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The specter of pyramids rising from the desert seems more Egyptian than Arizonan, and yet for more than 100 years, three pyramids holding the bones of Arizona leaders, explorers, and visionaries have dotted Arizona’s landscape.

I jumped on my Harley Davidson Road King to explore the backstories of people buried within, including Arizona’s first Governor, George P. Hunt, Hi Jolly, a camel herder, and Arizona’s first Congressional Representative Charles D. Poston.

Riders yearning to see tilted Americana or cruise the roads less traveled will find pyramids of masonry, quartz, fieldstone, basalt, petrified wood, mortar, and even fragments from an early Indigenous American structure. Visiting the pyramids will take about 8 hours of riding time, but plan more as you’ll want to explore historical sites and check out the flavor of local shops and restaurants.

 Arizona’s desert is a place fitter for camels than people. It’s hard on riders and bikes, requiring frequent breaks for water and gas. Realistically, plan two days and pack your walking shoes. Starting in Phoenix, my pyramid trifecta began on Interstate 10 by going west for 140 miles through Arizona’s Outback to Quartzsite, about 250 miles east of Los Angeles and 82 miles north of Yuma.

Quartzsite is dotted with RV parks catering to explorers and bikers strolling the streets and sidewalks of Quartzsite with dreams, wanderlust, and a thirst for adventure. The same characteristics brought Hi Jolly from Greece to Arizona in 1857.

Hadji Ali, as he was known in his native Syria, was recruited to train U.S. troops in camel riding and serve the newly established American Camel Corps (1856-1866).… read more...