Bob & Elizabeth's Excellent Adventure

A Tag-A-Long on Wednesday took us down the Apache Trail. Our first stop was Canyon Lake where we rode the Dolly Steamboat through Salt River Canyon. This canyon, also known as Arizon's Junior Grand Canyon, is home to herds of Bighorn Sheep and we were fortunate enough to have two sightings of these majestic animals. After the 90 mnute boat ride we were parched so on to famous Tortilla Flat. Along with our passangers Barb and Darell, we bellied up to the bar  and mounted  the real saddle stools for a cold pint and a juicy burger. Mmmm, mmmm, good! The walls in the bar/restaurant/general store are papered with $90,000 in one dollar bills that suckers like me have written messages on and stuck up.There isn't much to do in this one horse town (I'm not kidding, there are only SIX residents!) so after a photo op in  the restroom with there famous stalls (I know that sounds kinda obscene but check out the pics in my photo gallery) it was on to the next stop on the trail. Goldfield, a former mining town now a ghost town, was a delightful place to while away an hour or two. We strolled along its streets, visited the church, train and mine shaft, did a little window shopping (Bob had to pry the little blue merle Chihuaha puppy out of my hands. He was ready to leave his momma and I was ready to offer him a good home) and it was time to go. Another terrific day!

The last big dance of the year was last Saturday, March 8 and it was right up our alley - a Luau! How appropriate for a couple of coconuts like ourselves. Well, you know how much we both like a luau, so we volunteered to hang leis on the incoming guests, brought over our tiki hut and light-up palm tree and hula'd the night away! I entered the "Pineapple Princess" hula contest since I figured a trailer trash princess might have an advantadge but, alas, I lost out to a long time resident. (fix, fix, fix - my applause was MUCH louder!) But what a good night, the food was delicious and even more importantly the Pina Coladas and Jungle Juice flowed freely all night!

A hotel mystery shop brought us down to Tucson for 3 days(2 nights in a suite, 2 breakfasts, travel allowance and I got paid!! WOOHOO!!!) so time for some adventures. Our first day we headed south to Tubac. This tiny community was first established in 1752 as a Spanish presidio . Working artists' studios now surround the grounds which once served as the home for a Spanish military garrison. Tubac's most famous person was soldier and explorer Capt. Juan Bautista de Anza II whose second pacific coast expedition left from Tubac in 1775 and culminated in the founding of San Francisco. During our visit we visited the Tubac Presidio State Historic to soak in a little history and then took a leisurely stroll through the small town. Visiting the sculpture gardens and galleries (got your Christmas present here, Mom & Dad!) was a nice way to spend a few hours.

On to the next item on the agenda - Mission San Xavier del Bac, also known as the White Dove of the Desert. This beautiful church, which dates back to the 1700's, is acclaimed by many to be the finest example of mission architecture in the United States. The church is a series of domes and arches that create enclaves for themes of painting on the various walls, domes and rooms.  The area behind the high altar is a dazzling gilt of colors. It reminded us of being back in Italy and was a fabulous stop! 

Day two of our trip to Tucson found us in Sabino Canyon. A couple of our friends from the RV park, Grant and Chris, met us for a fantastic day of hiking. Sabino Canyon is a natural desert oasis located in Coronado National Forest. In the spring the snow meltoff high in the mountains surrounding the canyon creates a rushing creek, waterfalls and pools of water. Our visit to the canyon started with a narrated tram ride halfway up the canyon. Spring flooding had made the rest of the road unsafe for the tram so we hoofed it on up. Of course what goes up must come down, but it was a beautiful day and we were prepared for a long outing with plenty of water and snacks. On the hike down we found a gorgeous spot at a large pool with a waterfall view and had a picnic on an outcropping of flat rocks. Spectacular! After our break we continued down, fording the river in several spots, walking through dry creek beds, visiting the dam and just having one heck of a time! Of course by the time we were through we were parched, so it was on to Rosa's for some awesome mexican food and terrific margarita's! What a day!   

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