The herd lands are lush along the river, as it winds through a series of canyons, flowing along the southern slope of the Gila Mountains. It emerges from the mountains into the valley southeast of Phoenix, where it crosses the Gila River Indian Reservation as an intermittent stream due to large irrigation diversions, which have made the arid desert into irrigated farming ground. Indigenous peoples have lived along this river for many millennia, establishing complex agricultural societies long before European exploration of the region began. The forests are a mixture of quaking aspens, spruce-fir, ponderosa pine in the upper elevations, and pinyon-juniper woodland and desert vegetation on the lower mountain slopes. Arizona sycamore, walnut, maple, ash, cottonwood, alder and willow trees are found along rivers and in canyons.

Gila is home to many predators such as bobcat and cougar. Mule deer, white-tailed deer and pronghorn are all found in the Gila. Other animals include the black bear, collared peccary, gray fox and white-nosed coati, and a handful of reintroduced Mexican Gray wolves. Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep were reintroduced to the Gila, as well as Rocky Mountain Elk, and thrive well here. Wild turkeys, dusky grouse are among the game birds that can be found in the Gila, birds of prey include common black hawk, zone-tailed hawk, goshawk, osprey and bald eagle, and American dippers can be found along the mountain streams. Reptiles such as the Arizona coral snake and Gila monster are rarely present, common snakes include the black-tailed rattlesnake, rock rattlesnake, and Sonora mountain king snake.


Lead Stallion: Cheveyo
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