Day 4: Saturday 4th September
The Smallest Museum in the World, Pinetop and Knees that go Bump in the Night
Woke to a much cooler day - with a slight breeze and some clouds. The temperature was still probably nudging around 100 deg F though! Quickly we packed up our bags and got ready to leave. We didn't WANT to leave - but leave we must. At last, it was time to hit the road!
Firstly, we paid a visit to the Camelback Inn shop, where we bought some postcards and a phone-card, intending to phone Dad and Nick. Alas, we couldn't understand how to use it - and the woman in reception didn't either! Help came in the form of an Englishwoman in the shop! We would have to wait to use it until later though, as time was running on.
We drove through endless one-horse towns, through Mesa and Tempe - at a speed limit of 35 mph. This would never do! Finally, we found access to the Interstate and proceded at some speed, to Apache Junction - and we stopped, for a while, to take some photos in what we thought (correctly) must be our last spot of 'real' Arizona desert.
Suprising really, the speed limit of 65mph a little further on, as the roads wound around mountain sides, in a most peculiar landscape of high, jagged red rocks, always looking in danger of toppling (must look the geo up).
So, through Apache Junction, and the Interstate came to a halt, as we approached the Superstition Mountains and the town of Superior.
Opening of the rich Silver King Mine in 1875, followed by development of the Silver Queen, brought streams of fortune hunters to this mineral-laden region. Miners found rich deposits of copper when the surface silver began to play out. Superior lies just west of the scenic Queen Creek Canyon in a valley surrounded by rugged mountains. North of town you'll see the high smokestack of an idle smelter and extensive tailings from the Magma Copper Mine, where shafts plunge nearly 5,000 feet underground. The mine was closed at press time, though exploration continues. Another mineral, perlite, is mined and processed in the area."
"Arizona Handbook, Bill Weir"
Perlite. I have some of that. And what does perlite often contain? Apache Tears!! I've bought and sold heaps of apache tears, in the past, often still surrounded by their matrix of perlite. And all came from one mountain, Apache Leap, sitting behind this small town! I could hardly believe that I was actually there!!
 | Superior's 'other claim to fame' is that it is home to the "World's Smallest Museum"! We had a gander (didn't take long!) - and then headed over to the Buckboard City Cafe for lunch! The inside of the cafe is difficult to describe, but was decorated from floor to ceiling with loads of 'extra' museum pieces - old tins, bow and arrows .. anything and everything really! It was also one of those true rarities, anywhere in the world these days, as being an eatery you could smoke in! |
Onwards, through Miami and Globe, with more evidence of past mining activity. Outside the Tourist Center in Globe, there was an old mining cart, filled to the brim with bits of chrysocolla-streaked rock and peridot! "Help yourself" invited a sign. So I did (but only one bit of each!).
We entered the Tonto National Forest. Endless miles of forested mountains, with hardly another car in sight! Then, we were into the Fort Apache Indian Reservation and the Salt River Canyon. It was magnificent! We stopped down by the river, where indians were selling jewellery on their stalls (I didn't buy any - this time!), and we wanted to use the toilet - but the toilets were holes! Not holes like the holes you might get in France, but holes that went down for eternity! I for one, chickened out of that!!
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Before long, we were into even prettier country. It could almost have been the foothills of the Alps! And soon we were passing through Show Low and turning off for Pinetop-Lakeside. There were log cabins everywhere!
 | Our hotel for the night, The Best Western Inn of Pinetop, was nestled amongst the pines, on the opposite side of the road to the Burgerking! It was, as expected, nothing special. Our room was a typical motel room, with 2 double beds, a rollout and a very tiny bathroom. However, we could at least park our car directly outside, so a lot of luggage lumping was avoided! |  |
There should've been a data port in the room. There wasn't. On phoning front desk to query this, we were told that the hotel actually used Wireless internet access, so if I had a card .... which I did .... then I should be able to pick it up .... which I couldn't. We trundled to front desk with the laptop and a young man there tried his darndest to get it to work - with my software and with his - but to no avail. He offered to delete a lot of stuff from my desktop, so that the lappie would run quicker. Get away with you - I like it that way!!
We were hungry. But not awfully. How about we drive back the little way to the Subway along the road? Good idea. The sunset was beautiful - the sky turning deep red - and, by the time we reached the Subway, it was dark.
Half in a trance (I was reading the bit about "soup" in the Subway window), I next found myself on the pavement (sidewalk) and a male American voice came to me. "Are you alright ma'am". "No, I don't believe that I am". Then the hub appeared and I never saw the owner of that American voice. I'd fallen over a high kerb. My right arm, chest and both knees had taken my full weight and I hurt like mad, all over. Despite fearing that I might not be able to, I did get up and limped back to the car. We drove straight back to the BW, so that I could apply ice to my knees. So, I sat on the bed for hours, with ice packs attached! That seemed to help a great deal - but nothing much was going to help my poor chest. I feared that I had bruised or cracked a couple of ribs - and that is, it subsequently appeared, exactly what I had done. My biggest fear, at that time, though - was that I might need medical attention - and, despite being insured, that would mean paying out big bucks, up front. Fortunately, that didn't become necessary - though I didn't know that and I was somewhat fraught, although a few glasses of wine enabled me a good night's sleep - but not before we had phoned both Dad and Nick (at around 1:00am PST!)
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[ Introduction ]
[ Day 1 ]
[ Day 2 ]
[ Day 3 ]
[ Day 5 ]
[ Day 6 ]
[ Day 7 ]
[ Day 8 ]
[ Day 9 ]
[ Day 10 ]
[ Day 11 ]
[ Day 12 ]
[ Day 13 ]
[ Day 14 ]
[ Day 15 ]
[ Day 16 ]
[ Day 17 ]
[ Days 18, 19 and 20 ]
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