We settled in at the Gilbert Ray Campground in Tucson Mountain Park. It was time to take care of chores--laundry, grocery shopping and other errands. Grace's sewing machine was in need of repair, so we sought out a doctor for it. Grace is very attached to her machine (she sews fabulous quilts), so we had to keep her so busy she wouldn't miss it. We helped them pick out a new laptop, so that keep her engaged part of the time.
One of the fun 'touristy' things we did was to spend a day at the Sonoran Desert Museum. This outdoor museum was filled with animals, birds and desert vegetation. We took our time and really enjoyed it all. Here are some of the pictures from our visit.
I was still having trouble with reactions to the sun, so I stayed behind and worked on my taxes while Tom took Grace and Arnie hiking in Sabino Canyon. They took the tram to the end, then they hiked the 'Phone Line Trail.' That trail ascends and follows the edge of the canyon at a higher elevation. They said the views were great. Of course they had packed a lunch, so they paused to enjoy that along the way. After completing the trail, they took the tram back up to the swimming hole where Grace soaked her feet in the cool water.
The day Grace got her sewing machine back, Tom and Arnie headed over to check out the Pima Air Museum. Arnie is retired Royal Canadian Air Force, so he recognized a lot of the planes. There were sonar planes, an old Air Force One and a Blackbird (spy) plane. They got to go inside the old Air Force One plane that was used during President Kennedy and President Johnson's terms.
One of the most interesting things we did was to go up to the Kitt Observatory west of Tucson. The road to the peak is steep and winding. It affords great views of the surrounding landscape. We were surprised when a bobcat crossed the road right in front of us. When he got to the side of the road he paused for a moment, looked back at us and smiled (at least that's what I thought), and then went over the edge. What an unexpected treat!
The Kitt Observatory complex has several telescopes, many of which are huge. Astronomers submit papers hoping to be awarded 3 nights of telescope time at the observatory. Several Universities support this facility and use it for research purposes.
We were able to go into two of the major observatories including the 500 foot Solar Telescope. Two hundred feet of this telescope are above ground, and the other three hundred feet are tunnelled into the earth. It was fascinating.
These are a few of the photos that have been taken through the telescopes at Kitt Observatory. They are displayed in the Visitor Center.
While we were up on the peak, we noticed a golden carpet on the desert below. We decided we'd better check it out when we came back down the mountain. Wow! The carpet of Mexican Gold Poppies was so thick you could hardly see the ground beneath them!
We stopped several places and walked among the flowers in awe. Never in my life have I seen so many wild flowers. It was breathtaking. We had a hard time breaking ourselves away.
Soon it was time to part and go our separate ways for a while. I needed to head back to the Phoenix area for more business trips, so we said our good-byes. We knew we'd see Arnie & Grace once more as they headed north later in March.
