This golf course will make any golfer feel like they’re a professional. With its elevation ranging from 2,300 to 3,200 feet, golfers are sure to face challenges and must find ways to be creative in order to overcome them—just like the pros.

The course was developed by Jack Nicklaus. It contains 27 holes and blends naturally among the saguaros and the surrounding Tortolita Mountain Range. The Golf Club at Dove Mountain provides panoramic views with its luxurious and authentic desert experience.  Nicklaus has integrated solid strategy, variety and fair shot values that harmonize with the high desert elevation of 2,300 to 3,000 feet.

The Golf Club at Dove mountain is home of the PGA Tour’s World Golf Championships— Accenture Match Play Championship.

The 250-room Ritz-Carlton resort hotel is also located along the course, for those looking for some good R & R after a long day spent golfing!

The Aquaplex in Flagstaff is a multi-generational, multi-scheduled community recreation center with affordable community fitness and fun for everyone!

Recreation, fitness and leisure activities are an essential part of a healthy, well-balanced life, and the Aquaplex offers a full spectrum of programs, drop-in activities and events to help you keep yourself and your family healthy.

Boasting an 8,643-square-foot pool area, there are plenty of aquatic activities available. Take a float down a lazy river current channel with vortex, or slip down one of two body slides that exit and re-enter the building, or take the kids to a splash area with a zero depth entry. Looking for water fitness? Take some laps in the 3-lane lap pool.

But don’t let the name “Aquaplex” fool you – there are plenty of other amenities available as well, such as a birthday party room, meeting, banquet and celebration spaces with the availability of a catering kitchen, and a babysitting area for young children and toddlers

Get fit in the multi-activity gymnasium with state-of-the-art cardio workout equipment and weight room, or participate in the fitness and aerobics rooms with more than 1,715 sq. feet of space, take care of arm and core strength on the two-story climbing wall, or take a jog on the indoor walking and running track.

Whether you’re looking for some fun aquatic activities during those icy winter months, or need a place to keep a healthy lifestyle, the Flagstaff Aquaplex has you covered!

A life of a miner has never been an easy one. Miners spend their days in darkness doing grueling labor at a menial salary. Being a miner requires much strength, endurance and willpower. The Copper Queen mine once hosted such hardworking men and today, the Bisbee mine remains open as a tourist destination.

The Copper Queen Mine was one of Bisbee’s richest mines that operated from 1877-1975. Visitors get to learn all about the mine and about the people who spent many hours within it during the Copper Queen Mine Tour. This tour allows visitors to step back into the past as they adorn a hard hat, miner’s headlamp and yellow slicker throughout the tour. Tour guides lead groups 1,500 feet into the mine and recount mining days, techniques, dangers and drama. Visitors will even get to experience first-hand what it was like to work underground.

Escape the Arizona heat by going down under and taking a tour into the incredible Kartchner Caverns.

Discovered in 1974, Kartchner Caverns is home to remarkable minerals and formations

The caverns are carved out of limestone and filled with spectacular speleothems which have been growing for 50,000 years or longer. This tourist site holds the world’s largest stalactite formation. (A stalactite is a type of formation that hangs from the ceiling of caves, hot springs, or manmade structures such as bridges and mines.)

The 23,000-square-foot Discovery Center is another must-see at Kartchner Caverns. The center explains many aspects of the cave, including geology, the bat population and paleontology. Interactive exhibits help to explain the discovery of the cave and how formations develop.

Signs relentlessly bombard travelers on the highway in an attempt to lure them into the random flea markets and tourist shops that dot along stretches of road, advertising Native American jewelry and trinkets, or to snag a bottle of “the best bar-b-que sauce in the world.” While there are times where the lonesome stretch of road can seemingly go on forever, the billboards at least help bring comfort that civilization is not too far off.

The least subtle of these roadside campaigns, stretching all the way from California to Texas, is the bright-yellow series of billboards calling attention to “The Thing.” The teasing, taunting billboards stretch for miles, building up the curiosity and suspense: “The Thing? A Wonder of the Desert” – “The Thing? Mystery of Arizona” – “The Thing? Have You Seen It?” – “The Thing? Don’t Miss It!”

Every day, hundreds of visitors passing between Benson and Willcox give in and take Exit 322 to discover just what this enigmatic Thing really is.

Finally, through a mysterious doorway, following the faded yellow feet painted on the floor, past hand-carved figures both miniature and life-size and the gold-dust scales and cracked pottery—you see it. Encased in cinder blocks and guarded by what can only be described as Emperor Bigfoot Horsehead, lies the end to your anticipation. The mystifying …THING. What is it? Is it real? Where did it come from?

As you contemplate what you’ve just seen, true satisfaction comes with the realization that knowledge of The Thing brings the empowering ability to irritate your friends, to withhold its secret until you can goad them into an unwitting road trip

Tee it up in the serene desert backdrop of Wellton

Arizona’s year-round seasons and picturesque scenery make for an ideal spot for golf. There are two golf courses located in Wellton (just outside of Yuma) that will satisfy your desert scenery and quiet needs. Surrounded by the Gila Mountains, pink sunrises, and orange sunsets, the Butterfield Golf Course holds eighteen holes and a Pro Shop that rents handcarts, bags and clubs, and golf carts. The course is open to the public and supplies a variety of passes as well as a driving range and putting green. From the longest tees it features 2,749 yards of golf for a par of 54. Open every day from 7am to 5pm, give them a call for more information: (928) 304-0291

Looking for more tee time? After you’ve conquered the Butterfield Golf Course, take a trip to the Coyote Wash Golf Course where you can play another 18-holes of golf  at the Coyote Wash facility. This course features 5,910 yards of golf from the longest tees for a par of 70 . Designed by Glen Curtis Inc/Gary Panks, ASGCA, the Coyote golf course opened in 2003. This course is open for even longer, every day of the week, so give them a call for more details: (928) 785-4875.

One of the many views at Coyote Wash Golf Course

Always a nice, serene spot for golf at the Butterfield Golf Course.

Photo courtesy of bluewaterfun.com

If you’ve ever wanted to go wakeboarding, but haven’t had access to a boat, the town of Parker has solved all of your problems!

Wakeboard Island is a two tower, cable pulley system that allows wake boarders to experience a skate-park style wakeboard ride without the need for a boat. There is a designated course for riders of ALL skill levels. The course provides jumps and rails for advanced riders as well as an open center section for beginners riding for the very first time.

Wakeboard Island is located within Parker’s Bluewater Resort & Casino. For more information, visit their website here.

Photo courtesy of Arizona Boating & Watersports

Escape to a place that has captured the essence of summer– Mittry Lake Recreation area.

The Mittry Lake Wildlife Area offers a wide variety of habitats, from open lakes to cattail marshes and streamside woodlands, providing an equally wide opportunity for wildlife-based recreation. This combination of habitats provides abundant opportunities for fishing, wildlife watching, hiking, boating, and hunting.

The lake has recently undergone rehabilitation work, including marsh dredging, revegetation and fish habitat improvement, making it an ideal location for small game hunting and sportfishing. Major species for small game hunting include waterfowl, dove, quail, and rabbit. The area is also very popular for nature study and bird-watching.

Lake activities:

Camping: There are no facilities or designated areas for camping, but camping is allowed. Please call the Bureau of Land Management Yuma Field Office at (928) 317-3200 for more information.

Boating: There is a three-lane boat launch ramp for motorized boating on the lake. Numerous waterways connect to the main lake body and make exploring by boat a pleasant experience. Recent improvements to the main boat launch area include handicap parking, paving of the upper parking area and the installation of a new ADA approved restroom.

Fishing: The most common species encountered in Mittry Lake are largemouth bass, flathead and channel catfish, bluegill, tilapia, crappie and carp.

Hunting: The Mittry Lake Wildlife Area is located within Game Management Unit 43B.

Image courtesy of cocopah.com

The Cocopah (Kwapa), also known as the River People, have long lived along the lower Colorado River and delta. For centuries, the Cocopah people, described as generous and non-materialistic, have maintained their traditional and cultural beliefs through the various political environments and ever-changing landscapes.

Cocopah history will come alive as you traverse the Cocopah Museum’s walls. The museum, which was built in 1996, is a recognized federal repository. Its exhibits feature objects and depictions of Cocopah history and culture.

Museum guests will see examples of traditional clothing such as bark skirts and leather sandals, modern-day beadwork, arrow weed-woven baskets, pottery, traditional tattoo designs, musical instruments and the Cocopah warriors’ display.

The museum is surrounded by a 1.5-acre park that features native trees and plants and a traditional dwelling replica made from natural elements.

The Cocopah Indian Tribe is one of seven descendant Tribes from the greater Yuman language-speaking people who occupied lands along the Colorado River. Cocopah Tribal ancestors also lived along the Lower Colorado River region near the river delta and the Gulf of California. The Cocopah people had no written language, however, historical records were passed on orally or interpreted in documents written by outside visitors.

Learn more about the tribe by visiting the museum. While you’re there, take a piece of their history home by purchasing authentic Cocopah beadwork, Native arts and crafts, Native American music, jewelry, novelty items and more at the gift shop!

Image courtesy of arizonascenicroads.com

Plan to motor west? Take the highway that is best.

Historic Route 66 is the most popular of US roadways and Arizona happens to be home to its longest remaining stretch. Start a little off the route in Lake Havasu City, where you’ll behold the London Bridge – an Arizona treasure and bucket list bastion. Traveling north, hit up Kingman, the heart of Route 66. Here you’ll find a Route 66 Museum and the home to the 2014 International Route 66 Festival, which will bring visitors worldwide to the city of Kingman August 14 – 17.

From Kingman, drive through Williams, where you can hit up Bearizona or take a ride on the Grand Canyon Railroad. From there, it’s just a quick trip to Flagstaff for a venture into the Lowell Observatory or a hike at Canyon de Chelly, and then it’s on to Winslow, where you can stand on the corner and enjoy a night stay at the historic La Posada Inn.

You know what they say… it’s the place to get your kicks.