Thursday, January 14, 2016

Back to Arizona






We were in Arizona for our anniversary last October and I wanted to continue with our trip.  If you want to read more about the beginning of our trip you can go HERE  and HERE

Most of our travels go pretty much as we have planned.  Our plans were to go see the Tonto Natural Bridge.  It was a very HOT day as we began our trip through the Tonto National Forest.  The Tonto National Forest is almost 3 million acres that has a variety of vegetation because of the range in altitude changes from 1,300 ft to 7,900 feet.  We were traveling through this beautiful area as the temperature was hovering around 100 degrees.




We made sure we had our water with us along with a few snacks.  The GPS was directing us to our destination for the day.  The desert changes quite quickly as we travel along the road.




Tonto National Forest borders on the south, Phoenix, and the Mogollon Rim to the north and the San Carlos and Fort Apache Indian reservations are to the east.




At about this point Grayden says--"Oh no, we did not get gas!"  Oh, I say we'll see a gas station soon.  Grayden checks the GPS and learns we have 49 miles before there is a gas station.  Oh MY!  At this point we see that we have about an eighth of a tank of gas.  We are driving a very small vehicle that we are hoping gets good gas mileage!




As beautiful this drive was we were both worried!!  Grayden was trying to conserve gas as well as he could by going slower and coasting down the mountains!  The gas warning light was on and the booklet about the car had no information on how much gas remained after the warning light came on!




We both are feeling pretty foolish.  This is a desolate road and with it being so hot I was so worried!  We coasted into the first service station in Payson!  Our prayers were answered!  We were so relieved!




We could now breathe a little easier and we definitely learned our lesson to not allow our brains to be on vacation!




The air is much cooler now and filled with the wonderful fragrance of pine as we travel to Tonto Natural Bridge.




The drive had beautiful views with roads winding and twists and turns.  In the valley of pine trees is the Tonto Natural Bridge State Park.  The Natural Bridge is thought to be the largest travertine bridge in the world.  Apparently David Gowan, a prospector, came upon the bridge as he was chased by Apaches.  He hid there for two nights in a cave.  He then laid squatter's rights to the land and invited his nephew, David Gowan Goodfellow, to bring his family over from Scotland.




Driving up to the Park we go into this house to pay for our entrance.






It was a charming old lodge that had the most interesting interior.




We then walked outside and drove to the parking lot to view the Tonto Natural Bridge.  The only natural bridge that we had seen is in Virginia.  That bridge we look up to view its beauty. You can go HERE  to learn more. This bridge was a little different as the top of the bridge is ground level that includes walking paths and picnic tables.  You can hike down below to view the bridge and you can also walk to four overlooks to look down into the natural bridge.








If you look at the photo below you will see the walkway at the top right.  This gives you a perspective of how large this cave is.




After visiting the Tonto Natural Bridge we drove back to Payson and had lunch at another wonderful Mexican restaurant.  After lunch we drove to the Tonto National Monument.  Driving there we went through the most lovely Tonto Basin area.








The beauty of this area is a study in contrast!  The Salt River was erratic with frequent flooding so between 1905 and 1911 The Theodore Roosevelt Dam was constructed to harness the water for irrigation of the desert.  Now the land could be farmed. 






Tonto National Monument is just around the bend.  The views are breathtaking.






The Tonto National Monument are two of hundreds of once thriving communities in the Tonto Basin.  They lived in the cliffs for protection from the elements and the erratic river below.  The shallow cave dwellings into the side of the mountain is nearly 700 years old.  Lying between the northern Colorado Plateau and the southern Sonoran Desert, Tonto Basin is one of many valleys and basins with evidence of early farming activity.






If you look closely you can see the cliff dwelling.






The Tonto National Monument visitor center sits in the front of the cliff dwelling.  We viewed the cliff dwelling from the viewing patio.  Inside there were a few exhibits.




This was a old photo from the late 1800's of a couple who took up residence in the cliff dwelling.




The views as we left the National Monument left us with a feeling of why 700 years ago ancient people made this their home.  The Tonto Basin area certainly gave us a feeling of coolness on this very warm day.  










20 comments:

  1. I've never been to Arizona! Your pictures are wonderful! So sorry for the anxious time about reaching a gas station before the car chugged to an undesirable halt.:) I've been to Natural Bridge, but it was a number of years ago - too many, actually.:)

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    1. Thank you so much for leaving such a nice comment, Nellie! We hadn't been to Arizona since 1970 so we decided to do something different for our anniversary. I'll be posting about the rest of our trip soon. You can check out my first two posts about Arizona if you wish. ♥

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  2. Thank you for the early morning tour of the Arizona desert. We will be going the beginning of April for a family wedding but hope to spend a few extra days sightseeing. We've been a couple times, so will look forward to more posts on Arizona to see what all there is to see that we've not seen. We've been to Virginia's Natural Bridge. It doesn't look as though you can walk under the Tonto bridge. Is that water I spy?

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    1. Cathy, there is water under the Tonto bridge. A small creek runs through the bottom. There is so much to see in Arizona and I will be posting a couple more of our days there. We enjoyed this visit so much and I imagine in April you will have nice weather. ♥

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  3. Beautiful photos
    scoopfromahandicapper.blogspot.com

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  4. Even though my sons live out near Phoenix, we have not been up there yet. They are just so busy with work and ARMY stuff, that we can't all get together on the same day to go anywhere. I might have to do what I did in VA for the OBX and Williamsburg trips. Take each son on separate trips.
    It is beautiful and so are your pictures!!!

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    1. Margot, while your sons are in Arizona, you should take advantage of that and visit as many places as you can. As oppressive the heat was the week we were there, we enjoyed it very much. Have a great day! ♥

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  5. It's such different terrain out west. I find the cactuses fascinating to see up close. Interesting post with great photos!

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    1. I think that's what made our visit so interesting, Dotsie. I wouldn't have a clue how to garden out west! ♥

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  6. What a fun trip to Arizona, Martha Ellen. It looks so hot in this area. I have a blog friend who lives in northern Arizona, and it snows there in the winter months. Your photos are great, and I loved seeing all the cactus on the side of the mountain. Nature sure is beautiful everywhere we go. wow, the cave dwellings on the mountain go back almost 700 years!

    It's always interesting going along with you on your trips, Martha Ellen. Today, I got to see Arizona!

    ~Sheri

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    1. Sheri, it was a very hot week in Arizona when we were there. Our country certainly has so much diversity. Out west is so different from where I live in the east. Thank you for coming along on our trip! ♥

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  7. (I forgot to come back after I lost a few comments and gave up. Trying again...)

    This is a beautiful part of Arizona that I have never seen. I do remember the scent of pine so heavy in the air in the northern part of the state. I was comforted by it.

    The part about going all that way on such a low tank of gas would definitely be concerning! So glad that you didn't have to hoof it out there.

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    1. Thank you for coming back, Vee. I think almost running out of gas in that heat was one of the dumbest things we've ever done. My Mama always said that God takes care of children and fools. I guess I know what category we fall in. ♥

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  8. Oh my! You had me on the edge of my seat as you told the gasoline story! I'll bet the relief was palpable when you slid into that gas station! (I'm afraid my brain goes on vacation far too often.)

    Beautiful scenes there in Arizona. I'll bet the bridge was really something to behold. (Natural Bridge in Virginia is really something to behold! Fascinating!)

    The lodge is very lodge-y. :)

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    1. Cheryl, it was quite tense in our car that day. Hopefully we learned a lesson! In spite of our foolishness, we had a wonderful day enjoying the beauty of Arizona. ♥

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  9. I love your warm and inviting header! The photos are beautiful. What a different landscape from Wisconsin! And yet also so beautiful. I would have been scared too of running out of gas. I can imagine your relief when coming into town. Phew! I'd love to visit Arizona right about now. :-)

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    1. Thank you, Judy! Arizona would feel good on a cold day like today here in VA, temps in the 30's. I'm sure you can beat that! The gas saga was quite interesting to say the least! Stay warm and cozy, my friend! ♥

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  10. What spectacular views, Martha Ellen! My heart stopped when you mentioned the gas gauge. That would be a huge problem in the desert heat! It's so tricky when driving an unfamiliar rental car, too. (We had a similar experience driving up South Mountain in Phoenix. We held our breath until we coasted into a gas station after reaching the bottom of the mountain.)

    The Tonto Natural Bridge is in such a pretty area. My husband and my mom hiked way down, while my dad and I watched and photographed them from the top. I loved our visit to the Tonto National Monument. It is a very special cliff dwelling. We loved walking up close to take a look. Just amazing! We were there in early Spring, so the temperatures were much more comfortable for walking. Thank you so much for sharing your special trip with us! So many happy memories! ♡Dawn@Petals.Paper.SimpleThymes

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    1. Dawn, we felt so foolish about the lack of gas in that heat and the desolate road! I shudder to think what would have happened if we did run out of gas!
      We would have loved to hike down to the bottom of Tonto Natural Bridge and up to the Cliff Dwelling. The temperature was over 100 and we just didn't feel up to that hike in the heat. That must have been very special to see up close! Thank you so much for your kind comments, my friend! xo ♥

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