The Highlands of Arizona

So here I sit, on the fourth of July.  So far, the day has been pretty uneventful - I worked on paper revisions while Paul played with the kids.  Then I made lunch for the kids while Paul started working on learning Z-brush.  Yes, we must be back in America, because this is what we do on a national holiday...work. At least a little.  Then shoot off some fireworks once it gets dark, just to mark the occasion. (And to celebrate that fireworks are now legal in Arizona, which is a change from 5 years ago, although I'm still not sure it's the wisest thing in the world to legalize fire-y explosives, even temporarily, in a dry desert.)

Yesterday was really our celebration, though - we packed a picnic and went up the mountain to the Highlands of Arizona - Mt. Lemmon.

It's about an hour drive, and the terrain changes fast.  First you drive through the city of Tucson, then the outskirts.  Finally you reach the mountain foothills (or the "low mountains" as Audrey was calling them yesterday). Then you start traveling up - once through the foothills, it's switchbacks all the way up, which can lead to some lovely nausea if you're sensitive to that kind of thing...which everyone in our family is.  But you persevere, and finally you're mid-mountain, and there's a rest area:

Windy Point Vista, Mt. Lemmon

Exploring

In addition to using the restroom, this is also a good place to practice your expansive "I own this place" look:

Audrey,Windy Point Vista

Claire, Windy Point Vista

Or, indeed, tell a fantastical story about how the rock on top of this rock is a secret book that was given to you by "the brothers" because you were "the little one," and you placed it here at Windy Point in the time before you were a part of this family (which sounds mysteriously like the plot of the Book of Kells animated film that Claire did not watch with us...but it could also be one of the plots of Winx...)

The book given to her by "the brothers"

Once you have done all your resting, it is time to get back in the car to seek the true Highlands, that area where it is cool and pine-forested, where there is even the Southern-most ski resort in the United States, which conveniently, runs the ski lift during the summer so the can still stay in business (being the Southern-most ski resort in the U.S. not exactly being a 100% winning business model).

Going Up!

Look who rode up behind us!

Elevation at the top

Flowers and ladybugs

Heading down the mountain

Audrey headed down

Once we rode the ski lift, we drove down the mountain a little and stopped at the Butterfly Trail.  Though mid-summer isn't quite the right time for butterflies, it was still a lovely (fairly flat - important with the kids) trail.

Butterfly Trail

View from the Butterfly Trail

We walked on a big log, investigated (and frightened!) a blue log-bug, and built a fairy house using found materials in the shade of a fallen log.

The completed fairy house

Finally it was almost time to head back home, but first there was the obligatory "King and Queen of the Forest" picture! Happy 4th of July!

To the North: Arizona's Apache and Navajo Counties

When we lived in Scotland, my travels took me around the country, but now that we live in the U.S. again, and I work for a State agency, my travels take me mostly to different parts of Arizona.  Although it's not as glamorous-sounding as going to Edinburgh or London for work, going to Northern Arizona is definitely a different experience.

Last week I traveled to visit Apache and Navajo Counties - my route took me up through the White Mountains to see Whiteriver and Fort Apache on the White Mountain Apache tribal lands, then up to Holbrook, Chinle on the Navajo Nation, over to St. Johns and finally to Eagar/Springerville before heading back down south.

My route from Tucson up and around through Navajo and Apache counties

So what was I doing? Well, in Whiteriver I was just looking around, trying not to stick out like a sore thumb with my pale (ish...not so pale as it was in Scotland) skin and my University of Arizona car.  I stopped at the gateway to the White Mountain Apache tribal lands: Salt River Canyon- beautiful area, and the only rest area for miles.

My colleague and I stayed in Holbrook, whose claim to fame is proximity to the Petrified Forest National Park, and of course many places where you can buy petrified wood in all shapes and sizes:

Since petrified wood is from dinosaur times, there's a not-so-subliminal theme going on among the local shops:

Holbrook is also on Route 66, something it's hard to forget when the central square sports this sign painted on a rock.

Because of its proximity to the Navajo Nation, another unique feature of Holbrook is that it has a kids tribal dance group that performs for free each summer weeknight. The biggest dancers are probably in their early teens, with the youngest ones barely able to toddle around the arena. The boy pictured below was maybe 9 or 10 and performed the Hoop Dance; it was very impressive.

Here is one of the tiniest dancers, a little boy whose dad is heping him to do the Grass Dance:

From Holbrook we drove onto the Navajo Nation up to Chinle (2 hours away and 1 hour earlier, because the Navajo Nation observes Daylight Savings time, while the rest of Arizona does not). It's pretty up there - and sparsely populated.

In Chinle we found some items in the grocery store that showed us we were in a rural agricultural area - horse pellets and salt licks - and then we went on to the Summer Meals SNAP-Ed event, which was why we were there.

After Chinle it was back to Holbrook for meetings and visiting sites (mainly SNAP-Ed supported gardens), then over to Apache County (St. Johns and Springerville/Eagar) the next day to see more gardens and also more Summer Food activities.

When I woke up in Holbrook and went outside on my way to St. Johns, this was the scene, thanks to the Cedar Creek wildfire, burning near Show Low, 47 miles away. I could smell the wood smoke from the hotel parking lot:

I had the honor of seeing the best garden in St. Johns (the county seat of Apache county, population about 3,500) - lovingly planted and tended at the Apache County Cooperative Extension. Becuase it's colder in Northern Arizona the growing season starts later, but they made their own greenhouses and nurtured tomatoes and other plants so they were thriving in June instead of just getting started. They even had broccoli ready to pick! They told me people were pulling over to the side of the road to ask them how they grew such lovely plants.

On my way back to Tucson, I decided not to drive back toward the fire (which by this time had grown from 1,000 to 8,000 acres, had shut part of the highway, and had Show Low under a pre-evacuation threat) so I added some time and went through Alpine, AZ (complete with an Alpine lake) and down through New Mexico.  I didn't take any pictures, mainly because there was nowhere to stop and pull over...just winding mountain roads snaking through trees and more trees, with the occasional town flashing by.

Thanks for reading all the way to the end, and now you

1) Know a little bit about what a SNAP-Ed evaluator does in Arizona.

and

2) Have seen some of Arizona that's off the beaten path, that you might not see unless you are getting your kicks on Route 66.

Happy Trails!

Four Signs You Are in Tucson

Reid Park Zoo Humor

 I realized as I logged into the blog today that it had been more than a month since my last post. I have put some thought into why it is that I post less here in Arizona - the truth is, in Scotland, things were more "exotic."  Even a trip to a local town (like St. Andrews) was picturesque and foreign to readers back in the States.  I suppose I could say the same thing about Arizona. It sure is foreign here sometimes.  But it is still the United States and so...less exotic.

That said, I've been collecting pictures of (often literal) signs that you are in Tucson, Arizona. These signs and images epitomize Tucson for me. Every day on the way to work I drive by a strip mall [note to British readers: not what it sounds like] that I always want to stop and take a picture of because it contains the following:

• a tamale shop [one of the high points of Tucson food]
• a medical marajuana dispensary [which have mushroomed in the five years we've been gone, thanks to state legalization of medical marajuana]
• a store called "Metaphysics World" [which, although I've never been in, sums up Tucson's hippie leanings for me]

All have brightly colored storefronts with big signs - as you do in Tucson.  But on to some things I do actually have pictures of, because they aren't located on a busy thoroughfare between home and work.

Tucson Food

There are many great things about Tucson food - you take your pick of everything from multiple styles of Mexican food to sushi to Ethiopian dishes and everything in between.  Frybread, while certainly not exclusive to Tucson (it can be found throughout the Southwest) is something that you can find in Tucson, but definitely not Scotland, or the East Coast.

Frybread stand at a University of Arizona event

Another food (if you can call it that) native to Tucson is the Eegees slush.  For the non-Tucsonan Americans, imagine Subway decided to serve pretzels and french fries in addition to their subs, and instead of proper drinks, they served 7-11 slushes, in flavors that changed monthly. Imagine that you grew up with "Eegees" (the name of the restaurant as well as the slush) as a staple of children's parties, and as an adult you transitioned to "Iced Teagees" which are ice tea mixed with lemon slush.  Now imagine it's 100 degrees. Every day. For four months. Okay, you've got the picture.

Eegees truck at a University of Arizona event

Reminders that you are in the West

These reminders may take many forms - for example, homage to the horse culture of the West, like this sign spotted outside a park restroom:

Or, warnings you might not see anywhere else, like this reminder in the parking lot of the Desert Museum:

Or, this sign from a rest area parking lot (technically not in Tucson, but in Central/Northern Arizona):

Note: "Unloading of Livestock" is prohibited

Also not typically seen outside the West - reminders at highway rest stops that the local fauna could kill you:

 

Reminders that This Area Used to be Part of Mexico 

An additional, though distinct feature of the West is that for a long time, it was part of Mexico, and this influence is still strong.  Witness the selection of pinatas for sale at Target:

 

  

Truths About Tucson

I'll close with a few images, that like the juxtoposition of tamales, medical marajuana and metaphysics, express truths about Tucson. 

For example, the schools are aspirational...this actual sign from Audrey's elementary school heartens and distresses me at the same time:

Although it rains heavily during the summer months (and occasionally outside the summer months), very few roads in Tucson are built to withstand water.  In the best-case scenario (shown here, outisde our house), the middle of the road becomes a river, with some space to drive on either side.  

 In a worst case scenario, the road floods and you can only drive when it's raining if you have a high-clearance vehicle.  Which brings me to my last two photos - the truth about how big your car is if you drive in Tucson (that's my car on the right, next to a typical Tucson truck):

And finally, a sign that recognizes the complicated and ever-changing relationships between pedestrians, horses, and cyclists in Tucson:

 

Visitng the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum

 Adventures in Arizona: the jewel that is the Desert Musem.

Mexican Wolf

Driving around Tucson, I had been hearing promotional spots on the radio for the Desert Museum.  Back when we lived in Tucson before, we were members of the museum, even if we only visited once a year or so.  Every time I heard the the radio ad encouraging me not to wait until I have visitors to visit the museum, I thought, We should really go.  It's an awesome museum.  The kids will love it, and so will we.

A few weeks ago we finally made the drive, and we were not disappointed.  It's a pretty good trek from mid-town Tucson - probably 40 minutes from where we live.  But the drive is lovely, and once we got there all driving-related bordom was forgotten.  The scenery is gorgeous - the museum is set right on the edge of the desert.

Cactus, mountains, and a ham.

View into the desert

More desert view with saguaro cactus and mountains

I remembered that the museum was good for kids, but I forgot how great it really is that you get up close to desert animals...sometimes really close, like trying on vulture wings and having Harris hawks swoop right over your head.

Audrey the vulture

Claire the vulture

Harris hawks, hanging out before the hunting demo

Not to mention a walk-in aviary with a posing hummingbird and a cooperative roadrunner.

Hummingbird waiting for photographers

Is that a roadrunner? Meep-meep!

Though I have been to the Desert Museum many times, on this visit I saw things I had never seen: like the Mexican wolf, pictured above, the beaver actually out and about, enjoying a snack of fruit, and of course those Harris hawks, doing a perfectly choreographed team hunting demonstration that wowed the Raptor Free Flight audience.

He's awake! And snacking! Not just sleeping in the den like always.

Waiting for the Raptors to fly

Prepared for the sun with mom's hat

The Desert Musuem lives up to its reputation - a great museum in our backyard in Tucson.  We captured prairie dogs communicating, a heron (or an egret, I always get them mixed up) surveying its surroundings, and a beautiful tiny blooming cactus.

Hello?

Artsy bird photo by Audrey

Cactus flower

Before we left, we stopped by one of Mark Rossi's many sculptures out there, one that I think Paul even put together.

Mark Rossi sculpture with desert view

We left the museum after we saw the Raptors flying, and of course after we got some ice cream (not pictured, but delicious).

Next time, we'll hunt for javalinas and maybe do an animal encounter. For this time, we just had to be satisfied with channeling our inner turtles.

Turtle practice with Audrey and Claire