Category Archives: Arizona

Great new bike trail, in-and-out burger, and tucson food tour

Had an action-packed first day in Tucson, riding bikes with my dad along a bike trail along the Rillito wash which now connects to another trail that ends at Trailways Road (or some such). We started in Oro Valley, just northwest of Tucson, in a trailhead at La Cholla and River Roads and rode north and then back – about 15 miles total. Midway, we stopped at the In-and-Out burger in Marana. Don’t eat that kind of fast food often but heard so much about it (it’s the burger of choice for Hollywood celebs) that had to try. Not bad – liked the grilled onions on the cheese burger and the special sauce. The fries were so-so. The ride takes you through some less than scenic industrial type landscapes and some suburban sprawl but also along a pretty creekbed and a landscaped golf course and of course in the distance are the mountains and the desert foliage. And that brilliant blue Arizona sky. So no complaints. And did I mention the weather was a perfect 80 degrees, with a slight breeze?

Also read today about a new foodie walking tour of downtown Tucson that starts at the Hotel Congress and stops at The Hub, Empire Pizza, El Charro, Monkey Burger, Maynards Kitchen, Bumsted’s and the Chocolate Iguana. Other than El Charro (an old favorite ) and Bumsteads (which I just heard about last night on the plane from a kid who’s a Tucson native) I haven’t heard of any of these places. Find out more from foodtourstucson.com or call 477-7986. (don’t know the area code).

 

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Suggestions for a first visit to Tucson from a longtime visitor

My stepdaughter E is going to Tucson for the first time with her siblings, who know the place well, but I’d like to throw in my two cents as well about what to do and see there: (I’m only mentioning things your sibs may not mention.)

Sabino Canyon for classic gorgeous Sonoran scenery and easy hike/walk

Desert Museum – part zoo, part desert gardens, in mountains west of the city by Saguaro National Park (which is good hiking spot). You’ll feel like you’re driving through the set of a old western. (and there’s a famous old film studio nearby.)

Hiking:  A favorite (and easy) hike is at Catalina State Park –  right near my father’s house. There’s another one we’ve had trouble finding again ibut M&H report the trail head is just north of AJs fancy food market on Campbell and East Skyline Drive.

– downtown Tucson – Hotel Congress, great old rock n’ roll hotel with storied history, cool music venue (Club Congress where Thaddeus and his band have played) and fun cafe with great homemade cakes;  The historic district near El Charro (a favorite restaurant of the kids) downtown also worth a look – beautiful old homes.

–  M&H also report finding a new cheap Mexican restaurant – BK’s – downtown – which specializes on Sonora Hot Dogs and Carne Asada

Tohona Chul for lunch and stroll….

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Mount Vernon, Ia. – one of 10 cool small towns

I didn’t know until I heard a plug on Iowa Public Radio this morning that the small northeast Iowa town of Mount Vernon was named one of then “cool small towns” by Budget Travel Magazine. Turns out this was back in 2009. But I’d have to agree. It’s the home of Cornell College and the wonderful restaurant the Lincoln Cafe and is smack in the middle of some bucolic farm country and about a half hour south is the booming artsy college town of Iowa City.  One place I don’t know that was mentioned in the Mount Vernon blurb: Fuel, a coffee shop/antique store.

The 2009 cool town list also includes Jacksonville, Oregon, which my husband and I visited in 2010 during a visit to my sister-in-law’s house in nearby Medford, and Tubac, Arizona which we visited many times during visits to see my dad in Tucson. (In Tubac, the mag recommends the interior design story Pancho’s, Tubac Center of the Arts, and Tubac Country Inn. Good to know since I’m sure we’ll be back there.)

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Tucson – for future reference

For the second year in a row, we haven’t taken our annual trip to Tucson to see my dad – just got pulled in different directions. But my brother and his wife are there and report that they’ve found a good new cheap Mexican restaurant – BK’s – downtown – which specializes on Sonora Hot Dogs and Carne Asada (neither of which sound great right now as I’m still recovering from dining in Panama). They also were looking for a hike we did together four years ago and report that the trail head is – as we thought – just north of AJ’s fancy food market on Campbell and East Skyline Drive.

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Struggling to get my bearings in the wake of the Tucson shootings

The horrific shootings in Tucson yesterday hit close to home for several reasons including that the Safeway where they occurred is very close to where my father lives in Oro Valley/northwest Tucson. I don’t think I’ve been to that Safeway but I’ve driven by it dozens of times and been to stores and restaurants nearby.

There are so many businesses on that suburban strip that it’s hard to place the exact location of the Safeway, in my mind.  One of the many news reports I’ve watched showed a  sign for “Beyond Bread” – which confused me since last I knew,  Beyond Bread (a favorite restaurant)  is on Campbell – not Oracle where the Safeway is located.  A minor point, obviously, given the overall tragedy. But maybe my determined effort, in the wake of the shootings,  to get my physical bearings is also, deep-down, an attempt to get my psychological bearings, to figure out how close we are, as we go about our everyday lives,  to danger.

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Other state park options around Tucson/southern Arizona

I’ve apparently dissuaded at least one reader from visiting Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, after he read my blog post yesterday that it was listed in the book “101 Places Not to Visit.”  But there are plenty of other options for great hiking and beautiful desert landscapes in Tucson and Southern Arizona. Here are a few:

Saguaro National Park – This huge park west of Tucson looks like the set of an old western – and in fact an old movie lot there has been turned into a tourist attraction (which I’ve avoided.) You expect to see cowboys and Indians (okay, Native Americans) racing down the mountains when you drive through. Lots of good hiking trails and the wonderful Desert Museum.

Chiricahua National Monument – this is about two hours, as I recall, east of Tucson and it’s full of bizarre rock formations that you can hike right through, up and around. Well worth a visit. This from the monument’s websites:  “The Apaches called this place ‘The Land of Standing-Up Rocks’, a fitting name for an extraordinary rock wonderland. Early pioneers in the late 1800s sensed the unique beauty and singularity of the rock formations in the area. They were instrumental in persuading Congress to protect this ‘Wonderland of Rocks’…
There are approximately twelve thousand acres of wild, rugged terrain within which the rock formations and a great ecological diversity are protected.”

Pichacho Peak State Park – never been but heard it’s nice, especially during wildflower blooming months

Catalina State Park – this is a sentimental favorite right near my father’s house, some nice easy trails and a trail I’ve always wanted to take to Mount Lemmon. Speaking of which, that’s another place to visit, weather permitting.

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Cave Creek Arizona?

We’re always looking for new places to visit in Arizona since we visit my dad in Tucson almost every year – and the NYTimes came up with one yesterday – Cave Creek, about an hour north of Phoenix (I was hoping it was south of Phoenix and closer to Tucson). Looks like it has held onto some of its original character – especially like the idea of shopping at the Town Dump, which apparently is the name of a store, not the town’s real dump. For more details see:  http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/05/21/travel/escapes/21cavecreek.html

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Spring break destinations

I’m beginning to feel like a bit of a freak choosing Portland and Oregon for a spring break destination – everyone else I know in Iowa, if they’re getting out of here in March, is heading to Mexico or Florida or Arizona. Somewhere that warm weather is practically guaranteed – although not always as we’ve learned from our frequent trips to Tucson in March to see my dad.

Last I looked, Portland is usually in 50s, maybe 60s, in March – which isn’t exactly balmy but a heck of lot better than the sub-zero temps we’ve had here. There doesn’t seem to be any cost advantage to flying to Portland vs. Arizona during spring break from Des Moines. Both are expensive. But our  Portland ticket is about $$150 more  than our son’s ticket to Tucson. (And we both fly out on the same flight to Denver before parting ways for different destinations.)

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Phoenix: takemewithyou

One of these days I’m going to stay in Phoenix when we land at the airport there and explore the city (rather than jumping immediately in a rental car and heading to Tucson, where we visit my dad). We’ve poked around Scottsdale a bit but Phoenix has always seemed more interesting yet challenging to explore. And when we do stay in Phoenix, I must remember to take a copy of the NYTimes story “Reviving Phoenix through Art” in today’s paper that talks about a once rundown downtown area that is now  an arts district. In addition to several galleries, there is the Downtown Phoenix Public Market which sounds great – with vendors selling everything from produce to herbal remedies. The Asian tapas (“asian tapas?”) restaurant Sens also sounds worth a visit.

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Dreaming of: Tucson pt. 2

How could I not be dreaming of  warm sunny Tucson, after a call from my dad who is there while I’m in frigid Iowa. The temp here  is 7 degrees (“Feels like -11.”)Happy New Year!) And more deep freeze to come all weekend.  By Tuesday, though, we may hit 11!  I can feel the cold as I type in my home office, even with the sun streaming through windows etched by frost with pretty snowflake patterns that look like bundles of spindly branches.

Dad was visiting Kartchner Caverns State Park, south of Tucson,  a rare living and growing cave that I visited with my family and wrote about when the place opened  to the public in 2000. (see http://www.nytimes.com/2000/05/21/travel/frugal-traveler-outside-tucson-a-family-goes-underground.html?scp=6&sq=betsy rubiner&st=cse)

I need to get back there – especially since a new section (“The Big Room”)  has opened for tours since my visit.  As I wrote, ten years ago, what makes this seven-acre cave system special is that it is so unspoiled. I hope that’s still true. More more info see: azstateparks.com/Parks/KACA/tour_info.html.

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