Discover awe-inspiring Arizona
Wherever you look, there they are, giving you a jaunty wave or displaying a shrug with their long extremities, and generally emanating a happy, feel-good vibe. I’m talking about the tall, multi-limbed saguaro cacti, which carpet the desert state of Arizona as tulips do in Holland.
These fuzzy looking, stately, green plants can grow up to 40ft high.
They are, of course, not quite as adorable as they look, studded as they are with sharp, thorny spikes – but, as shorthand for flagging up that you’re now in the desert, they do the trick.
Arizona contains parts of four different deserts, the largest being the Sonoran in the south west, which is the only one that’s home to saguaros. The state itself covers nearly 114,000 square miles, encompassing a decent stretch of the Grand Canyon, and is known for its striking, contrasting landscapes, its hiking trails, forests and even ski slopes. We’re taking a classic road trip from the small town of Scottsdale, east of state capital Phoenix, to the mountain town of Flagstaff, and back down to Tucson and Mesa.
Cowboy Country
Scottsdale is a great starting point – we discover it’s a charming, walkable place, with a historic centre.
This is real cowboy country. There are sculptures and statues of broncos, buffalo and Native Americans peppering Main Steet, and many of the shops and boutiques are still designed like the 19th-century wooden or adobe buildings which made up small towns in the Old West.
There are also art galleries and jewellery stores galore, but my favourite find is the Rusty Spur Saloon, where we stop for lunch – a rough-and-ready, yee-ha bar with live music.
A surprising – and welcome – discovery is that Arizona produces a lot of wine; many of the state’s hundred or so vineyards are based around the Chiricahua Mountains, four hours south. I’m taken with a fruity Syrah at LDV Winery’s tasting room, and a spicy Sangiovese at nearby Carlson Creek Vineyard.
The next day – perhaps to clear the cobwebs – we set off on our first proper hike. One of Scottsdale’s must-dos is the mighty Camelback Mountain, where a couple of steep trails take you up to 1,280ft, but we
Stunning landscapes,
Wild West history and fine wines make the state of Arizona well worth a visit
start more gently, with a two-hour walk around the Gateway Loop, which rises to a more manageable 650ft.
Stars And Snow
Our next stop is Flagstaff, to the north. The temperature falls as the elevation rises, and we can see snow-topped mountains rising in the distance, then eventually we arrive in the quaint, quirky, little college town, bisected by that famous American highway, Route 66.
A stroll through the town highlights beautiful, creative murals on many buildings, and craft breweries. It also has its own ski resort a short drive out of town.
Flagstaff also has the honour of having been named, in 2001, the world’s first ‘International Dark Sky City’, thanks to its low light pollution. At Lowell
Cute prairie dogs pop their heads out of their burrows, meerkat-style
Observatory, huge telescopes allow you to peek at the moon’s craters and Orion’s Belt.
Next morning, we visit the Museum of Northern Arizona. Its hundreds of fascinating artefacts belonged to the local Native American tribes who’ve lived in Arizona for around 15,000 years.
The Grand Finale
Our next stop was Tucson – a buzzing, university town full of interesting architecture, from the Fox Theatre – a retro, 1930s cinema which still shows movies – to the old, Spanish Colonialstyle courthouse, with a domed, mosaic-tiled roof. Just outside Tucson is the beautiful mission of San Xavier del Bec, an 18th-century church established by Spanish priests.
We end with a visit to the Sonoran Desert Museum – a park and zoo. Cute little prairie dogs pop their heads out of their burrows, meerkat-style, and a couple of javelinas – like mini wild boar – sun themselves under a tree. Then we’re waved off, after our epic adventure, by more of those friendly saguaro…