Saguaro National Park

Yesterday we went to Saguaro National Park West.  “The park gets it’s name from the saguaro, a large cactus, native to the Sonoran Desert that doesn’t grow naturally elsewhere.  The earliest known residents of the land were the Hohokam, who lived there in villages between 200 and 1450 AD.  Petroglyphs and broken pottery are among the Hohokam artifacts found in the park. 

Spanish explorers first entered Arizona in 1539-1540.  Non-native settlement of the region didn’t occur until 1692 with the founding of San Xavier Mission along the Santa Cruz River, which flowed through Tucson.  In 1775, the Spaniards built Presidio San Agustin del Tucson, a military fort in what was then part of New Spain.  The lands that became Saguaro National Park remained relatively free of development until the mid-19th century, after Arizona became part of the United States.  President Hoover created Saguaro National Monument in 1933 and President Kennedy added land in 1961.  Today, Saguaro National Park covers 92,000 acres, and has two sections, one on either side of the City of Tucson.”

We hiked to Signal Peak, with over 200 petroglyphs, created 550 to 1550 years ago.  The saguaros and surrounding mountains are extraordinarily beautiful.  Taylor earned another Junior Ranger Badge!

Our French House

On Thursday of last week, we closed on our French house in Lectoure.  From early October to January 6, it was quite a journey.  I’ve bought and sold lots of houses in the US over the past 40 years, but this transaction was quite different, on multiple fronts.  

The most challenging item was to secure a French bank account.  Next up, we’ll have to figure out how to use it!  Utility bills must be paid from a French account.  We were fortunate to find an English speaking French banker in Paris.  He was helpful in getting the account set up, but the process took about six weeks.  The French are not in such a hurry as Americans.  

We are planning to go back to France in early April.  Our new friends, Jean and Don, are getting renovation bids for us, and we hope work will be begin soon after we arrive or maybe before.  We have been asked by numerous people in France and back in the States, why we bought a house in France.  We have had many adventures over the past 41 years.  We married in Tucson and moved to Dallas 1.5 years later for a career opportunity for Papa.  Ten years on, we moved to Sarasota in 1992, enjoying the city and living on the water.  In 2003, we moved to Winchester Ranch, and spent an amazing 13+ years in our beautiful setting on a working cattle ranch.  In 2023, we’re ready for a new adventure!  

At 64 and 75, this may be our last “big adventure,” and we’ll give it all we’ve got!  We’re taking French, applying for a long stay visa, getting copies of our medical and dental records for our French doctor and dentist, reading through bids for renovation work, making lists of furniture and other items to outfit the house, redesigning the garden, and so much more.  We’re learning every day!  For us, learning is key and we never want to stop!

Cocoraque Butte

We took a picnic lunch and spent the afternoon at Cocoraque Butte in Ironwood Forest National Monument.  We had it to ourselves, as we were the only visitors.  Lauren and Taylor took wooden mallets to play the “singing rocks.”  We searched for petroglyphs and broken pottery.  It’s a fascinating place.  “The petroglyphs on Cocoraque Butte include a variety of images - geometric shapes, abstract forms, insects, animals, plants, and human figues.  The petroglyphs span a long period of time, as much as two thousand years or more.  The earliest petroglyphs, date to the Archaic Period, two to three thousand years ago.  They are followed by a profusion of petroglyphs from the Hohokam period, AD 450 to 1450.  Hohokam petroglyphs are often found near water holes and along trails, and the O’odham consider them to be sacred representations of spiritual presence embedded in the terrain.”

Tumacacori

We visited Mission San Jose de Tumacacori, “built in the 1750’s to replace the older Mission San Cayetano de Tumacacori - the first mission in southern Arizona.  The original mission was established by Jesuit Eusebio Francisco Kino and his party in 1691.  The Jesuits established the Mission on the Santa Cruz River, in the territory of the O’odham people.  

In 1751, a Spanish military presidio was established nearby.  In 1767, for political reasons, King Charles III of Spain banished the Jesuits from all Spanish territories, so the Franciscans took over missionary efforts.  In 1800, Fray Narciso Guitierrez began constructing a larger church to replace the modest Jesuit structure at Tumacacori.  In 1828, a Mexican decree forced all Spanish-born residents to leave the country, including Tumacacori’s last resident priest.  The new church was unfinished.  It was abandoned and in disrepair by 1848.  With the Gadsden Purchase in 1854, the mission and surrounding Arizona Territory became part of the United States.  In 1908, Theodore Roosevelt declared the site Tumacacori National Monument, and restoration efforts began.”

We followed the self guided tour of the Tumacacori Historic Site, hiking through an orchard, down to the Santa Cruz River.  Taylor earned her fourth National Park Junior Ranger Badge.  

Big Hike

Papa drove us to the top of Campbell Road and we hiked down Campbell Trail into the canyon, then up the mountain.  The record rains of 2021 has left waist high grasses on the mountain, so we had to watch every step.  The grasses cover cacti and rocks.  We hiked about 3.5 miles on a beautiful day.  We all had a good time!

New Year’s Eve Rainbow

Just as the sun was setting on New Year’s Eve, after a rainy afternoon, our friend Ruth texted that there was a rainbow against the mountains.  We ran out to see it, faint, but we saw it, and enjoyed the light of the last sunset of 2021.  This morning my friend, Ornella, sent this photo taken from their yard.  New Year’s Eve 2021 Rainbow was extraordinary!

Happy New Year!

Newton, our next door neighbor, came over two nights ago and took photos of our family, gathered for a few days in Tucson.  Brian joined us as did Audrey’s family.  Thank you, Newton, for the photos!

We are hopeful for a healthier year for the world in 2022!  Happy New Year!