Myrtle Kraft Cottage sits in an area with a wide variety of places worth visiting, including Portal’s main street - a major birding spot. A leisurely walk across Cave Creek’s main bridge ends at the Portal Store and Cafe. From there, one can stroll by the town’s historic two-building school. The lower grades’ building is now the town’s Post Office.
The higher grades’ building is now the Myrtle Kraft Library, a branch of the Cochise County library system. Library hours vary, but it has a fine selection of books about Arizona, and Internet access as well. Next door to the school buildings is the old teacherage, the teacher’s supplied home. Playgrounds surround these three buildings, which are still owned by the public school system.
A walk to the end of the street takes one by the few houses that make up the town. Year-round residents garden and feed birds extensively. In addition to birdlife, various squirrels and chipmunks enjoy the feedings while other animals (like javelinas, deer, coati-mundis, grey and kit foxes) often pass through town.
A short walk in the other direction goes up the road to Portal’s Rescue, Inc., which houses the local all-volunteer ambulance and firefighters service. Just beyond that is the memorial burial marker for Edward John Hands (1866-1939), a man of great local importance during his lifetime. For anyone interested in learning more about the Scottish immigrant Hands family, the foundation of the Hands’ brothers’ original home can be seen in a brief walk along the Coronado National Forest fence line bordering the Myrtle Kraft Cottage land. It was there that Alfred Hands, Edward John’s brother, was killed in 1896. Local legend has it that he was the last settler in this area to be killed by an Apache. A few yards beyond that foundation is the famous Cienega spring.
Just a couple of miles from Portal is a major entry to the Chiricahua Mountains and its section of the Coronado National Forest, with more than 100 miles of trails, many pleasant picnic areas and unpaved roads that offer splendid, scenic vistas. From its entrance at about 5000 feet elevation, the main road climbs to 9000 feet within a few miles, changing from high desert to alpine terrain. The Coronado National Forest office supplies a great deal of information on this 40-mile by 20-mile mountain range. With much built by the CCC during Depression years, the forest service buildings themselves seem to breathe their own private history. When the office is open, some regional reptiles are on display. In addition, rangers can answer questions. A small store with pertinent books and maps is located in the headquarter’s main office. Cave Creek Canyon accessibility information is available from the Forest Service.
Twenty-seven million years ago a volcano erupted where the Chiricahua Mountains stand. It dropped 2000 feet of ash and pumice, which later fused into the rock we now commonly call rhyolite. Over the following millions of years, this eroded to form the spires and unique rock formations that define the 12,000-acre Chiricahua National Monument. Though only about 23 miles from Myrtle Kraft Cottage, driving to the Monument takes about an hour and a half. The drive is worth every minute, as it passes from the east side to the quite different west side of the mountains. Once there, viewing the rocks, walking the main trail, and visiting the historic Faraway Ranch make for a wonderfully rewarding experience. This is a trip we highly recommend to anyone staying for more than two or three days in the Chiricahua Mountains.
New York City’s American Museum of Natural History supports a research station which lies about five miles from Myrtle Kraft Cottage. Known as the Southwestern Research Station (SWRS), it is situated on private land in the National Forest. Since 1955 a wide range of scientists - from anthropologists to biologists and geologists - have conducted their research in one of the most naturally diverse places in America. SWRS feeds birds in their yards, especially hummingbirds.
The grounds are open to the public. During the summer months, scientists often give evening talks about their on-going research, which are also open to the public. There is a small book and speciality item store in the main office. This is an informative and interesting place to visit for anyone staying in Portal for more than one night.
If you are a history buff, a day trip to Fort Bowie gives a sense of the remote and threatening isolation experienced by stagecoach travelers and military troops stationed there. It is a mile and a half walk into the Fort itself from the National Historic Site’s entrance. There are no accommodations near the entrance. Driving from Portal to the Fort takes somewhat over an hour. The scenery varies depending on the route.
If flying to or from one of Arizona’s two major cities (Phoenix or Tucson), each has something nearby that is well worth visiting.
The Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park outside of Phoenix is the southwest’s oldest and most spectacular botanical garden. Mining magnate Boyce Thompson founded his arboretum in the 1920s. He imported plants from all over the world that he felt could adapt to Arizona’s desert climate. Many, including several species of eucalyptus trees, came from Australia and have become massive. It is easy to spend several hours in that arboretum and leave anxious to return.
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum outside of Tucson is a remarkable zoo, natural history museum and botanical garden all-in-one. The Museum is devoted to teaching about the fragile nature of life in the southwest desert. The various exhibits are accesssible via comfortable paths lined with growing native plants. A half to a full day visit is needed to fully explore this information-rich desert museum.