| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Viewed: 4/18/2024 |
Page Views: 1295 | |
| Topics: #Photography #Travel #Arizona | |||
| Photos of my travels through Arizona. | |||
How I Got To Arizona
I have wanted to live in Arizona since my first visit here, in 1961. But it wasn't until 1997 that I was able to make that move.
Behind my (then) new Toyota 4-Runner, my then-partner and I towed the largest U-Haul we could get. Mom was visiting me in Manchester, New Hampshire—it was still summer—so I brought her, too. We drove through New York State, Memphis, Texas, and eventually arrived at the place we had chosen, Snowflake, AZ.
I still had to work, though, traveling to the East Coast nearly every week. The eight-hour round trip to Phoenix's Sky Harbor airport proved too grueling; and in July, 1999, we packed again and moved to Peoria, AZ, a suburb of Phoenix.
With the events of September, 2001, I lost my career as corporate instructor and had to get local work. Then, in 2010, I became disabled but that just gives me more time to explore what I still think is the most beautiful state in the country!
Here are some of my very favorite adventures in the Grand Canyon State.
You Know You're In Arizona When…
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 163 | ||
| Topics: #Humor #Arizona | |||
| Humorous list of Arizona's more challenging aspects. | |||
You can say 115 degrees without fainting. You can be in the snow, then drive for an hour and it will be over 100 degrees. You notice your car overheating before you drive it. You have to go to a fake beach for some fake waves. You discover, in July, that it only takes two fingers to drive your car.
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Arizona Sunsets
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 334 | ||
| Topics: #Photography #Travel #Arizona #Sunsets | |||
| My many photos of spectacular Arizona sunsets. | |||
Arizona is known for its spectacular sunsets. And I can't resist taking photos of them. So, if you enjoy looking at beautiful sunset photos, I've got you covered.
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A Week In Arizona
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Posted: 7/12/2006 |
Page Views: 2152 | |
| Topics: #Arizona #Sedona | |||
| When friends ask what there is to do if they come to Arizona for a week's vacation, this is what I tell them. | |||
Although we live in the Phoenix area, some friends who are going to stay in Sedona have asked me to compile a list of things that might be fun to see and do while they are there. Since Sedona, and Arizona, are so awesome, I thought I'd share that list with everyone.
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Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Occurred: 2/21/2009 |
Page Views: 1633 | |
| Topics: #Places #Photography #BoyceThompsonArboretumStatePark #Arizona | |||
| A visit to one of Arizona's lesser-known gems. | |||
Saturday morning I set out to hike in Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park, which is located about four miles west of Superior, Arizona, about 35 miles from my house. I had thought it would be a small place (I didn't realize it was an actual state park until I got there) but it wasn't; it contains many paths and trails and is suitable for anyone who wants to get out in the fresh air for a bit. It also happens to be breathtakingly beautiful. So, of course, I took a lot of photos.
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Flagstaff Area
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1198 | ||
| Topics: #Places #Arizona #Flagstaff | |||
| Includes area attractions such as Lockett Meadow, Sunset Crater, and Walnut Canyon. | |||
Flagstaff is the largest city, and the county seat, of Arizona's noprthern Coconino County. Home of Northern Arizona University and Lowell Observatory, and adjacent to at least four National Monuments as well as Grand Canyon National Park, if you want to enjoy the parts of Arizona that are as un-desert-like as possible, you can't go wrong with Flagstaff.
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Fossil Springs Wilderness
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1859 | ||
| Topics: #FossilSpringsWilderness #FossilCreek #Arizona #VerdeHotSpring | |||
| Photos and essays about Arizona's beautiful and rugged Fossil Springs Wilderness. | |||
Fossil Springs Wilderness is an 11,550-acre (18 square mile) wilderness area within the Coconino National Forest in the beautiful state of Arizona. It is at the bottom of a steep canyon at the edge of the Colorado Plateau, just south of the Mogollon Rim. At Fossil Springs, water gushes forth at the rate of about 2,700 cubic fee per minute as Fossil Creek. The perennial water supply supports one of the most diverse riparian ecosystems in the state, with more than 30 species of trees set among native desert shrub. It also creates a haven for abundant wildlife, including elk, deer, javelina, coyote, skunk, racoon, ring-tailed cat, fox, mountain lion, black bear and more than 100 species of birds.
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Grand Canyon
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1204 | ||
| Topics: #GrandCanyon #Arizona | |||
| Photos and travels in Grand Canyon, Arizona. | |||
The Grand Canyon of the Colorado River (yes, that's it's actual name) is the single most spectacular thing I've ever seen on Earth. Not only is its physical beauty unparalleled, but its psychic energy, for those who are sensitive to such things, is life-changing. This is the place I go to, over and over—for special occasions, to bring friends, for solitary contemplation.
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Kaiser Warm Spring
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Occurred: 10/1/2005 Updated: 1/14/2016 |
Page Views: 1523 | |
| Topics: #KaiserWarmSpring #Arizona #Wikiup | |||
| All the photos from and the story of a visit to remote Kaiser Warm Spring in central Arizona. | |||
Michael and I, who had each lost about 40 pounds on the Atkins diet, had fallen off the no-carb wagon and put most of it back on. The three days it takes to get back into "lipolysis" is murder, although the rest of the time the diet is easy to follow. So I decided to take myself out to the middle of nowhere so I wouldn't be tempted to run out and buy a donut.
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Mazatzal Mountains
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 134 | ||
| Topics: #FourPeaksRecreationArea #Arizona #MazatzalMountainWildernessArea | |||
| Photos of a diverse and ecologically rich area, rugged terrain with a mix of desert and highland ecosystems. | |||
The Mazatzal Mountains, a rugged and remote range in central Arizona, are characterized by a rich geological history and diverse ecology. Geologically, they feature Precambrian rocks, including the erosion-resistant Mazatzal Quartzite, and are known for the Great Unconformity, where nearly a billion years of Earth's history is missing between the Tapeats Sandstone and older rock units.
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Monument Valley
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1068 | ||
| Topics: #MonumentValley #EasternArizona #Arizona | |||
| All the adventures and photos from my trips to Monument Valley. | |||
Monument Valley is an exquisite example of erosion gone fabulous. Made famous by film director John Ford, most everyone in the world knows the images of Monument Valley, even if they don't know where the came from.
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Payson Area
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1077 | ||
| Topics: #Places #Arizona #Payson | |||
| Includes the Bee Line Highway, the Mogollon Rim and Tonto Natural Bridge. | |||
Payson is a town in northern Gila County, Arizona. Its location puts it very near to the geographic center of Arizona. Payson has been called "The Heart of Arizona". The town is surrounded by the Tonto National Forest and has many outdoor activities year round. Located at the base of the Mogollon Rim, it's an especially good base for camping, hiking, and photographic adventures.
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Petrified Forest National Park
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1098 | ||
| Topics: #Places #USA #PetrifiedForestNationalPark #PaintedDesert | |||
| Photos and narratives of trips I've made to see 220 million year old wood. | |||
Petrified Forest National Park is a United States national park in Navajo and Apache counties in northeastern Arizona. Named for its large deposits of petrified wood, the fee area of the park covers about 230 square miles, encompassing semi-desert shrub steppe as well as highly eroded and colorful badlands. The park's headquarters is about 26 miles east of Holbrook along Interstate 40 (I-40). The site, the northern part of which extends into the Painted Desert, was declared a national monument in 1906 and a national park in 1962. Typical visitor activities include sightseeing, photography, hiking, and backpacking.
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Phoenix and the Greater Phoenix Area
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1171 | ||
| Topics: #Phoenix #Arizona #CentralArizona #Travel | |||
| All my adventures and photos taken in and around Phoenix. | |||
Phoenix, Arizona's largest city, happens to be home to more parks and natural areas than any other city in America.
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A Visit to Picacho Peak State Park
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Occurred: 3/18/2024 |
Page Views: 177 | |
| Topics: #PicachoPeak #Arizona #PinalCounty | |||
| In which I finally visit the iconic mountain of south central Arizona. | |||
Anyone traveling by ground between Phoenix and Tucson can't miss the unique outline of Picacho Peak. It's so distinctive, that every time I've seen it, I wanted to stop and check it out—but never had time. Until today, when I drove there specifically for that purpose!
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Prescott Area
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1143 | ||
| Topics: #Places #Arizona #Prescott | |||
| Includes Willow Lake Heritage Park and Jerome. | |||
Prescott is a city in Yavapai County, Arizona. The city is the county seat of Yavapai County. In 1864 Prescott was designated as the capital of the Arizona Territory, replacing the temporary capital at Fort Whipple. The Territorial Capital was moved to Tucson in 1867. Prescott again became the Territorial Capital in 1877, until Phoenix became the capital in 1889. The city was named after author William H. Prescott, whose writings were popular during the Civil War. The Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe reservation is located adjacent to and partially within the borders of Prescott.
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Queen Creek Gorge
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Occurred: 12/21/2008 |
Page Views: 1713 | |
| Topics: #Superior #Arizona #QueenCreekGorge #Travel #Photography | |||
| All about my drive through one of Arizona's many scenic gems. | |||
About 30 miles east of where we live, along US 60, lies the little mining town of Superior, Arizona. It's a relatively unremarkable place, but just a few miles past it US 60 winds its way into a gorge dug eons ago by Queen Creek, which eventually winds its way into the Valley and gives its name to a smaller housing development that is one of the dozens of Phoenix suburbs.
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Salt River Canyon
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1116 | ||
| Topics: #SaltRiverCanyon #Arizona #EasternArizona #Travel | |||
| All my adventures and photos of Salt River Canyon in Eastern Arizona. | |||
Salt River Canyon is relatively remote, but so beautiful that it would be worth traveling to see even if it weren't the starting point for Upper Salt River rafting trips.
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Sedona Area
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1121 | ||
| Topics: #Sedona #Arizona | |||
| Includes Oak Creek and Oak Creek Canyon; Bell Rock. Airport Mesa, Slide Rock and more. | |||
One of Arizona's most precious jewels is the town and environs of Sedona. Nestled in a bed of red rocks jumbled from the mile-hile Mogollon Rim, Sedona is known for it's exquisite beauty as well as for metaphysical "energy vortices" with healing and enlightening powers.
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Sierra Ancha Wilderness and Bees
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Posted: 7/13/2008 |
Page Views: 1164 | |
| Topics: #Camping #SierraAnchaWilderness #SaltRiver #LakeRoosevelt #Arizona | |||
| Blog Entry posted July 13, 2008 | |||
This weekend's camping trip was in the Sierra Ancha Wilderness, in the mountains east of Roosevelt Lake. I went with a new friend, Wade, who hadn't been camping since he was a kid and had asked to be taken some place isolated and quiet…which I completely understand, because I am so over the noise and crush and pollution of the city.
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Snowflake
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1082 | ||
| Topics: #Places #Photography #Snowflake #Arizona | |||
| All the photos from the time I lived in Snowflake. | |||
When I moved to Arizona in 1997 with my then-fiancé, Michael, it was just outside of the little town of Snowflake we bought 40 acres of land with an old, but livable (we were told) trailer on it.
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Tonopah
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1095 | ||
| Topics: #Tonopah #CentralArizona #Arizona #Travel | |||
| All the adventures and photos from my trips to Tonopah, Arizona. | |||
Tonopah is a small town about 40 miles west of downtown Phoenix. However, it is home to a hot spring that is a favorite of mine, as well as some spectacular scenery.
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Tucson Area
| By: Paul S. Cilwa | Page Views: 1115 | ||
| Topics: #Places #Arizona #Tucson | |||
| Includes Mount Lemmon, Tombstone, and Biosphere 2. | |||
Tucson is a city and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona; and home to the University of Arizona. Tucson is the second-largest populated city in Arizona behind Phoenix, both of which anchor the Arizona Sun Corridor. The Spanish name of the city, Tucsón, is derived from the O'odham Cuk Ṣon, meaning "(at the) base of the black [hill]", a reference to a basalt-covered hill now known as Sentinel Peak. Tucson is sometimes referred to as "The Old Pueblo".
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