DOG-FRIENDLY PARKS IN YUMA, AZ

The Colorado River's confluence with the Gila River positioned Yuma at a strategic desert crossing point, now a city of 95,000 at 141 feet elevation. The river valley provides the only low ground in an otherwise harsh desert landscape, with mountains visible in all directions. Extreme desert climate creates scorching summer temperatures routinely exceeding 110°F from June through September, making Yuma one of America's hottest cities. Mild winters average in the mid-60s with virtually no rainfall. Agricultural fields irrigated by Colorado River water create green corridors through the brown desert terrain.