2026 Snowbird Trip
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Saguaro National Park – A Hiking Paradise
After Meeting the Saguaro at Saguaro National Park, we returned a few more times for additional hikes. The park is divided into a west area and east area (with Tucson in the middle). The west side is the Tucson Mountain District, and the east side is the Rincon Mountain District. Lisa and I can attest…
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Tucson Gemstone and Mineral Shows
Unbeknownst to us before we arrived, Tucson is home to the most prestigious gemstone and mineral shows in the US. They run for 2+ weeks across a number of venues. We spent a few hours today at the Kino Gem and Mineral Show. We chose this one because of the size and the fact that…
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Sights and Sounds Around Tucson
Snowbirding this year led us to Tucson for the entire month of January, soaking up its unique charm; e.g., hiking blisters and cactus thorns. The Crazy Horse RV Park on the south side was our base camp, where the camp sites were packed in tighter than a jar of pickles. But don’t worry, we hit…
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Tucson Botanical Gardens
Given Lisa’s love of plants, we had to make a stop at the Tucson Botanical Gardens. This one was really unique and did a nice job of showing off the flora of the Southwest. It was small, but very tidy and well laid out. Highlights for me were the area integrated with working model trains…
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Tucson KOA
After spending the last month in Tucson, we are seriously considering returning to the southwest again next winter instead of going back to South Padre Island where we had spent the previous three winters. We really missed the beach and island living this year, but the weather in Tucson was more consistent with a lot…
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Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument
Very near the Mexico/Arizona border is a National Monument formed to protect the only place where Organ Pipe Cactus grow in the US. They like a desert with a predictable rainy season and no freezing temperatures. They are more common in Mexico and grow larger there with this protected park being their northern-most range. The…
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Sunbeat Cellars
Time for another Harvest Host stay; this evening we will be in San Tan Valley, Arizona, on the outskirts of Phoenix. We traveled north on Indian Highway 15 which is marked with arrowhead-shaped signs. We noticed many signs were tagged with graffiti, signs in a native language, roadside memorials that included brick and mortar structures,…
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Sedona – red rock beauty
Trekking north on I-17 to Sedona from the Sunbeat Winery led us to some new Arizona landscapes. We saw our first “Burro Crossing” signs and encountered a grassland at the Sunset Point Rest Area. Other sights included hillside mining, pretty overpasses, and our first encounter with Flex Lanes outside of a city. And then there…
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Dead Horse Ranch State Park
After doing laundry at the clean and convenient laundromat at Rancho Sedona RV park, we traveled on to the Dead Horse Ranch State Park where we have a three-day reservation, all at the same site this time. Park’s name story The story of the name of this park is that a family was touring different…
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Iconic Sedona: Bell Rock, Courthouse Butte, and Bun Rock
Finally on Monday, I felt good enough for a hike in red rock country, which is less than half an hour from Dead Horse Ranch State Park. Sedona is a very busy town, so we suspected that the popular hiking trails parking lots would fill up fast. There is a shuttle system, but it only…