Something Old, Something New, Something Yummy

Corona de Tucson

December 4. 2022 

Something old...but it never really gets old !

I love those mornings when we wake up and and one of us asks, "What do you want to do today?".  Thursday was one of those mornings !  The weather was about as perfect as any weather can be for the end of November/first of December. There were no appointments, errands, or plans on the calendar.  My answer to the question is always, "Let's do a hike!".  Our choice for the morning was Sahaurita Trail about 6 miles from home.  Sahuarita Trail is a small section (17+ miles) of the Arizona National Scenic Trail system that goes from the Mexican border to Utah.    We get a good 3.5 miles on our "in and out" walk.  The "in" has views of the Santa Rita Mountains...

and the "out" has views of the Rincon Mountains.

 

   

           

In between, there are lots of prickly pear cacti...

mesquite trees...

winter grasses...

skeletons...

and grasshoppers...really big grasshoppers.

But the sky stole the show !

Something new...always fun to find new things to do !

The historic and art village of Tubac celebrates the Holiday Season with its Luminaria Nights de Tubac the first week-end in December each year. The festival is held Friday and Saturday nights from 5:00 to 9:00.  Wahoo, sounds like a date night to me !  The streets and walkways are lined with luminaries and lights... 

and shops, galleries and restaurants are open.  

We arrived about 5:00...just before sunset...

strolled down the streets...

and meandered thru a few shops.

Clay Rabbit House was my favorite shop.  I do have a soft spot for pottery.  Dean and Debbie moved to Tubac about three years ago from the Northwest and opened their potting studio complete with two wheels and two kilns.  Dean creates each piece by hand or using wheel thrown methods and Debbie completes each piece of stoneware by adding colorful animals and western scenes.  Beautiful cardinals painted on platters, bowls, cups, and vases caught my eye when we passed by.    Then, I saw the saguaros...

and I couldn't help myself !  

A hot sandwich and a mocha latte at the deli hit the spot although I really wanted a piece of peanut butter pie.  The couple in front of us bought the last piece.  

Something yummy...always the first December treat I make.

Back at the oasis, the first of the holiday goodies is checked off the list.  A counter full of yumminess...toasted in the oven for 2 hours at 225 degrees and stirred every 20 minutes.  So worth the effort as Joe and I love this crunchy concoction of cereals, pretzels and pecans covered with melted butter, Worcestershire sauce celery salt and onion salt. It never makes it to Christmas Day ! 

Jack had a spa day.  

The violas have a mystery plant.

Jena sent pictures of Felix and Edith opening their cliff dwelling ornaments.

We enjoyed mid-morning walks with the pups.

Dover and Sally keep a watchful eye.

Joe puts on the morning coffee.  Sally waits patiently for me to fix my cup and go outside with her. 

The globe mallow is blooming on the other side of our fence.

And Saturday delivered much needed rain.

Until next time, 

Sahuarita Trail

Corona de Tucson

April 20, 2022

Last Wednesday, we woke up to rather chilly weather.  

In fact when we went out to feed the birds and put fresh water in the birdbath, the water in the birdbath had a thin layer of ice.

One good thing about being in Tucson is that on the these chilly spring mornings, it usually warms up quickly.  Our plan for the day was to explore a new trail just down the road from our home.  

Sahuarita Trailhead is at the end of Hwy 82  (Sahuarita Road) at the intersection  where we make a right turn onto Arizona Scenic Hwy 83 towards Sonoita.  We noticed the sign and trailhead when we were driving home after the Gabe Zimmerman Trail.  

Just like Davidson Creek and Gabe Zimmerman trails, Sahuarita Trail is also a part of the Arizona National Scenic Trail. The trail can be hiked from either side of Hwy 82.  Randy stopped by to pick us up as the trail is only 6 miles from our driveway.  There is plenty of parking and we only passed a couple of other hikers along the trail.    

We chose to head west towards the Santa Rita Mountains.  

It was an amazing clear blue sky day with cool temps and no wind...perfect !

The fairy dusters were blooming...

  the cacti were blooming...

and the ocotillo were blooming.  

I thought these ocotillo buds were pretty.  I have never noticed them before.

We saw lots of sparrows.

And the bunnies were busy.  After all, it was the week before Easter.

The trail offers enough ups and downs to make it fun.  

And one section had lots of rock outcroppings.

Wednesday night I tripped over Sally. I was checking my phone for the time when I stood up and stepped forward.  In my effort to not hurt Sally, I found myself on the floor.  I bent my big toe back or forward...I'm not really sure which.  It hurt like crazy and started to swell quickly.  Joe made an ice pack, but Thursday morning, I could not put any weight on it.  I hobbled around the house for a couple of days.  Now it's only a little swollen and all shades of blue, gray and yellow.   Talk about a sudden halt to morning walks and just when we were on a good routine.  Oh well, this too shall pass and the quicker the better!  

After sitting at home with a propped up foot, we were getting a little stir crazy.  Randy called to ask if we wanted to go to Tubac on Saturday and we jumped at the chance.  

Tubac is a small community situated on the Santa Cruz River and nestled between the Tumacacori and Santa Rita mountain ranges. 

It might be a small community, but it offers a rich history and an artistic experience.  

Randy joined us for a nice visit and dinner on Easter Sunday. 

I made the recipe Janna shared on one of her recent blog posts...creamy tuscan chicken.  It was amazing Janna and thank you for sharing.  

Back at the oasis, we have two new cacti.  After living in the desert for a year, it was time to have something desert worthy with lots of prickles.  

Our yard is mostly a clean slate and we have not decided on what "the big picture" is so we are taking baby steps and using pots.  At some point, we hope to transplant them.

Trichocereus grandifloras or Torch Cactus

Three fireball barrel cacti

I have never planted cacti before and it does look a  little intimidating.  Jay at Desert Bloom Garden Center gave us lesson 101 and was so helpful.  A pair of gloves is key, but you don't wear them. You hold them in your hand as you shake the cactus out of the "growing pot" so you don't get stuck or break any spines.  

 
  

The puppies are enjoying picnics...  

the Gamble's Quail have discovered the peanut butter bites...

the entertainment comes at no extra charge...

and we still pinch ourselves to make sure this is not a dream !

And that is another week in the memory book already.  Life is good.  

Thank you for the photo Randy!

Until next time,

 HAPPY TRAILS !