Beautiful Weather at Apache Junction

We were soooo happy to arrive at Apache Junction because the weather had warmed up a great deal. It was nice to be able to have to door open and walk Madison in shirt sleeves. We were staying at an RV park that was mostly full of seasonal visitors - lots of people from the snow states - Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota and also from Canada. We were just down the street from a super walmart and all other kinds of businesses as well, so it was very convenient.

While we were in town, we got to see our friends Robert and Shelley. Shelley has taken a nursing assignment while they spend the winter in Mesa. They are at one of the really big RV parks - over a thousand sites. We also got Madison groomed at the same groomer we used last year. She was a real mess - very overgrown and dusty. She looks much better now.

We had a coupon for 20% off at a local used bookstore and we got some good buys on audio books to listen to while driving. We hadn't indulged in bookstores in a while, so we may have overdone it since we went back a second time, but I love having books with us. We do a lot more reading now than I was able to do when teaching.

About eight miles away from our RV park was the Superstition Mountains, so we took a day to drive there. First we went to the Lost Dutchman Museum which was a good little private museum. Here are some examples of the wildlife that can be seen in the area

Wildlife at the Lost Dutchman museum

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I thought this was pretty cool - an exhibit of the mounted military through the years going all the way back to the Revolutionary War

Mounted Military through the ages

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There was a mock-up of the Lost Dutchman mine

Lost Dutchman mine

and the history of it. On the walls were many, many examples of maps which purported to show the way to the Lost Dutchman Mine

So many maps, so little gold

. Unfortunately no one has ever found the mine which had the same ore as the Lost Dutchman's.

Another interesting mock-up was a miniature of a movie set which used to be in the area

Movie set miniature

Many TV shows such as Death Valley Days, Have Gun Will Travel and Wanted: Dead or Alive were filmed on the set and an Elvis movie - Charro was also done there. The set burned twice however, and now nothing is left but the miniature.

We picked a great day to go to the Lost Dutchman State Park and see the Superstition Mountains up close

Superstition Mountains

. The light was good and the air was really clear. Here's another of many shots that I took of the mountains.

Another shot

While we were in the museum, we read the legend of the mountains from the Native American perspective. One was the Pima Indians and the other the Apaches. Both mirrored the story of Noah and the Flood in many areas. The people trying to escape the flood waters climbed up the mountains, but were turned to stone. Here you can see the "stone people" at the top of the mountains.

Turned to stone

On the drive back, we stopped at the Goldfield Ghost Town

Goldfield Ghost Town

. An old mining town which is open to the public - kind of touristy, but still fun and I enjoyed it much more that Tombstone which I thought put touristy on a new level.

Here you can see the Mercantile which offered a free taste of fudge and which I still regret that we didn't try.

Mercantile with free fudge taste

Every mining town had to have a jail

Rules of the jail

and of course, a bordello

Bordello on the hill

The picturesque staircase was used by many soiled doves of the past

Long and winding stair

This huge saguerro was right in the middle of the town

Majestic saguerro

Here you can see the Superstition Mountains in the background

It was a great day trip and highly recommended to anyone who comes to the Phoenix area.

We left on Thursday planning to stop one night along the way before arriving at Katherine Landing.

Jan 20, 2008

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