TAKING THE OFF-RAMP

taking the off-ramp Arizona oddities, attractions and pleasures Winterhaven's Festive Delight

The Winterhaven Festival of Lights in Tucson ranks among Arizona's oldest and grandest community Christmas celebrations. Since 1949, Tucsonans have flocked every year to the midtown neighborhood to enjoy some of the most elaborate and creative outdoor decorations to be found anywhere.

An estimated 90 percent of Winterhaven's residents participate, decorating their homes, garages, trees and even their cars with Christmas lights, Santas, Nativity scenes and more. The festival draws about 150,000 visitors over a two-week period. This year it runs from Dec. 13through Dec. 28. Judges hand out awards for the best decorations in 19 categories, including the spirit of the season award and best mailbox. Admission is free, but boxes are placed around the neighborhood to collect food for the Community Food Bank. The half-square-mile neighborhood is bordered by Prince Road on the north, Fort Lowell Road on the south, Tucson Boulevard to the west and Country Club Road to the east. Information: (520) 327-0111.

Magic Flutes

On the short main street of Patagonia in southern Arizona, a rumor makes the rounds. Some locals claim that Odell Borg's flutes create magic.

"I hear that all the time," acknowledges Borg, whose Patagonia-based company, High Spirits Flutes, produces 42 types of flutes for worldwide sales. The flutes, which incorporate Indian design and artistic elements, are constructed from one piece of cedar or maple and played like a pennywhistle. Recording artists produce rich and haunting music with Borg's flutes but, according to Borg, so can everyone else. He maintains that anyone can play these instruments and includes instructions with each sale. "That's the reason we're so successful," he says of the business he started in a garage. So if you feel the need for a little music or a little magic in your life, check out High Spirits Flutes. Information: (800) 394-1523; www.highspirits.com.

Memories in Tin

La Posada, the Winslow hotel closest to the heart of famed architect Mary Jane Colter, opened in May 1930. Its grand Spanish Revival architecture reflected the ambience of a sprawling hacienda.

Verne Lucero, then an 8-year-old "self-made orphan," happened upon this hotel along the Santa Fe rail line and began washing dishes for room and board.

"I had to stand on a milk case to reach the sink," Lucero recalls.

Colter had set up a furniture factory to craft the "antique" pieces she designed for her hotel. Navajo rugs covered the floors, wrought-iron jackrabbit ashtray stands occupied the corners and each room boasted a block print of San Ysidro, the hotel's patron saint. In a niche at the back door, now the front entrance to the hotel, hung a painted-leather image of the Madonna. Hard times forced La Posada to close in 1957, and two years later, the dramatic decor was auctioned off.

In 1997, La Posada once again opened its heavy wooden doors, looking much like it did in 1930. The new owners restored the hacienda, guided by historical photos and the memories of original residents like Lucero. Lucero, now a master craftsman, returns to La Posada twice a year to teach workshops on the traditional Mexican crafts of punched tin and reverse painting. He also has lent his artistic endeavors to the restoration, creating original light fixtures and wall decorations. One elegant glass and tin creation framing a painting of Our Lady of the Rosary now fills the niche near the door. Information: (928) 289-4366.

THIS MONTH IN ARIZONA

In 1857 President James Buchanan recommends to Congress that Arizona be named a territory, but Congress rejects the idea.

In 1864 The Territorial Legislature appropriates $250 for the first public school, then being held at San Xavier del Bac mission.

In 1881 Marshal Virgil Earp is ambushed on Allen Street in Tombstone and maimed for life.

In 1883 Felix G. Hardwick of Tempe receives a $500 reward for the first ever bale of cotton to be raised in Arizona.

In 1899 Noted opera star Fritzi Scheff becomes annoyed and forces her Southern Pacific train to stop at Stein's Pass when the water in her bathtub splashes about her private bathroom.

In 1946 The December 1946 issue of Arizona Highways was the first allcolor issue of a nationally circulated consumer magazine in the United States.

Tree Time

NOTHING SMELLS more like Christmas than a fresh pine tree. For a new twist on this old tradition, pack up the kids and a sharp ax, then head to the White Mountains in eastcentral Arizona for a romp through the forest in search of a perfect tree. Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests issue one Christmas tree permit per family each season for cutting in the Alpine and Springerville areas. Information: (928) 333-4372.

An Airmail 'First' for Tucson

In 1912, while cowboys on horseback celebrated Arizona's statehood, 21-year-old Katherine Stinson of Arkansas thought she'd found an easy way to finance her music education. First she would sell her piano to pay for flying lessons, then make lots of money as a stunt pilot, buy a new piano and be on her way. Cash in hand, petite and pretty Stinson had to plead her way into aviation school, but after four hours of instruction, she was flying solo and never went back for the piano. She became the fourth American woman to earn a pilot's license and claimed many "firsts" throughout her career as an aviator, including one she shares with Tucson. In 1915, the "Flying Schoolgirl" soared through aerial exhibitions before thrilled crowds at the Pima County Fair, held south of Tucson. Thereafter, as the first woman authorized to carry mail by air, she winged down weekly to trade sacks with the postmaster, making Tucson the first Arizona town to receive airmail service.

Horchata — Toast of the Holidays

Horchata originated in the Old World using barley and almonds. In Mexico, though the recipes have changed, a rice drink by the same name is still enjoyed at holidays and street carnivals and is said to relieve digestive upsets in children. Many Mexican restaurants offer this sweet and spicy drink to slurp with your burrito. Often Arizona markets stock bottled horchata and an instant-mix version. Or you could feel like a Mexicanfood gourmet and make your own with the recipe at left.

Do-it-yourself Horchata

FOR TWO GENEROUS GLASSES, you'll need: 1/2 cup uncooked rice, 1 quart water, 1 cinnamon stick, 3 tablespoons sugar, juice of one-half lime (optional). Mix together first four ingredients; let stand three hours. Simmer for 20 minutes. Cool mixture, discard cinnamon stick. Puree in a blender. Use a spoon to push the mixture through a medium-mesh sieve. If it seems too stiff, add enough cold water to bring it to the consistency of cream. Add lime juice, if desired, and more sugar to taste. Chill and serve over ice for a tasty holiday treat that you may want to drink all year.

Can This Canyon Be for Real?

Honest-to-Pete, real-life questions tourists have asked mule wranglers at the Grand Canyon: "Is there an elevator to the bottom?" "What time do the lights go on in the Canyon?"

"Where's the sunset? I heard it was at Desert View."

"Is the river at the bottom of the Canyon?"

Cowboy response to the last one: "Why, no, ma'am. We've boxed it up and got it running around the Rim." These pearls come from the August 1921 issue of The American Magazine. The article chiefly quoted cowboy Cal Peck, who said the Canyon takes its measure of everyone.

"It sifts them out by individuals," Peck said. "Take three men who looked to be clipped from the same pattern. One will go down the trail pop-eyed with his mouth open like a Bible. The second will chatter all the way, and the third will spend most of his time cussing out the mule. Whatever's deep down inside 'em rises to the surface."

Thoughts On Sedona

"It seemed to me to be the oldest country I had ever seen, the real antique land, first cousin to the moon." -William Heinemann, 1937

taking the off-ramp Up to Scratch

Flagstaff - “They don't make towns like this anymore.” At least that's what the Flagstaff Convention and Visitors Bureau promotes. Maybe that's true-situated at 7,000 feet at the base of Humphreys Peak, Flagstaff has a rich history full of things to brag about. And now this rustic town has a new distinction, one that has residents scratching their heads. According to a national index compiled by dermatologists, toxicologists and weather specialists at the Lanacane Itch Information Center and the University of Delaware's Center for Climatic Research, Flagstaff ranks as one of the nation's top 10 itchiest cities during the month of December. Curious as to why Flagstaff ended up high on the itch index? Experts cite low humidity during the cold winter months and overheated buildings as the top factors leading to this dubious distinction. Now city officials have the option of changing the town's motto - “Are you itching to come to Flagstaff?” Scratch that.

Unnecessary Male Whiptails

This is disturbing. Not sure we should even let this information out - but here it is: Males are unnecessary. Entirely superfluous assuming you're one of the species of whiptailed lizards that produce only females. These long-tailed, fleet-footed lizards reproduce parthenogenetically, which means they more or less clone themselves, egg by egg. Not mixing genes among individuals has certain disadvantages, but, on the other hand, they don't have to get amorous with some lowlife lizard to reproduce. That should give them an edge in colonizing new territories and disturbed habitats. Biologists are still trying to figure out the puzzle by comparing the other whiptail species with the girls-only club. We'll let you know how it works out. In the meantime, guys, don't spread this one around.

Question of the Month

Which Arizona towns have Christmas names?

Snowflake, Silver Bell and Christmas all evoke seasonal images, but only the town of Christmas has true holiday connections. Prospectors found copper in the Dripping Springs Mountains in the late 1800s, but left because the rich mines were on the San Carlos Apache Reservation. In December 1902, the reservation lines were changed. Two miners heard the news on Christmas Eve. The next morning, they staked a claim named “Christmas” in honor of the day.

LIFE IN ARIZONA 1 8 8 9 AN 188OS WHITEWATER CHRISTMAS

Railroad surveyor Robert Brewster Stanton and his crew reached Lee's Ferry in the evening of Dec. 23, 1889, after fighting high winds and whitecaps on the Colorado River all afternoon-ending the first 377 miles of a river trip from Grand Junction, Colorado, through the Grand Canyon. On Christmas Eve, the group rested at nearby Johnson's Ranch. And the next evening, Stanton unveiled the banquet he'd stowed away in the bottom of the boats as a surprise for his crew members. The holiday spread, laid out on a table in front of the “Old Mormon Fort,” was one of the most sumptuous meals ever served at Lee's Ferry. In his journal, Stanton detailed the meal: “Spent the day writing letters and enjoying a Christmas dinner.

Menu:

A LAND FOR ALL

God has blessed Arizona with an extremely diverse landscape-from windswept sand dunes to flower-strewn mountain meadows and alpine forests, from dry arroyos to rushing canyon streams.

The deserts, which receive very little rainfall, support unusual animal and plant life, like the scorpions and spadefoot toads that live mostly underground for shelter from the heat, and the wide variety of succulent cacti and agaves.

Other areas, lush with sycamores, oaks, junipers, pines and even ferns, receive an abundance of water, sometimes accumulating up to 20-plus feet of snow during the winter. In these wetter forests live such wildlife as cougars, bears, elk and turkeys.

The landforms and scenic areas in Arizona vary so much, in fact, that the state seems to have sampled panoramas from each of the other 49 states.

In tribute to our United States, we have expanded our December issue to 64 pages to present a very special portfolio, a very special holiday greeting card to all of our readers.

This photo selection portrays the Arizona places that could be scenes from another state, including yours. All states-from Alaska to Florida and from Hawaii to Maine are represented among these shots of Arizona vistas.

We like to think of Arizona Highways as the gateway to this inspiring land throughout the year. We hope that the passion we have for Arizona will rub off on you and that you will come experience for yourselves the great bounty and beauty here.

But at this time of year, we wish most that your holidays be joyful, that prosperity follow you all year long and that God continue to bless America.

The tumbling stream of Sycamore Creek, west of Sedona, Arizona, emulates Moccasin Creek in Moccasin Creek State Park, Georgia. LARRY LINDAHL

ARIZ ONA

The inner basin of the San Francisco Peaks above Flagstaff, Arizona, provides terrain similar to that in the Big Horn Mountains in Wyoming.

This misty view of the distant Rincon Mountains from the Pusch Ridge Wilderness in the Santa Catalina Mountains north of Tucson, Arizona, mimics the Cumberland Mountains in Virginia. STEVE BRUNO

ARIZ ONA ILLINOIS

An old cabin lies among the maple and sycamore trees in Ramsey Canyon in southeastern Arizona's Huachuca Mountains, a scene reminiscent of the Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois. RANDY PRENTICE

Bohee Falls spills down eastern Arizona's Sawmill Canyon, like waters in a stonecutter's quarry near Bloomington, Indiana. JEFF SNYDER A hiker could mistake these rolling hills in the Four Peaks Wilderness east of Scottsdale, Arizona, for the Sumter National Forest in South Carolina. STEVE BRUNO

ARIZ ONA CALIFORNIA

Joshua trees blooming in the Cerbat Mountains north of Kingman, Arizona, look like a scene out of California's Joshua Tree National Monument. GEORGE STOCKING

OKLAHOMA HAWAII

Who would suspect arid Arizona could mimic a Pacific island? But the Blue Grotto, by Navajo Falls on the Havasupai Indian Reservation, resembles the Blue Pool in Hana Maui, Hawaii.

Fog lingers along the shore of Woods Canyon Lake on Arizona's Mogollon Rim, a scene that could pass for Acadia National Park in Maine. NICK BEREZENKO

Views from the 10,000-foot-high Heliograph Peak in southeastern Arizona's Pinaleno Mountains echo views in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia. DAVID MUENCH

ARIZ ONA MINNESOTA

As the sun rises over Black Canyon Lake on Arizona's Mogollon Rim, it creates a vista reminiscent of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Minnesota. GEORGE STOCKING

OHIO

Autumn along Workman Creek near Payson, Arizona, typifies the views seen in the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area of Ohio. GEORGE STOCKING

NORTH CAROLINA

This sunrise photograph of the Chiricahua Wilderness of southeastern Arizona brings to mind the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina. DAVID MUENCH

The Kofa National Wildlife Refuge northeast of Yuma, Arizona, offers a landscape similar to the Chisos Mountains in Texas' Big Bend National Park. LAURENCE PARENT Old man's beard lichen on ponderosa pines in the East Clear Creek area northeast of Payson, Arizona, creates a setting like the DeSoto National Forest in Mississippi.

ARIZ ONA ALABAMA

Miller Creek in southeastern Arizona's Huachuca Mountains could double for the streamside scenes found in Little River Canyon National Preserve in Alabama. GEORGE STOCKING

When draped in winter snow, the 12,643-foot Humphreys Peak in the San Francisco Peaks at Flagstaff, Arizona, appears like the Alaska Range in Denali National Park in Alaska. MARC MUENCH

ARIZ ONA OREGON

Early morning haze atop Mount Graham in southeastern Arizona imitates the old-growth forest of the Mount Hood National Forest, Oregon. GURINDER P. SINGH Spring waterfalls along the Salt River in eastern Arizona reproduce a scene from the Youghiogheny River's Ohiopyle Falls in Pennsylvania. RANDY PRENTICE

ARIZ ONA MISSOURI

Northern Arizona's Beaver Creek flows gently through Coconino County, and looks much like the Eleven Point River in the Missouri Ozarks. GEORGE H.H. HUEY

ARIZ ONA

Looking across Ward Terrace on the Navajo Indian Reservation toward the snowcapped San Francisco Peaks at Flagstaff, Arizona, prompts visions of the Great Sand Dunes National Monument in Colorado. ROBERT G. McDONALD A maple-laden draw on Arizona's Mogollon Rim matches Hull State Park near Middle Haddam, Connecticut. NICK BEREZENKO

WISCONSIN IOWA

A horse grazes leisurely near Hannagan Meadow in eastern Arizona, a scene that mimics a foggy pastoral setting in Wright County, lowa. DON B. STEVENSON Deep snow clinging to ponderosa pines along Arizona's Mogollon Rim gives wintry hints of the Green Mountains of New Hampshire. JERRY SIEVE

ARIZ ONA NEW JERSEY KENTUCKY

Hannagan Meadow's lush pastures in eastern Arizona look like the bluegrass country in Kentucky. JERRY SIEVE

Summer monsoon rains flood Woods Canyon in east-central Arizona, reflecting the bayou country of Louisiana.

ARIZ ONA ARKANSAS

A misty morning at Horsethief Lake near Prescott, Arizona, reminds viewers of Lake Ouachita in Arkansas. GEORGE STOCKING Indian ponies grazing on the Navajo Indian Reservation in northeastern Arizona replicate a scene from the Big Sky Country of Montana. LARRY LINDAHL

ARIZONA NORTH DAKOTA

Tan-colored petrified logs seem out of place against the bentonite of Blue Mesa in Arizona's Petrified Forest National Park, but they would seem just as odd in the place that Blue Mesa resembles - Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. TOM DANIELSEN

ARIZ ONA NEVADA DELAWARE

Boaters on the Colorado River in the Ahakhav Tribal Preserve south of Parker, Arizona, enjoy the same kind of landscape as along the Nanticoke River in southern Delaware.

After a summer rain, fog overlays Fish Creek Canyon in east-central Arizona and evokes images of the Appalachian Mountains of Tennessee. ROBERT G. MCDONALD

ARIZ ONA

The West Fork of the Little Colorado River in east-central Arizona suggests old-growth forest areas of Ipsut Creek in Mount Rainier National Park, Washington. BRUCE GRIFFIN This rocky terrain beneath Aspen Peak in Hualapai Mountain Park near Kingman, Arizona, could pose as the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota. LAURENCE PARENT

ARIZ ONA MARYLAND

At Navajo Falls near the Grand Canyon's west end in Arizona, you find a look-alike spot to Cunningham Falls State Park in Maryland.

Stands of blue spruce and Douglas fir trees near the East Fork of eastern Arizona's Black River resemble forests on the Bitterroot Mountains in Idaho. LAURENCE PARENT

ARIZ ONA MASSACHUSETTS

Post Creek cascades down the Pinaleno Mountains in southeastern Arizona, recalling Race Brook Falls in southwestern Massachusetts. JERRY SIEVE

RHODE ISLAND

The forest floor of upper Six-shooter Canyon, south of Globe, Arizona, could masquerade as the Queen's River Preserve in Rhode Island. STEVE BRUNO

The changing autumn leaves of Miller Canyon in southeastern Arizona mimic fall color in the Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont. TOM DANIELSEN

ARIZ ONA NEBRASKA

In a storm's afterglow, a rainbow graces the grasslands along southern Arizona's Santa Rita Mountains, similar to scenes found in the Ogalala National Grasslands northwest of Chadron, Nebraska. RANDY PRENTICE

NEW YORK

Boaters enjoying a lazy summer day at Woods Canyon Lake on Arizona's Mogollon Rim might imagine themselves at lake country spots in the Adirondack Park of upstate New York. GEORGE STOCKING

MICHIGAN

A cloudy sky fires the sunrise over Carnero Lake in east-central Arizona, mirroring similar vistas at Lake Charlevoix in Michigan. ROBERT G. MCDONALD

ARIZ ONA FLORIDA

Another golden sunrise, this one lighting the palm trees along Power Road in east Mesa, Arizona, puts one in mind of the Florida City area south of Miami, Florida.

KANSAS

A rancher repairing his windmill near Eagar reminds travelers that eastern Arizona remains cattle country, just as similar windmills in west central Kansas announce that travelers are in the Jayhawkers' wheat belt.