Scottsdale Blog - Things to do in Scottsdale, Arizona » Attractions and Adventures

Local Luminaries: Zev Nadler

Josh Kenzer — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:21:27 +0000

Each year, Experience Scottsdale profiles a selection of local celebrities, from restaurateurs and sports figures to artists and adventurers for our Destination Guide. We invite you to meet this year’s luminaries and find out what they have to say about living, working and enjoying life in Scottsdale.

Zev Nadler is owner of Desert Wolf Tours.

Request your free destination guide for Scottsdale, Arizona today!

Hiking Tom’s Thumb Trail

Josh Kenzer — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 17:40:19 +0000

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by David Porter. David runs a travel blog, The Roaming Boomers, where David’s wife, Carol, and David share their own insiders view of Phoenix, Scottsdale, and Arizona.

One of the great benefits of visiting Scottsdale, Arizona is the vast array of breathtaking, long range panoramas available.

These views are especially plentiful with a healthy hike on one of the McDowell Sonoran Preserve’s hiking trails. Best of all, this is all done right here in the city limits!

With the fairly recent addition of the Tom’s Thumb Trail, my wife and I decided to climb up the back (north) side of this prominent Scottsdale landmark. You can get to this particular section of the trail via Happy Valley Road. Here is a map for your reference.

This particular trail is about 4.5 miles round trip. During the journey you will climb a little over 800 ft., with 1350 ft. of accumulated gain. The trails are very well manicured, and will be easy hiking except for the elevation gains.

Young people with young bones will find this easy hiking. Baby boomers can certainly enjoy this hike as well, you just may want to allow some extra time to catch your breath from time to time. We took our time, enjoyed the scenery, had a picnic at the top, and found ourselves back to our car in 4 1/2 hours.

We didn’t take the time to scope it out, but you may want to look around the summit area for the Ogre’s Den. This is a natural cave that was formed by one of the fallen massive granite boulders, and provides hikers a mysterious place to explore.

When hiking in the arid climate of the Sonoran desert, it is imperative that you follow a few critical rules:

Let someone know where you are going, and when they can expect your return.
Make certain that you have protected yourself from the sun with a good sunscreen and hat.
Make absolutely certain that you have a least 2 liters of water/person for this hike. We both had two liters on our backs, and we were bone dry by the time we got back to the bottom.

If you prefer a little easier hike, the McDowell Sonoran Preserve has over 14,000 scenic acres with a trail for every taste.

In closing, it would be nearly criminal to visit Scottsdale and not get some cowboy dust on your shoes while hiking one of our beautiful trails. By all means, leave some time in your schedule for a day hike!

Pink Jeep Tours Enhances Community Through Trail Maintenance

Josh Kenzer — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 18:44:26 +0000

Pink Jeep Tours maintains, rebuilds and re-vegetates trails throughout the greater Sedona area and recently completed a major renovation to the trails at the Honanki cliff dwellings in Sedona. All trail maintenance was done by Pink Jeep Tours employees with approval from the Red Rock Ranger District Archaeologist, Travis Bone.

The major renovation included filling and leveling gravel along the trail, improving drainage, clearing debris, stabilizing culverts and walls along the trail, creating wheelchair accessible ramps, adding natural rock steps at trail inclines and implementing safeguards to reduce the effects of future erosion.

Sedona attracts nearly 4 million visitors from around the world each year, eager to see the richly colored landscape and to experience the spirituality that accompanies this unusually beautiful area. All of this traffic takes its toll on the local trails causing erosion, flooding and loss of vegetation. Pink Jeep Tours is dedicated to giving back to the community that has made the past 50 years of business possible.

The Honanki cliff dwellings in Sedona is one of the major archaeological historical areas of Sedona. The Sinagua (ancestors of the Hopi) lived in the dwellings from about AD1100 to 1300. The site is managed by the U.S. Forest Service under the Red Rock Pass Program and is open to the general public from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. seven days a week. Pink Jeep offers the Ancient Ruins Tour to these dwellings, a once in a lifetime archaeological adventure.

Go from Mild to Wild

Josh Kenzer — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 18:38:15 +0000

El Nino has dropped over 7 feet of snow on the White Mountains of Arizona, making the current snow pack 219% of average. This is great news for the upcoming rafting on the Upper Salt River. Mild to Wild Rafting has announced an early start to its rafting season. This short season will start February 27th and ends May 31st.

The first river to run in the United States every year, the Upper Salt River, also offers more rapids per mile than any other Arizona river. With ten to twelve intermediate class III "wet and fun" rapids on the one day section the Upper Salt River provides excitement for beginner and experienced rafters alike.

"We are very excited for the upcoming season," said owner Alex Mickel. "With the current snowpack this rafting season is shaping up to be one for the record books."

For more information on Upper Salt River Rafting for ages 8 and up, contact Mild to Wild at 800-567-6745 or go to www.Mild2WildRafting.com.

Follow Mild to Wild on Facebook now for the chance to win one of 4 One Day Salt River Rafting Trips!

Mild to Wild Rafting & Jeep Trail Tours

The Top 5 Things to Do

Josh Kenzer — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:13:41 +0000

while this video is introduced as the top 5 things to do in Phoenix, it is equally applicable as the top 5 things to do in Scottsdale as well.

Celebrate Spooky Scottsdale Events this Halloween

Whitney Willis — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:45:23 +0000

With Halloween less than a week away, it’s time to start looking at all of the spooktacular events that Scottsdale has to offer.

Start out the Halloween season by visiting the Desert Botanical Garden’s 8^th annual Great Pumpkin Festival Oct. 22-Oct. 25 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. Experience a weekend festival that brings the true feel of autumn to the desert. The Great Pumpkin Festival comes to life with pumpkins, hayrides, country-western entertainment and carnival games. Don’t miss the hay bale maze and the Arizona Big Train Operators’ interactive exhibit. All activities are included with Garden admission. Prices are $15 for adults, $13.50 for seniors, $7.50 for students ages 13-18 with proper I.D., $5 for children ages three to 12 and children three and under are free.

Halloween Day festivities begin 10 a.m. and continue through 5:30 p.m. as Adelante Gallery at el Pedregal celebrates the Dia De Los Muertos holiday featuring Day of the Dead Art and Imagery by four local artists and festive live music by Louis Castro on the courtyard stage. View unique, hand-crafted works of art such as paintings, custom-made sugar skulls and jewelry showing the holiday’s famous skeletons. Specialty margaritas will be available in addition to homemade “Pan de Muertos” (Day of the Dead Bread) by Chef Christine Wieland. Admission is free.

And to finish off your spooky night, attend The Fairmont Scottsdale’s Haunted Hotel Halloween Ball at Stone Rose Lounge. Starting at 9 p.m. on Oct. 31 Scottsdale’s most sophisticated Halloween event begins featuring music, classic cocktails, celebrity guests and the Valley’s best costume contest with a variety of cash and prizes. The Haunted Hotel Halloween Ball in partnership with 944 Magazine offers a lavish twist on classic Halloween festivities with a decadent “Haunted Hotel” theme hosted by one of Scottsdale’s hottest outdoor nightlife destinations. Fortunetellers and tarot card readers will entertain partygoers throughout the evening along with a surprise live act by performance artists, and the best part is – admission is free!

1971 Plymouth Cuda Convertible 440/6 Offered at Russo and Steele

Josh Kenzer — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:07:28 +0000

One of Seventeen 1971 Plymouth Cuda Convertible 440/6 Offered at Russo and Steele’s 10th Anniversary Scottsdale Auction

Russo and Steele Collector Automobile Auctions, one of the nation’s premier collector car auctions, specializing in European sports cars, American muscle cars, hot rods and customs will be celebrating its tenth anniversary this January 20-24, 2010. It held its first auction event in January 2001 with only 45 automobiles; today it offers over 600 of the finest automobiles in Scottsdale over a five day span.

This 1971 Plymouth Cuda 2003 underwent a nut & bolt, rotisserie restoration to factory specs and retains all of its rare, correct parts. The original, matching numbers motor, transmission and Dana rear-end were professionally built to factory specs. Since its creation, this automobile has always been totally rust-free and, to this day, still has all of its original body panels, floor, trunk, doors and sheet metal. In fact, it still wears its original convertible top and rear glass!

This 1971 Plymouth Cuda Convertible is one of only seventeen 440-6pak Cuda convertibles built in 1971 and the only one finished in Tawny gold. It is also the highest optioned Six Pack Cuda Convertible known to exist and one of only two that came from the factory with the highly desirable shaker hood and bill-board stripes! Aside from the history and provenance on this car, it is further distinguished by the preserved original paperwork that fully documents how this automobile was delivered from the factory. A part of this original documentation is the original build sheet, the original window sticker, original fender tags and the original invoice from the dealership that sold the car new! To further add value to this particular automobile, consider that it has gone through a complete bumper-to-bumper inspection by Mopar expert Galen Govier. Mr. Govier authenticated it as a complete, matching numbers, fully documented, ’71 Six Pack Cuda Convertible and a genuine 1 of a kind car! With its superior quality restoration and bullet proof documentation, this is truly one of the most significant Mopars ever produced and certainly one of the most coveted collector cars in the world!

The tenth anniversary celebration will be held at Russo and Steele’s traditional auction site located at the intersection of the North loop 101 freeway and North Scottsdale Road. In honor of this momentous occasion, Russo and Steele is inviting everyone out whether you are a bidder, consignor or fellow enthusiasts for what is going to be the biggest celebration in Scottsdale this January 20-24, 2010. Check the Russo and Steele website for updates and additional information.

The Pink Light District

Josh Kenzer — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 15:00:09 +0000

Photo by Josh Kenzer.

For the month of October, the Scottsdale Southbridge at the Waterfront is awash in pink lights. Named The Pink Light District, this display is a fund raiser to raise money for breast cancer research and awareness. For more information or to donate, please visit their official website.

Be sure to get out to downtown Scottsdale and take in the colors and raise awareness.

Other Images from the Bridge:

My Visit to the Heard Museum

Mitchell Tay — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 20:09:35 +0000

As an Arizona native it was sad for me to say that I’ve never been to the Heard Museum. It’s almost as bad as saying that you live in Arizona but have never been to the Grand Canyon. The Heard Museum is all about the Native American culture and covers everything from history to contemporary art. It is a fairly large museum with permanent, semi-permanent, and temporary exhibits (make sure you grab a map). Their signature exhibit is Home: Native People in the Southwest. A guided tour is offered for this exhibit, which lasts around an hour, that shows the history and culture of the Native American people. I definitely recommend going through this exhibit with a docent as they are very knowledgeable and go through an eight month training program to become fully educated about the Native American culture. The rest of the museum you’re free to roam around the museum. Another exhibit I recommend you definitely check out is Remembering Our Indian School Days: The Boarding School Experience. This is a very moving exhibit that chronicles the controversial experience of Native American children being placed in boarding schools to educate and assimilate them. There are many other exhibits at the Heard including paintings and sculptures. Additionally there are childrens’ activities, which of course always makes learning fun. There’s even a gift shop which you can purchase pieces of art from the creators themselves!

The Heard Museum also hosts many unique events at their site such as the Spanish Market, 52nd Annual Indian Fair and Market, and Native + You.

Overall, my experience at the Heard of Native American culture and experiencing the many beautiful pieces of art was enjoyable. I could have easily spent a half day there and am glad I finally made a trip to the Heard Museum. =)

Bajada Nature Trail Opening

Josh Kenzer — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:11:18 +0000

What: A formal dedication of the Bajada Nature Trail begins at 8 a.m., hosted by Ruthie Carll, Executive Director of the McDowell
Sonoran Conservancy, speakers include Mayor Jim Lane and representatives from the McDowell Sonoran Preserve Commission. Various activities will take place throughout the morning.

Why: We constructed the Bajada Trail for the enjoyment of all — from young children to the elderly, and for those with physical challenges. The half-mile trail exceeds many ADA standards. It offers an innovative, interactive nature experience for those who want to learn more about Arizona’s unique Sonoran Desert.

When: Saturday, Sept. 26, 7 to 10 a.m.

Where: At The Gateway to the McDowell Sonoran Preserve
18333 N. Thompson Peak Parkway
(east of Thompson Peak Parkway
between Bell Road and Union Hills Drive.
The formal dedication begins at 8 a.m.)

How: The Bajada Trail was made possible through the generous support of longtime McDowell Sonoran Preserve advocates, the Richard and Christine Kovach Family and the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy. For more information, contact the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy at (480) 998-7971.

Printable Bajada Nature trail Invite