A new year is here, and just in time for Arizona’s early Spring, Cactus Camping is going to be sending out new green shoots! We’ll be posting some sorely needed updates for our 50 best campgrounds, and of course, it’s never too early to prepare yourselves for wildflower season. Stay tuned!
The National Weather Service has issued an excessive heat warning for much of Arizona this weekend, with temperatures reaching 115 degrees and above. So now’s the perfect time to flee to the high country.
To make the trip a little easier on your budget, the National Park Service is waiving the entrance fee for many national parks for this weekend, July 18-19, 2009, including the $25 entrance fee at the Grand Canyon. Remember that it is always less crowded at the north rim than the south rim, and the temperatures are a bit cooler. If you’re inclined to hike, keep in mind that temperatures inside the canyon are much higher than at either rim.
For other options, view the 700-year old cliff dwellings at Walnut Canyon in Flagstaff, explore the hoodoos of the Chiricahua Mountains near Willcox, or take a free houseboat ride at the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area on Lake Powell or at Lake Mead.
There are also some gems that you can always experience for free, like Navajo National Monument and Parashant National Monument.
Don’t worry if you don’t get a chance to get away this weekend. There’s another free weekend coming up August 15-16, 2009.
“In this economy…” is a phrase we’re all tired of hearing, but there’s no denying that this has been a tough year for everyone, and the state parks are feeling the pain as well. The Arizona State Parks system lost 34.6 million in funds from the state this year and had to reduce their ranger staff by 26%. Reports from Arizona’s budget discussions in early 2009 threatened the complete and indefinite closing of a number of Arizona parks.
The initial political wrangling has died down, and it looks like the parks system is taking whatever steps it can to make the situation a little less drastic (at least for now). Tonto Natural Bridge State Park, Jerome State Historic Park, and McFarland State Historic Park needed some structural maintenance repairs so these parks were chosen to be closed while construction was taking place. Tonto Natural Bridge State Park has since re-opened for the weekends during June.
Several other parks including Fort Verde State Historic Park, Oracle State Park, Tombstone Courthouse State Historic Park, Tubac Presidio State Historic Park, Yuma Territorial Prison State Historic Park, and Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Park, have been reduced to a 5-day schedule and are closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
The majority of the state parks remain open and can be visited 7 days a week, 365 days a year, including the four state parks we have highlighted in The Best in Tent Camping: Arizona: Picacho Peak State Park, Lost Dutchman State Park, Fool Hollow Lake Recreation Area, and Lyman Lake State Park.
The economic crisis isn’t going to be over any time soon, and the parks system will probably take another hit this coming year. If you value the role the state parks play in providing recreational opportunities, protecting natural landmarks, and preserving Arizona’s heritage, consider dropping a line to your state representatives to tell them so. Volunteering is a terrific way to show your support, and you can also vote with your dollars by purchasing an annual pass or gifts from the online gift shop. Most importantly, get out there and enjoy your state parks!
It’s not too late to see the wildflowers. Check out the following resources for current updates on what is in bloom around the state of Arizona.
Arizona State Parks 2009 Ranger Cam
Desert Botanical Garden Wildflower InfoSite
Spring is here and the flowers are blooming. It’s time to get out there.
If you’re from the Phoenix area but don’t have time to go for a long hike, take a quick trip to the Riparian Preserve at the Gilbert Water Ranch. One hundred and ten acres of land used for water treatment have been co-developed into a desert wetland oasis for over 200 species of birds.
Many flowers are already showing off including Mexican gold poppy, owl clover, desert senna, brittlebush, globemallow, fiddleneck, creosote, fairy duster, and tree tobacco.
Along with flowers, the Riparian Preserve offers bird walks, fishing, stargazing, a simulated Mars landscape, and an archaeological pit. It’s also a great place to watch the sunset.
The Riparian Preserve is located on the southeast corner of Greenfield and Guadalupe roads in Gilbert and it is open from 6:00am to 10:00pm, 7 days a week.
The old saying “April showers brings May flowers” needs to be revised for the state of Arizona.
Here in the desert, we have two rainy seasons, one in the winter and one in the summer. In Native American tradition, the winter rains are considered female rains, soft and gentle—unlike the harsh, fast male rains of the summer. These feminine winter rains bring forth glorious displays of wildflowers that blanket the mountainsides—the showiest being slopes of bright yellow-orange poppies dotted by contrasting purple lupine and owl clover.
The Mexican gold poppy, Eschscholtzia mexicana, is in the same family as the infamous opium poppy. Like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, you might get the impulse to lie in the golden fields, but the Mexican gold poppy won’t get you high or make you sleep forever. You should start exploring the lower elevation desert mountains around mid-February in order to not miss the show. The best displays are usually around mid-March and will last only about two weeks.
So for Arizona, we’ll have to say “September through December showers bring February to mid-April flowers”, but what the phrase lacks poetically, the sight makes up in sheer beauty.
Darn February and its 28 days. The shortest month is almost over and somehow we haven’t quite established our regular blogging rhythm. Here are a few posts and some pretty pictures to make up for our recent absence.
“The Apache Trail combines the grandeur of the Alps, the glory of the Rockies, the magnificence of the Grand Canyon and then adds an indefinable something that none of the others have. To me, it is the most awe-inspiring and most sublimely beautiful panorama nature has ever created.” - President Theodore Roosevelt
At Lost Dutchman State Park, not only are you at the doorstep of the Superstition Mountains, but you are also at the beginning of the only drive in Arizona designated as both a Historic Road and a National Scenic Byway. This route along the Salt River was used by Native Americans for centuries before it was widened to bring supplies during the construction of the Roosevelt Dam. It winds its way in Sonoran Desert splendor along the side of green lichen-covered sheer cliffs, among towering saguaros, and overlooks deep blue canyon reservoirs.
Along the Apache Trail stop at Canyon Lake and rent a boat at the marina, take a guided lake tour on the Dolly Steamboat, or have a meal overlooking the water at the Lakeside Restaurant and Cantina. If you’ve brought your gear, it’s an easy 3-mile paddle to The Point, three spacious campsites accessible only by boat.
Continue your journey to Tortilla Flat, population 6, where the gift shop serves deliciously pink prickly pear ice cream. Heartier appetites can be satisfied by a burger at the Tortilla Flat Restaurant, where the wallpaper is made up of dollar bills. A side trip takes you to Horse Mesa Dam overlooking Apache Lake. Farther up the Trail, spend the night at Burnt Corral recreation site with your tent at the water’s edge.
The lobby of the Apache Lake Marina and Resort boasts a photo tour of the construction of the historic Roosevelt Dam, and at the top of the Trail you can see the sight for yourself. There are plenty of camping opportunities at Roosevelt Lake; our pick is Cholla Campground, which offers tent-only sites overlooking the largest lake on the Salt River. Nearby, the Tonto National Monument offers you the opportunity to tour 700-year old cliff dwellings left by the Salado people.
More details about these campgrounds and other attractions along the Apache Trail can be found in The Best in Tent Camping: Arizona.
As we were walking the dog on a blustery evening, an Ace Hardware plastic bag caught the wind and tumbled down the road ahead of us. I was reminded of the days when only tumbleweeds rolled down the road, not plastic bags.
Tumbleweed, Salsola iberica, is iconic of the wild west. According to Plants of Arizona by Epple, the tumbleweed has only been in the U.S. for 140 years and was accidentally introduced to South Dakota in a flax seed shipment from Russia. This invasive plant distributes its seeds when the dry branches break off and roll away on the wind. It’s surprising to discover that this plant that we associate with barren, abandoned landscapes is rather beautiful with red stems and tiny, delicate white flowers. Tumbleweed can be found all over Arizona.
The collared peccary, better known as the javelina, is one of the larger critters that you might find wandering through your campsite. Don’t yell “wild pig!”, though, since you may give offense. Javelina are a breed apart, in their own family of Tayasuidae, and not the Suidae family of Old World animals to which all other feral and farm pigs in the Americas belong. They are found in the U.S. only in Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.
Peccaries do share the ecological niche and some of the destructive habits of wild pigs, and can become a bit of a nuisance in some parts of Arizona. We’ve even seen a whole herd of them bedded down in someone’s front yard. Javelina are peaceful creatures and simply prefer to be left alone, but they will attack if harassed, and can be dangerous in a large group with youngsters to protect. Remember that their fierce Spanish name refers to the spear-like sharpness of their tusks!
They walk very delicately on their tiny hooves, so you may smell their rich, musky odor before hearing them. They rest through the hottest part of the day and forage at morning and evening. You can find collared peccaries wherever prickly pear proliferate.
