Copper is King, Part 2. The Arizona Copper Museum

copper ceiling at the entry way w/copper butterflies

After the introduction to the beautiful Arizona Copper Museum yesterday,  you've just got to hear more about some of the very special exhibits and see some more of the beautiful copper work, especially if you cannot visit in person. 

As was mentioned, the museum is divided into different categories. The left photo is of the kitchen room. You probably knew that copper is the cookware of choice by most chefs in the world.  Did you also know it is always tin lined to protect it from food discoloration and copper toxicity? It's the only metal that has been cooked on continuously for eons. Below is a copper stove from the 1930's from a BARGE in Belgium.

The room with art and culture was beautiful, as all the rooms were. Sparky especially loved these pétanque balls from France. So beautiful!

The architecture and art room were just as amazing. Here is a copper dormer from the Carnegie Mansion in New York City. 

The room devoted to religion had this amazing copper frame called a riza that protected ancient portraits of religious figures. You had to be right in front of it to appreciate its beauty. And you could touch it if you wanted to. Out of reverence and a fear of the usual "DON'T TOUCH"! ingrained reprimands in the usual museums, Sparky didn't.

Everything about this museum is beautiful...the color of the walls setting off the hues of the copper, even the hooks that hang things are wrought iron and beautiful. This was in the beer and winemaking room.

And now, for the military room which was subtitled "Trench Art". Sparky found this room to be fascinating. This room contains a military art collection from WWI and WWII. The entire room is showcased with used brass (a copper and zinc alloy) artillery shells that have been made into souvenirs or mementos by soldiers ON THE BATTLEFIELD and in the trenches. 

It also had photos of the artillery that shot out these shells. One could vision the damage that a British QF18 pounder could yield with quick firing, shrapnel shells--374 bullets with a timed fuse. It could deliver 7,480 bullets per MINUTE.

Designs were thought of between battles and while not occupied, soldiers would collect lead bullets and debris along with the shells, melt the lead at their campfires to pour into the shell casings to provide a strong surface to scribe, hammer and dent the most amazing designs with just basic tools for the most part.

Prisoners would design a shell casing in exchange for food, cigarettes, wine, or money. When their design was complete, they melted the casing over the campfire again, and poured the molten lead back out to be used again. If the shells were sent home, they were repurposed as flower vases.

theme--cities

The designs were a multitude of themes--cities, battle commemorations, battle location of the soldiers, loved ones, patriotic symbols, symbols of faith and goodwill such as holly. Tools were improvised from damaged military equipment or purchased as professional tools. They took weeks to complete if complicated. Some were never finished and have lead remaining inside to this day. The size of the shell casings and reading about each country's artillery really makes one think about the horrendous damage caused by these machines. From an object of horror comes one of great beauty.

A typical shell casing size

Another part of the museum that was interesting was copper's role in the field of medicine. Sparky knew a few things, such as a little bit about the horseshoe crab, that has a hemocyanin copper based oxygen system, its blood turns blue when exposed to air, so to speak. According to the museum, the crab's blood is used by the FDA to test drugs, implants, and prosthetics because the crab's blood immediately coagulates and kills bacteria upon contact. The crab's blood is used to make a substance called LAL which is used for testing for contaminants in the  medial industry. What's sad is 10-30% of the crabs do not survive the bleeding procedure. There is concern that some day these ancient creatures that have survived for 450 million years may some day be wiped out. As you can imagine, a quart of the crab's blood is VERY expensive--15,000.00 a quart. The good side of all this? There IS an alternative to using crab blood, it's just been slow to be adopted by the medical industry with all its regulations. Why, that is not surprising at all, is it? It's called Factor C, a lab grown testing method and was first used in 2016 to test a drug. 

Copper has been used for centuries because of its antimicrobial and antibacterial properties. The doorknobs, railings, etc. in the converted high school-to-museum have copper doorknobs to help prevent infection. Copper and its alloys kill 99% of bacteria within 2 hours at room temperature! And there was lots more to digest. But Sparky doesn't want to tell you EVERYTHING!

So gosh, are you impressed yet with this museum! It's a treasure not to be missed when you are in the area. We hope you will check it out if you are...

Thanks for reading along with us, we will see you soon in Yuma....

Copper is KING in Arizona Part I

copper star in center of AZ flag

Here we go, folks...THE most amazing museum, the most beautifully decorated, and the most informational and educational museum in the whole state of Arizona. It's ranked in the TOP 1% of 4,500 Arizona attractions. 

Arizona has been the top producer of copper for over 100 years, and the surrounding mining towns of Jerome and Cottonwood along with Clarkdale, home of the museum, have made copper king in Arizona! and of course, Arizona IS known as the "Copper State".

entry room

The entire town of Clarkdale, home of Arizona's first master planned community, is on the National Register of Historic Places, and the museum location was selected because this area has the largest copper connection in the country. Located inside the old Clarkdale High School, from the minute you walk in, you will be captivated by the beautiful interior decorating, and the setup of 7 major rooms (old classrooms with tons of glass windows letting in beautiful daylight) that display the history and culture of copper. A series of copper footsteps guide you from room to room.

This is a hands on museum. You can touch things! But--maybe you shouldn't, as someone has to polish all the vessels, containers and artifacts! But you can walk right up to the art, the copper, the examples of architecture and culture and be transported to another time in history.

The museum combines history, science, art and more and there are over 5,000 works of copper art and architecture seen through amazing sunlit gallery rooms from the 1500's to present day. The seven major categories are information, military art (Sparky's favorite), art and architecture, religious, kitchen, drink ware, and distillery and winery.

You can view the history of copper mining, see the different ores, look at how copper was used for pigments in art, and learn about all that and more. You could easily spend hours and hours in this beautiful restored old high school setting.

There was a big section devoted to mythology and how copper and Venus have an intertwined connection, with the beautiful painting "The Birth of Venus" as a prime example to the copper connection.

Venus was born on the island of Cyprus. The waters are so blue because of the copper content in them. Her hair is a copper color. The cockles are known as "Venus" clams. In the museum is a section devoted to the uses of copper to color pigments of blues and greens in the art world. It was quite interesting. One of the combinations was copper and arsenic. That didn't last very long once they found out it was toxic!

There was a section of lore devoted to "Women are from Venus, Men are from Mars." It was called the "Venus/Copper/Women Connection." It appeared to be a little dated and a little sexist but still fun to read. Sparky learned that Cyprus was the birthplace of copper in ancient times and it shares many of the same geological features as Jerome, AZ. She learned some facts she had forgotten, like Mars orbit is 687 days, 225 days for Venus, suggesting (in the museum display) symbolism of women growing up faster than men. Venus is thought of in ancient times as the female planet. When it rains on Venus, it rains sulphuric acid. Mars is freezing cold and has a heavy iron content, the exact opposite of copper, hence the differing temperaments of men and women. Men's bodies have 30% more iron than women. Iron can only be "softened" with silver or gold, hence men are softened by women's charms. Don't shoot the messenger, that's what it said! Women have 20% more copper in their bodies than men. Hmmmmm......Can you take a little more "women are from Venus, men are from Mars"? (Sparky never read that book, by the way....)

Venus is the brightest planet in the sky. For centuries people believed that it was two separate planets as you could see it in the morning and at night. That's where the idea came from (IN ANCIENT TIMES) that women have natural bi-polar mood swings. And one more thing, Venus's orbit spins in the opposite direction of any other planet "just to be difficult!" (NOT Sparky's words, haha.) OK, enough of that silliness....Sparky will leave you with a teaser of more beautiful copper art and works to come, in part 2, with this spectacular copper chest seen in the "kitchen room".

And how about this Statue of Liberty hallway? Lots of interesting facts about the copper clad statue. The copper clad iron statue is only two pennies thick (!). Many more interesting details if you have never seen the real Statue of Liberty.

There are more sections to be explored, and ones that Sparky would like to share in more detail, the medical field and the Military Room. So for those subjects to get covered, Sparky needs to do a part 2. Hope you enjoyed this little foray into the Arizona Copper Museum today....See you soon... We hope you will stay in touch...

Some Great Hikes in Mesa, Riparian Preserve And a Fabulous Dinner!

When we get ready to leave an area, Sparky and Eldo always try to get some last visits/hikes/touristy things done in case we don't return to the area. In this case, we are fairly certain that we WILL be back next year, as Mesa was one of our favorite destinations this year.

Sparky wanted to check out three things before we left--a hike at Lost Dutchman State Park, which is on the way on the Apache Trail near Apache Junction, a challenging hike at Usery Mountain Regional Park and the Riparian Preserve, right in Mesa.

Lost Dutchman State Park was AMAZING! It was named after a famous lost gold mine and is in the Sonoran Desert right up against the Superstition Mountains. The lost Dutchman, wasn't really Dutch, by the way. In the 1870's, Jacob Waltz (who was German) supposedly located a gold mine and worked it for awhile, hiding some gold stashes in the Superstitions there. In bad health in his later years, he supposedly described the location of the mine to a neighbor before he died in 1891. People have tried to find the mine and some have met with foul play or death in their efforts. There are a lot of superstitions and legends about the Superstition Mountains and the lost goldmine, so many that books and films have been produced about them.

There are several trails that go from the park into the desert and surrounding Tonto National Forest. Sparky picked the Treasure Loop Trail today rated moderate....a 2.4 mile round trip with an elevation change of 500 feet. This trail was much easier by far than the Wind Cave Trail at Usery Mountain Regional Park, which was rated HARD that Sparky tried to do a few days before. More about that in a moment.

There are six trails that you can choose from at Lost Dutchman, the most challenging being the Siphon Draw Trail, which is 4 miles round trip and winds around into a canyon with a 1,000 ft. elevation gain to the basin area. WOW! Another time, Sparky might try that one. Not only is that trail difficult, the trail is not maintained past the basin, and there are elevation gains of over 2,000 feet. It takes 5-6 hours to do that one. Then again, Sparky thinks, well, maybe that one better be for somebody else. (Eldo is glad that she has come to her senses.)

The Treasure Loop Trail was spectacular in itself and a good heart pumper near the top of the trail. It starts in a beautiful picnic area, and ends back there. You literally hike right up to the mountain cliff walls.

The scenery is just terrific and you have to stop a lot just to admire these fantastic views--and to catch your breath if you are older, like Sparky. This view below is about 2630 feet up. The trail is fairly wide at the beginning, it's sometimes shared by horseback riders and then the trail narrows the higher you go. it was a wonderful hike and very doable for a senior. Sparky says the average age on the trail today was at least 65 and up. 

Next up, a hike at Usery Mountain Regional Park called the Wind Cave Trail, rated HARD, rated DIFFICULT, rated NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART OR THE WOBBLY. (Sparky's rating, the last two.) This is a 2.9 trail out and back near Mesa. It's VERY popular so there were a lot of people on the trail the day Sparky went, including a guy that only had one leg and was on crutches.(!) Sparky went last year and because of dizziness, didn't complete the entire trail. So she tried again this year, going further than she did last year, but was not able to finish due to severe sciatic troubles and worries about balance again.  Here's a map of the trail:

See all those wiggly lines? those are switchbacks, NARROW switchbacks, ROCKY switchbacks. Whew! The goal was to get further than last year, and she did. It really was a tough trail. Your goal is to reach near the top of those mountains in the distance, to an indented  area with a cave.

Here's what the Wind Cave Trail looks like in many places....

That IS the trail in front of you....

And another beautiful view....

Sparky was all hiked out and her sciatica was really flaring by the time she finished this hike.

Well, after a tough hike, it's time for a great meal! We discovered Steak and Stone, a restaurant in Mesa right beside a small airport. Great steaks cooked on LAVA stones, while you watch a steady stream of small planes take off and land at the airport. The steak comes to your table raw, but it's cooking on the lava rock as it arrives. You take it off the stone when you are ready for the degree of doneness you like. Which for Sparky, is almost immediately, haha. Luckily, Eldy is not grossed out by Sparky's love of very rare, extremely rare beef.

And the last wonderful visit was a trip to the Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch in Gilbert just outside of Mesa. It's a water wonderland-- a 110 acre wetlands/wildlife sanctuary with 4.7 miles of trails if you walked all of it all over the place in and around the ponds, one floating boardwalk, a simulated dinosaur dig, an urban fishing lake, three overnight campsites, an observatory, bird viewing blind areas and multi use trails. So many waterfowl to be seen! there were LOTS of Northern Shoveler ducks that day....They were in such a feeding frenzy that you can't see their unique shovel shaped bills.

And songbirds and hummingbirds....

Sparky thinks this is a black chinned hummingbird below. Even though the throat feathers or gorget (which comes from the days of knights when they wore metallic collars to protect their throats) are purple, when he turns his head they look black unless the sun is shining directly on them.

This is a good place to see Gambel's quail all over! Sparky had been trying for DAYS to catch these fast little guys around the campground, but at the preserve, they were too busy scratching the sandy dirt for bugs to notice and were quite used to the people walking around them.

Northern mockingbird

Ruddy duck

Many lovely places to sit and bird watch or people watch.....This is a wonderful place to see lots of different bird species....We highly recommend visiting Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch.

Mallard pair

And with that, we are leaving tomorrow for a return visit to Cottonwood, Arizona, where we will be for two weeks. We are still waiting for our jacks repair (parts have been ordered, the extended warranty company is going to foot MOST of the bill) and Sparky's broken tooth repair (Sparky is footing all of that crown repair bill).  She wishes there were extended warranties for teeth, haha, but we don't have dental insurance so that's the way it is. You go for a very long time with no problems, then BOOM, you eat a bagel and half your tooth breaks off and costs you an arm and a leg and a crown. 

It's very cold in Cottonwood right now, but Eldo hopes temps will warm up soon. Sparky is loving the temps, but not in the twenties at night, according to the weather app! See you later! Thanks for following along with us. We love sharing our journey....

on the Apache Trail in AZ 2023

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Howdy, Partner! Welcome to Tortilla Flat

If you visit Mesa, Arizona, there is SO MUCH to do here, it's impossible to give you all the lowdown with just a post or two and only staying two weeks. One of the best recommendations we can give you is to drive the scenic Apache Trail, a distance of about 40 miles. 

The Apache Indians originally used the trail to navigate through the Superstition Mountains. It became a stagecoach route in the early 1900's, and now runs through the mountains and the Tonto National Forest. The trail/drive starts in Apache Junction and ends at the Theodore Roosevelt Dam. We have never been able to drive all the way through due to road closures and we have tried three times. The most we have been able to drive in one direction, was about 17 miles, having to turn around at Tortilla Flat, a tiny little outpost. At Tortilla Flat today, the road was flooded just beyond the little town, so no driving any further was possible.

The road is very winding, and there are a lot of steep switchbacks. All the more fun in a big road hogging dually. RV's are NOT recommended past Tortilla Flats and we wouldn't even recommend taking an RV on the steep, narrow, winding mountainous road passages on the way, either. This wasn't the road, (photo below with the tan road) but maybe a ATV trail? Because of a fair amount of rain which is unusual for the area this time of year, the rocks and boulders were covered with beautiful colors of lichens and mosses. The area was a LOT greener and more beautiful than past years on this visit.

The drive along the way is SPECTACULAR! Here are some sample views..... 

The best view of the day

There are LOTS of scenic stops along the road, so you could make a day of it or just a few hours of your afternoon. The first stop you might want to see if the Goldfield Ghost Town. It was closed to due Covid last year, but appears to be open now. It looks interesting, but we didn't stop. We thought it might be a little too touristy, but for a reconstructed 1890's ghost town, it does look pretty cool. There is an old gold mine there, Old West scheduled gun fights, a history museum, a gold panning opportunity, and more stuff to do than that. It's free to enter the town, you just pay for some of the attractions.

The second stop is Lost Dutchman State Park. Sparky will blog about that in the next blog. Briefly, it's a 320 acre park, with great wilderness trails and it's popular. Seven dollars entry fee gets you into the park and get ready to hike away!

Canyon Lake

Third stop---Canyon Lake, one of three man made lakes along the trail. It has a large marina, an RV park and campgrounds. There are red rock cliffs surrounding the lake, making for a beautiful backdrop. supposedly, bighorn sheep and bald eagles make their home here. Keep your eyes peeled for them! You can book a ticket on the Dolly Steamboat to tour the lake if you like.

Fourth Stop--You will drive by the Superstition Mountains on the right on your way to a reproduction (?) town by the name of Tortilla Flat, population 6. You pass through a couple of one lane bridges on your way, but they are tall enough for most, at 14 ft. 0 in. And then, you get to town.

Don't try nuthin' in this town or else!

Tortilla Flat is one of the last vestiges of the Old West. When it thrived as a stagecoach stop, it was where travelers and workers stopped on their way to the Roosevelt Dam construction site. the population at that time was about 125 people. It had a little school, a church, a livery stable, a general store and of course, a saloon, the Superstition Saloon. It has since transitioned into a folksy, charming, humorous little place with LOTS of history behind it. It and a couple other little shops and stores have also been rebuilt after fires and floods over the years. The inside of the saloon is decorated with dollar bills, completely covering the ceiling, walls and everywhere there is a space to fit one, several times over.

Nobody knows how much money is plastered all over the walls, but it's been a tradition and still continues. If you want to have your moniker on a dollar bill, sign it and ask the wait staff to put it up for you. The tradition started when prospectors (thar's GOLD in them Superstition hills and lost gold mines!) would leave their last buck for a drink.They'd pin up their card and dollar bill behind the bar to reserve a drink after their shift. They'd return, pull down their dollar and buy a round. After awhile, tourists picked up on the idea, the tradition flourished and VOILA! The bills are from all over the world.

The saloon is famous for its chili, great burgers and fresh home cooked food. They serve prickly pear lemonade there, too, along with prickly pear salsas. (Prickly pear cactus is VERY abundant and a food source for many people in the southwest). We really enjoyed our meal there at the end of our drive. Eldo had a HUGE burger, and Sparky had street tacos that were fantastic!

You get a folksy newspaper, Tortilla Flat Telegraph, with lots of local history, comic strip and tongue-in-cheek information with your meal and afterwards, there's a general store and an ice cream shop for some great dessert and treats. And, there is the toilet seat photo op which is to to be missed, but we missed it. And sorry, no photos, darn it. But maybe that's for the best. There are three toilet seats, old wooden ones hanging outside of the saloon. Stick your head through one (EWWWWWWW!)  and get a memorable photo! We passed.....Second option, get someone to take your photo in the bathroom, haha.

We thoroughly enjoyed our drive today, up through the Superstition Mountains. We will definitely return to check out Lost Dutchman State Park. Stay tuned, Sparky is gonna check out some trails!

                                                Bye for now......