The Valley of the Sun, Arizona Area Parks & Recreation
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Boyce Thompson Arboretum
Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park is the place to discover the intricate beauty and many faces of Arizona's oldest and largest botanical garden. Featured are plants from the world's deserts, towering trees, captivating cacti, sheer mountain cliffs, a streamside forest, panoramic vistas, many ...
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Casa Grande Ruins National Monument
Casa Grande Ruins National Monument preserves the remains of an ancient Hohokam farming village as well as the enigmatic Great House. For over a thousand years, prehistoric farmers inhabited much of the present-day state of Arizona. When the first Europeans arrived, all that remained of this ...
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Estrella Mountain Regional Park
Perched on a ridgeline of Estrella Mountain Regional Park, one could have witnessed the unfolding of many interesting events and lives that have been lived out in the desert landscape below. The history and lives of the area begins with the Hohokam Indian culture which inhabited the area from ...
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Lost Dutchman State Park
Named after the fabled lost gold mine, this park is located in the Sonoran Desert at an elevation of 2000 feet. The park offers a variety of hiking trails, nature trails, 35 regular campsites, picnic facilities, and special programs throughout the year. Mild winter climates and the close ...
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Oracle State Park
Center for Environmental Education Oracle State Park is located in the northeastern foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains near the town of Oracle. Ranging from 3,500 to 4,500 feet in elevation, the nearly 4,000-acre park consists of oak grassland, riparian woodland, and mesquite scrub ...
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Picacho Peak State Park
Picacho Peak was often used as a landmark by early explorers. During the 17th century, dedicated Jesuit priest Father Kino mentioned Picacho Peak in records of his journeys into Arizona, and in 1775, the DeAnza Expeditions passed by the Peak. In 1846, the Mormon Battalion, on their way to ...
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White Tank Regional Park
White Tank Mountain Regional Park is nearly 30,000 acres, making it the largest park in the Maricopa County system. Most of the Park is made up of the rugged and beautiful White Tank Mountains, which is a freestanding range separating the Phoenix Basin of the Salt River Valley from the ...