Photo Courtesy of Greater Phoenix Convention & Visitors Bureau

The Tovrea Castle is not like the castles that were built in the Middle Ages. The walls of this castle don’t tell tales of nobility. Instead, these walls tell tales of unfulfilled dreams.

The castle, which today resembles that of a traditional wedding cake, was built by Italian immigrant Alessio Carraro. In 1928, Alessio moved to Arizona with dreams of developing a resort destination and housing subdivision known as Carraro Heights within Phoenix. The centerpiece of his vision was a hotel, which is the main structure we see today.

Carraro’s dreams never came to fruition as the hotel and property were sold in 1932. It is unknown what exactly squandered Carraro’s dreams.

The Castle was bought by the Tovrea family and eventually by the city of Phoenix. Today, visitors of the castle can tour its gardens; walk-in tour requests are based on availability only. There are no tours in the months of July or August.

Photo Courtesy of City of Phoenix

Located in Papago Park, next to the Phoenix Zoo is Gov. Hunt’s Tomb. A tall, white pyramid atop a small hill, nestled next to the red buttes of the park. Arizona Gov. George W.P. Hunt was dubbed “King George VII,” with an impressive track record of being Arizona’s 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 7^th, 8^th, and 10^th governor, which stands to show why he was considered “friend of the common man.”

When Hunt’s wife died in 1931 he had her buried on the hill in Papago Park, in a 20-foot-tall pyramid faced with solid white tile. When he died three years later he joined her, and was later joined in turn by his in-laws, his wife’s sister, and his daughter. Plaques on his pyramid declare that he was a descendant of an unnamed “Revolutionary War patriot,” that he allowed women to vote in his state eight years before the rest of the country, and that he was elected governor seven times, which “set a national record.”

The tomb was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008, and can be seen from anywhere in Papago Park, offering a panoramic view of the eastern part of the Valley of the Sun

Photo Courtesy of City of Phoenix

Camelback Mountain

With an elevation of 2,704 feet, and a 360-degree view of the Valley at its highest point, Camelback Mountain is an excellent hike or climb in Arizona, especially when you do not want to venture too far, and want to do a much quicker hike – as opposed to all day. Camelback Mountain is located in the Camelback Mountain Echo Canyon Recreation Area between Phoenix, Scottsdale and Paradise Valley.

There are 2 hiking trails, Echo Canyon and Cholla, and while both trails are rather difficult, the exhilaration once you’ve completed and gone to that highest point with a view of the entire city, its worth it! For first-timers, you can schedule a guided hike up Camelback Mountain, read about other hikers’ experiences, as well as post your own.

Piestewa Peak 

What once was an old horse trail and trail for mining is now a varying, beautiful, and challenging trail. Start first thing in the morning and when you get to the top enjoy the array of colors illuminating the sky, or do this as a means to get your cardio-workout in. Whatever you decide, the trail is comparative to Camelback with its difficulty level, but just as equal with its luscious desert backdrop and view of the city from the north.

Its highest peak is at 1,208 feet, and approximately fifteen miles of interconnecting trails in the Preserve, ranging from easy to difficult, one can easily spend only 30 minutes to several hours hiking and taking in the sights.

Photo Courtesy of AZ Central

South Mountain 

With 70 miles-worth of trails to choose from, and ranging from easy to skilled, South Mountain is another great place to hike and stay close to the Phoenix area. Located at Central Avenue, south of Dobbins Road, the trails can very easily take you a short distance of mostly even-surface, to rugged, multi-leveled trails for the avid hiker or mountain biker. If you’re feeling a wild hair, hike to the top where you will get a gorgeous view of the city on one side and the other a serene view of the northernmost part of the Gila River Reservation where peaceful scape of the outstretched horizon can be seen for miles. While this can be an enjoyable hike for many, it is forewarned that these trails are underdeveloped and wildlife is very much a part of the area, so take caution!

Hiking in Phoenix: https://www.phoenix.gov/parks/trails/ 

Photo Courtesy of Apache Trail Tours

The Drive

Just east of the city of Mesa, turning off at State Route 88 (Idaho Road) from State Route 60, is the historic Apache Trail. The 42-mile long trip offers a bumpy, back-door, Salt River route from Apache Junction, on the eastern outskirts of Phoenix, to Theodore Roosevelt Lake and then on to the mining town of Globe. The paved portion of the Apache Trail leads past a ghost town, a gold mine, a desert mystery and a cliff-sided lake.

Beyond the city lights and nearby residents of the East Valley, the Sonoran Desert  on display with yuccas and saguaros can be seen as you make the journey down a roller-coaster descent to a robber’s refuge, past a lazy lake, through a river canyon, and on to the extrinsically constructed dam, which paved the way to what Phoenix is today.

Patient drivers with no fear of heights are rewarded with three awe-inspiring desert lakes and the history and mystery of thousands of years of human adaptation to a volcanic landscape of drought, shard and thorn. The road, completed in 1905, initially used to aid in the construction of Roosevelt Dam, offers a jagged stretch of the Salt River, which first nourished a thousand years of Salado civilization, receives its waters from the White Mountains and the Mogollon Rim country.

The Lost Dutchman

The route continues to amaze with its rich history as you are lead past the touristy ghost town of Goldfield and then to the rugged Lost Dutchman State Park. Goldfield enjoyed a flurry as a gold-mining town in the 1890s when a rich gold strike supported a population of up to 5,000, and yielded about $1.5 million in bullion before the mine shafts flooded and the ore played out in 1897. The town revived a few years ago as a tourist attraction, with reconstructed buildings, exhibits and a simulated mine tour. The Mammoth Steakhouse and Saloon caters to meandering visitors, actors put on weekend gunfights, and mine tours offer a glimpse of the deadly life of a hardscrabble miner.

The Lakeviews

Apache Lake comes into view from a striking vista point. Protected by the harrowing drive and the minimal facilities, Apache Lake offers excellent fishing and some of the best lakeside camping opportunities in central Arizona. It has a marina, complete with boat rentals, a restaurant, fishing shop and motel rooms, but remains much less developed or visited than Canyon Lake. When full, Apache Lake stretches for 17 miles and measures 266 feet deep, although drought has lately lowered lake levels. Isolated stands of cottonwoods, accessible only by boat, provide good camping spots.

Roosevelt Dam. After a succession of floods and droughts repeatedly debilitated a string of farming communities along the Salt River in Maricopa County, a coalition of politicians, farmers and others convinced the federal government to build a massive dam on the river to control floods, store water and generate power

Photo Courtesy of US Bureau of Reclamation

Roosevelt Dam

Faced with the floods and droughts, early Phoenix farmers pressed the federal government to build the dam that launched the reestablishment of the West. Roosevelt Dam created what was in 1911 the world’s largest artificial lake – Roosevelt Lake with a million-acre-foot capacity, a depth of up to 190 feet and 89 miles of shoreline. Wrestling the 344,000 cubic yards of masonry into place in the remote, flood-prone canyon proved unexpectedly dangerous. During construction, relying on an innovative 1,200-foot-long cable line with iron scoops that could hold 10 tons of rock and mortar, 42 men died.

Decades later, an analysis of the growth rings on ancient trees in cliff dwellings scattered throughout the Salt River watershed disclosed that the Salt River could generate much larger floods than the original dam engineers had anticipated. The discovery triggered in 1996 a $430 million upgrade of the dam, boosting its height 77 feet to 357 feet. The work included a $21 million, 1,080-foot-long bridge that stands as the longest, two-lane, single-span, steel-arch bridge in North America. The bridge, like a giant outstretched arm, reaches across the canyon of Roosevelt Lake, taking traffic off the top of the dam, which was barely wide enough to accommodate two Model T Fords abreast. Engineers significantly lowered the level of Roosevelt Lake during the project, and Arizona State University archaeologists conducted a series of archaeological digs around the lake. They found a huge complex of buildings that accommodated Salado farmers who irrigated with canals.

While it’s still unclear why the Salado Natives abandoned their homeland, this piece of mysterious history is tied into the rest of the amazing sights and antiquity – all on display along the Apache Trail.

Photo Courtesy of Arizona Wigwam

Does everyone remember Arizona’s 5 C’s? Copper, Cattle, Climate, Citrus and… cotton! Cotton is especially important to the town of Litchfield Park, home to the historic Wigwam Resort.

Originally, the Wigwam Resort was built to serve as a lodge for ranch suppliers. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company discovered, in 1918, that cotton was the key ingredient to maintaining the life expectancy of its tires. The company bought 16,000 acres of land in the west Valley to cotton farm. To house workers, employees and ranching suppliers, the company established the Organization House, which also served as a winter vacation spot for Goodyear executives and their families.

The Wigwam officially opened on Thanksgiving Day in 1929, as a guest ranch with rooms for 24 guests. Five years later, a golf course was built. The resort has grown over the past 80 years and a portion of the original structure remains at the center of it all.

Visitors today can experience the 331-room resort, which includes three championship golf courses, tennis courts, swimming pools, a water slide, spa and luxury dining.

http://wigwamarizona.com/arizona-resort-history.shtml

Photo Courtesy of Estrella Mountain Regional Park

Estrella Mountain Regional Park, located in the city of Goodyear, offers more than 33 miles of trails for hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding. Park Trails range in length from 2.3 miles to 8.8 miles and range in difficulty from easy to strenuous. If you are looking for an easy, relatively short hike, the 2.4 mile Baseline Trail is recommended. If you are looking for a long, all day hike, the Pederson Trail encompasses 8.7 miles.

Hiking and riding trails are easily accessible via trailheads located at the arena and amphitheater. A mountain bike trail brochure that categorizes trail difficulty is available at the park office. Visit Estrella’s Trails page for a complete list of trails and distances, and park hours.

Always remember to carry plenty of water and let someone know where you are going.

Photo Courtesy of TripAdvisor.Com

There are just some things that can’t quite be described as any other way than just “Uniquely Arizona.” The Space Age Lodge and Restaurant in Gila Bend is one of those places. Where else, but Arizona, could you be driving down the street of a small town, and happen upon a hotel beneath a giant, plastic UFO?

The landmark hotel opened in 1965 and was designed by Al Stovall, a metal and plastic supplier during World War II, said to have been good friends of President Eisenhower. Stovall created five futuristic-themed lodges, including the Space Age Lodge at Disneyland and others in Anaheim, California. The Space Age Lodge in Gila Bend is the only one rmaining with the originally intended appearance.

Photo Courtesy of TripAdvisor.Com

The hotel came under new management in the late 1970s and Best Western did a renovation in the mid 1980s to update its look. In 1998, a neon sign shorted, caught the restaurant on fire and nearly burned the structure to the ground. But the restaurant and hotel were renovated, keeping the original space exploration theme. A new flying saucer was added and murals were painted in the lobby. The rooms of the hotel feature space art and photos from NASA exploration.

Travelers looking for something a little different or Arizonans looking for a unique weekend getaway, will be spending time in Gila Bend, but enjoy feeling like they have just landed on the moon.

Photo Courtesy of TripAdvisor.Com

Photo Courtesy of Town of Fountain Hills

The Fountain Hills Fountain helps bring people together. Given that it is shoots as high as 330 feet (560 feet at its highest), the white plume of the fountain is visible far beyond Fountain Hills.

The Fountain operates each hour on the hour for 15 minutes from 9 am – 9 pm.

When the Fountain operates at night, lights illuminate the plume from top to bottom. There are lights installed on the concrete fountain head that not only light the structure itself but also shine up on the rapidly ascending stream of water.

The Fountain helps remind people the connection between them, even when far away. When you look at the Fountain, you can be comforted by the knowledge that someone else has their gaze fixed on it, too.

Photo Courtesy: Cronkite News Online

Just south of Eloy, Picacho Peak has been used as a navigational landmark for hundreds of years, and was the site of Arizona’s only Civil War battle. The 3-mile round trip stretch has been rated as “moderate” by most hikers due to its well-maintained trail and easy walking with trail elevation in most areas with only one steep section aided with steel handrails and cables. While on the trail you can expect to see an abundance of wildlife, enjoy the natural surroundings away from all the bustle of the city, as well as possibly a glimpse of petroglyphs from the historic Hohokam tribe.

With the ease of the trail, one can take the time to appreciate the view, mixed with a little bit of history, and a 360-degree breathtaking view of the surrounding Sonoran desert, what’s not to love?

The park re-opens to the public on September 13. Catch some practice hikes in the valley and then hit the trail just as summer starts to turn to early Arizona fall.

http://azstateparks.com/Parks/PIPE/ 

Photo Courtesy of the City of El Mirage

El Mirage is the perfect place to enjoy a day full of sunshine at Gateway Park.

Located directly off El Mirage road, the 13-acre park has something for every member of the family. Multi-use fields serve as the hub for team sports, and a ½-mile path awaits runners, parents jogging with strollers and owners walking dogs on leashes.

Families can enjoy a picnic lunch in one of the park’s ramadas and then spend the afternoon playing with their young children under the covered playground or in the area’s splash park. Older children can bring their skateboards to spend time in the 15,000 square foot plaza-style park, full of obstacles for skating enthusiasts to enjoy. Dog owners can join the fun, too, as they bring Fido on a trip to the dog park.

http://www.cityofelmirage.org/index.aspx?nid=1415