Superstition Mountains

Paul Babeu, Pinal County Sheriff, Getting Some Lovin' (And Help Distracting Public from PCSO Search-and-Rescue Woes) From Fox News

Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu has been catching some serious heat over the way his office handled the search for missing hiker Christopher Hensley. The PCSO's own search crew combed the Superstition Mountains for days. But it was Superstition Search and Rescue, a private, all-volunteer team ouste ... More >>

Dead or Alive? Paul Babeu's Wilderness-Rescue Unit Once Again Proves Inept

Tonya Hensley's asking herself if her husband would still be alive if she'd relied initially on the crack Superstition Search and Rescue team rather than Paul Babeu's unit.

Pinal County Sheriff's Office Criticized Over Handling of Search for Missing Superstition Mountain Hiker

"Is daddy living in the mountains now?" It's a heartbreaking question that 5-year-old Alexa has been asking her mom, Tonya Hensley. It's been nearly two weeks since members of the Superstition Search and Rescue (SSAR) traced Chris Hensley's steps into the Superstition Mountains and located his re ... More >>

Do You Believe in the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine?

After more than 100 years of searching, it looks like nobody's been able to find the Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine or lore, which is supposed to be located in the Superstition Mountains.We bring this up due to one of the most recent unsuccessful gold-hunters, a woman named Robin Byrd, who had to be pluc ... More >>

Lost Dutchman's Gold Hunter Rescued for a Second Time; Pockets Filled With Zero Gold

For the second time in just a few months, a woman had to be located and rescued from the Superstition Mountains, in her hunt for the fabled Lost Dutchman's Gold Mine.And, wouldn't you know, just like every single other person who's searched for the mine over the past 100-plus years, Robin Byrd found ... More >>

Weather Nazis Insist It's Not Snowing in Phoenix -- It's "Graupel"

Excuuuse all of us who thought it's been snowing in Phoenix this afternoon.According to the weather Nazis -- by "weather Nazis," we mean every meteorologist in the Valley, as well as the National Weather Service -- it's some substance called "graupel" that's dropping in Phoenix.

50: Maya Dailey

From now 'til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers -- Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you'll know; for others, it'll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you're here, check out our 100 Creat ... More >>

Dry River Yacht Club Premieres "Rape of Persephone" Music Video

Dry River Yacht Club has a flair for the dramatic, and the band's new video, "Rape of Persephone" is no exception. The opening shots make it look like the title sequence of a classic western film, until a woman in Greek garb stands on a ledge. The video for song parallels the Greek myth of Persep ... More >>

Hunter French, DPS Chopper Pilot, Having Action-Packed Spring; Helped Out on Two Mountain Rescues in Three Days

​Flying injured hikers from mountaintops twice in three days tested the skills of veteran rescue pilot Hunter French.This dude gets an A-plus.On March 2, the Arizona Department of Public Safety chopper pilot helped rescue a Washington hiker who'd fallen into a crevice in the Superstition Mountains ... More >>

Pavle Milic & Charleen Badman Offering Exclusive Island Brunch For a Good Cause

Like their three new concepts under one roof -- Baratin, Bodega, and AZ Wine Merchants, which opened earlier this month -- it goes without saying that when FnB co-owners Pavle Milic and chef Charleen Badman set out to do something, they do it with style. The two have recently announced an amazing ... More >>

The Life of a State: A Timeline of Arizona's History

Superstition Plane Crash Likely an "Awful Mistake," Says Flight School Instructor; No Evidence (So Far) of Evasive Action Before Impact

Judging by the latest information, a plane crash into the western flanks of the Superstition Mountains appears to have been the result of an "awful mistake," says a flight-school instructor.Six people -- three men and one of the men's three young children -- were killed when the twin-engine plane hi ... More >>

Superstition Plane Crash: Don't Pick Up Bones Near Crash Site, PCSO Says

​The trails on the Superstition Mountains near the site of last week's plane crash are now open for business, even as wreckage from the crash -- including human bone fragments, apparently -- remains on the mountain.The Pinal County Sheriff's Office says one hiker's already found a bone fragment ne ... More >>

Plane Crashes Into Superstition Mountains, Causing Fireball; UPDATE -- Six People Dead, Hiking Trails Closed as Rescue Workers Rappel to Wreckage

An airplane crashed into the Superstition Mountains about 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday evening, near the Flatiron formation. Witnesses saw an explosion and fireball, says Channel 5 (KPHO-TV). We tried to get in touch with Elias Johnson, spokesman for the Pinal County Sheriff's Office -- he's on his way ... More >>

Mergence Keeps It Weird with Communes, Nomads, and Robots

Pinalcchio: Renowned Forensics Experts Say a Pinal County Deputy's High-Profile Tale About Getting Shot After Encountering Drug Smugglers Doesn't Add Up

A Look at the Two Prevailing Versions of the Dutchman Legend

Fool's Gold: Prospectors Have Looked for the Lost Dutchman's Gold for a Century, But Jesse Capen Figured He Could Find It. He Probably Died Trying.

Hot Links: Fiesta Bowl, Mesa Police Chief, and Casinos

​The Fiesta Bowl canceled its plan to ask the state for a $300,000 subsidy after the Arizona Sports and Tourism Authority said it would be illegal. The Fiesta Bowl wanted expenses capped for next year's national championship college football game, with some expenses reverting to the sports authori ... More >>

Searchers "Disappointed" They Missed Finding Hiker's Body Near Trailhead

​ Authorities had searched high and low for 53-year-old Kelley Tate (above), who went missing in the rugged Superstition Mountains last Thursday. But they didn't search low enough. After 150 searchers combed the mountains for days, utilizing dogs, horses, and a helicopter, a phoned-in tip led ... More >>

Hot Links: Electric Cars, Bat Mass Murder, and the Cardinals

The Maricopa Association of Governments plans to announce a partnership with Nissan and a Scottsdale-based company called Ecotality Inc. to create charging stations in the Valley for electric and hybrid vehicles. Nissan wants to bring 1000 electric vehicles to Phoenix, and Ecotality Inc. said tax in ... More >>

Hot Links: Phoenix had 14th Wettest Year in 2008; ATV Rider and Local Hikers Missing; Cops and Shelter Help Homeless

What drought? Last year will go down as one of the wettest years on record in Phoenix. In weather-related incidents, an ATV rider up north and two hikers in the Superstition Mountains go missing. And the nastier-than-normal weather hasn't been so kind on the homeless in the last few weeks, but cops ... More >>

Hike and Write

Reality Bites

Summer in the city

Fat Cats

Athletes burn flubber

Hauling Gary's Ashes

They found his ash can in the trash can

Digging the Dead

History and mystery, six feet under

Beer Run

Hashers get exercise, too!

Katie & Jordy's Excellent Adventure

The incredibly true story of two Tempe women and the photograph that helped convict Scott Peterson

BEST PLACE TO EAT AT THE BAR

Superstition Saloon

RenFest Retch

Into medieval torture? Try the food at the Renaissance Festival.

Coffee, Tea or Mead?

Whatever happened to good, old-fashioned human sacrifice? Pagans today are such wimps.

Best Place To Feel Home On The Range

OK Corral

Ka-ching Kachina

Sizing up the price of the world's tallest kachina.

Mary Jane Girl

The life and high times of Phoenix cannabis crusader Christie Bohling

Cactus Talk

Arboretum educates, inspires guests

Pot of Gold

Arizona's tribes use casino revenue to provide scholarships for every college-bound Indian. Where are the graduates?

Best Place to Get Rid of Your Brother-in-Law

Goldfield Ghost Town
4650 North Mammoth Mine Road, three miles north of Apache Junction via the Apache Trail (Highway 88)
480-983-0333

Best Hard-Core Day Hike

The Flatiron Trail,
Lost Dutchman State Park

Best Golf Course to Gawk at the Scenery

Gold Canyon Golf Resort's Dinosaur Mountain Course
6100 South Kings Ranch Road, Gold Canyon
480-982-9090

From Mohawks To Mullets

Images from 25 years of Phoenix music

Grazing in the Grass

The Big E

Dogie Bag

Affirmative Reactionaries

Arizona's militias aren't the exclusive domain of white supremacists - people of color are joining the ranks, too.

Rave Review

Despite media reports of their death, the rave subculture, house music and the joy of X live on, roughly from midnight 'til dawn. In, of all places, Phoenix, Arizona.

MICHAEL KIEFERSTANCES WITH WOLVESFORMER ECO-TERRORIST DAVE FOREMAN UNLEASHES A PLAN TO LET LOBOS LOOSE IN THE WILDERNESS

NO MERE MR. NICE GUY

GUBERNATORIAL HOPEFUL EDDIE BASHA IS KNOWN AS A PHILANTHROPIST AND A CRUSADER FOR EDUCATION. WHAT HE'S NOT KNOW AS IS A DEMOCRAT

ZEAL OF FORTUNEA PHOENIX BUS DRIVER IS THE LATEST TREASURE HUNTER TO BELIEVE CRYPTIC STONE TABLETS HOLD THE SECRET TO A SUPERSTITION TROVE