Achievement 16: Final Image Unlocked!

You did it! The comments you and other SummerQuest heroes wrote have unlocked the complete image created for this year's Summer Reading program from Pima County Public Library!

The last two pieces of the image are from northern Arizona, with a united concept of being about trees.

The lower blue picture shows a bank of pines standing in snow near Flagstaff. People who have never been to Arizona find it hard to imagine we have wide tracts of pine forests, much less that we have whole regions of the state that get snow every year.

The upper red picture shows a scene from the Petrified Forest National Park. You are looking at segments of gigantic redwoods that died over three millenia ago, then slowly petrified by the same mechanism that creates the many fossils being uncovered and studied by researchers at the park. Paleontologists and geologists come to the park, adding to the scientific knowledge to be gleaned from this globally-important site.

To learn more about Flagstaff -- its history and prehistory, geology, as well as opportunities for biking and birding (or just to find a fun hike in the north country), have a look at the selection of books and information we can offer: http://bit.ly/about-Flagstaff

For more about the Petrified Forest, see what interests you here: http://bit.ly/Petrified-Forest

The image of the pines outside Flagstaff was made available courtesy of photographer Patrick Nouhailler through a Creative Commons license: http://www.flickr.com/photos/patrick_nouhailler/5716904358/

 

Achievement 15: Image Unlocked!

 

Two more images linked by the concepts behind them: mining!

The town of Jerome began as an old mining town that truly epitomized "the wild and wooly west" in its heyday. Then the price of metals being taken from the mines fell, and even the new technology of extraction could not keep the town alive after World War II ended. Nearly a ghost town in the middle of the last century, Jerome has been reborn as a thiving destination for tourism and art lovers of all kinds.

The cookstove is a relic from a gold mining camp that did not fare as well. The Kentucky Camp in the Santa Rita Mountains south of Tucson became a ghost town after being abandoned in 1912. Today it is slowly being restored by the National Park Service that aquired the property in 1989.

Arizona's ghost towns have a lot of myth and story told about them, and often the truth is stranger than the fiction. Check out these possibilities:  http://bit.ly/ghost-towns

The image of the post office sign in Jerome was made available courtesy of photographer Mediafury through a Creative Commons license: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mediafury/4181380155/

The campstove picture is courtesy of Lisa Waite Bunker.

(Just one more piece of the image to unlock when you comment on the final quest of SummerQuest!)

SummerQuest 16 Hint

The hint is to understand more about what people have learned in their lives by reading a biography or looking at our Biography Databases.

Achievement 14: Image Unlocked!

Two more pieces unlocked together!

In the upper right you see Dan Akee, a veteran of WWII and one of the celebrated Navajo code talkers. This photo was taken when he was appearing at the Grand Canyon National Park celebration of Native American Heritage Month (2010). The events are held in honor of the many accomplishments, contributions and sacrifices of the indigenous peoples of North America.




In the lower margin is an iconic Navajo squash blossom necklace, unusual in having three strands of silver. Some people look no deeper than stones and metal in jewelry like this, not recognizing the weight of history that goes into making such pieces.

To learn more about the indigenous nations of the southwest, http://bit.ly/Native-Americans

Discover how important the code talkers were to American efforts in WWII: http://bit.ly/code-talkers


If you want to understand more about Indian jewelry and adornment, both modern and ancient, we have a variety of resources for you to explore: http://bit.ly/indian-jewelry

The image of Dan Akee was made available courtesy of the Grand Canyon National Park Service, through a Creative Commons license: http://www.flickr.com/photos/grand_canyon_nps/5188445257/

SummerQuest 16

Being a hero does not mean you don't make mistakes. Being heroic means you learn from your mistakes. Your quest is to finish this sentence: "If only I'd known...." Your challenge is to communicate something you've learned on your epic journey. Perhaps you should write a letter to someone, or put your insights into words with a story, a song or a poem, or into a journal. If appropriate, you could put it on Twitter, Facebook, or simply write a few words in the comments below. Five comments on this final post will unlock the whole picture!

SummerQuest 15 Hint

Hint: From the library's home page, click on Music From Freegal, enter your library card and pin number, then click on the blue "See All Genres" button. From there, scroll down the list on the left and pick something new you'd like to try.

SummerQuest 15

You'll find treasure at the end of this musical quest. Download a song to keep from the library's website using Freegal. Your challenge is to download a song from a group you don't know or from a type of music you've never tried before. Give it a shot and tell us in the comments what the song was and what you thought about it. As usual, it takes five comments to unlock another piece of the picture.