Fall Gatway

‘Explore The Wild’ continued from page 13
tral Arizona. It forms
the southern edge of the
Colorado Plateau in Arizona
- providing outdoor adventure
to campers, hikers,
mountain bikers, photographers,
bird-watchers and
hunters; discovergilacounty.
com is your guide to hiking
trails and nearby lodging.
Located on the northeastern
edge of the Sonoran Desert,
Gila County covers a wide
variety of life zones - from
iconic saguaro cacti in the
low desert to pinyon-juniper
grasslands, chaparral, and
montane forests of pine, fir
and aspen. Roosevelt Lake
is one of Arizona’s most
popular for fishing, boating
and recreation – and wholly
within Gila County. Tonto
National Monument, Fossil
Creek, the Salt River, Tonto
Natural Bridge State Park,
designated Wilderness Areas
and popular camping areas
within the Tonto National
Forest are also among Gila
County’s bragging rights.
Don’t miss Tonto Natural
Bridge, between the towns of
Payson and Pine, which became
an Arizona State Park
in 1990; now thousands of
visitors marvel each year at
the largest travertine bridge
in the world, and the beauty
of Pine Creek Canyon.
The high desert community
of Pleasant Valley
is a serene scene of peace
and quiet today – but in the
1880s it was the origin of a
range war that’s among the
most famous (and deadly)
Courtesy photo
Payson: The Mogollon Rim has breathtaking views and is a popular Gila
County camping and fishing area just 30 miles outside of Payson.
feuds in American history.
The Pleasant Valley War,
also called the Tonto Basin
Feud or the Tonto Basin War,
matched the cattle-herding
Grahams against the
sheep-herding Tewksburys.
Payson is a scenic and convenient
90-minute drive
from Phoenix on the recently-expanded
four-lane ‘Beeline
Highway.’
Copper’s luster still shines
in Gila County - an industry
employing 3,000 people.
Mineral deposits brought
miners back in 1874 when
silver was discovered in
Globe – eclipsed within a
decade by our vast deposits
of copper. Dig into online
databases listing Arizona
mines and you’ll find an impressive
641 mines across
Gila County, from A-to-Z
-- that is, from the Abbie &
Ross mine (copper, gold,
lead, silver) to the Zulu
Mine near Rye. 641 mines!
And 30 ranches continue to
manage some 15,000 cattle
spread out across Gila County
rangeland.
City of Globe
Globe is currently the Gila
County seat, a city whose
history is laced with Wild
West events from murders
and stagecoach robberies
to outlaws, hangings and
Apache raids. Local historians
guide seasonal walking
tours that narrate the connection
to famous residents and
itinerants from Ike Clanton
(one of the gunfighters from
the OK Corral) to Geronimo,
the Apache Kid, Big-Nose
Kate and more.
Globe is about 87 miles
east of Phoenix and at the
crossroads of highways 60,
70 and 77.
Read more at discovergilacounty.com.
See daily
photos and join an online
community of thousands
who love Gila County
at facebook.com/discovergilacounty.
La Casita Café
Open:
Thurs. - Mon.
11 a.m.- 8 p.m.
Closed:
Tues. & Wed.
To go orders -
pick up and delivery
470 N. Broad St. • Globe, AZ 85501
928.425.8464
Gateway to the Copper Corridor 2021
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