Flowing River, Lava Fields in Arizona

April 26; Eagar, AZ:

We were ready for a look around at the Little Colorado River nature trail a few miles west of Eagar. We were staying with relatives in an area in the far eastern midsection of Arizona at an altitude of about 6,500 ft. Juniper, willow, cottonwood, and low native shrubs dot all views, high and low, far and near. It's dry, high and ruggedly handsome country, and the people who live there are working folk who have been there for generations.

I learned that this is the biggest volcanic area in North America; 42 cones are visible in the area, many very easy to see. Others are only really discernible from high overhead where the outlines of calderas and collapsed cones come into view. Lava flows actually rival Hawaii's Mauna Kea's more recent flows in size. An area northeast of this region, called The Malpais, is essentially an enormous lava field with upraised crusts of black rock visible through vast tracts of land.

Eagar is bordered by Springerville; both towns are home to about 6,000 people, predominantly Mormons now. Back in the 1800s, the Clanton gang was notorious and raised hell with ranchers and townsfolk alike. They were cattle thieves, rustling cattle from ranchers in the north and selling them far to the south, then stealing from ranches in the south, herding them north and then selling them there. There was a shootout in Eagar after gang members rustled cattle and ranchers took off after them and a plaque marks the exact spot where two gang members were sent to the sweet hereafter in a hail of bullets. It is also known that the Hole-In-The-Wall gang rode through every so often and took shelter in rocky and remote areas.

The Little Colorado River, the focus of the nature trail, is running higher than usual due to late snows at high altitudes. The river's bed is not very wide in the Round Valley, but it twists and turns like a snake. Cottonwoods with tender green buds arched overhead along the riverbank and meadowlarks fluting from low shrubs set the river to music. Recently, winter's snows had flattened everything, and spring's flowers are not in bloom, but it was a fine day to be out exploring.

A drive further west to Greer revealed a higher, more pine-laden terrain and good views of pronghorn antelope grazing in open grasslands flanking the road on the way to the upland forests. In summer, the high country provides respite for Phoenix residents getting cooked in the heat. They've built a small community of lodges, summer cabins and lakeside homes, all empty right now. It's rich with wildlife like bears, coyotes, porcupines and beaver plus osprey and eagles. Greer is at about 8,000 ft, and everywhere is dark lava rock, jagged and sometimes crumbling dangerously on nearly vertical cliff and steep mountain sides.

We enjoyed a barbecue dinner that night and said our good-byes the next day, heading north and east, ultimately to Taos, by way of ancient indigenous peoples' villages, a few dozen casinos and two of the largest cities in New Mexico.