Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Tucson Day Trip

Prior to attending a conference in Scottsdale, my wife and I arrived in Phoenix 1 day early, rented a car and drove the hour and half to Tucson. I made this decision after reading some posts here (learned how to spell Tucson!), so thought I?d add my two cents worth to the available Tucson information. From Phoenix, the countryside is pretty barren, until about Eloy, where lots of agriculture is apparent. We stopped for lunch just outside Tucson at the Cracker Barrel. (Yeh, yeh, I know. But sometimes a good ole chicken fried steak, biscuits and gravy is good for one?s sole. We don?t have this chain in California, or the Black Eyed Pea, either. Wish we did.)
Our plan was to get to the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum about lunch time, and spend the afternoon. However, our plane was two hours late to Phoenix, so we just took a leisurely drive over Gates Pass Road through the Tucson Mountains. This is a narrow, winding road through some of the prettiest desert landscape we had ever seen. There are lots of turn-outs and parking areas. Many people were taking day hikes and other excursions from the many parking areas. We lingered and tried to find all the cactii in our little book. Due to the time of year (mid-April), there were many blooming plants. Photographers were out in force, many carrying some pretty impressive equipment. I just had my little digital.
Without several hours available for the museum, we drove right past it to our B & B for the night, Casa Tierra. I found it on the internet. http://www.casatierratucson.com/ They want a two night minimum, but I noticed on their availability page what appeared to be one night open on Saturday. I called and lucked out. Seems a large group was moving out Saturday, another moving in on Sunday. So we would be the only guests on Saturday.
The place was terrific and would have been very relaxing for a longer stay. Very quiet and the night sky was awesome. On the west side of the Tucson Mountains, only a couple miles from the Museum, nestled in a veritable cactus garden right out of Sunset Magazine. Complete with cottontail rabbits, road runners, deer, and birds galore, including a rare appearance by the Mexican Cardinal, and cactus flowers blooming. A perfect time of year for our first view of the Sonoran Desert. We were surprised at the plentiful variety of life as opposed to the barren deserts of southeast California and Las Vegas areas.
Dave and Barb were wonderful hosts, and filled us in with lots of local information and several restaurant suggestions. They even helped with the reservations. Later that day another couple arrived. Breakfast Sunday was the most beautiful setting in their dining room overlooking the cactus garden and the valley beyond. We all marveled at the very busy wildlife just outside. The meal was terrific. A French toast with an apple filling and a wonderful cream sauce. Like none other I had ever had. And beautifully presented. My wife was thrilled. Our conversation with the other couple and our hosts was very interesting.
We got to the museum about noon, and did a quick 3 hours before racing off to Phoenix with a sandwich and soda from their lunch counter. http://www.desertmuseum.org This place deserves much more time. Maybe even a couple of days. The aviary was particularly impressive, with the birds busily making nests. I think photographers outnumbered the birds at one time, especially in the humming bird enclosure. And in the reptile and spider room we saw lots of wide eyed kids.
So if you?re in Tucson, be sure to see the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, a ?must see? in our opinion.