Valley of the Phoenix 

Besh Ba Gowah
This archaeological park and museum tells the story of the Salado, a people who occupied the site between AD 1225 and AD 1400, before Columbus discovered the “new world”. The museum displays prehistoric pottery, stone, and woven artifacts excavated from the site.

    

Stone and Timber housing                                                          Mickey Mouse Cactus

 

Boyce Thompson Arboretum
With 390 acres of desert plants collected from all over the world, many miles of paths and trails lead us through an Australian desert, cactus and succulent gardens, a eucalyptus forest and a Sonoran desert.

    
Cactus growing in a tree                                                      Cactus on the mountain

   Stay on the trail                                                                Cactus flowers

   Barrel cactus                                                                         Outback guide

 

Tonto National Forest
The Tonto National Forest encompasses 2.9 MILLION acres east of Phoenix, offering more than 800 miles of recreational trails. Jim chose the more difficult Wind Cave trail which climbed 800 feet in 1.5 miles. As usual we met many younger hikers running up and then down the trail.

    
Canyon Lake                                                                    Cave of the Winds

 The scenic Apache Trail from Mesa to Globe once served as a stage coach and freight wagon route. Now as we drive along this winding road, we experience a changing ecosystem of canyons, man made desert lakes and towering saguaro cacti.

 

Musical Instrument Museum
This museum has a collection of more than 15,000 musical instruments of which about 5,000 are on display at any given time. As we walked through the well-organized exhibits with wireless headset, we heard sounds of the instruments on display. Several of the displays explained how the instrument, such as a guitar or a piano, was constructed. Five large galleries were devoted to the music of individual countries. 

   1870’s Hand-cranked organ                                          19^th Century woodwinds

   Hurdy-gurdy                                                                           Balalaika

 

Superstition Mountain Museum
The Superstition Mountain Railroad is a G-scale model train depicting life in Arizona in the 1800’s and 1900’s, complete with towns, mines and mining camps, ranches and a stamp mill.

   Stamp mill                                                                           Mining town

 

Apache Junction
Lost Dutchman State Park in the Sonoran Desert is named after a fabled lost gold mine in the Superstition Wilderness. An early start for our hike helped us avoid the daily 80 degree afternoon heat.

   Sunrise over Superstition Mountain                              Lost Dutchman’s Treasure Trail

 

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