Picacho
Campground
Picacho Peak RV Resort
This was a very nice park located right next to the Picacho Peak State Park. The park's community was very active, with scheduled parties and activities (pickleball, caroling, bands, etc.). We taught several line dance lessons and the participants were a hit at the New Year's eve party!
Things to see
Bisbee
Downtown Bisbee is a small mining town. It was a nice walk around town and there are a few cute shops and restaurants to visit after the Queen Copper Mine Tour (see below).
Casa Grande Ruins National Monument
Interesting site that preserves a group of Hohokam structures dating back to 1150-1450. It will only take about an hour to walk around the entire park and read the placards. Dogs allowed.
Fort McDowell Tonto National Forest
Fun place to see wild horses frolicking in the Salt River. We found them in the Coon Bluff Recreational area (see map).
Kartchner Caverns State Park
This is a beautiful and pristinely kept cave. It is not as large as Carlsbad Caverns; however, it is just as beautiful. The effort they put in to keep this cave as natural as possible was amazing. There are no pictures allowed while in the cave. No dogs allowed.
Queen Copper Mine
Don a hard hat, miner's headlamp, and yellow slicker and take a ride on a mine car deep into an old copper mine in Bisbee, AZ. The tour guide was a retired mine worker and shared true stories of working in the mine. I'm sure OSHA would NOT have approved of some of the practices.
Rooster Cogburn Ostrich Ranch
We really enjoyed seeing all the animals in creative settings. It will only take about an hour or two to make the rounds through the ostriches, goats, ducks, chickens, bunnies, birds, stingrays, deer, tortoise, and our favorite, donkeys!
Saguaro National Park
Great drive through the park to see amazing views of Saguaros. No dogs allowed on hikes. The crescent-shaped top, seen in the pictures, occurs only in only about 1 in 100,000 cacti (so we were told by rangers).
Tombstone
We visited Tombstone AZ, known for its Wild West history, with mom, dad, Uncle Keith, and Aunt Carol. We highly recommend taking in a gunfight re-enactment. Lots of shops and restaurants to enjoy.
Hiking
Picacho Mountains Petroglyph Sites
Firstly, you will need a four-wheeled drive vehicle to get to the trailhead as the road is deep sand. Secondly, while the petroglyphs are very cool, it is hard to tell which ones are authentic. The site is not protected and we suspect there are many drawings that were done recently. The trail is an ATV road. There was no one else around so Polly was able to walk off-leash. Be careful to not stray off the road as there were many thorns. Dogs allowed.
Picacho Peak via Hunter Trail
This was only a 3 mile hike; however, it was one of the most difficult we have done. Highly recommend wearing gloves to assist when using the cables along the difficult sections. The bragging rights of having completed it, and the view on the top, were well worth it. Dogs are allowed only up to the saddle (due to the rock climbing required to reach the peak).
Sunset Vista Trail
This trail will also lead to Picacho Peak; however, we stopped about 1/2 mile from the top as we had Polly and rock climbing is required to reach the peak. Trail is full of pretty views of various Saguaro cacti. Dogs are allowed only up to the saddle (due to the rock climbing required to reach the peak).
Biking
Arica Road Trailhead
The Arica Road Trailhead provides access to several trails (easy, moderate and difficult). There were only a few people on the trails so it was a great place to practice our mountain biking skills!
Motorcycling
Picacho Peak RV Resort to Kitt Peak
This was a nice ride with beautiful views. None of the public areas were open at the Peak. We do not know why, no signs explained it. It is cool to see all the observatories.
Food and Drink
Gallopin' Goose
We stopped here for a few drinks and karaoke. Waylon Jennings used to work here! The guy that runs the karaoke is a Elvis impersonator and does a really good job; great voice, great look, also performs large events.
To make a long story short ...
Drew Harrison, "the junk guy"
Drew has a home near Marana, AZ. When we met, he said "I have that disease". You know, the one where you can't stop collecting things. For him, "things" are old machines. Tractors, construction equipment, steam engines, trucks, cars.
He works with a local 4-H group to treat each restoration as a project for the group. They help tear it completely down, clean, fix, reassemble, paint. They even learn how to operate one. Ultimately, they pick the color scheme. In the pictures, you'll see the "breast cancer awareness", "heart disease awareness", etc.
Two steam engine tractors get fired up (literally!) when Drew and a group of local guys get together a couple times a year. It really takes a group to get them running and moving.
When I asked him why he collects all this stuff, Drew said, [paraphrased] "to make sure they are preserved for our kids". These old machines were feats of engineering, in their times. They are quite amazing to see up close. Simple by today's standards but built to last decades, if not centuries. He has dozens upon dozens of machines of all types scattered around his property. Some still need attention but a great number of them are quite usable.
I must say, he had me drooling over a 1969 Ford Mustang Mach I that he had sitting in his personal garage.
What a wonderfully kind and generous person, Drew.