Cactus Greens and Movie Scenes: My Arizona adventure, plus 5 Arizona movie recs!

On this too-short trip, I saw the largest theater pipe organ, got my fix of lavender lattes, and hiked in the Superstition Wilderness!

My recent travels took me to Mesa, Arizona! I spent three days soaking in some 70-degree Arizonan sunshine, while temperatures here in Michigan dropped well below zero. And while the apps predicted rain, we lucked out with the perfect amount of cloud cover on our hikes and only experienced a bit of sprinkles while driving. The focus of this trip was to visit family, so much of the itinerary was unplanned. However, the highlight of the trip was hiking Fremont Saddle via Peralta Canyon Trail. It was on this trail, two years ago today, that my brother-in-law got married to my now sister-in-law. They privately eloped at this beautiful viewpoint, and it was such a special experience to relive that hike with them! 

 

Check out some photos from the trip or scroll to the bottom for a list of Arizona-esque movies!

 

Day 1: 

• We ate breakfast at Over Easy (thank you to one of our Adult Services Librarians, Brannon, for the recommendation). While it wasn't "the best breakfast of my life" if was so yummy and just what we needed after the four-hour flight! Plus, they had my favorite - lavender syrup - as a latte flavor! It seems like in Michigan you can only get that flavor seasonally. 
• We hiked two trails in Usery Mountain Regional Park: Wind Cave Trail and Cat's Peak Loop via Blevin's Trail. 

Banana Nut French Toast (highly recommended by Brannon), plus LOOK AT HOW TALL THE CACTI ARE! I had no idea they got so large!

I didn't get a good picture from the top, so instead you get this! We were greeted by beautiful blue skies at the base of this hike!

We watched a helicopter airlift a hiker from the viewpoint. Luckily all were okay - this served as a reminder to drink lots of water and don't be fooled by the heat!

 

Day 2: 

• We hiked Fremont Saddle via Peralta Canyon Trail with the family.
• We then enjoyed dinner and a show at Organ Stop Pizza.  

In search of the "perfect" cacti pic!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some views along the way.

 

The view from the top! The formation you see in the background is called Weaver's Needle. Experienced climbers often free solo to the summit. In stories of the 'Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine' the Needle's shadow reportedly indicates the location of a rich vein of gold.

 

And of course, I have to share this beautiful photo from the wedding that took place in the same location just two years earlier! So happy to share this memory with two amazing people!

 

At Organ Stop Pizza there were so many different instruments, lighting effects, and sound effects all being controlled by this one organist! Plus, he took requests. We listened to showtunes, Disney hits, Britney Spears, and so much more! This was a very fun, casual, dining experience!

 

Day 3: 

• We started the day with the best breakfast and... you guessed it... a lavender chai latte at a cute place called Jarrod's Coffee: a charming house turned coffee/cafe/gallery!
• Then we time traveled back to the Wild West to visit the historic Goldfield Ghost Town, a recreated 1890s gold mining town in Apache Junction.

Jarrod's Coffee was like a maze, with all of the rooms turned into sitting areas and gallery space!

In Goldfield Ghost Town, we watched a showdown reenactment, visited the saloon, and strolled through the shops.

To keep the trip alive, these are my 5 Set-In-Arizona movie picks:

 

	The Smashing Machine directed by Benny Safdie The true story of mixed martial arts and UFC fighter Mark Kerr, whose obsession with greatness made him a legend and nearly cost him everything. This movie gets a mention because we watched it as soon as we got home from Arizona. We didn't even realize it was set in Arizona, so that was a fun coincidence to end our Arizona weekend!
	Raising Arizona directed by Joel and Ethan Coen An ex-con and an ex-cop meet, marry, and long for a child of their own. When it is discovered that Hi is unable to have children, they decide to snatch a baby. They try to keep their crime a secret, while friends, co-workers, and a bounty hunter look to use the child for their own purposes. If you don't know this about me, I'm a huge Nicolas Cage fan. I'm the librarian who threw Nic Cage a birthday party. So you bet this comedy, featuring Arizona landmarks (including places I visited), will be added to my watch list!
	Everything Must Go directed by Dan Rush Longtime salesman Nick Halsey (Will Ferrell) has seen better days. No longer at the top of his game, Nick, an alcoholic, loses his job for showing up drunk one too many times. On the same day, he finds that his wife has dumped him, and his possessions, on the front lawn of their home. Facing the fact that his life is collapsing around him, Nick holds a giant yard sale that turns into a unique survival strategy. Based on a short story by Raymond Carver. I love Will Ferrell! Watching him in more of a dramatic role was enthralling. Beware, this movie may leave you with a tinge of melancholia.
	Little Miss Sunshine directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. The Hoover family, a man (Greg Kinnear), his wife (Toni Collette), an uncle (Steve Carell), a brother (Paul Dano) and a grandfather (Alan Arkin), puts the fun back in dysfunctional by piling into a VW bus and heading to California to support a daughter (Abigail Breslin) in her bid to win the Little Miss Sunshine Contest. The sanity of everyone involved is stretched to the limit as the group's quirks cause epic problems as they travel along their interstate route. Only a small portion of this movie was filmed in Arizona, but I had to include it because I drove under the same overpass they do in the movie.
	Jerry Maguire directed by Cameron Crowe When slick sports agent Jerry Maguire (Tom Cruise) has a crisis of conscience, he pens a heartfelt company-wide memo that promptly gets him fired. Desperate to hang on to the athletes that he represents, Jerry starts his own management firm, with only single mother Dorothy Boyd (Renee Zellweger) joining him in his new venture. Banking on their sole client, football player Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding Jr.), Jerry and Dorothy begin to fall in love as they struggle to make their business work. Okay, so I haven't actually seen this movie before. But it's a cult classic for a reason, right? Knowing there is a scene shot at the base of the Superstition Mountains has me wanting to see what else I'll recognize while watching!