Travel Journals: February 2024

TUCSON 2024

BACK TO THE DESERT

WARMER THAN MINNEAPOLIS???

Purple Prickly Pear

We're back in our desert retreat in the Tucson Mountains west of the city. We have settled into a good routine. Write in the morning (Sheila after breakfast, Marc after walking the dog in nearby Feliz Paseos Pima County park). After lunch, who knows? Frequently we hike in the desert in the afternoon. In the evening, we read or play Bananagrams or watch one of the series we stream (currently, Astrid).

Dinner or happy hour is frequently a time to meet with friends and socialize. We only go into the city when we absolutely need to. Sundays, we take our NY Times to Ragin' Sage Coffee Shop for good coffee, great scones and lazing away the morning.

So, how about some random thoughts and observations of our January in the desert.

It's easy staying home., often not even getting into the car all day (except to get to a good trail head or for the early morning walk with Barkly in one of the nearby dog-friendly desert settings). The morning walk with Barkly is my "Best Time of the Day," a time to wander and immerse myself in the present moment - taking in the sights and sounds of the desert, enjoying the companionship of Barkly, the silence, fresh air, exercise. Thoughts of chores, responsibilities or cares are not welcome.

Desert Morning Sky, Feliz Paseos Park

Desert Morning, After the Rain, Feliz Paseos

Barkly and I have become regulars in Feliz Paseos. He looks forward each morning to finding his friend, Biscuit, for a little on-leash romp while Jerry and I catch up on whatever needs catching up on. There are a half dozen or so others to stop and chat with, some with dogs, some wandering solo. Recently I encountered a Buddhist monk in his orange robes. We nodded a silent greeting to each other.

Another time a woman named Cora Lee, explained to me that the name, Feliz Paseos, offends her because it's incorrect grammar - singular adjective with a plural noun. Seems it should be either Feliz Paseo or Felices Paseos. She added, with tone of mild pique, that she attended a planning meeting and explained this to them but that they "wouldn't listen."

We don't have to leave our hideaway retreat to enjoy stunning views. Each morning I do my exercises in the living room and watch night recede as the sun rises above the mountains. And, of course, there's always lazy time on one of the patios.

Sunrise, After the Storm (from our living room)

Sunset (from our patio)

We also don't have to leave home to experience wildlife.

They're still here! Barkly is not pleased.

A humming bird feeding on our patio. I have held their cup of sugar water and fed them from my hand, a tough photo to catch, but I'm still trying with Sheila's help.

Another Reason We Don't Have to Leave Home

We encounter cyclists every time we're in the car. Our home is the last house off Gates Pass Road before it begins its dramatic climb over Gates Pass. Solo cyclists or a peloton of a dozen (give or take) racing toward the challenge of the climb or flying down from the top, all on skinny-tired road bikes.

Tucson Botanical Gardens is an strange place where one can pay the $12 entry fee to see... cactuses! (Or cacti; both are correct.) Sheila and I had free passes.


$12 admission to see... Cactus! (We got in free.)

One unique offering at the gardens is a butterfly habitat.

Tucson Botanical Gardens

Surprise visitors! I got a text last week from Zoe, who is doing her own wandering about the southwest in her camping van with her faithful companion, Peaches. They spent three nights with us, and we had a good time when she wasn't enmeshed in a Zoom training. Had a delicious vegan meal with Zoe at Tumerico and one desert walk with our dogs.

Peaches (and Zoe) visit!

Palo verde trees are among my favorite desert flora. They're everywhere, but there is one stretch in Feliz Paseos where for about a hundred feet or so, the path is surrounded by so many palo verde that for a few moments the rest of the desert is hidden, and the hard landscape is softened. In the morning, just as the sun's first rays light up the palo verdes, the green of their spiny, do-not-touch branches takes on a color a color that is hard to describe. Best to just look and savor their brilliance for the few moments that it lasts.

The palo verde at sunrise, a brilliance I can't capture in a photo.

Organ Pipe National Monument is worth the two-hour drive across the desert from the city. This is the native habitat of the organ pipe cactus. Campers have miles of desert hiking trails. For us day trippers, the choice of either a 20-mile or 40-mile loop drive takes you through wild mountain country with dramatic views and silent organs.

Organ Pipe Cactus (and Sheila, for perspective)

How many arches to you see? And, is it just me, or is that Lake Superior?

Back Country in Organ Pipe National Monument

On the road to Organ Pipe MOnument

"Don't miss Ajo," we were told. Aho (Spanish for garlic) is a tiny town fifteen minutes out of our way on the drive to Organ Pipe that withered away to a handful of residents when the mines closed, but is allegedly experiencing a modest rebirth as an artists' haven. Let's just say that reborn Ajo is in its infancy. We visited Ajo so that you don't have to bother. (The Agave Grill, best place to eat in Ajo, was closed, along with every other eatery - two? - in town. Desperate to eat before the drive home, I settled for Cheetos and Coke in Why, Arizona.)