A National Park and a Museum

On Saturday, the four of us had a big breakfast prepared by yours truly and then drove to West Saguaro National Park.  Julia picked out a trail that was Allie/Corey friendly.  Neither are big hikers.  Allie is known to whine a little if the trail is too far or too steep.  This one was perfect.  I think they both had a good time and enjoyed walking in an environment very different from San Francisco, where they live.

The trail was called Scenic, Passey, Packrat Trail Loop-a little under two miles with 282 feet in elevation gain.  Fall hasn't quite arrived in Tucson yet, although high temperatures have fallen into the mid 80's.  

Saguaros don't have rings like trees, so there's no way to accurately date them.  However, park rangers  told us that a saguaro doesn't grow an arm until it's 80 years old. The one above has a few arms.

Julia has fully transitioned from tree hugger to cactus hugger.  This armless specimen is just a baby.

We survived the short hike for the final group photo.

Next we were off to the nearby Arizona Sonora Desert Museum.  This guy was there to greet us on the road before the turn-off.

Julia and I bought annual passes, which included two free passes to get Allie and Corey in.  The cost was a little cheaper than buying single day passes for all of us.    There are many exhibits outdoors and indoors.  Volunteers give presentations on areas of interest.  One was the importance of water in the desert. I particularly liked this poem, which resonated with my first monsoon season in Tucson.

Many of the animals and reptiles here can be found in the wild behind our house.  The javelinas behind the fence looked much more docile than the ones we see in the preserve.  There were way more types of rattlesnakes in Arizona and Sonora than I knew existed.  The most amazing thing to me was how well they blend into the desert environment, making them very difficult to see unless they warn you with a rattle.

After several hours at the museum,  it was mid-afternoon, and we hadn't eaten since breakfast.  We drove to BK Carne Asada and Hot Dogs so that the kids could sample each.  

Julia wanted to try the local raspados con crema, a Mexican treat with shaved ice, fruit and ice cream.  I tried the coconut, and it was quite good.

With that, it was back home for a card game and beverages.  I won the card game, which capped off a pretty good day.  I let Corey win on the next day (maybe).  Part 3 will be coming soon.