Tucson – Tincan Travels

The Beat Goes On

We’re comfortably ensconced here at Desert Trails. RV life necessitates some mundane routines: there are tanks to empty, groceries to procure, as well as cleaning up around camp. On the bright side we have easy access to the desert and a vibrant community of like minded campers. One of our neighbors told us about a nearby trail system we had not explored so we decided to make the short drive to the Sarasota Trail Head.

The trail ascends to a high point for views of the surrounding desert.

We went back New Year’s Day for our first hike of the year but had to cut it short due to rain.

Mountain biking continues to be a preferred activity here at Desert Trails. Pat has hooked up with group of women who are seasoned mountain bikers and have been coaching her to improve her skills.

Desert Trails RV Park is also a short drive to the Saguaro National Park. The park has a lovely scenic drive and lots of hiking trails. We chose the Valley View Trail for a morning hike.

A short distance from the park is Gates Pass, a popular spot for watching the sun set.

Every day brings more opportunities to watch the sun set…

…and it’s always different!

Happy Trails at Desert Trails

We’ve moved to south Tucson to a private RV Park for an extended stay. The plan is to stay here for the next three months. We’ve been here before and have enjoyed our stays. Between the proximity to the desert and the park community we feel right at home.

We reconnected with Shelley and Brian, some folks we hung out with on our last visit to Desert Trails two years ago, .

Pat and Shelley with Brian’s reflection (Thanks for the image Brian)

Shortly after arriving Pat, Shelley and Brian drove south to Tubac, a historic town near the Mexican border. They were having their Festival of Lights which featured lots of luminaries. Shelly had to stay back to sleep and fight off a cold.

We also reconnected with another old neighbor from past visits.

The park has a group of residents that gets together and invites local bands to play at the park once a month. We arrived in time to enjoy the first concert of the season, the Heather Harding Band. Heather is a Tucson blues legend who plays violin and sings. It was a terrific show.

The proximity and easy access to the desert for biking and hiking is the real draw here. The RV Park borders Tucson Mountain Park with 62 miles of trails. The park was established in 1929 and encompasses 20,000 acres. There’s a lot to explore.

One of the many washes on the Ironwood Trail

A crested saguaro is a rare mutation that occurs in 1 in 20,000 normal saguaros. The reason for this fan like mutation are unknown but thought to be from genetics, frost, or lightning damage. This one is a short bike ride from camp.

Sunsets in Arizona can be intense. This one is from this week

Tucson Reveries

We have visited Catalina state Park a number of times. There’s an hike we enjoy near the campground that had no name and wasn’t an official trail. This year the trail has made it to the list of official park trails- the Alamo Loop. We’re not sure how this 3.2 mile loop got its name.

The trail starts in sandy wash and takes you into the Catalina’s and the Coronado National Forest.

Those are Fairy Dusters in the foreground

Though we’ve visited Tucson many times we have not visited one of its iconic cultural attractions, DeGazia Gallery in the Sun. This 10 acre Foothills retreat includes a number of adobe structures and gallery all built in the 1950’s by the artist Ted DeGrazi. DeGrazi’s work focused on portraying the cultures of the Sonoran desert through a variety of mediums.

DeGrazi decorated many of the buildings walls with murals depicting life in the Sonoran desert.

Golden Barrel Cactus in the DeGrazi cactus garden

We picked up stakes and moved spots where we had better views of the Catalina’s and the Pusch Ridge.

After moving the clouds opened up and we got to experience some desert rain.

The next morning this Sacred Datura bloomed in our campsite.

After the rain we decided to hike up the Moreno Pools, about 2 miles out and back.

The rain also got us to leave camp and visit the Tucson Museum of Art in the Historic Arts District of Tucson. We enjoyed their collection of Mesoamerican and Latin American art.

Standing Male Dignitary, clay-400-800 AD
Veracruz, Mexico

Rooftop Church-Urbano Gutierrez, Peru-Late 20th Century

These elaborate clay churches are made to be installed on the roofs of newly constructed homes. It’s understood that placing a church on the house’s roof will protect it.

Tecuanimeh Dance Costumes, Mexico -late 20th Century

Dance Mask- Pascola, Yaqui or Mayo- late 20th Century

We left the museum and wandered around the neighboring Arts District.

We love to go out and listen to music and Tucson offers plenty of listening opportunities. As we mentioned, the Century Room in the Congress Hotel is a great place to hear music. A Saturday night performance by the Premazzi/Nassar Quartet out of NYC drew us downtown. The band did not disappoint, a great set of music.

Simona Premazzi(piano), Noah Garabedian(bass), Kyle Nassar(sax), Jay Sawyer(drums)

And the sun sets on another week in Tucson.

Tucson Again

We’ve visited the Tucson area a number of times through the years. There have been many changes, increased congestion, building and rising temperatures. In spite of these negatives the stark beauty of the Sonoran Desert and its iconic saguaro cactus continues to draw us back.

The unseasonably warm temperatures continued making hiking and biking difficult. We decided to drive seventeen miles north to gain 2000 ft in elevation and have the temperatures drop ten degrees at Oracle state Park. The park is relatively new in the state, it was opened and dedicated on October 1, 2001. The 1.25 mile Geology Trail Loop offers an easy and informative walk.

It had rained last week and as a result, we were treated to a number of wildflower bloomings.

Much of the trail runs along a dry creek bed and offers lovely views of the surrounding mountains.

Along the trail you can see piles of Oracle Granite, the most common rock found in the park. It is a coarse grained igneous rock which is the bedrock of Southern Arizona.

Besides exploring the desert we’ve been taking advantage of what the City of Tucson has to offer.

One of the many fine murals you’ll see as you wander downtown Tucson

While downtown we attended a jazz concert at the Century Club, as fine a venue to enjoy jazz as you’ll find. We went to see Cory Weeds Meets Chris Hazelton.

Strolling the historic Barrio Viejo near downtown is a nice way to spend an afternoon. Offering art galleries, interesting shops and cafes along with historic architecture.

A short distance from camp is Honey Bee Canyon. The canyon is surrounded by high end gated housing developments. Adequate parking is provided for hikers and as you drop into the canyon that development disappears.