This stream below Lead Queen Mine, which flows in to Harshaw Creek, is bright orange due to toxic waste released as a result of recent rains. On September 24, Patagonia resident Gooch Goodwin discovered a stream of bright orange water running into Flux Canyon. The next day he found a similar situation at Alum Gulch. […]
Ann Katzenbach
Posted inCommunity
County Fair Days
The Santa Cruz County Fair, held on September 19, 20, and 21, succeeded despite downpours and puddles. There were new attractions, new records set, and lots of smiling kids and grown-ups who just had fun. 4-H-ers line up their chickens for the judges. The Fair included a carnival for the first time in a while–and […]
Posted inOpinion
The New Face of Tennis
The U.S. Open is over — that’s the tennis one, just so you know, this is not about golf. I am a tennis player and thus I am a fan of the sport which, in my lifetime, has gone from sedate to manic. The court’s the same size, the way you make points and keep […]
Posted inCommunity
The Enduring Tradition of Lucia Nash’s Legacy
When Lucia Nash bought the Circle Z Guest Ranch in 1976, she was motivated by fond memories of being a guest there in the 1930s—and by the fact that the property was about to be sold to developers.
Posted inLocal News
Patagonia Town Council Workshop Focuses on Accountability and Erosion Control
Sonoita Creek, seen from the bridge on Highway 82 just outside of town, became a wide, fast-moving river when Patagonia got over 1.5 inches of rain on September 20. The town council’s working meeting on September 11 opened with discussion of two agenda items—the town’s purchasing procedures, and oversight on the excavation of the Sonoita […]
Posted inCommunity
Renovations at the Fire Department
The lot next to the fire station on the corner of Smelter Alley is empty. For years it has stored two fire engines made by Seagraves, one from 1940, the other a year younger. This summer the Fire Department sold them to a man in Vail who restores old fire trucks and tractors. “It was […]
Posted inCommunity
A Short History of Dogs in Patagonia
Patagonia is a dog-walking town. It is also a town that doesn’t much care for regulation. When it comes to dogs, some folks feel that—just as was the case 50 years ago—they should be able to let their dogs roam freely and should not be burdened with the bureaucracy of licensing or I.D. tags. Dogs […]
Posted inLocal News
Restoring Nature’s Diversity
Late last winter Lynda Prim arrived in Patagonia to take over management of the Native Seeds/SEARCH (NS/S) conservation farm. An anthropologist, educator, farm advisor, and advocate in sustainable organic agriculture for over 30 years, she found a daunting situation. The man who ran and maintained the farm equipment had quit, and nearly every machine was […]
Posted inOpinion
Colonel Johnson’s Legacy
I have come to loathe Johnson grass, a plant unknown to me before I moved to Arizona. This is not to say that Arizona has an exclusive on this nasty weed. Turns out it has made its way to almost every state, including Hawaii, and it grows on every continent except Antartica. How did I […]
Posted inCommunity
Steve Schmitt Is Taking Care of Business
Patagonia Bird and Pet, at the corner of McKeown and 3rd Avenues, opened early this summer and provides locals with most of the same services and products available at its larger sister store, Sonoita Feed. The Patagonia store stocks a variety of pet food and bird seed, along with books, feeders, sunglasses, pet toys, buckets, […]