In The Belly of an Arizona Rattlesnake

     Ever want to walk in the belly of a rattlesnake?  Just one of the amazing feats you can do in Arizona– well sort of!  Tucson, Arizona has over 530 miles of urban hiking and biking routes.  In addition, it is famous for its public arts program.  One of its most unique artistic offerings is the Tucson Diamondback Rattlesnake Bridge.
    The bridge crosses busy Broadway Boulevard near the east side of downtown Tucson.  It is 280 feet long, 11 feet high and 14 feet wide. Hikers and bike riders can enter the bridge through the 28-foot head (with 11-foot fangs) or through the 20-foot high tail with its 300-pound fiberglass rattle.
    Simon Donovan is the Tucson artist who designed the rattlesnake bridge. He proudly points out the details found on his bridge.  The painted diamonds, found on the skin of the big snake, are exact replica of those found on the Sonoran Desert snake,  “Alternating from brown to beige in six repeating patterns”, Donovan excitedly proclaims!  And the snake’s underbelly, he continues, “ is divided into life-like segments every 2 1/2 feet.”
     The Tucson Snake Bridge was officially dedicated on May 23, 2002.  Representatives from the business community, baseball teams, school children and neighborhood groups were all present for the “slithering opening”.  Members of the Tohono O’odham tribe performed a traditional blessing of the bridge to signify its’ “linking of art, culture and transportation.” 
     At night the snake’s eyes light up, and interior lighting allows this snake to be seen all night long.  Day or night when someone exits through the tail, motion detectors set off a realistic “rattle” to the delight or fright of the bridge crosser.
     If you want to visit and experience the Tucson Snake Bridge, it is located in the Iron Horse Park Neighborhood. 
Entrance to the bridge is near the intersection of Euclid Avenue and Hughes Street.


     To get to the Tucson Diamondback Rattlesnake Bridge take I-10 south to Tucson.  Exit I-10 at Congress Street.  Go east of Congress Street, which quickly turns into Broadway, until you reach Euclid.  Turn left onto Euclid and look for street parking.  You will have passed under the Diamondback Rattlesnake Bridge just before you come to Euclid.


     The GPS coordinates for the Tucson Diamondback Rattlesnake Bridge is:  N 32, 13.295’ by W 110, 57.696’.  The official web site for the Tucson Visitors Center is: http://www.visittucson.org/

Apple Annie's

     We love Apple Annie's!  Yep!  It is true!  This wonderful family farm just outside of Willcox, Arizona is one very special place and such an enjoyable experience for all ages who love to be on a working farm.  It is peach season at Apple Annie's and from now till Thanksgiving, this Arizona farm will be having one special celebration after another.  So, why not plan a trip to southeastern Arizona and visit for yourself Apple Annie's.  Here is their link - http://www.appleannies.com/


    Here is our story we wrote in October 2007 for the Apple Annie's Pumpkin Festival.  The picture of the apple sign is our; the other pictures belong to Apple Annie's!


     Even in Arizona there are places where the autumn harvest still magically plays out.  And right before ol’ Jack Frost returns to paint his frosty designs on harvested pumpkin fields and apple trees, Apple Annie’s Orchard in Willcox, Arizona will again host its annual Fall Pumpkin Celebration.  An October weekend visit to this Arizona farm, where the sights, smells and sounds of the annual fall harvest still occur, is well worth the effort and guaranteed to put smiles on the faces of the young and the old alike. 
    Willcox, Arizona is located in the Sulphur Spring Valley of southeastern Arizona some 240 miles from Anthem.  Founded as a railroad town in 1880, Willcox soon became the agricultural and cattle center for this part of Arizona.  At an elevation of 4167 feet, the local climate makes Willcox an ideal fruit and vegetable-growing region of Arizona.
    Apple Annie’s Orchard has made their farming business into an old-fashion family-fun adventure for the people of Arizona who choose to visit.  Since 1986 Apple Annie’s Orchards has specialized in growing tree-ripened apples, pears, Asian pears and peaches.  In 2003 their farm expanded and now grows farm-fresh sweet corn, chilies, tomatoes, squash and pumpkins.
    The Fall Pumpkin Celebration allows families to enjoy the old autumn tradition of picking ones own pumpkins, fall vegetables and apples.  A $3.00 fee gets you a hay-wagon ride to the pumpkin patch where children of all ages can pick their very own, unique and special pumpkin.  Of course, pumpkins, apples and vegetables are also available at the friendly farm pumpkin stand.
    Apple Annie’s Orchard is open to the public from late June – October.  Four months of family-friendly activities are made available including the Sweet Corn Extravaganza, the Peach Mania, Farmer John’s Birthday Party and the Apple Harvest Celebration.  Without a doubt Apple Annie’s Orchard is a place for the entire family to visit and enjoy! 

Arizona Inn - Tucson

    The Arizona Inn is not only historic but just a world-class place to stay.  During the summer months, the Inn is on sale at very affordable rates.  So, if you are looking for a special part of Arizona's history, a great historic hotel and a great place to stay in Tucson during the summer months, you just cannot beat the Arizona Inn.
     Please note that the first 4 pictures are ours; the rest belong to the Arizona Inn.  Here is our story...


        Historic, romantic hotels are found throughout Arizona and many go on summer sale as the winter tourists flee and Arizonans “hunker-down” for another blazing summer.  But that extreme heat brings ‘fire sale” rates to these historic places and from now until September 30th the 4-Diamond Arizona Inn of Tucson can become the perfect summertime escape. 
    It was 1926 and Isabella Ferguson Greenway was living with her Rough Rider husband, John Greenway at their Ajo, Arizona mansion.  John Greenway had become a major player in the copper mining industry of Arizona and a true political mover and shaker.  He was sent by his doctors to New York City for some minor surgery, but minor became major when unexpected complications set in and John Greenway died.  Isabella was now a widow with 4 children in a house that overlooked the Ajo open pit copper mine.
    She soon decided to take her children to Tucson and turn the energy of her grief into business endeavors.  She became the owner of the Double X Ranch near Williams, and of the Gilpin Airline of Los Angeles.  But her greatest love and energy was spent helping the Tucson veterans of World War I. 
    She started a furniture factory, called the Arizona Hut, which employed many World War I veterans.  When the Crash of 1929 came, Isabella refused to fire her veterans and decided to build a fashionable inn that would create a need for their furniture and thus keep her veterans employed. 
    Isabella Greenway’s Arizona Inn opened it doors to its first guest in December 18, 1930 and by this time Isabella was known around the state as “Arizona’s Sweetheart”.   That nickname came about because of her amazing philanthropic spirit and her many civic activities in the Tucson area. In 1933 she became the first woman of Arizona ever to be elected to the United States House of Representatives.  No other Arizona women matched her accomplishment until 1992.
    But it was the Arizona Inn that was the passion of her life.  Built on 14 hidden acres near the University of Arizona, the Inn served guests from around the world.  The 95 rooms were all furnished with beautifully crafted furniture made by Isabella’s veterans and the grounds became a botanical gardens of ever-blooming flowers. Isabella lived at her inn so that she would know exactly what her guests were experiencing, she strove to bring to life her original mission statement:  “to provide a sophisticated desert retreat offering privacy, quiet and sunshine to every guest.”
    The Arizona Inn is made up of multiple buildings set among beautiful gardens and large trees enclosed within adobe walls.   Most guest rooms have a private balcony or an enclosed patio that provides adequate privacy.  Since the Inn was built in the time when travelers came with steamer trunks, the closets are more than spacious by modern standards.
    Over the years many rich and famous guests escaped to this Tucson oasis but the Inn never released its guest list.  The privacy of all is highly guarded.
    The Arizona Inn is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Inn guests today can request to tour the on-site furniture shop started by Isabella for her beloved veterans.  And if not rented, guests can even tour the casita that “Arizona’s Sweetheart”, Isabella Greenway, lived in when she too stayed in Tucson at her beloved Arizona Inn.


    Here is a link to the Arizona Inn website - http://www.arizonainn.com/

The amazing Isabella Ferguson Greenway.

Battle of Hawikuh

     History changed in today's American Southwest on July 7, 1540 when the first deadly conflict between Native Americans and Europeans occurred at the Battle of Hawikuh, a small Zuni pueblo in what is today northwestern New Mexico.  Here is our story and then some photos showing how the Pueblo of Hawikuh looks today.

     Names can create powerful memories. Names such as Lexington and Concord rightfully stir strong patriot feelings with visions of minutemen rushing to the Old North Bridge in Massachusetts on April 19, 1775.  So too does the name Gettysburg conjures up the specter of hundreds of canons roaring to life while thousands of men wearing the blue and the grey battle across the farmlands of Pennsylvania on July 1 – 3, 1863. 

     Here in our part of this great country,  July 7 marks the anniversary of an armed conflict that took place in 1540 at the Zuni pueblo named Hawikuh.   And even though the Battle of Hawikuh has not been remembered in history books as “the shot heard around the world” or the turning point of a civil war, it surely did signal the beginning of tragic armed conflicts between Europeans and the Native American people in the American Southwest that would last until the surrender of Geronimo on September 4, 1886 - some 346 years.
     The Pueblo of Hawikuh (Hi-wah-koo) was located on the high plains of what today is northwestern New Mexico some 85 miles east of Greer, Az. and near today’s Pueblo of Zuni.  The Spanish thought it to be one of the fabled Seven Cities of Gold – Cibola.  On July 7, 1540 an army of about 350 Spanish conquistadors, many on horseback and led by Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, was rapidly marching toward it.
     The thirty-year-old Coronado had led his army from deep in the interior of Mexico since February.  Accompanying this army was Fray Marcos de Niza who had walked these northern lands in 1539 and had reported that he had indeed seen cities whose homes and streets were made of gold – the fabled Cibola.  Who could deny such an eyewitness report? 
     But after 4 months traveling over the desert lands of what is now northern Mexico and Arizona, Coronado’s army arrived at the first City of Gold tired, hungry and gazing upon a multi-storied pueblo made of mud, not gold.  Chronologists wrote that “such were the curses hurled at Friar Marco” but food and water were primarily on the soldiers’ minds on this late afternoon of July 7.
     Coronado tried to “negotiate” with the warriors of Hawikuh.  His lieutenant read a decree ( in Latin) informing the people of the pueblo that they were now under the protection of the King of Spain and that they should follow whatever direction given them by the King’s representative - Francisco Vasques de Coronado.
     The message was not well received and most probably not even understood, for soon a shower of arrows were descending upon the tired Spanish army.  The Spanish battle cry was sounded, and three hundred years of conflict began.  Coronado himself took one of those arrows in his right leg and was felled from his horse by a large stone thrown from the upper floors of the pueblo.  But after some three hours of battle, Spanish armor, muskets and lancers on horseback drove the Hawikuhans from the village.
     Coronado and his army would soon discover that Cibola was totally a myth.  No cities of gold existed in this land although treasures of gold lied buried within its soil.  His army, over the next two years, would explore parts of our modern states of California, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.  They surely completed a most impressive "Road Trip!"
     For today’s explorers who would like to visit this historic battle site, that trip is possible by making arrangements with the tourist office at the Zuni Pueblo.  For a fee, a Zuni guide will take you to the ruins of Hawikuh.  It is not much to see today, just a high mound of adobe and stone rubble.   But what once happened here, at Cibola, one of the fabled Seven Cities of Gold,  is truly a moment in our Arizona and American history - and a great modern road trip for those who like to get out and stand upon such historic ground.

 

The Spanish came from this direction.

Looking south

Looking southwest

Stones re-stacked during a more modern time

Looking back up at the pueblo

They came from here

Historical marker at Zuni

The old church at Zuni

Historical marker in Kansas about the Coronado Expedition

Havasupai - People of the Blue Green Water

    Note:  We have had the joy of visiting the Village of Supai twice, but it was when we were much younger.  On those two amazing trips, digital cameras were not yet even a distant dream.  So the photos that follow this story were taken by Katie Tiliotson, a former ASU student.  We thank Katie for sharing her Havasupai experience with us through her beautiful photos.


     If the Biblical Paradise were to have ever been found in Arizona, it most surely would be located in Havasu Canyon, home of the Havasupai Indians.  Here in the land of the blue-green water, the Havasupai (People of the Blue-green Water) live among Arizona's most spectacular waterfalls in their village of Supai.
    The Havasupai Indian Reservation is the most remote of the 20 Indian reservations found in Arizona.  Established in 1882, the reservation today is made up of 185,518 acres.  The 639 members of the tribe continue to make this side canyon of the Grand Canyon their home as their ancestors have done for over 800 years.
    The trip to Havasupai is an adventure of its own.  From just west of Williams, travelers "kick-on" to Historic Route 66 and travel on "America's Mother Road" six miles east of the small town of Peach Springs.  Here they turn onto BIA Route 18 and travel some 68 miles to Hualapai Hilltop.  At Hualapai Hilltop the car is parked and the amazing journey to Supai begins.
    From the Hualapai Hilltop trailhead the hiking trail descends for some 8 miles and over 3,000 vertical feet on a trail that is often in a sandy wash.  Most visitors walk these miles but horses or even a helicopter can be rented.  After 8-miles of walking or riding, visitors enter the Village of Supai.  A hotel is available for those who wish a warm shower, a bed and flush toilets.  Two more miles down the trail from the village is a rustic campground located beside the blue-green water of Havasu Creek and Falls.
     Havasu Creek brings life-sustaining water to the Havasupai people and is the creator of this canyon's amazing beauty.  Traveling for over 50-miles over the high-desert plains to the south, the creek plunges into the canyon and joins with Havasu Springs where an underground river adds more water into the blue-green creek.
    The blue-green color and the travertine formations of Havasu Creek is caused by the large amount of lime found in the water.  It is this ever-changing creek, as it flows toward the Colorado River, that creates the four, beautiful waterfalls found in the canyon.
     Navajo Falls is the first waterfall of the canyon, located just 1 1/2 miles beyond the village.  Havasu Falls is the second waterfall some 2-miles from the village.  It is the most famous of the falls and has appeared on hundreds of calendars and postcards.  A drop of 120-feet into the blue-green travertine pools makes this waterfall a visitor favorite.
     Another 3/4-mile down the trail is located Mooney Falls.  Named after James Mooney who fell to his death here, this waterfall is over 200-feet high which makes it even taller than Niagara Falls.  The journey down a series of chain-ladders to the travertine pools of Mooney Falls is a climb no hiker ever forgets!
     The fourth waterfall is called Beaver Falls.  It is located another 4-miles down the trail toward the Colorado River.  This trail is remote and rugged, so the hiker must be well prepared with water, food and good hiking gear.
    Visitors into Havasu Canyon are limited by the Havasupai Tribe, so reservations are a must.  This is such a special place in Arizona so be sure to make the effort to go.  If you do, you will create for your family and yourself, amazing memories that will last for a lifetime. 

View from Hualapai Hilltop

Pack train moving on down the trail

First view of Havasu Creek

Navajo Falls

Havasu Falls

Rope swing over Havasu Creek

Campground along the beautiful creek

Havasu Creek

Mooney Falls

Spash-pool of Mooney Falls

Playing in the splash-pools

Oh, what a feeling!