The Santa Fe Trail, stretching 900 miles from Franklin, Missouri to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and then on into Old Mexico, has a romantic place in the history of the Southwest. It was a trail to the future for many of thousands who followed it to create new lives for themselves. In search of the [...]

According to the legend, a huge pile of silver from the Lost Opata Mine remains buried and is guarded by the skeletal remains of a Mayo Indian Princess. Both the silver and the princess lie hidden somewhere near the Tumacácori Mission, 45 miles outside of Tucson, Arizona. When the Spanish missionaries moved into the area, [...]

Contrary to popular opinion, the Southwest (Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona) gets plenty of snow. In fact, some of the record snowfalls for the entire United States happened here! For instance, the record for the most snow to fall in a 24-hour period belongs to Silver Lake, Colorado and was set in 1921. They [...]

If the Wild West was explored by the pioneers, it was settled by the railroad. The sound of the iron horse’s whistle echoing across the plains and mountains of the Southwest meant much-needed supplies were coming. If the trains were blocked for some reason, like severe blizzards, which happened in the early 1900s across the [...]

When you visit the Southwest U.S., wherever there are mountains, so you will find Aspen gold (at least in the Fall). During the winter months, the bare Aspen trees with their white bark stand start against teh snowy mountainsides. During the summer months, the soft whisper of their shaking leaves falls gently on the ear, [...]

According to Arizona folklore, the monsoon season will start about a week after the cicadas begin to sing at night. In point of fact, the start of monsoon season in the Desert Southwest is denoted by a shift in the winds and usually begins in mid-June to late-July, depending on which part of the Southwest [...]

{openx:8}There are actually several mines known as the Lost Dutchman in the Southwest. The most famous, of course, is the Lost Dutchman Mine in the Superstition Mountains of Arizona. But there are others, one in South Dakota, one in Colorado, and three in Arizona that all bear the same name. In the early 1860s, a [...]

{openx:8}The Gold Rush in American started in 1849, when James Marshall discovered gold at Sutter’s Mill in Coloma, California. News of the discovery swept the Nation like a fever. Nearly 300,000 men headed west to stake their claim. Sadly, very few actually struck in rich. Many gave up and began prospecting in other western states, [...]

Life in the Southwest in the pioneering days was tough and often filled with new and frightening experiences. Strange and spooky rock formations abound throughout the area. The land in some places is a desolate as the moon, and in others, the vastness of the open spaces is intimidating. Spanish and Native American legends and [...]

{openx:8}Legends of gold and treasure played a large and dynamic role in shaping the history of the southwestern U.S. Nothing in the history of man has inspired more acts of mayhem than the promise of wealth for the taking. In the case of the Seven Cities of Cibola (the Seven cities of Gold), the search [...]