The next thing on my agenda was a visit to the Coronado National Memorial in the south-eastern corner of Arizona - right on the Mexican border.

Coronado National Memorial is the only unit in the National Park System that commemorates the Francisco Vásquez de Coronado Expedition in the 1540's. When reporting to Congress in 1940 on the establishment of the Memorial, the Committee on Public Lands and Surveys noted that: “Coronado’s expedition was one of the outstanding achievements of a period marked by notable explorations. It made known the vast extent and the nature of the country that lay north of central Mexico, and from the time of Coronado, Spaniards never lost interest in the country. In no small measure their subsequent occupation of it was due to the curiosity so created.”

The creation of the Memorial was not to protect any tangible artifacts related to the expedition, but rather to provide visitors with an opportunity to reflect upon the impact the Coronado Entrada had in shaping the history, culture, and environment of the southwestern United States and its lasting ties to Mexico and Spain. The Memorial has two sister parks in Mexico.

View looking down Montezuma Canyon with San Jose Peaks (Mexico) in background The location was chosen for the panoramic views of the US-Mexico border and the San Pedro River Valley, the route believed to have been taken by Coronado. It was hoped that this proximity to the border would strengthen bi-national amity and the bonds, both geographical and cultural, which continue to link the two countries.


So there you have the official version. I had a bit of an 'insiders' tour which featured some of the challenges faced by the memorial, not normally featured in the brochures and official reports.

The memorial also suffered some major physical damages from the flooding and storms last fall.

The boundary of the memorial is at the summit of 6575 foot Montezuma pass, where you return once again into lands administered by the Coronada National Forest. The memorial itself is quite small, but the scenery is quite breathtaking and provides some great views along and across the border.




































The scenery had me stopping every half mile on the descent to take photos and pull out my binoculars. At one point, I spotted a couple of individuals who MAY have just crossed over the border without any documentation at all.
They retreated into the tall grass and bushes when I stopped the truck, but I was able to get one photo of them anyway! Note the long ears and big eyes. Not sure if they were whitetail or mule deer.!
On down to Parker Canyon Lake, a small dammed reservoir which was created by Arizona Fish and Game, and features 2 campgrounds, seasonal store and fishing for Rainbow Trout, Largemouth Bass, Sunfish and Channel Catfish.
After that it was pretty much heading north west out onto the flats and toward the distant Interstate.