Archive All Issues July 2021

WHEN YOU CAN'T GO ANY FARTHER

In its simplest form, "backcountry" is defined as a "sparsely inhabited rural area." The magazine''s founding fathers took it a step further: "The surfaced roads go on and on and then they stop. Gravel roads take up where the surfaced roads end and they, too, go on and on. Finally, there are only wagon tracks or aimless trails. When you can''t go any farther, just look around - you are in the backcountry."

Featured in the July 2021 Issue of Arizona Highways

BY: Jeff Kida

A PORTFOLIO EDITED BY JEFF KIDA

PRECEDING PANEL: Low light illuminates conifers on a canyon rim in the West Clear Creek Wilderness, east of Camp Verde. This narrow wilderness area protects its namesake waterway and steep canyon walls as much as 1,000 feet tall.

PRECEDING PANEL: A normally dry section of volcanic rock is overrun by water after a summer monsoon storm. This spot is near the confluence of Sycamore Creek and the Verde River in Central Arizona.

The rising sun greets the Sedona area's Boynton Canyon, as viewed from the edge of Secret Mountain. The canyon is part of the Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness, one of Arizona's most popular wilderness areas among hikers and backpackers. JOEL HAZELTON

OPPOSITE PAGE: Wildflowers, evergreens and lichen-stained boulders punctuate a view of sunset in the Huachuca Mountains of Southern Arizona. This vantage point is in the Miller Peak Wilderness, which protects a rugged and biodiverse section of the Huachucas.