Take one of the many Tombstone jeep tours offered by Into The West Jeep Tours and Mark and his crew will transport you back in time to the Old West of Cochise, Geronimo, Johnny Ringo, Wyatt Earp, and Doc Holliday.
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To orient new visitors to our magnificent Sonoran Desert, we always recommend they spend some time at our Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. This is not a museum in the ordinary sense, but rather a combination botanical garden and zoo. Click on this link to view our four brief videos with several docents at the Desert Museum. Special Events The Desert Museum is a big place, so there’s lots of walking involved. If you are handicapped, they do have wheelchairs and electric scooters available. When you enter, there will be a docent handing out maps and telling visitors the times of special events, such as the incredibly popular Raptor Free Flight program. Behind The Scenes Tours The Desert Museum offers 4 Behind The Scenes Tours that gives visitors a much richer, more in depth experience than general admission. We’ve enjoyed two so far: Walk On The Wild Side and the Warren Aquarium. … Continue reading
Visiting Tombstone’s Boothill Graveyard is free. After all, it’s a public cemetery. But it takes considerable willpower not to stop at the gift shop on the way out and buy a souvenir. We have several. Newman (Old Man) Clanton was born in 1816 and was killed by Mexican troops in Arizona Territory on August 13, 1881, about 10 weeks before his youngest son, William (Billy) Clanton would die of wounds sustained in a blaze of gunfire on Freemont Street near the OK Corral in Tombstone; October 26, 1881. Another son, Issac (Ike) Clanton, a mean-spirited, loudmouth cowardly drunk was instrumental in fomenting that gunfight between the Earps (Virgil, Wyatt, Morgan and Doc Holliday) and 3 Cowboys (Frank & Tom McLaury & Billy Clanton). The “Old Man” was, by many accounts, a successful rancher and cattle rustler. It is unlikely he ever met the Earps or Holliday because he had moved … Continue reading
Rillito Park Racetrack is not Santa Anita or Churchill Downs. For one thing it’s a lot smaller, which is a good thing if it’s the horses and the races that matter most. No one goes to Rillito to make a fashion statement. Rillito is a historic country racetack in the midst of a bustling urban environment.
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A brief synopsis of the Cowboys and the Earps and a timeline of the events that led up to the Gunfight at the OK Corral.
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Cochise County is a special place: still sparsely populated, but full of history and adventure. Here are a few upcoming events that I think will be worth attending: Buffalo Soldiers Tour; Bisbee Home Tour, and Bisbee Festival of Lights.
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Most everyone who reads my blog or visits our SouthernArizonaGuide website knows the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is one of our family’s favorite attractions. We’ve been members since we moved here 10 years ago. When our grandchildren visit, it’s the first place they want to go. In the past decade, we’ve taken more than a hundred [...]
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Are you looking for something special to do in September? School has begun, it can still be hot in Southern Arizona and Tucson and the area are just beginning to gear up for the coming winter season. Don’t forget to take in the SalsaFest this year. Here is a list of chosen samplings of things to do around Southern Arizona that is sure to whet your whistle.
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There are many reasons to love Tucson Botanical Gardens. First, of course, are the many different types of gardens. Second, every spring they have a “Weird Plant Sale” where you can purchase living conversation pieces. Third, TBG is a peaceful place in the midst of a bustling urban environment. Fourth, they have concerts & art shows. Fifth, you can rent the facilities and have a magnificent party there, be it for a wedding, reunion, or whatever special occasion. Go to our Tucson Botanical Gardens to discover reasons #6, #7, & #8.
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Southern Arizona has three lakes that are good for kayaking: Patagonia Lake State Park, Pena Blanca, Parker Canyon Lake. My friend, Mj Jensen, has kayaked them all and recommends all three. The following is her report from a lake near Prescott. My husband and I LOVE camping and kayaking around our beautiful State of Arizona. [...]
Continue readingThe Loft Cinema is Tucson’s premiere venue for art films – independent, foreign, alternative and classic narrative films and documentaries. The Loft was purchased in 2002, and acquired nonprofit arts organization status. The Loft hosts two free film series: the Tucson International Children’s Film Festival in July, and Essential Cinema, a series of classic art films on the big screen in new 35mm prints. In 2007, the Arizona Commission on the Arts noted that The Loft is “one of the most important cinema organizations in the state.” In 2008, The Loft was one of 17 mission-driven, community-based cinemas in the US invited by the Sundance Institute to join its Art House Project. The selection was based on quality of programming and involvement with the community. Without the efforts of The Loft, audiences in Southern Arizona would not have had access to many of films and visiting filmmakers who have enriched … Continue reading
Old Tucson has served as a movie studio for over 300 Westerns, TV productions and commercials. Today, it’s an Old West theme park that is both entertaining and educational. In April 2012, I attended the Western Music Festival & Art Show there and took these photographs. Old Tucson is closed to the public during the hot summer months, but is open October – May.
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Mescal Arizona is a faux Old West town 50 miles east of Tucson that was built as a movie set. A lot of Westerns were filmed here, including Quick & The Dead …
Continue readingLast week, we had friends visiting from Virginia. As we always do with friends and family here for the first time, we recommended they go to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. It’s such a great place get an orientation to the geology, plants, and critters of our Sonoran Desert. When they returned, they said that [...]
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The Hohokam built this city in a most inhospitable place. This prehistoric site is seriously interesting.
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The road from Amado to Arivaca winds through rolling, mesquite-covered hills. It’s obviously very popular with cyclists, motor and otherwise.
Just before we arrived in town, we came to the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge where, by appointment, we met and interviewed Richard Conway, a local geologist and Mary Scott, a seasoned birdwatcher and wildlife photographer.
