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I had only been in Tucson for 24 hours when my buddy Joel suggested we visit the Arizona
Sonora Desert Museum west of town in Saguaro National Park. It was well worth the visit! |
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The museum and grounds are situated west of the Tucson Mountains amidst beautiful desert lush with desert plants! :) |
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Joel (left) is a "regular" on the Cactus Lovers Forum
and generously showed me all around this great city of Tucson. It is so warm out here! :) In the right photo, I got a nice shot of myself next
to a big ol' prickly pear with saguaros and mountains in the background. |
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The museum gives a lot of information about the sonora desert, which encompasses much of southern Arizona, and here are some unique cacti on their grounds...
TOP: Creeping Devil
MIDDLE LEFT: Joshua Tree
MIDDLE RIGHT: Not sure what that is.
BOTTOM: Organ Pipe Cactus |
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I was mainly interested in viewing the cacti and taking in the Arizona sun, but they did have quite an array of creatures
that live in the desert, including snakes (top left), javelinas (top right), falcons (bottom left) and hummingbirds (right). |
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A photo of myself with a golden barrel cactus. At the park, it was in the lower 70's, in stark
contrast to the windy and cloudy 30-degree weather in Buena Vista, Colorado that afternoon. ;) |
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For some reason, I felt compelled to pet the
pincushion cactus, and yes,
unlike most people who fake it, I really did touch and pet it. I don't mess around! :p)
I also invite you to visit my Kiss a Cactus page! :) |
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Ahhhhh, but the "star" of the Arizona desert is clearly the saguaro. Here are a few assorted photos;
The top right is the parking lot of the museum.
Here are a few pages of the Tucson, Arizona area that were created by Joel on Grand Arizona and Cactus Lovers:
Joel's Walk in the Arizona Desert
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument
Water Issues in Arizona
Tucson Desert Scenery
Adventure in Sasabe, Arizona |
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One photos of Golden Gate Mountain, which stands at 4,200+ feet at the summit and sits
west of Tucson in the Tucson Mountains. I attempted to hike it recently but turned back about 50% of the way there
when the trail "disintegrated" on the hillside. No worries ... I plan to return! :) |
