Since there is no RV camping in the Saguaro National Park we did what everyone else does when they visit, we stayed in the Gilbert Ray Campground located inside of the county park that butts up against the southern border of Saguaro National Park.
We are camping with electrical hookups for the first time this year and it couldn't have come at a better time. Each of the 7-nights we'll be here the temperautres are forecast to drop just below freezing. If it stays below freezing for only a few hours each night we won't have to run the propane furnance to keep the water and waste tanks from freezing.
Meanwhile we can heat the inside of THE POD with our electric space heaters to stay warm.
I of course wanted to get my National Parks Passport Book stamped and watch the documentary film that tells us all about the park.
SPOILER ALERT:
Stop reading now and skip directly to the slideshow
if you ever plan on checking out the movie here at the Visitor Center.
It was reminiscent of the surprise ending we experienced at the Fort McHenry National Monument near Baltimore, MD where the fort flying the Spar Spangled Banner was revealed to all the movie goers in the same manner.
It was still a pleasant ending to the movie, just not so much of a surprise to us.
There are three picnic areas along the loop, all with hiking trailheads, and several other trailhead parking lots scattered along the way.
Scenic Bajada Loop Drive
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This photo is pretty much self explanatory isn't it? The park's Entrance Sign!
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Looking west at the wide valley outside of the park.
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Looking east at the roadway ahead of us.
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One more westerly view from a little higher elevation.
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The density of Saguaro Cactus found here is amazing.
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Of course there are some odd looking cactus here too.
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As we approach the Ez-Kim-In-Zin Picnic Area we see the CCC constructed buildings.
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If you want to use this picnic shelter you'll have to hike up to it from the parking lot.
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Inside it was nicely appointed with a stone picnic table and stone benches.
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The view out the window was all that bad either.
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You used to have to hike up to the bathrooms too.They're closed now and there is a vault toilet located down in the parking lot.
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We've arrived at the Signal Hill Petroglyph Area.
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These petroglyphs are relatively young at only 500-1000 years old.
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Age is usually determined by the subject matter of the artwork.
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The round objects that look like spoked wheels are actually representations of cactus flowers.
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This one has been determined to be some kind of sundial to mark the seasons.
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We're back on the road now and finishing up the loop.
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But not before we see several more odd looking saguaros.
Just after we all visited the Ez-Kim-In-Zin Picnic Area, Kathy and Mike took off to do a mountain bike trail, something they really enjoy. Seeing as how Tricia and I sold our bicycles a couple of years ago, we elected to go on the short hike to the petroglyphs instead.
No worries, we have plans to meet up with then again tomorrow morning, plus hang out with Chris and Melinda who we met last summer in Alaska.
One of the worse things about living on the road is leaving behind all our friends. But what we hoped for has started to become a reality, we've made new friends who are out here doing the same thing we're doing, traveling the United States and seeing new locations every week.
Occasionally we serendipitously cross paths and get to hang out together for a few days. Other times we plan ahead to be in the same place at the same time.
Today is also the day we get to introduce our newest friends, Kathy and Mike, to friends we made in Alaska this summer, Melinda and Chris. One thing we all have in common, besides a desire to travel around the United States in an RV, is that we all chose to do it in an Airstream.
Kathy and Mike are traveling in a 2022 Flying Cloud Edition and have only been on the road for a little over three months now. I hope they were able to glean a little useful knowledge from the other four of us while we hung out together today.
We of course travel in our 2018 Tommy Bahama Special Edition trailer. Airstream is pretty tight lipped about how many Tommy Bahama trailers were made, but rumor has it that they produced around 100 of them each of the three years they were offered. So 300+ is not that low of a number, which helps to explain why 4 of the 35 trailers that attended the Rose Parade Rally with us in Southern California this month were Tommy Bahama Editions. I guess they are very popular around the coastal states.
Melinda and Chris are both birding enthusiasts and quite the photographers. At the nearby Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum they offer a 10:00AM Raptor Free Flight program that features several different species of birds.
The birds are not enclosed in any kind of structure while they perform. They are free to fly away into the wild blue yonder if they choose, but with all the free tasty treats they were recieving, why would they choose to do that?
Kathy and Mike, plus us, arrived just as the program was starting. Melinda and Chris, who had to drive 30-miles further than we did to attend, were all ready there and at the front of the crowd. They have seen this show a few times before and knew what to expect, we didn't!
Picture 50+ people lined up on a 50-foot long pathway with a rail about waist high to keep you corraled from leaving the trail. Then picture all these birds flying very low overhead, sometimes at shoulder level, criss-crossing the pathway you're standing on.
That's how most of the show is demonstrated! You are cautioned to not raise your arms or cameras overhead for fear of the birds crashing into them while performing.
It was a lot like watching a tennis match from the sidelines, except people weren't just swiveling the heads from side to side, they were twisting their entire bodies to watch the birds takeoff and land on opposite sides of the crowd.
The birds species performing today were the Chihuahuan Raven, Great Horned Owl, Crested Caracara, and the star of the show, the Harris's Hawk.
The Raptor Free Flight show was the perfect way to start our exploration of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. As their website claims, "The Desert Museum is a fusion experience: zoo, botanical garden, art gallery, natural history museum, and aquarium." There is definitely a lot to see and do here, I'm sure more than we will be able to see with just one visit.
ARIZONA-SONORA DESERT MUSEUM
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I may not accurately identify all the birds in this slideshow, but...
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I'm fairly confident this bird is a...
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This is the alpha male reminding the other one just exactly who's the boss.
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The Harris's Hawk learns at a young age just how to land on the top of the cactus.
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These were definitely my favorite bird in the show.
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Balancing adjustment was required for this perch.
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Eyeing the handler for when his next treat would be available.
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Just an all around beautiful bird.
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This male Gila Woodpecker was nearby watching the show just like the rest of us.
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I am tenatively identifing this as an Anna's Hummingbird.Someone please let me know if I'm wrong!
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Another Cactus Wren making a home out of an abandoned hole in the Saguaro.
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Even up close they are not all that cute.
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One of the large stained glass butterflies found out in the gardens.
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There were also dragonflies in orange...
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...and green colors.
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This is the hairy stalk of a Senita "Old Man" Cactus.
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Another photo of the Senita Cactus.
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There are many varieties of cactus in this one photo, too many to identify.
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Now we're inside of the Hummingbird Aviary.
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These hummingbirds are just so fascinating to watch as they hover about.
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One more backlit butterly photo before we leave the park.
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We were in such a hurry when we arrivedwe totally missed seeing this amazing Crested Saguaro in the parking lot.
But one thing we didn't plan on, because it wasn't in the forecast last night when we went to bed, was waking up to this...
It's snowing! In Arizona! In the desert!
And the temperature on the ground this morning is not even below freezing?
Granted, it's not like the snow is piling up on the campground roads, preventing us from leaving the site, but it did delay our start this morning.
First thing we did was to locate a Joann's Fabic Store in Tucson so Tricia could purchase some special knitting tool called a "yarn guide" so she can knit two different color yarns at the same time. Don't ask me to explain it any better, because I don't know any more than that.
Joann's Fabrics didn't have what she needed, and neither did the Michael's Store across the street. Oh well, guess we'll just have to place another Amazon order soon!
Next up on the list was to drive by and "see what we could see" from the outside of the fence surrounding the largest airplane boneyard in the world.
The Air Force Material Command's 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) is where all decommissioned military and government aircraft are stored.
I found this great website LINK that explains all about what goes on here if you're looking for more information on this facility.
Next we visited the eastern district of Saguaro National Park. The city of Tucson lies between the two districts and separates them by 33-miles. The east side also has a scenic drive, which we did, and their own Visitor Center, which we also explored.
On the way into the park we saw a sign informing us that Colossal Cave Mountain Park was just 10-miles away. We have a reservation to tour the cave on Sunday, but since we have plenty of time today we changed our reservation to 2:00PM today.
Before the cave tour though we need to find some lunch. The nearby town of Vail, AZ had a few choices for fast food restaurants, but we went with our "old reliable" choice of Taco Bell. We would have chosen our new favorite of Del Taco had there been one in town.
Like so many of the caves we've visited, this cave was privately owned for decades, before being transfered into public property like this County Park. During most cave's privately owned periods they usually experience massive amounts of destruction caused by "souvenir collectors", most of the time encouraged by the owners who could then pocket some extra cash for the broken pieces of crystal formations.
In 1988 the government passed the Federal Cave Resources Protection Act that now strives to protect caves, public or private, from any further destruction.
With our cave experience complete we have just two more stops before heading for the campground. Fortunately they are located right next door to each other, Costco and Walmart.
By the time we arrived back at the campground it was just after 6:00PM and we almost missed tonight's sunset over the mountains.
Today we have a few errands to run, then a visit to the Post Office before we meet up with Melinda and Chris for lunch with a canyon hike afterwards.
WOW! I'm tired just writing all that! I'm going back to bed.
First up is the Post Office! We have a General Delivery Package waiting for us at the Cortaro Branch P.O., which is basically a northern suburb of Tucson.
I ordered a new satellite cable that connects our dish to the modem. Hopefully it will resolve the issues we've been having with our Starlink service.
Also in today's package is three months worth of mail to sort through. It should contain new auto insurance cards, health insurance cards and prescription cards. This happens just after the first of every new year.
We have another location to check for Tricia's knitting tool, but I don't hold out much luck we'll find it.
Melinda and Chris are currently camping in a state park that we have reservations for later this year. Since we are already halfway there from our campsite I called and asked if they would mind us visiting.
By informing the Entrance Gate attendant we are just visiting someone in the campground we didn't have to pay the $8 entrance fee. Plus it gives us a chance to see how well I did in selecting our future site.
After arrival I must admit the site Melinda and Chris are on has a much better view than the one I selected, but they had the advantage of having been here several times before.
After hanging out at their site for a little while it was time to head out for lunch. They selected the restaurant for lunch, Nobel Hops in Oro Valley, one of their favorites, and we followed them there.
It was a small little place with a huge oudoor patio that afforded great views of the nearby Catalina Mountains. It was too cold to sit outside today, but I imagine the food and drinks were still just as tasty indoors.
I didn't think to take pictures of our lunch plates, but here is a photo of our Key Lime Cheesecake Pie dessert.
All right, time to go work off all those calories we just ate.
Nearby was a short hike that Melinda and Chris did several years ago. It's the Honeybee Canyon Trail located inside of Honeybee Park. The afternoon tempuratures had warmed up just enough to make this a pleasant hike.
As you can see there are residential communities on two sides of the park, but when you're down in one of the washes they are hidden from view, giving you the feeling of being out in the middle of the desert.
HONEYBEE CANYON HIKE
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The ornate trailhead entrance at Honeybee Park.
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Here we are following behind Melinda and Chris on the trail.
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Soon we came upon at thick brick wall that was functioning as a dam.
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Lucky for us we didn't have to climb over the dam to continue along the trail.
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Someone cut a hole through it wide enough and tall enough to walk through.
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The next quarter mile of the trail followed along the bottom of a wash.
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High up on the ridge we could still see the "Icon of the West" Saguaro Cactus.
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This Saguaro has a lot of arms and a lot of woodpecker holes.
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This Cholla Cactus still has a lot of blooms on it.
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A close up of the bloom.
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Here is a Barrel Cactus in bloom.
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And finally another close up.
Just a few more photos inside the northern boundaries of Saguaro National Park (West) before I close out this extremely long post. I hope you enjoyed looking at the photos from our week long visit of Saguaro National Park and surrounding areas, just as much as we did taking them.
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