Arizona
Lake Pleasant Regional Park
My first stop in Arizona was at Lake Pleasant Reginal Park. Located just north of Phoenix, the scenic Lake Pleasant is a key reservoir bringing water from the Lower Colorado River to central and southern Arizona. It is a popular recreation area in the “Valley of Fire” where people come for boating, camping, fishing, and hiking. The desert landscape is dotted with numerous Saguaro cactus and there is abundant wildlife in the park. During my week-long stay, I saw wild burros (donkeys), quails, and roadrunners as well as heard large packs of coyotes on a nightly basis. The weather at Lake Pleasant was spectacular with sunny days in the high 70s to low 80s and mild nights. I stayed in the Roadrunner Campground which overlooks the lake and it was the perfect place to spend some winter days!
Montezuma Castle National Monument
In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt celebrated the passage of the Antiquities Act by declaring four sites of historic and cultural significance as our nation’s first National Monuments. Among these was the impressive cliff dwelling at Montezuma Castle National Monument which is located in the Verde Valley about 50 miles south of Flagstaff. Southern Sinagua farmers built the five-story, 20-room dwelling sometime between 1100 and 1300. The people who lived here were farmers using the nearby Verde River to irrigate their crops of beans, corn, cotton, and squash. Early American settlers marveled at the structure and mistakenly assumed it was Aztec in origin, hence the name Montezuma Castle. The structure was built 90 feet above the valley floor under a natural alcove in the cliff and would have been accessed with a series of wooden ladders. Also at the same site is a second even larger 45-room structure which now lies in ruins at the base of the cliff.
Sedona
Located in the high desert of central Arizona, Sedona is a popular tourist destination near Flagstaff that’s surrounded by red-rock buttes, steep canyon walls, and pine forests. It’s noted for its mild climate and vibrant arts community. The community of Sedona is dense with trendy shops, spas, restaurants, and art galleries. On the town’s outskirts, numerous trailheads provide ample opportunities for hiking, bird-watching, and mountain biking.
One of the best places for hiking, and to avoid the crowds of Sedona, is Red Rock State Park. This 286-acre nature preserve and environmental education center offers an extensive trail network with stunning views of the Sedona landscape, including Arizona landmark Cathedral Rock. Many of the trails follow the path of the serene Oak Creek and are covered by a dense forest of mature cottonwood trees. Also in the park is a large home called the House of Apache Fire which is perched on a cliff 50 feet above Oak Creek. Built in 1947 by Helen and Jack Frye, the Hopi-style pueblo exterior blends in perfectly with the red sandstone surroundings. Who was Jack Frye? He and Howard Hughes founded TWA together in the 1940s and the property caught the Frye’s eyes during a layover in Sedona while on TWA business. The luxury home was never completed due to the couple’s divorce and the property sat abandon for a while before it was donated to Red Rock State Park.
There are many stunning homes in the Sedona area, but none are more stunning than a home built on a 200-foot cliff. The 2,150-square-foot home was built by Glendon Good who is an artist and furniture designer. The land was purchased cheap in 1999 because no one thought you could build up there. The home took decades to complete and was completed in 2021 at a cost of $1.65 million. The only way to reach the home is on a 3-minute gondola ride up the cliff at a 45-degree angle. All the materials reached the site via the gondola or by helicopter for the larger structural elements. It is a stunning site indeed!
Tucson
My second stop in Arizona was the second largest city in the state, Tucson. Located 108 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the Mexican state of Sonora, Tucson is home to the University of Arizona and is a vibrant community of about half-million people known for its culture and food scene. Because of its mild and dry winters, Tucson is also a very popular spot for snowbirds looking to escape the cold, snowy winters of the Northeast and Canada. I was amazed at the number of things available to do in Tucson including Saguaro National Park (see separate post), Pima Air & Space Museum, Biosphere 2, and Tombstone. So, let’s explore the Tucson area!
Pima Air & Space Museum
When you think of Tucson you don’t think about world-class aviation museums, but the Pima Air & Space Museum is the third largest only surpassed by the Smithsonian Air & Space in Washington, DC and the US Air Force Museum in Dayton, OH. So why are there so many airplanes here? The answer is quite simple: the arid desert environment. Located adjacent to the Pima Air & Space Museum is Davis–Monthan Air Force Base which is the boneyard and maintenance facility for the United States aviation fleet. Retired aircraft make their final flight to Tucson where they are prepared for long-term storage in the desert or have parts stripped to keep the flying fleet in the air. Since a museum doesn’t need a flight worthy aircraft to display, the Pima Air & Space Museum can pick from the boneyard for examples of various aircraft.
There are over 400 historical aircraft at the Pima Air & Space Museum sitting on a site that is 80 acres. Inside the five hangers of the Pima Air & Space Museum are fully restored aircraft on the floor as well as suspended from the rafters. There are beautiful examples of a B-24 Liberator, F-14 Tomcat, SR-71 Blackbird, and B-29 Superfortress inside the hangers. In the middle of the museum grounds is a 390th Memorial Museum which celebrates the sacrifices of the men of the 390th Bombardment Group during WWII. This building also houses a beautifully restored B-17 Flying Fortress called “I’ll Be Around” which was the last B-17 flown by the US military.
To me the real gem of the Pima Air & Space Museum are the hundreds of aircraft that sit outside on the grounds baking in the Arizona sun. The aircraft outdoors aren’t restored and they’re crispy, but the extensive collection tells a history of American aviation. Outside is where you will find numerous examples of B-52 Stratofortress, Boeing 747, Air Force fighters, Navy/Marine fighters, cargo planes, and helicopters. They have a section of presidential and VIP aircraft including a Douglas VC-118A which served as Air Force One for both Presidents Kennedy and Johnson. My personal favorite was the Lockhead Constellation which was originally ordered by Howard Hughes for TWA and I consider one of the most beautiful planes ever built. I spent hours walking around and under all the enormous aircraft on display: it was like a candy store!
Biosphere 2
In September 1991, four men and four women were sealed inside an airtight structure made of glass and steel on a two-year mission to study the interconnectedness of humans to their environment. The 3-acre complex known as Biosphere 2 was completely isolated from Earth’s environment and created an artificial one where plants would absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen. The volunteers on the mission, known as biospherians, lived in a 25,000 square foot Human Habitat where they each had their own apartment, a common kitchen, laboratories, and office space. They also grew their own food, had some small livestock, and an orchard for fresh fruit all within the Biosphere. During the mission, an imbalance of carbon dioxide and oxygen developed resulting in oxygen having to be added to the Biosphere on day 500 of the 730-day mission due to safety concerns.
Individual biomes were created to mimic micro-climates within the Biosphere where temperature, humidity, and rainfall could all be controlled from a control room. Within Biosphere 2 there was a coastal fog desert, mangroves, lower Savanna, ocean, and rainforest. Each of the biomes had soil up to 16 feet deep for the plants to grow and the ocean had a corral reef as well as fish which the biospherians could eat. One of the most difficult engineering challenges was how to regulate the air pressures within the sealed structured. In order to prevent pressures from building up and blowing out the glass, engineers designed two “lungs” which are membrane structures which helped regulate the air pressure.
Human habitation is no longer part of the mission at Biosphere 2. Today, the facility is operated by the University of Arizona and is the world’s leading research facility on climate change. Variables such as temperature and carbon dioxide levels can be adjusted within a specific biome to study the effect to something like a rainforest. The ocean water temperature can be increased to study the effect on the corral populations. In the space where the biospherians once grew their food, the University of Arizona constructed the Land Evolution Observatory (LEO) where researches are using over 1,800 sensors to study the Earth’s precious watersheds.
Biosphere 2 is an amazing facility where researchers from around the world come to work in this one-of-a-kind laboratory. Today, Biosphere 2 is open to the public for self-guided audio tours as well as guided tours in some of the engineering spaces.
Tombstone
Founded in 1879 by prospector Ed Schieffelin, the town of Tombstone became one of the last boomtowns in the American West. The town grew significantly into the mid-1880s as the local mines produced upwards of $85 million in silver bullion, the largest productive silver district in Arizona. In the first seven years of the town, the population grew to around 14,000 people.
Arriving in December 1879, Wyatt Earp, was one of the early residents in Tombstone along with his two brothers, Morgan and Virgil. Although he was a famed lawman, Wyatt came to Tombstone to strike it rich by tabling in the silver mines and running gambling games in saloons. Younger brother, Virgil, was more idealistic and soon became a Deputy US Marshall when he saw the need in the lawless town. On the evening of March 15, 1881, three members of the Cochise County Cowboys attempted to rob a stagecoach heading towards Tombstone carrying $26,000 in silver bullion. During the robbery attempt, the driver and a passenger were shot and killed. Deputy US Marshall Virgil Earp pursued the murder suspects along with his brothers, Wyatt and Morgan, who had been temporarily deputized for the pursuit. This setoff months of threats and confrontations between the Earps and their associate Doc Holliday with the Cowboys.
Hostilities climaxed on October 26, 1881 when three members of the Cowboys waited to ambush Doc Holliday in a lot near the OK Corral. The Earps and Holliday entered the lot intent on disarming the Cowboys, but they would have nothing of it. A total of 30 shots were fired in 30 seconds, and when the smoke cleared three Cowboys were dead: Tom McLaury, Frank McLaury, and Billy Clanton. Both Virgil and Morgan Earp were both badly wounded and Doc Holliday sustained a flesh wound. Only Wyatt Earp walked away unscathed from the legendary gunfight at the OK Corral.
Today, the city of Tombstone has a permanent population of around 1,300 residents that support its thriving tourist business. The Tombstone Courthouse State Historic Park is housed in the two-story 1882 Victorian structure which once housed the offices of Cochise County. The large rooms inside the old courthouse feature exhibits chronicling Tombstone’s colorful history. A walk down Allen Street takes you through the heart of Tombstone where in the 1880s as well as today you’ll find saloons including the Oriental where Wyatt Earp used to deal at the faro table. Another landmark on Allen Street is the Bird Cage Theater where Tombstone residents came to see live entertainment upstairs and gamble downstairs including Doc Holliday.
