Trailside Naturalist – A Desert Time Machine at Gateway Trailhead

Location: Gateway Trailhead – 18333 N Thompson Peak Pkwy, Scottsdale, AZ 85255

Time: ~2.5 hours

Stop by anytime between 8:30 and 11:00 A.M. to learn about the common pack rat.

Ever wondered who lives in those piles of debris with cholla balls on top? The white-throated wood rat, aka the pack rat! This industrious little rodent has been collecting stuff and taking it home to nests for thousands of years! Join us and see an actual 11,000-year-old piece of amberrat from a packrat nest. This golden colored nugget tells us what our Sonoran Desert used to look like. We will explain how it was formed by the small but mighty pack rat.