Photo Courtesy of Arizona United

The World Cup may be over, but the soccer sensation is alive and well in Peoria, Arizona. Keep that momentum of cheering for your team by heading to the Peoria Sports Complex to catch a match of the United Soccer League’s Arizona United Soccer Club.

In early spring, the complex serves as the spring home to the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres Major League Baseball teams. It also is a community gathering place for special events like the Peoria All America Festival and Halloween Monster Bash.

For the summer months, the baseball stadium becomes a soccer field where Arizonans can experience World Cup fever all summer, every summer. So come on out and cheer on the Arizona United as they continue their season through August!

http://www.peoriasportscomplex.com/Default.aspx

Photo Courtesy of City of Peoria

Considered an “advanced trail,” the 2.9-mile route on West Wing Mountain, located in the city of Peoria, starts at the northwest intersection of High Desert Drive and Higuera Drive, has been improved from the original version to make this hike even more interesting and scenic. The best modification that was made to this new route is that it seldom overlaps the same walking path except on your return trip down the hill. However, you will find out that the most difficult part of this advanced hike is within the first mile of the hike. Be prepared to climb to the mountain’s highest point with a few steep inclines along the way. Then, get ready to enjoy the remainder of the hike with panoramic views.

Another deemed “extreme” trail begins at same northwest intersection of High Desert Drive and Higuera Drive, where a sign indicates the trailhead for the 3.5-mile trail. The route has been modified from its original version to make this hike even more extreme and difficult. The advantage of this new route is that it seldom overlaps the same path, except at the most interesting part of the hike, and on your return trip down the hill. So build up your stamina, because this one is going to challenge you.

If you haven’t experienced it yet, it’s time you did. The trail head for Sunrise and WestWing Mountain includes off-street parking, restroom facilities, and chilled drinking fountains from 6:00 a.m. to dusk.  The New River Trail is designed to accommodate all non-vehicular users, including walkers, joggers, strollers, bicyclists, roller blades, and equestrians.

Enjoy your hiking experience: play by the rules; hike safely; be courteous of others; and please keep Peoria’s mountain spaces clean.

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 City of Globe

Arizona is a state rich in history, with deep roots in Native American culture. Visitors to Globe can get a glimpse of a culture past at the Besh Ba Gowah Salado Ruins and botanical garden, which houses the largest collection of Salado pottery artifacts in the world.

Vistiors will experience the Salado history and way of life, the coming of Apaches, miners and settlers. The Ethno-Botanical Garden depicts the plants that were used by the Salado in their daily lives and illustrates the tools that were used centuries ago.

Visitors can also visit the Don Haines Memorial Library, which includes a number of publications on archaeology and anthropology.

To take a trip to Globe and experience cultures past, visit: http://www.globeaz.gov/visitors/besh-ba-gowah.

Photo Courtesy: Florence Visitor Center

In the summer of 1995 six monks arrived in the southern Arizona desert to establish St. Anthony’s Monastery. They carried with them the sacred, millennial heritage of the Holy Mountain, Athos. The monastery is dedicated to St. Anthony the Great, the father of monasticism, the renowned 3^rd century anchorite

Visitors of the Monastery will gain insight into the monastery lifestyle. St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Monastery follows the coenobitic rule of monastic life: a brotherhood of monks and novices holding all things in common follow a daily schedule of prayer and work under obedience to the abbot, their spiritual father. The monks’ daily program begins at midnight with personal prayer time and spiritual reading, followed by the cycle of morning prayers and the Divine Liturgy. After a light breakfast and a rest period, the monks begin their work day, attending to prayer and their tasks till evening. Tasks include, among others, construction, grounds keeping, vine dressing, gardening, woodworking, publishing, food preparation, and offering hospitality. The day ends with evening Vespers followed by dinner and Compline.