Herb crusted pork chops with sausage, apple, pecan and quinoa dressing, apple bourbon sauce and browned butter Brussels sprouts. By Rob Ballard
Gobble Up
Arizona has a long tradition of ranching. Even before statehood in 1912, cattle operations were a majorelement of the Territorial economy, and today, many ranching traditions remain — from cowboys…
Josiah Austin, owner of the Cienega Ranch in Southeastern Arizona, stands below one of the many check dams he and his employees have constructed on the ranch. In this instance, water retained by the dam has allowed Arizona ash trees and other vegetation to flourish above it.
Rain Check
Josiah Austin stands at the edge of a nameless rivulet on his ranch in the foothills of the Chiricahua Mountains. He points south. “You see those?” he says. “They go on and on and on.” A closer look…
wo cowboys enjoy the view from the south ridge of Mount Baldy, the highest point in Eastern Arizona’s White Mountains. This photograph appeared on the cover of Arizona Highways’ June 1977 issue. WAYNE DAVIS
Our Western Spirit
Annika Cunningham moves the remuda through Schoolhouse Pasture at the X Diamond Ranch, near Greer. The remuda is the herd of horses from which ranch hands select their…
Illustration of mounted cowboy looking over herd toward ranch house as storm clouds roll in. By Kim Johnson
Ranch Thanksgiving
Nine times out of 10, Thanksgiving in Northern Arizona will come nosing ahead of a storm like an old lead cow going to water. A solid front of gray will move across the prairie, driven by a northwest…
A blooming ocotillo and other desert plants thrive in the sprawling landscape of the Altar Valley. The valley’s watershed covers about 1,000 square miles of Southern Arizona. Jeff Maltzman
An Unlikely Marriage in the Altar Valley
Forgive, for a moment, a bit of preachiness. But in our endless quest to claim the high ground, we frequently forsake the common ground. Maybe that’s why I’m so impressed as I observe the Altar…
The mottled bark of an Arizona sycamore frames vibrant maple leaves in the Miller Peak Wilderness, part of the Huachuca Mountains of Southern Arizona. By Norma Jean Gargasz
Falling For Autumn
Aspens display their golden leaves along Forest Road 22, a Kaibab National Forest road north of the Grand Canyon’s North Rim. Unlike most deciduous trees, aspens are…
Stuart Chavez, a member of the Havasupai Tribe, raises an eagle feather toward Red Butte, one of the tribe’s sacred sites. By Eirini Pajak
Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni
Red Butte rises from the tablelands of the Coconino Plateau like a camel’s back. The formation’s unmistakable hump, which juts more than 800 feet above a sea of golden prairies, is capped with bands…
Dog trainer Lauralea Oliver and Circe, a Labrador retriever, search for endangered Fickeisen plains cactuses south of the Grand Canyon. By Eirini Pajak
Uncommon Scents
When all you have is a hammer, Abraham Maslow once noted, everything looks like a nail. Similarly, when all you have are a bunch of botanists, everything looks like a pediocactus. That version might…