Thoughts

Some thoughts along the road:

     I never understood why Larry McMurty named his novel Lonesome Dove.  Now I know why because the bird I have seen most often since arriving in Texas and Arizona is the dove, second only to the vulture!

     While crossing certain parts of the desert there are signs warning about dust storms. In the past I have referred to them as dust devils. They look like mini tornadoes and come and go without any warning. But these road signs are talking about real dust storms. There are signs lined up like Burma Shave signs saying:  Pull off the roadway, Turn off the engine, Leave your lights on and Take your foot off the brake. I wonder if we should breathe?

     Apparently I slid from the Chihuahuan Desert into the Sonoran Desert. They sure look the same!

     I stopped in Fort Davis for two nights before I headed up to the Guadalupe Mountains and Carlsbad Caverns. Some of the buildings from the old Fort Davis have been restored. The original fort was built to help secure the San Antonio-El Paso Road.  Another important facet of the history of the fort is the fact the Buffalo Soldiers were garrisoned at the fort for a number of years. No one knows why the Indians named the black troops the Buffalo Soldiers but the Park Ranger posited two possibilities. The first was the soldiers hair looked like the hair on the ruff around a buffalos head. The second was the Indians thought the black soldiers fought more bravely than white soldiers and thus called them Buffalo Soldiers as a sign of respect.

     The CCC played a large role in the West, particularly in the parks.  At Fort Davis the CCC built many facilities which still stand today and are still used. One is the Fort Davis Lodge.  It is a lovely old lodging facility built in the adobe style. Each room has its own patio and casement windows and all have views down the valley.  There were pictures and artifacts from the CCC days.  There was a picture displayed that really rankled. The picture is one of those old time wide angle shots that has the whole white crew of the CCC corpsmen arrayed over a 2 Ft area and then there is a six foot space and the black cooks are shown as a group. Heaven forbid they be touching!

     Guadalupe is first noticed by the formation referred to as El Capitan. It is a great feature but overshadows the real summit of the park which, at over 8300 feet, is the highest point in Texas. There are some great hiking trails, one of which traverses the ridge line of the mountains. The Mountains are really an old reef which has been uplifted. That same reef also formed Carlsbad Caverns. Carlsbad isn’t the biggest or longest cave in the world but it ranks right up there as the best because of the fantastic features inside. Carlsbad is open to the public but another cave, Lechuguilla is supposed to be more fantastic and larger. It is still being mapped.

     Tucson has been such a delight. I don’t like cities but Tucson with 860,000 inhabitants still seems like a big town. Tucson is also the home of the two sections of Saguaro National Park. There is no g sound in Saguaro. It is pronounced So wah ro. Most main streets have two or three lanes as well as a separate bike lane and a turn lane. The valley is basically flat and everything extends horizontally. The homes are single story adobe style tucked into the landscape. They are colored in desert hues from a dark charcoal, buffs, tans, ochre and reddish colors. Most homes are close together and each has a wall surrounding it.  The desert tree, the palo verde is blooming a golden color and the countryside is glowing. The Saguaro come in every shape imaginable and they are starting to bloom now. There are other cactus showing off their colors also. The Saguaro are all over the city. I wonder how they have been built into the landscape. Do they build houses and patios around an existing saguaro? I googled landscape firms in the city and discovered the saguaro are sold by the foot. A nice one with an arm or two will go for $2-3000.  The tall saguaro are over 150 years old. Some have holes in them pecked by woodpeckers for food and a nest. Then the cavity becomes a home for other desert creatures. The holes do not seem to hurt the cactus.

     A real gem in the area is the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum. It is part botanical garden and zoo. Anyone who thinks the desert is lifeless needs to visit this Museum.  There are some amazing specimen of cactus, as well as native mammals, most of whom are rescue animals, wildflowers and birds. I loved seeing a bobcat and was amazed at how large the putty tat was.

     Everywhere you look there are amazing vistas. Tucson is a huge area residing mostly in a flat valley between three sets of mountains, the Tucson, Santa Catalina and Rincon. The mountains seem to have popped out of the landscape. But close up to the mountains are what I have come to call the ‘dippity do’ roads. They are such fun to drive. They are roads that negotiate rolling hills which have dips in them. There are always signs warning of the upcoming dip and always an admonishment not to enter the dip if there is water in it. So driving the roads is similar to riding a roller coaster where you get to the top and you can’t see over the top, so you take it on faith the road continues on the other side. These are strictly no passing roads and usually no left turns. The dips are so deep the car is not visible to other cars. I was talking to a Park Ranger about the roads and he said he used to have a VW bug. He would actually take air when driving over the roads.  Tucson has views 360 degrees and the sunsets are very dramatic. There is a peak in the middle of the city called Sentinel Peak. I was up there the other night at sunset. I didn’t know where to look as the sunset playing off the clouds was wonderful and in the east the sky was dark with lightning and rain falling but evaporating before it hit the ground. The sky lit up as pink when the lightning struck.

     The saguaro cactus grows best when it takes root under a tree, either palo verde or mesquite.  The trees provide protection from winter cold and shade from the desert heat. Both the palo verde and mesquite have very deep roots while the saguaro extends its roots only 4-6 inches below ground. The roots extend out as far as the cactus is tall.  The cactus are starting to bloom their white flowers now. Under the flowers the red fruit develops. The local Indians are dependent on the cactus. They use the ribs as harvesting tools.  After the cactus dies its woody ribs can also be used to build walls, roofs, fences and furniture.

     When visiting the Tucson Mountains where Saguaro National Park West is located, the drive takes a wonderful road up and over the mountain. From view points along the way it is possible to see large square areas that seem to be ponds or agriculture. They are very prominent in the valley landscape. I asked a park ranger what they were and they indeed are ponds. They are about 8 feet deep and fed with water from Lake Havasu in northern Arizona. The water comes down to this valley and is pumped into the squares so that the water can be absorbed into the underlying aquifer. The Tucson aquifer was petering out from overuse but is being recharged this way. The percolation of the water into the underlying strata is necessary in order to be cleansed.  It is a clever method but there must be a significant lose of water to evaporation.

     Tucson has been having a cold spell this week. It has only been in the 80’s when it should be close to 100 degrees. It knew I was coming and took pity on me heat wise.  I am very enamored by Tucson and would definitely consider moving to the area. There are the mountains with numerous ways to get out into nature.  The city is laid back and there is a thriving art scene.  I can picture having a small place tucked into a hillside with shade provided by large overhangs, a private garden behind a wall and numerous trees and cactus planted to provide shade.  It would be preferable to be located on a dipping do road.  There are 55+ communities in the area and they seem to be priced similar to ours.  I don’t know what the taxes are but the HOA seem similar also.

     For the last few days I have been staying at an Air Bnb. I will also be in an AirBnb in Tubac, Flagstaff and Durango making the last part of the trip easier.  It has been a great experience.  The place I am staying has a wide overhang looking North and there is a swing chair hanging from the overhang. I love sitting out there in the late afternoon.