Feb. 29, 2008
Pinnacle Peak Park celebrates its 1 millionth visitor
Pinnacle Peak Park, the city's largest park at 150 acres, reached its one millionth visitor Feb. 29.
The visitor, Kim Kucharski of Scottsdale, was greeted by Mayor Mary Manross who presented her with an engraved walking stick to commemorate the feat. The engraving on the stick states: "I was the 1,000,000 visitor at Pinnacle Peak Park, Scottsdale, AZ."
Kim is a teacher at Grayhawk Elementary School and was very surprised and thrilled at the achievement. She hikes the park five to seven days a week.
To count visitors, the park uses two systems. The first is the use of an electronic counter that counts when people break a beam that is placed across the trail. The second is the use of a hand counter.
The park offers a 1.75 mile hiking trail where hikers can get spectacular views of the Valley from the top. The park also offers a variety of free programming throughout the year, including guided hikes, full moon hikes, nature talks, astronomy talks and an annual meet-and-greet with Santa during the holidays.
For more information on the park visit
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/parks/Pinnacle.asp or call (480) 312-0990.