness, a line of broken rock that twisted 500 feet river as such. The trails? They were for the mules. shale, where we could hike the rest of the way to Butchart up to the summit. We scrambled up staircases of broken sand- In 2007, Dr. Tom Myers and I published Butchart’s biogra- Butte. Although more gear-intensive than hiking, the rappels stone until we were stopped by an overhanging boulder. With phy, Grand Obsession: Harvey Butchart and the Exploration of Grand would save bushwhacking through man-eating manzanita a rope tied to my waist, trusting the rock to hold, I pulled up Canyon. During the research, a few of Butchart’s hiking buddies thickets along Butchart’s route. onto the boulder and squeezed past a narrow opening. Myers suggested naming a natural feature in the Canyon for him. To this end, Borremans and Ohlman had arrived the day followed, and we clambered up an ensuing ravine of loose rock. Nothing came of it until 2007, when geologist and climber Jim before and fixed a pair of ropes in the chute while descending Once above the ravine, the wind whipped at us as we Haggart submitted a proposal for Butchart Butte to the U.S. to climb a nearby unnamed summit. When we awoke before squinted, seeking the summit. We soon located the only pos- Board on Geographic Names. dawn, we were free to go light and fast. Wrapped in fleece sibility. A crack of sorts led straight up. Naming of inner-Canyon summits is rare these days. Many against the chill, we hurriedly descended a steep scree slope I grabbed ahold and inched upward, my face pressed close peaks were named in the early 1900s, when the U.S. govern- that funneled us toward the rappels. to the rock, allowing myself an occasional glance down to ment surveyed the region and created the park’s first topo- Nothing indicated that anyone had passed here before. Signs gauge progress. Hundreds of feet of space beckoned below. My graphic maps. Butchart Butte is only the second summit to be of animals were nonexistent. As the route dropped over the grip tightened. named in the last 37 years (in 1997, Berry Butte was named for cliff, one by one we clipped into the ropes. I leaned back and Testing each hold for loose rock, I continued until at last the entrepreneur Pete Berry). cascaded past tiny ferns and moss sprouting from the gray summit, a platform of broken and weathered rock, appeared. I Despite its prominent 7,611-foot peak and its visibility from sandstone before coming to rest on a patch of remnant snow. tied my rope to a boulder and cast it over the side, and Myers Point Imperial on the North Rim and from several South Rim We picked up Butchart’s route. Following animal trails along soon joined me. Together we scrambled the last few feet up to viewpoints, Butchart Butte remained anonymous until Hag- the base of the Coconino sandstone, we dodged manzanitas the summit and stood in wonder at the view of the North Rim, gart’s proposal. The name became official in 2008 in Arizona and small boulders as the hulking form of Siegfried Pyre, the Marble Canyon and the Colorado River. and in 2009 at the federal level. largest butte in the vicinity, came into view. “Siegfried would Myers unpacked a small metal ammo can containing a reg- Myers and I decided to climb the newest of the Grand Can- rank high among the most satisfying summits I have reached,” ister for future climbers to sign. We included an article about yon’s 150-odd named summits. We contacted Haggart, who Butchart wrote in 1971. “The area is outstanding for buttes and Butchart and signed our own brief notes. Before turning back gave us a rough set of directions. Before we could set a date deep canyons.” Had he realized that the temple to the east to retrace our steps, we lingered a few more minutes to gaze for the climb, we were invited to join a pair of Canyon explor- would one day be named for him, Butchart might have climbed from this new perspective — an homage to the Canyon’s most ers, Pete Borremans and Jim Ohlman, for their own attempt at it. Yet he never did: Climbers only count the named summits in dedicated explorer. Butchart Butte. the Grand Canyon as being worthy On a May afternoon, warm but with pockets of cold linger- of the record book. ing in the shadows, the four of us convened at a nondescript Ohlman hiked many miles with IF YOU GO pullout along the road to Cape Royal. We entered the forest to Butchart and is one of the very few Point Imperial, on the North Rim the east with three nights’ provisions, ropes and climbing har- who have covered as much ground of the Grand Canyon, offers an nesses stuffed into backpacks. The plan was to set up a base as his old professor. Ohlman has excellent view of Butchart Butte. camp on the rim, from which we could descend into the Can- also stood atop nearly all the Can- From the Grand Canyon Lodge yon for the climb. yon’s summits, but he wouldn’t be on the North Rim, go north on A winding mile through spruce and firs brought us to the joining us for the rest of the climb. the park road for 2.8 miles to the rim near Atoko Point and our first glimpse of Butchart Butte, a He caught a cold that had him feel- turnoff for Cape Final. Turn right white cap set against a backdrop of the distant Little Colorado ing off. Borremans decided to turn and continue 5.3 miles to where River Gorge. From our altitude, above 8,500 feet, the butte back as well, saying the previous the road splits. Veer left at the seamlessly melded into the abyss and gave only a hint of its day’s climb had sapped his energy. fork and continue 3 miles to Point summit. Such is the paradox of climbing in the Canyon: You Knowing we’d have to ascend Imperial. The route is closed dur- look down at a summit before ascending it. the rappels at the end of the day, ing the winter. For more informa- But I couldn’t see a way down, other than diving over Myers and I hurried past Siegfried tion, call Grand Canyon National the abrupt cliff that dropped hundreds of feet. In the 1950s, Pyre and onto a slender ridge of Park at 928-638-7888 or visit www.nps.gov/grca.

www.arizonahighways.com 49 Andy Mayberry with his Holstein oxen, Fluffy (left) and Cuddles.

can Gothic than Green Acres. A gentleman farmer, he’s a sixth-generation Arizonan — a descendant of St. David’s original settlers — the patriarch of a family of seven and a well-established family practice physician in neighboring Ben- son. When he speaks to humans, it’s in the measured, genteel tone of someone Pulling who’s earned letters after his name. When he speaks to oxen, it’s with the authority of a drill sergeant barking at his troops. The animals take easily to the bow yoke, and when Mayberry demonstrates how he moves more than 4,000 pounds of beef, it’s with an impressive efficiency. Their “Up,” he says. “Ha. Ha. Up. Whoa.” The commands are simple, accompa- nied by the flick of a switch, and very, very effective. The animals go, turn and stop without pause or even a hint of aggravation. Now that his daughter is away at col- WeightANDY MAYBERRY IS A GENTLEMAN lege, Mayberry is solely responsible for FARMER, A SIXTH-GENERATION the care of Cuddles and Fluffy, and they ARIZONAN AND A WELL- know it. “The animals are OK with the hierar- ESTABLISHED FAMILY PRACTICE chy,” Mayberry says. “They know that PHYSICIAN IN BENSON. BUT I’m in charge, and they don’t have the IT’S HIS 2,200-POUND OXEN THAT attitude or the will that horses have, so GARNER THE MOST ATTENTION — that actually makes them easier to train. I’ve trained dogs, horses and these two. AND DO MOST OF THE WORK. The oxen are the easiest.” Given that the oxen wear a 75-pound By Kelly Vaughn Kramer yoke made of birch and work a plow Photograph by John Burcham that enables them to pull 10 to 15 per- cent of their body weight for 10 hours a day, their strength is apparent. They’re so strong, in fact, they can pull twice their weight for 6 feet and take a break, then do it again. Perhaps that’s why, hen a 2,200-pound Holstein ox stands up, you “My dad was a cowboy, and he always wanted me to cow- Together, they decided on oxen. worldwide, oxen are used in farming four times as frequently pay attention. Not for fear of being squashed, but boy,” Mayberry says. “I became a doctor instead, but I was “I thought, If I can train a bull to ride with a saddle, we can teach as horses, according to Mayberry. because of the heft of it all — the way the muscles always intrigued by horse-drawn vehicles — to the point that I oxen how to plow a field,” he says. For Mayberry and his Stonehaven Farm, though, it’s enough tense and the legs stabilize and the great, big block took a girlfriend to the prom with a horse and buggy.” that the animals help plow the soil for crops of wheat and squash. of a head turns to shake away dust. When Mayberry was 8 or 9 years old, his father charged him Enough, too, that they’re a main attraction in Benson’s Fourth When a 2,200-pound Holstein ox named Cuddles with the care of a bull calf named Calvin. He bottle-fed the t’s unseasonably warm in St. David on a late-February of July and Tucson’s rodeo parades. Enough that they’ve given stands up, you really pay attention. Because an ox named Cud- bull — which he remembers as a “big puppy” — and when the day when Mayberry opens the gate that leads to Cuddles’ him a bit of mental release from the pressures of his day job. Wdles is a bit of an attention-grabber. animal grew to 1,400 pounds, Mayberry saddled it, put a ring pen. The ox lives there with his counterpart, Fluffy, and “This is my downtime,” he says. “Training the oxen allows Andy Mayberry is used to the movement of oxen. When he in its nose and rode it in parades in Tucson, Bisbee and Benson. two Norwegian Fjord horses that look as though they me to use a different part of my brain. Cutting through the soil, purchased two Holstein calves for his daughter seven years ago, By the time Mayberry sold it four years later, the bull weighed belong in Frozen. As Cuddles stands, Fluffy turns his using the oxen to plow, it’s very personal. I come home and he knew what they’d ultimately become — gentle, working, 1,800 pounds. head, completely uninterested in interaction with May- smell the dirt, and everything in the world is good.” Volkswagen-sized members of the family. But he couldn’t fore- Decades later, the majority of his children had chosen sports berry or his visitors. Indeed, Mayberry confirms, Cuddles is see just how much he’d come to appreciate their sweet nature, hobbies, but when Mayberry’s then-15-year-old daughter Ithe more social of the bovines. For more information about Andy Mayberry’s Stonehaven Farm, the way they take to the yoke or their gentle, steady plodding. Mariah didn’t, he encouraged her to look into raising livestock. At 6-foot-3, Mayberry is sinewy but strong, far more Ameri- visit www.facebook.com/stonehavenaz.

50 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 51 scenic drive

Eagar to Although you will see a few signs of the Wallow Fire along this 21-mile back road, you’ll also see swaths of grasslands, crystal-clear water and many reminders that Big Lake the White Mountains are still spectacular. BY NOAH AUSTIN

n Arizona, there’s no better reminder navigate FR 285 in good weather. gain elevation, and 10 miles in, the for- of the importance of proper campfire The road quickly climbs to an eleva- est gives way to the first of several large I management than the remnants of the tion of about 9,000 feet, so keep in mind meadows. The uninterrupted horizon Wallow Fire. The blaze started when an that pockets of snow and ice may be to the southwest offers a good view of abandoned campfire spread to nearby present, even in summer. And it nar- Mount Baldy. Baldy, one of the highest trees, and it ultimately burned nearly rows to one lane in places, so watch for peaks in Arizona — its summit reaches 540,000 acres and became the largest oncoming traffic and remember that 11,400 feet — is sacred to the Western recorded wildfire in the state’s history. if you come face to face with another Apache people, and its Apache name Although you will see a few signs of motorist, the car traveling uphill has the translates to “White Mountain,” which Wallow’s devastation along this 21-mile, right of way. is easily understood by anyone who has back-road route to Big Lake, you’ll also You’ll soon enter the Apache-Sitgreaves seen it in the middle of winter. see swaths of grasslands, crystal-clear National Forests, where ponderosa A fairly constant breeze wafts over the water and myriad reminders that the pines, smaller evergreens and spindly, meadows, so pull off the road, silence White Mountains are still spectacular. dance-in-the-wind aspens dominate the the sedan and enjoy the mountain air. If The drive begins at the only traffic sig- roadside as you wind your way into the you’re lucky, you might see an animal — nal in Eagar, a small town that was first forest. This is ungulate country, so take ungulate, turkey or otherwise — taking a

settled in 1871. As you head south, you’ll your time around the many blind corners GILL PAUL find yourself on Forest Road 285. The — you never know when an elk might BELOW: Aspens line the shore of Big Lake, the tranquil conclusion to a back-road drive from Eagar. road is dirt, but it’s well maintained. If saunter across the road. OPPOSITE PAGE: A rainbow forms over a wetland drink at one of the many ponds near the you’re traveling in a sedan, you’ll easily Aspens become more abundant as you at the lake. roadside. The last few miles of FR 285 plunge back into heavy forest, and although you’ll see a few areas where Wallow left its mark, a right turn onto Forest Road 249 takes you about 2 miles to Big Lake, one of the best lakes for fishing in Arizona and a great location for summer camping. With a surface area of 450 acres, the lake is populated by rainbow, brook and cutthroat trout, which are stocked regularly by the Arizona Game and Fish Department. The lake’s five camp- grounds are popular among families, but they don’t detract from the scenic beauty for which the lake is best known. Even if you’re just passing through, take the short walk down to the water’s edge and listen to the waves. The

greenery around Big Lake is a soothing KEVIN KIBSEY reminder of Mother Nature’s ability to heal, and it’s a fitting conclusion to a tour guide spectacular drive. Note: Mileages are approximate. VEHICLE REQUIREMENTS: None LENGTH: 21 miles one way WARNING: Back-road travel can be hazardous, so be DIRECTIONS: From Show Low, go east on State Route aware of weather and road conditions. Carry plenty of 260 for 54 miles to Main Street in Eagar. Turn right onto ADDITIONAL READING: water. Don’t travel alone, and let someone know where Main Street and continue 1 mile to Forest Road 285 For more scenic drives, pick up a you are going and when you plan to return. copy of our book The Back Roads. (Water Canyon Road). Turn left onto FR 285 and continue Now in its fifth edition, the book 18 miles to Forest Road 249. Turn right onto FR 249 and INFORMATION: Springerville Ranger District, 928-333- features 40 of the state’s most continue 2 miles to Big Lake Recreation Area, where 4301 or www.fs.usda.gov/asnf scenic drives. To order a copy, visit FR 249 becomes State Route 273. To return to SR 260, Travelers in Arizona can visit www.az511.gov or dial www.shoparizonahighways.com/ either retrace your route or continue north on SR 273 to 511 to get infor­ma­tion on road closures, construc­tion, books. NICK BEREZENKO State Route 261, which intersects SR 260 near Eagar. delays, weather and more.

52 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 53 hike of the month

ponderosa pines and even some aspens. thick alpine forest. The saddle affords Mountains to the east and Oak Creek It’s not the most difficult hike in Arizona, but at 12,633 feet above Wildlife is plentiful, too. Look for West- an opportunity to see what you’ve been Canyon to the south. And overhead, you Humphreys ern bluebirds, chickadees, white-throated missing. Of course, the views from the might see some of those white-throated sea level, it is the highest, and for peak-baggers, that’s what swifts, wild turkeys, porcupines, moun- top are even better. swifts, which feed on the insects that’ll Peak matters most. BY ROBERT STIEVE | PHOTOGRAPH BY DAWN KISH tain lions, bobcats, elk, black bears and Before you get there, though, you’ll be swarming around your face. Your big- deer. The most common animal, however, notice that the tree line and oxygen level gest concern, however, won’t be the bugs, is the human being. This is a popular have thinned. The saddle marks the but the weather. umphreys Peak is the king of the is more challenging. And so are others. Peak, along with three others — Agas- trail, but because of the lack of oxygen, beginning of Arizona’s sole tundra region. Around the peaks, thunderstorms and hills in Arizona. It’s the pinnacle. Still, this one ranks right up there. siz (12,365 feet), Fremont (11,969 feet) hikers tend to spread out evenly. Up there, only bristlecone pines survive, their deadly lightning strikes can roll H The highest point in the state. If The trail begins at the west end of and Doyle (11,460 feet) — comprise the From the edge of the forest, the and even those eventually disappear. Like in almost without warning. Don’t press you can make it to the summit, which Arizona Snowbowl’s lower parking lot. Kachina Peaks, which are sacred to the well-maintained trail climbs for several all tundra regions, this one is extremely your luck, and remember the first rule of tops out at 12,633 feet, you’ve conquered Snowbowl is the local ski resort. After Navajo, Hopi, Havasupai and Zuni people. miles to the Agassiz Saddle, which con- fragile, which is why the U.S. Forest mountain-climbing: Making it down is all there is to conquer — from a hiking a short climb through a lush meadow of Although reaching the summit is the nects Humphreys Peak and Agassiz Peak. Service strictly prohibits camping and off- more important than making it up. After perspective, anyway. Making it up and grasses and wildflowers, you’ll start to high point of this hike, there’s a lot to see This is also where the Humphreys Trail trail hiking. Perhaps more than anything, all, there’s no point in conquering the down is certainly something to be proud smell the evergreens as the trail enters in the process, including thousands of intersects the Weatherford Trail. You’ll the goal is to protect the San Francisco king of the hills if you’re not going to be of, but, despite its stature, the Hump is the deep forest. About the time the sky acres of Engelmann spruce, corkbark firs, be heading uphill, but this is a good place Peaks groundsel (Packera franciscana), an around to brag about it.

not the most difficult hike in Arizona. disappears, you’ll be crossing into the Kristen Calden navigates the rocky terrain to look around. Up to this point, most of extremely rare plant that grows nowhere The North Kaibab Trail, from river to rim, Kachina Peaks Wilderness. Humphreys in the tundra region of Humphreys Peak. the hike has been a tunnel through the else in the world. ADDITIONAL READING: Watch your step, and gear up for the For more hikes, pick up a copy last mile or so to the summit. It’s the most of Arizona Highways Hiking Guide, which features 52 of the challenging stretch of the hike. It’s worth state’s best trails — one for each the effort, though. At 12,633 feet, you’ll weekend of the year, sorted by seasons. To order a copy, visit be able to see the Grand Canyon and www.shoparizonahighways. the Hopi mesas to the north, the White com/books.

Humphreys Peak er Inn sin S A Ba N F trailhead R A N C Doyle Peak I S Arizona Snowbowl C O P Agassiz Peak E A K Fremont Peak S

180 KACHINA PEAKS F R WILDERNESS 5 16

Snowbowl Road COCONINO NATIONAL FOREST

89

180

40

Flagsta

40

To Phoenix 17 KEVIN KIBSEY

trail guide HORSES ALLOWED: No USGS MAP: Humphreys Peak LENGTH: 9 miles round-trip INFORMATION: Flagstaff Ranger District, 928-526-0866 DIFFICULTY: Strenuous or www.fs.usda.gov/coconino ELEVATION: 8,800 to 12,633 feet LEAVE-NO-TRACE PRINCIPLES: DIRECTIONS: From Flagstaff, go north on U.S. Route • Plan ahead and be out all of your trash. 180 for 7 miles to Forest Road 516 (Snowbowl Road). prepared. • Leave what you find. Turn right onto FR 516 and continue 6.3 miles to the lower • Travel and camp on • Minimize campfire parking lot. The trailhead is at the far end of the lot. durable surfaces. impact. VEHICLE REQUIREMENTS: None • Dispose of waste • Respect wildlife. DOGS ALLOWED: Yes properly and pack • Be considerate of others.

54 JULY 2014 www.arizonahighways.com 55 where is this?

May 2014 Answer & Winner The Desert Bar in Parker. Congratula- tions to our winner, Beverly May of Fairbanks, Alaska. DAWN KISH DAWN

Win a collection of our most popular books! To enter, correctly iden- tify the location pictured at left and email your answer to editor@ arizonahighways. com — type “Where Is This?” in the subject line. Entries can also be sent to 2039 W. Lewis Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85009 (write “Where Is This?” on the envelope). Please include your name, address and phone number. One winner will be chosen in a random drawing of qualified entries. Entries must be postmarked by

KERRICK JAMES KERRICK July 15, 2014. Only the winner will be notified. The correct answer will Sign Here be posted in our Sep- tember issue and online at www.arizona Yes, this sign is along Historic Route 66 — at a motel. But since about 400 miles of the “Mother Road” highways.com begin- are in Arizona, figuring out exactly what town it’s in could be a challenge. Good luck. ning August 15. — NOAH AUSTIN

56 JULY 2014