Alamo Lake

Joesph Cone's Cabin

These two stone cabins were built by Joseph Cone,( photo 1&2)one of Quartzsite's more colorful characters. He occupied them until the 1960's when he died at age 75. On the smaller cabin see how the area around the doors and windows have been decorated with white quartz stones. This is the cabin he lived in. The larger cabin was his work shop. It has a dirt floor and the wall are rough and unfinished on the inside. In his shop he turned Ironwood on a lathe to make lovely bowls and lamp stands. You can see examples of his wood work and learn more about him at the Quartzsite museum.  read more

Harquahala Mine and Cemetery

Harquahala road provides a scenic drive on good dirt roads for a high-profile 2 wheel drive vehicles past numerous deserted gold and copper mines. The mining camp cemetery is marked with wooden crosses. One of the richest strikes in the area was Harqua Hala Bonanza Mine. Herbert Hoover visited these mines for a San Francisco investment company around 1896. It is said that Wyatt Earp mined in the vicinity.  read more

Indian Springs

Massive granite boulders and rock formations make Indian Springs a unique place to visit. Granite from the
quarry at the site was used for an addition to the Arizona State Capital in 1949.  read more

SwanseA Ghost Town

Swansea is located in the middle of nowhere. The copper mining camp was founded in 1907, when the Arizona and California Railroad was completed. Before this time, only little mining activities took place due to the high costs of transporting ore from such a remote place. George Mitchell, a metallurgist and the principal promoter for the mining company, named the community Swansea for his hometown in Wales.  read more

Kofa Queen Canyon

Kofa Queen Canyon can be found in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge which was established in 1939. The refuge encompasses 665,400 acres of pristine desert that is home to the desert bighorn sheep and the California fan palm, the only native palm in Arizona.
Bighorn sheep are found chiefly in the two mountain ranges that dominate the refuge landscape - the Kofa and Castle Dom Mountains. Although these mountains are not especially high, they are extremely rugged and rise sharply from the surrounding desert plains, providing excellent bighorn sheep habitat. A wide variety of plant life is found throughout the refuge.  read more

The Great Tree

A short distance from Quartzsite Town Hall is this wonderful Native Ironwood Tree that is 1050 years old.  read more

Hi Jolly Monument & Cemetery

The Hi Jolly Memorial at the cemetery in Quartzsite pays tribute to Hadji Ali, one of several camel drivers brought over by the U.S. Army in a failed attempt to introduce camels to the American Southwest. Aft the experiment was abandoned, Ali was the only driver to remain in Arizona. He took up prospecting, and became know to locals as "Hi Jolly."  read more

Dripping Springs

There are hundreds of Petroglyphs here. You will also find the remains of an old stone cabin and an arrastre. Look along the base of the cliff to the left of the stone cabin for the cave where the spring originates. Once you've found it, listen and you will hear it dripping from the cave roof, forming a year round pool of water. A path takes off to the left of the cave following the edge of the cliff where more petroglyphs can been seen.  read more

Grinding Holes and Petroglyphs

On the East side of Tyson Wash a short distance south of Quartzsite, you can see Indian grinding holes and some faint petroglyphs. There is also a natural tank near the cliff which may have water in it if it has rained. This is also the site of the original Quartzsite which was washed away in a flood and subsequently rebuilt on higher ground at its present location. It is said that a safe full of gold lies buried beneath the sand at the bottom of Tyson Wash somewhere near this spot, carried away in the great flood.  read more

Palm Canyon

This is the only Canyon in Arizona where you can find a canyon of Palm Trees. The palms are a short walk from the parking area at the base of the mountains.  read more

Quartzsite Rock Alignment and Intaglios

The area north of Quartzsite was used as a training ground for General Patton's troops during World War II. On this trip you will see rocks laid out in the desert for airplanes to see, spelling out QUARTZSITE and forming an arrow pointing the way. Up the road from the Quartzsite Rock alignment there is a picture that would also be best seen from the air. It is the Fisherman Intaglio, the outline of a fisherman drawn on the desert floor by ancient Indians. Both the Rock Alignment and Fisherman Intaglio are a short walk from the asphalt road. If you have the time and the urge, look for the Indian Lookout and Stagecoach Station ruins just ahead.  read more

Kofa National Wildlife Refuge

For 57 miles, US 95 cuts through the desert of Southwest Arizona - quite flat, perfectly straight and aligned exactly north-south, and interrupted only by the small town of Quartzsite. In the mild seasons of winter and early spring, much traffic uses the road, bringing sun seekers from all over the US to Yuma and on into Mexico, but few travel to this region in summer, when temperatures of over 120 degrees Fahrenheit are not uncommon. Rain falls on only a few occasions each year - the summer thunderstorms that affect the higher areas of Arizona rarely extend this far. South of Interstate 10, US 95 is bordered by the Yuma Proving Ground to the west and the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge to the east - a protected area 25 x 40 miles in extent with no paved roads or facilities of any kind. The refuge is an excellent place for viewing desert plants and wildlife, rock climbing, exploring old mines, or just camping in remote wilderness.  read more

Tyson Wells Stage Stop Museum

Tyson's Well Stage Station - Museum is operated by the Quartzsite Historical Society Inc. The original adobe stage station was built in 1866 by Charley Tyson at its present location. It was an important way station on the California - Arizona line because of excellent water and grass for the horses. Miners and freighters, hauling mining equipment and military supplies from the river port at Ehrenberg, AZ also stopped here. The Quartzsite Historical Society opened Tyson's Well Museum in February 1980, after extensive restoration work. The original structurally sound walls were retained and others were rebuilt. A shell of stabilized adobe brick was built around the original walls to protect them.  read more

Celia's Rainbox Gardens & Nature Trail

A community working together to make a child's dream come true. Celia's Rainbow Gardens, located in the Quartzsite Town Park encompasses 8 acres of the 40 acre park. The gardens were inspired by the dreams of Celia Winer, an 8-year old girl whose goal in life was to make the world a better place. Celia was a happy, bright and sensitive little girl who loved everyone. Her death from a viral heart infection on October 25, 1994 affected the whole Town. Her love of nature, her desire to save the environment, and dreams of people working together have been taken to heart by this little desert community.  read more

Cibola National Wildlife Refuge

Cibola National Wildlife Refuge is located in the flood plain of the lower Colorado River and surrounded by a fringe of desert ridges and washes. The refuge encompasses both the historic Colorado River channel as well as a channelized portion constructed in the late 1960's. Along with these main water bodies several important backwaters are home to many wildlife species that reside in this portion of the Sonoran Desert. Because of the river's life sustaining water, wildlife here survives in an environment that reaches 120 degrees in the summer and receives an average of only 2 inches of rain per year. We invite you to visit and enjoy the many wildlife-oriented activities the refuge has to offer and enjoy the scenic beauty of this oasis in the desert.  read more

The Cabin at Goodman Mine

It is believed this cabin was once lived in by Angela Scott, one of Quartzsite's earliest pioneers. The cabin has two rooms and is chinked with mud. It has a splendid view of the Colorado River and valley below. Follow the trail past the cabin to see old mine shafts and more stone buildings. The cabin is located at the end of a rough mining road you can get to within 1/4 mile of it.  read more