Fun in Tucson

We are in Tucson from May 13- June 10. It is great to be back in the desert. Our condo is up in the Catalina foothills where it is cooler than the central area. There is so much to do here that we are shocked. People are very friendly and the weather is excellent.

Our place is very roomy and comfortable (except the bed) and we have a hiking trail behind our building. Birds, lizards and bats are daily sights.

Reid Park Zoo

We became members of the zoo in Palm Springs as we were there 3 months and it paid for itself after 2 or 3 visits. Now we get 1/2 off at reciprocal zoos and fortunately, Tucson`s zoo qualifies. Small, yet entertaining zoo, it was easy to breeze through in 2 hours without rushing.

Turquoise Trail

The Turquoise Trail is an historic walk around Tucson, marked with a blue line with historical signs along the way. We jumped on the light rail, known as the Sun Link Tram. Normally $4.50 for a 24 hour pass, it was free due to the pandemic. We met a local couple, Al and Evelyn, as we got on the tram. They have been married close to 60 years and met in first grade here in Tucson. We parked across from Seis Mexican Restaurant (our post walk lunch destination) and took the tram to Hotel Congress. It is infamous for being the hotel where John Dillinger was arrested in 1934, but he later escaped.

Hotel Congress bar

While visiting Hotel Congress, we met Tiger, the hotel’s bartender, namesake of Tiger’s Taproom. He has worked there 60 years and his 88th birthday was May 28th.

Next along the trail we met Jerry and Randy at the train depot where we got an expert education on steam train operations.

We finally caught the tram back to Seis. We were pleasantly surprised to find Al and Evelyn on the tram.

Sabino Canyon

Sabino canyon is actually down the road from us. Our America the Beautiful National Park Pass gets us in free. One day we took the tram up and down, a 7.4 miles round trip. Another day we just hiked.

Sunset from A mountain (Sentinel Peak)

Sweetwater Wetlands

The wetlands is a man made habitat using reclaimed water. It is a short 1.1 mile loop around multiple ponds. Plenty of birds, green herons, white winged doves, Abert’s towhees and more.

Loews Ventana Canyon Resort

We are fortunate to be a short walk from a beautiful resort. There is a delightful trail on the property with educational signs describing the fauna and flora of the area. The trail ends at a scenic waterfall. We discovered that they have live music at 2 different venues on Friday and Saturday nights. Fun to get out dancing again.

Arizona Sonora Desert Museum

Tucson is a very widespread city. We are living in the very north end and it can take an hour to get to the far end of town. The desert museum was a long drive through Tucson Mountain Park and abuts the Saguaro National Park West. The museum is a zoo, an aquarium, an aviary as well as a museum.

Degrazia’s Gallery of the Sun

Very large art gallery of Ted Degrazia, a Tucson legend.

International Wildlife Museum

This is an incredible museum with a huge display of stuffed animals from around the world. Very educational place with many rooms of displays.

Mount Lemmon

We heard from several sources that we should make the drive up to Mt. Lemmon. We had no idea what an incredible adventure was in store. You go from Tucson’s 2400 feet, up to over 8,000 feet at the summit. There is actually a ski area up there. As you go up in elevation, the landscape and vegetation change several times. We had lunch at the Sawmill Restaurant and bought a mountain berry/rhubarb pie at the Iron Door Restaurant.

Mission San Xavier del Bac and Tubac

We took a day trip to Tubac, an artisan colony. We stopped at an historic mission en route.

Pima Air and Space Museum

Fascinating air museum with a specific space hangar as well as thousands of planes at the boneyard. Unfortunately, the boneyard, which is on USAF property was closed. Still very entertaining and educational. Modern cafe with snacks and drinks to cool off during the Tucson heat was appreciated.