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the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to advance the country’s space exploration efforts. Hoping to quickly catch up to the Soviets, NASA pushed to send the first person into space, but alas, the Soviets also won this battle with Yuri Gagarin making the trip April 12, 1961. Alan Shepard followed suit May 5. Although his flight was only 15 minutes, it inspired President Kennedy and his advisors to think big, and on May 25, Kennedy declared to Congress, “I believe that this country should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth.” With this, the game was on. While NASA worked on developing the technology to accomplish Kennedy’s daring goal, scientists such as USGS geologist Eugene Shoemaker brought up another point. He argued that if America was going to send people to the moon, then those star voyagers should do more than just plant the flag and come back. They should also carry out scientific work, collecting rocks, making geological observations, and deploying experiments that would help scientists better understand the nature of the moon, Earth, and entire solar system while teaching us something about our own species. NASA recognized the value of this and, slowly at first but more aggressively later on, agreed to train astronauts in geological principles and techniques. MOVE TO FLAGSTAFF The year 1963 proved to be pivotal to the story. Shoemaker moved the headquarters of the USGS Branch of Astrogeology from Menlo Park, California, to Flagstaff to help prepare for the Apollo missions. A new facility would be built atop McMillan Mesa, adjacent to Buffalo Park, Flagstaff’s new outdoor wildlife attraction. Until then, the Museum of Northern Arizona provided the USGS workspace at its research complex. The USGS also rented various spaces around town to accommodate its burgeoning staff, even after its new center on McMillan Mesa opened in 1965. In downtown alone, USGS staff occupied three floors of the Arizona Bank Building on Birch Street; the Old Annex (also known as the “Dance Hall”) along Santa Fe Avenue, where Kachina Restaurant’s main parking lot now sits; and the Burris Building at 119 E. Aspen St., where scientists carried out lunar terrain analyses to determine suitability of proposed landing sites. The USGS also rented a building on the Southside and used it as the “Rock Lab,” where staff prepared and analyzed rock samples. Located on Mike’s Pike, the building now houses the Flag Tee Factory. 10
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ASTRONAUTS VISIT
Top lef t: An explosion creates a single crater at Cinder Lake Crater Field One in 1967. Top right: Several explosions create craters at Cinder Lake Crater Field Two in 1968. (USGS Astrogeology Science Center photos) Bottom: A 2018 photo of a large crater in Cinder Lake Crater Field One in the Coconino National Forest. (Nancy Wiechec photo)
Also in 1963, the first astronauts to train in Flagstaff arrived on a cold day in January. The group consisted of the so-called “Next Nine,” NASA’s second class of astronauts. This was an impressive group of men; commanders of six of the nine manned missions that eventually flew to the moon, including Armstrong and Jim Lovell, came from this class. The first visit to Flagstaff was sort of a test to evaluate the benefits of training in Flagstaff. The astronauts first visited Meteor Crater, exploring a feature similar to what they expected to find on the moon. They then went to Sunset Crater to study volcanic features. Later, they headed up Mars Hill to Lowell Observatory, where they visited with cartographers to see how lunar features are depicted on maps. After this, the astronauts broke up into three groups to view the moon through telescopes, with some staying at Lowell and the others going to Northern Arizona University and the Naval Observatory Flagstaff Station (NOFS). After a brief night of sleep at the Hiway House on Route 66 (Walgreens, on the corner of Route 66 and Fourth Street, now stands at this site), they went back to NAU for more briefings by Art Adel and other scientists. Most of the astronauts then left, but Jim Lovell, Frank Borman and Pete Conrad stayed the rest of the day. They ate lunch at the Gables Restaurant (most recently, La Mandarin, at the intersection of West Route 66 and Milton Road, occupied this building) and spoke at an assembly at Flagstaff High School, where multiple coeds fainted when Frank Borman took the stage. The visit proved successful, and NASA realized Flagstaff was an excellent place for geology training. It wasn’t the only place—as astronauts also went to Hawaii, Oregon, New Mexico, Iceland, Mexico and other locations to train—but it was one of the best. With this success, NASA sent other classes of Apollo astronauts to Flagstaff. Geologists such as Gordon Swann, Jerry Schaber, Ivo Lucchitta, Lee Silver and Dale Jackson helped lead these training efforts. They took the astronauts not only to Meteor Crater and Sunset Crater but also visited other areas in the San Francisco volcanic field such as Merriam Crater. They hiked into the Grand Canyon and visited other volcanic landscapes, such as Hopi Buttes on the Navajo Reservation northeast of Flagstaff. Geologists organized these trips as much to inspire the astronauts as to teach them actual geological principles and techniques. The natural features served as excellent analogs to what the astronauts could expect to find on the lunar surface. november18 april18 namlm.com
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TRAINING GROUNDS Manmade features also came into play. USGS staff members used a Lunar Orbiter photograph of a tiny part of the Sea of Tranquility on the moon as a template to create a crater field in the Cinder Lake area near the city landf ill and Sunset Crater. In July 1967, they dug holes at distances and depths that matched craters depicted in the lunar photograph, then f illed the holes with explosives, covered them back up and detonated the explosives in a series of dramatic explosions. The result was a field of manmade craters where astronauts could practice describing the terrain, just as they would do on the lunar surface to help pinpoint their location. Astronauts also practiced identifying and collecting rocks and, for the last three missions, driving a test rover. Nicknamed Cinder Lake Crater Field, the USGS expanded it in October
development, but it, in fact, is still present. Located in a sizeable alluvial area, the craters long ago filled with mud. Today, only a few are discernable as shallow depressions. In some cases, they are marked by clumps of trees that have grown inside the craters. Cinder Lake Crater Field Two is located in the Coconino National Forest’s Cinder Hills Off Highway Vehicle Area, and the craters have been worn down by outdoor enthusiasts plunging sideby-sides and other off-road vehicles through the same craters where astronauts once did the same thing, albeit at much slower speeds, with training rovers. Cinder Lake Crater Field One is also on Forest Service land but it’s fenced off. Historian Ben Carver and archaeologist Ian Hough look to bolster the effort to protect the site and are working on a proposal to gain historic landmark status for the area, along with localities within Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, where moon training and testing also took place.
‘All of these buildings, crater fields, and other natural features serve as reminders of Flagstaff’s lunar legacy, but so does the modern science still proliferating in the city.’ 1967, resulting in a total of 143 craters. The area also proved useful for testing other equipment and procedures necessary for the moon missions. The USGS used the area so much that it soon looked to create another field. Engineers and technicians considered several locales and in August 1968 even detonated some test holes atop Black Point Lava Flow, located on the Babbitt Ranch’s Spider Web Camp, about 35 miles northeast of Flagstaff. The USGS eventually settled on a site a mile or so north of Cinder Lake Crater Field and created another training area with more than 400 craters. When snow fell and filled the cavities, the USGS looked to build another field to the south, out of the heavy snowfall area. They found an open field near Cottonwood in the Verde Valley—about a quarter mile southwest of the intersection of State Route 260 and Ogden Ranch Road—and in February 1970 created the Black Canyon Crater Field. A half-century later, all three of these fields still exist, a lbeit in various stages of preservation. The Black Canyon field was thought by many people to be gone, covered over by a housing 12
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OTHER MISSION TASKS Astronaut training was the most visible part of the Apollo preparations in northern Arizona, and it was closely tied to other efforts spearheaded by the USGS such as mission planning and equipment development and testing. One of the more fascinating tasks involved figuring out how the astronauts would travel on the moon. Planting a f lag and collecting some samples was easily accomplished on foot, but true geology f ieldwork meant astronauts would have to travel greater distances. This would require a means of not only transporting the astronauts, but also carrying equipment for surveying, rock collecting, communicating with Earth, and f ilming, as well as schlepping specimens they collected. The need for some sort of powered vehicle was driven home on the Apollo 14 mission when astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell struggled to pull a hand-operated cart around the lunar surface. This device, named the modularized equipment transporter but
Top: Apollo 17 astronaut Jack Schmitt is pictured training at the Cinder Lake Crater Field in Flagstaf f. (USGS Astrogeology Science Center photo) Bottom: Apollo 16 astronaut Charlie Duke conducts an experiment next to a lunar crater in the moon’s Descartes Highlands area in 1972. (NASA photo)
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referred to by the astronauts as the golf cart, was clearly inadequate for this mission, let alone the later ones that would require much longer traverses. Engineers tested a variety of powered vehicles, including a jetpack that would allow astronauts to f ly, and ultimately narrowed the list down to a lunar rover, a wheeled vehicle that astronauts would drive across the moon. Three companies submitted proposals and built prototypes, all of which technicians tested in the cinder f ields around northern Arizona. NASA eventually went with a sort of space-age dune buggy with a large communication dish and wire mesh wheels. Using this, astronauts on the last three missions could measure the distances they traveled in miles, not feet. While Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked about a half-mile for the Apollo 11 mission, Apollo 17 astronauts Gene Cernan and Jack Schmitt covered 22 miles thanks to the rover. To prepare for these moon excursions, the astronauts needed to practice, so the USGS built a practice vehicle, nicknamed Grover (for Geologic Rover). A reminder of this effort remains at the USGS, where Grover sits on display in the lobby of the Shoemaker Building. Engineers continued working on other alternative vehicles for potential post-Apollo missions, resulting in a diverse array of lunar training vehicles. While the actual testing took place outdoors at the crater fields and other locales, much of the planning and construction took place in rented buildings on Flagstaff ’s east side. The USGS operated a machine shop at 1733 N. West St., and staff members Putty Mills, Bill Tinnen, and Dick Wiser (father of Flagstaff photographer/author Sherry Mangum) built Grover in a building that still stands at 1724 N. East St. They had earlier fashioned another test vehicle called Explorer at 1980 W. Huntington Road in a building now occupied by U-Haul. The USGS also operated the Apollo Data Facility, where geologists practiced evaluating mission data, at 2739 4th St. Coconino County Court reporters Donald Thacker and Keith Welch also spent some time in this building, testing the validity of using stenography for transcribing geology observations. The building is now occupied by R.M. Dahl Chiropractic. 14
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Top: The USGS Field Test Support Unit, (lef t to right) Dick Wiser, John Hendricks, Bill Tinnin and Putty Mills, stands with the Explorer, a lunar rover vehicle simulator at Cinder Lake Crater Field in 1968. (USGS Astrogeology Science Center photo) Bottom: Test vehicles Explorer, Grover, and MOL AB, as well as a practice landing module, are seen outside the garage at 1724 N. East St. in Flagstaf f in the early 1970s. (USGS Astrogeology Science Center photo)
LEGACY REMAINS All of these buildings, crater fields, and other natural features serve as reminders of Flagstaff’s lunar legacy, but so does the modern science still proliferating in the city. NASA astronauts still come to the area for training at Spider Web Camp and elsewhere, USGS scientists still map and photograph the moon and other solar system bodies, and space science studies are stronger than ever here, as evidenced by the work at the USGS, Lowell, NOFS, NAU, and Coconino Community College. With the 50th anniversary of the first manned moon mission just around the corner, this is a great time to celebrate Flagstaff’s lunar legacy. Kevin Schindler is the historian at Lowell Observatory. Bill Sheehan is an astronomy historian and a retired psychiatrist. They are Flagstaff residents and co-authors of Northern Arizona Space Training, part of the Images of America book series. Top: A group taking part in a Coconino National Forest hike explores Cinder Crater Field One in late September. (Nancy Wiechec photos) Bottom: A sign on the fence surrounding Cinder Lake Crater Field One explains the astronaut training area.
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MATTERS OF TASTE
CHE AH CHI
Indigenous ingredients cultivate a distinctive seasonal menu
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By Gail G. Collins Photos by Nancy Wiechec
hen people talk of local sourcing and sustainable farming, the discussion usually centers on modern methods. What about the indigenous produce of Arizona? Foods such as prickly pear have been found in the wild for more than 1,000 years before conventional agriculture became an important industry in the state. Native American tribes of the Southwest established dry farming techniques, growing corn in an arid setting with minimal water.
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Native cuisine focuses on foods yielded from what, at first glance, often seems an unforgiving landscape. Beans, corn and squash are considered the “three sisters” and used in numerous flavorful dishes. The list also includes cholla buds; mesquite pods, which can be milled into flour; chiltepin peppers to fire up salsa, and more. The high desert landscape boasts a nutritious and distinct terrain that can’t be replicated. Executive chef Jose Martinez at Enchantment Resort in Sedona agrees. “Che Ah Chi is our signature
restaurant as far as food and service, but our use of Native American ingredients sets it apart. The history of the canyon and use of tribal, locally grown and wild produce contributes to the majority of our seasonal menus.” An example is a golden gazpacho that incorporates amaranth, an ancient grain that pops when exposed to heat. Che Ah Chi is the Apache name for Boynton Canyon, where the ruddy adobe resort nestles among the red rocks. The 70acre terraced property hosts 218 guest rooms with private decks providing panoramic views. Outdoor pursuits are as boundless as the renowned backdrop, while world-class spa Mii Amo—meaning “the path forward”—offers life-affirming recovery and healthy indulgence. Three dining options are found in the central clubhouse. View 180 provides drinks and light fare, Tii Gavo serves casual Southwest recipes and Che Ah Chi delivers sophisticated dining for breakfast and dinner with an awardwinning wine list of uncommon options. Natural and native elements pervade the clubhouse in rustic planking, stone, plastered walls and brick. A wall of windows invites a timeless and seamless experience with the outdoors. Chef Jose evolved from a foodcentered family, whether it was catering cakes or working in his father’s celebrated Crab House at home in Puerto Rico.
He completed education at two culinary schools, landing in Florida. Martinez gained invaluable experience in his decade at PGA National Resort and Spa, mentoring with the executive chef, whom he followed to the Arizona Biltmore. “That’s where my love for Arizona developed, and the job broadened my managerial experience.” The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs called Martinez, and there, he discovered an appreciation for exceptional detail. “The details make the difference between great and memorable dining.” With a promotion to executive chef, Martinez oversaw The Roosevelt New Orleans, a Waldorf Astoria hotel. The rich culture and soul food encouraged his return to Arizona, where he applies his expansive craft. “We are building a team of chefs and staff to execute a vision as a culinary destination in Sedona at Enchantment Resort,” he says. Since taking the helm in April, chef’s benchmark success lies in the passionate praise of guests and repeat customers. Chef de cuisine Alex Pasco plumbed his longtime connections to local producers, such as Ramona Farms, to facilitate menu ideas and native products. Corn fritters incorporate heirloom cornmeal and whole kernels, bacon and peppers into an airy batter. The light nuggets are warm on the
tongue with a sweet drizzle of mesquite and prickly pear honey and fall amaranth leaves. Edible flowers and herbs dress many dishes in delicate and distinctive ways. Crispy quail tempts with juicy fowl wrapped in a light crust. A wild garden bounty of winter squash, indigenous white tepary beans and dandelion greens create a satiating blend to dab in pear and mesquite honey gastrique. The enormous grilled ribeye steak yields easily under the knife alongside a charred three-potato pave—layers of thin potato stacked Napoleon-style. A vibrant orange puree of carrot and rosemary for daubing enhance each bite. Charred broccolini completed the simple, yet refined, plate. For dessert, a cloud of lemon mousse is strewn with fresh berries and herb Chantilly and finished with a buttery crumble made of mesquite flour. “We are showcasing a variety of produce from Arizona,” says Chef Jose. “We are not a desert wasteland, but a garden of fresh and indigenous ingredients to be used in creative ways.” Dining at Che Ah Chi offers a unique, stylish encounter with nature’s inherent beauty and bounty. Che Ah Chi is located at Enchantment Resort, 525 Boynton Canyon Road, in Sedona. For reservations, call (888) 250-1699, or reserve at opentable.com. november18 namlm.com
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BY THE BOTTLE
Sparkling Rosès for the
Holidays By John Vankat
T
his time of year features several holidays in only a few weeks: Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. Different holidays mean different foods, as well as different gatherings of family and friends, who have various tastes. These many differences pose challenges in selecting which wines to serve. However, there is a single wine style that works beautifully well from Thanksgiving through New Year’s and is loved by most people. It is rosé sparkling wine, which includes rosé Champagne. Sparkling rosés are very food friendly, broadly appealing and traditionally celebratory, making them fine choices during this season of holidays. Of the numerous sparkling rosés available, here are my recommendations at different price levels
Da Luca non-vintage sparkling rosé “Extra Dry, Vino Spumante, Italy” ($14) This blend of Merlot and Raboso delivers surprising quality for the price. It is attractive in the glass and forward on the palate with strong fruit, enjoyable fizz, very good balance and fine length.
Bollamatta (by Bibi Graetz) non-vintage sparkling rosé “Italy” ($26) This 100 percent Sangiovese sparkler has a very beautiful pink hue. Positives on the palate include appealingly strong fruit, along with pleasing balance, complexity and length.
Villa Sandi non-vintage sparkling rosé “Brut Rosato, Il Fresco, Italy” ($17) This well-made bargain of the Glera grape plus a touch of Pinot Noir is pleasing all-around. It has orange-red color, impressive refinement for the price, mouth-filling froth, expressive personality and long finish.
Moët & Chandon nonvintage “Rosé Impérial, Champagne, France” ($40) The Impérial has more fruit than most Champagnes, which will make it popular with many people at this season’s holiday gatherings. I also enjoyed its color, ample bubbles and extended finish.
Dopff & Irion non-vintage sparkling rosé “Brut Rosé, Cremant d’Alsace, France” ($23) Attractive across the board, this Alsatian is 100 percent Pinot Noir. It features strength and forward fruit, but with medium-dry flavor thanks to its fine balance. Plus, it has both complexity and personality.
Veuve Clicquot nonvintage “Rosé, Reims, Champagne, France” ($60) Classic rosé Champagne! I especially liked its polished balance and mouth-filling bubbles, as well as excellent complexity, integration and refinement. Its lengthy finish is delightful.
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Moët & Chandon 2009 “Grand Vintage Rosé, Champagne, France” ($70) This outstanding Champagne is a striking, copper-hued red. It is strong on the palate, yet impressively well-crafted. Highlights include voluminous froth and an exemplary finish.
Nicolas Feuillatte 2006 “Brut Rosé, Palmes d’Or, Champagne, France” ($202) A memorable wine exceptional in multiple dimensions, including gorgeous deep copper-red color and fizz so fine that it is challenging to sense individual bubbles. Made from beautiful Pinot Pol Roger 2009 “Brut Rosé, Noir fruit, there is great Champagne, France” ($123) strength on the palate, yet A beauty with finely textured froth, with exceeding refinement. powerful yet refined strength and Recommended wines can focus on excellently balanced fruit. be ordered from your favorite Plus there’s wonderful integration, Arizona wine store. Write to sophistication and complexity, all John Vankat at azpinewine@ of which extend through a longyahoo.com. lingering finish.
THE ARTS
Transcending Duality
The ins and outs of Santa Fe Studio Style
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By Jennifer McLerran
n a new exhibition, Transcending Duality: The Santa Fe Studio Style, the Museum of Northern Arizona offers visitors the opportunity to view significant works of early 20th-century Native American fine art. Featuring 47 paintings spanning 50 years (1916–1966), the show includes the work of some of the most renowned Native artists of the past century such as Fred Kabotie (Hopi), Awa Tsireh (Alfonso Roybal; San Ildefonso), Gerald Nailor (Navajo), Harrison Begay (Navajo), Allan Houser (Chiricahua Apache), and Pablita Velarde (Santa Clara). Paintings in the show represent several crucial periods in the development of Native fine art. Artists from San Ildefonso Pueblo known as the San Ildefonso Self Taught Group are represented. Pueblo, Navajo and Apache painters who studied at the Santa Fe Indian School both before and after the arrival of influential—and controversial—teacher Dorothy Dunn are also featured. The scenes and subjects of these paintings are predictable to those familiar with 20th-century Native American art. So accustomed have we become to this genre of artwork that we may no longer notice one of its most distinctive features—or, more appropriately, lack of features. These paintings lack indications of a physical environment that would allow us to situate their subjects historically. In fact, the paintings’ backgrounds are often completely blank. When details of the subjects’ environments are provided, they typically consist of the ancient rock formations of Monument Valley or other sparsely vegetated Southwestern landscapes. Few visual clues or details of surroundings provide indicators of the historical periods in which the scenes are set. We know that these artists lived and worked in the 20th century but only rarely did they paint scenes of everyday contemporary life. Even less frequent in their works are scenes of interaction between Native and non-Native subjects. While the artists who painted these scenes were members of communities that continued to engage in age-old ceremonial practices and other traditional activities, they also lived in the modern, industrialized world and their environment reflected the changes it engendered. The story of how such ostensibly seamless representations of an idealized and dehistoricized existence were achieved is told in Transcending Duality. Development of a Native American Fine Art Movement In the early 20th century, most Indian boarding schools did not allow students to practice traditional handcrafts or paint scenes of traditional Native life. If they were allowed to make art at all, Indian school students were expected to conform to Euro-American fine art traditions in their work. Adhering to an assimilationist agenda, school administrators and teachers felt that their students would be best served if they were encouraged to abandon traditional ways. At the same time, and to achieve the same assimilationist ends, the U.S. government banned ceremonial dancing on the reservations. In such authorities’ views, dancing and other ceremonial activity were counter-productive and time-consuming, drained precious community resources and slowed the presumably inevitable and necessary progress toward assimilation and adaptation to the 20
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demands of 20th-century life. Anthropologists, writers, artists and members of philanthropic groups devoted to Native welfare, who recognized the vitality and importance of indigenous cultures, mounted an aggressive campaign throughout the 1920s to convince federal officials to lift strictures on traditional activities. It would not be until the 1930s that repressive policies would be reversed; but, in the intervening years, advocates for Native welfare and Native people themselves steadfastly resisted government restrictions on ceremonial practice. Among those who most encouraged the perpetuation of traditional Native practices were anthropologists and archaeologists who worked closely with Southwestern indigenous communities. Also resistant were a handful of boarding school teachers and administrators, and museum staff who worked directly with artists and collectors of Native art.
The Self-Taught Indian Painters, San Ildefonso Watercolor Movement In 1908, staff from the Museum of New Mexico and Santa Fe’s School of American Archaeology mounted an archaeological excavation near New Mexico’s San Ildefonso Pueblo. San Ildefonso men, including Awa Tsireh and Abel Sanchez (Oqwa Pi), were hired as laborers on the project. Over the course of the dig, the museum archaeologists became familiar with the drawings and paintings of the workers as well as with the works of other community members such as Tonita Peña, who depicted traditional dance scenes. Peña, Tsireh and Sanchez had benefited from the instruction of teacher Esther Hoyt at the San Ildefonso Day School. Unlike other BIA teachers, Hoyt encouraged her students to paint and draw traditional scenes. While she was not trained as an artist, Hoyt supported the students’ endeavors and provided them with the materials, time and space they needed to create. This encouragement continued when MNM and SAR staff employed on the dig gave paints and paper to the artists and bought their work. Word of the Pueblo painters spread to nearby communities such as Santa Fe, and the artists soon acquired a vocal and influential community of supporters. Top: Sacred Mountain, West by Harrison Begay Bottom center: Apache Girl's Adolescent Ceremony by Allan Houser Bottom right: Dr. Salsbury by Harrison Begay
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The Santa Fe Indian School In 1916 Elizabeth DeHuff, newly graduated with an education degree from Barnard College in New York, came to Santa Fe with her husband, John DeHuff. John assumed the position of superintendent of the city’s Indian boarding school; and, although she was not an art teacher, Elizabeth would come to play an important role in the artistic development of the school’s students. The DeHuffs encouraged young artists at the Santa Fe Indian School to paint ceremonial scenes. In 1920, Museum of New Mexico director Edgar Lee Hewett brought Tsireh, Zia artist Velino Shije Herrera and two young Hopi painters, Fred Kabotie and Otis Polelonema, to work at the Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe. The artists attended classes, demonstrated painting and sold their work to museum visitors. Elizabeth DeHuff brought Kabotie, Polelonema and Herrera into her home, providing them with painting materials. The DeHuffs saw to it that the students’ works received attention both within and outside the Santa Fe community. So strong were the couple’s convictions that, by most accounts, John DeHuff lost his job in 1927 because he had encouraged the students to include traditional subjects in their work. It would not be until the early 1930s that a consistent and sustained policy of encouraging Native painting in boarding school education would take hold. The ban on Native dancing and other ceremonial practices was rescinded and the assimilationist policies of the federal government were tempered. No longer was assimilation the only sanctioned choice. The Studio School In 1932 Dorothy Dunn was hired to teach at the Santa Fe Indian School. Dunn favored educational practices that perpetuated and fostered pride in Native heritage. A professional art educator who had studied Native art extensively, Dunn developed and encouraged among her students a style of painting she had carefully formulated. This distinctive style of representation drew on rock art (petroglyphs and pictographs), Southwest kiva painting, Plains hide painting and 22
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other Native North American pictorial traditions. Its most salient characteristics, such as flat representation and little indication of background, were consonant with the work of the San Ildefonso Self-Taught Group and the Native painters who worked with DeHuff at the Santa Fe Indian School. Other defining features of Dunn’s Studio Style painting included the surrounding of figures with dark outlines; lack of use of Western conventions of perspectival rendering, resulting in a very shallow space with little illusion of depth; frontal and profile views of figures; and a pastel color palette. The formula for Native painting developed by Dunn was very successful. Artists who worked with her came primarily from the Pueblo and Navajo communities, but others came from as far away as the Plains. Many went on to long and very successful professional art careers. Among her most famous students, all of whom are represented in Transcending Duality, were Houser, Nailor, Begay, Quincy Tahoma (Navajo) and Andrew Tsihnahjinnie (Navajo). Artists who worked with Dunn by and large adhered to the formula she established for Native painting. However, some rebelled, finding Dunn’s aesthetic too restrictive. While the majority of the paintings in this exhibit conform to the tenets Dunn established, works by Allan Houser and Harrison Begay stand out as different. In Apache Girl’s Adolescent Ceremony (1938), Houser depicts a young
Top: Santa Clara Mountain Sheep Dance by Fred Kabotie
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OUTDOOR LIFE
Getting to the Poin A
fter an early morning rain, the forest smells fresh. Beads of moisture drop with plops as a breeze pushes through the pines. Ever-present crows keep an eye on passersby, and squirrels “chuck-chuck” a bushy-tailed threat. Storm clouds build, dissipate and build, like breath, as they tumble overhead. I had a brief window to enjoy a recent weekday morning hike, and I could think of no better excursion than a section of the Arizona Trail, which is easily accessible from my front door in east Flagstaff. I didn’t have much time though, and my purpose was pleasure, so I opted for a relatively quick route that would get me to the trail and give me some time to sit and enjoy the views at Fisher Point. That’s what I enjoy most about the Walnut Canyon section (Passage 31) of the 28
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Arizona Trail—a hiker can tailor a hike to suit one’s mood, purpose and ability. All Abilities This section of the Arizona Trail stretches from just west of Walnut Canyon National Monument down to Marshall Lake. On the way, the trail passes Fisher Point, which overlooks the Sandy’s Canyon trail and the Walnut Canyon junction at Lake Mary Valley. The entire passage is nearly 18 miles, but there are multiple access points. I regularly hike the section for many reasons, so I figure my access point to the trail after deciding on my aim. When I use the trail to train for longer hikes, I drive out to the access just west of Walnut Canyon National Monument (or I just head out my front door and take the Walnut Meadow Loop to its intersection
with the Arizona Trail) and pump out as many as 15 miles at a time. When I want something quick, with a head full of quiet time, I drive to the southern end of Continental Drive and park near the south drainage for Lake Elaine off Butler Avenue and take Forest Road 301 to the trail, which is what I did during this hike. From Lake Elaine, the road winds through State Trust Land for about 2 miles to the Arizona Trail junction near Fisher Point. From the junction, it’s less than half a mile to Fisher Point. After hanging out at Fisher Point for a spell, watching the clouds tumble across the sky, I took a quick trip down to the Walnut Canyon junction before heading back to the car. The total trip took 2.5 hours—maybe 5 miles—with minimal elevation gain. When I’m feeling like a long hike, I make my way further south down Sandy’s
oint
Multiple accesses to the Arizona Trail around Fisher Point make for easily tailored hikes
Canyon before heading back. One of these days, I’ll bring a tent with me and overnight at Marshall Lake, turn around and head home, making a weekend out of it. This section, which is best used between April and November when there’s not a lot of snow, was also popular with my friend and mentor, Randy Wilson, who would often cross-country ski on Forest Road 301 to Fisher Point after a good snowfall. Although I’m not a cross-country skier, I do like to snowshoe, and I have plans to make this section with snowshoes this winter. Arizona Trail The Arizona Trail’s southern trailhead starts at the Mexican border near the city of Sierra Vista and travels more than 800 miles through the state to end up at the Utah border in between Kanab and Page. The Arizona Trail has 43 passages in total, with some passages as short as 12 miles and some that are more than 20 miles. People who have made the long-distance hike have travelled through nearly every type of environment—more than 110,000 feet in cumulative elevation gain. I think many Arizona hikers have the Arizona Trail on their bucket list. I’m one of them. The trick, for a working guy like me, is
By Larry Hendricks
to plan to take sections at a time and eventually complete the trail over many seasons. It would be nice to try to bag the trail in one fell swoop, but life’s responsibilities prevent that for me. I’ve done many sections of the trail in the Coconino and Tonto national forests, but, to date, I’ve hiked less than 100 miles of it. The southern sections are best done in the late fall and winter when it’s not so hot. The higher parts, like the ones in the Tonto and Coconino national forests, are best done after the snows have melted. I hope I have the time to finish it. Until then, at least I have an Arizona Trail passage within walking distance of my house, and it’s a perfect fit for most of my objectives and moods.
If you go … What: The Arizona Natural Scenic Trail Where: Sections south of Flagstaff Difficulty: Easy to difficult Length: Varies Info: aztrail.org november18 namlm.com
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I Always Fly Flagstaff First When we decided to leave Silicon Valley, my wife and I chose Flagstaff for its beauty and the serene lifestyle it offers. The airport allows me to stay in touch, and made our relocation possible without a change to my position. — Joe Mastroianni Director of Engineering Siemens / Mentor Graphics
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6200 S. Pulliam Dr. | Flagstaff, AZ 86005 928.556.1234 | flagstaffarizona.org
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