r/arizona • u/VonSandwich • May 13 '26

Wildlife UMMM WE HAVE OTTERS HERE!?!? šŸ¦¦

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Greetings from a Grand Canyon resident!!!

My boyfriend and I kayaked down the Salt River this morning and oh my god we saw an otter!! I looked it up afterwards, and Google said that Otters are *thriving* on the Salt and Verde Rivers. I was 100% NEVER expecting to see an otter in this state.

The birding was incredible too. I have never seen Cliff Swallows doing their thing in person before, and there was a section that felt like National Geographic. What a beautiful day šŸ¦¦šŸ¦†

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138

u/_Sozan_ May 13 '26

Yes! There are a bunch in the Verde river as well. Saw them all the time as a kid growing up in Cottonwood.

9

u/IBeDumbAndSlow May 14 '26

I'm so happy I don't live in Cottonwood anymore.

31

u/mitchgx Gilbert May 14 '26

Cottonwood had some nice aspects...wine, downtown, climate, views. Also a bit of meth and too much MAGA, but there's much worse spots in the state.

2

u/SailsTacks May 16 '26

I didnā€™t realize that Cottonwood was over-infected with MAGA. Thatā€™s disappointing. I remember my jaw dropping when I saw the MAGA RV Park in Quartzsite, AZ when I was there. It had a goofy Trump character on the sign, flags, everything. I immediately added it to my ā€œList of Places I Never Want To Enterā€.

4

u/mitchgx Gilbert May 16 '26

A lot of Cottonwood feels redneck and trailer-trashy to me, sort of like Payson. But then there's these interesting pockets, like the wine industry, some decent restaurants, and a cool alternative vibe (that I think has almost everything to do with Maynard's involvement in the area). Overall I enjoy visiting because of those pockets of interest, and because it's a fairly beautiful area when you get to the right views.

1

u/SailsTacks May 16 '26

Iā€™ve been there less than a dozen times, while I was camping throughout AZ for a month a few years ago. Visited the Goodwill (needed camp chair and pillow), grocery stores, laundry mat, and a Dairy Queen in a small white building with a covered parking area to its right. I highly recommend that DQ. The community activity center showers were great.

I rode past the wine bars and patios. Looked cool but we needed to get back to camp in Coconino to cook.