Today I began my day with history at the Presidio San Agustin Del Tucson Museum. This is a re-creation of a fort from 1775 reflecting the Spanish influence of the area. This fort showed actual living conditions of the times.

Inside the fort walls a 2400 year old pit was discovered during archaeologic digs. Fascinating to see. Post tour there is more area history available in the museum adjacent to the gift shop .

And across the street from the museum is the Old Town Artisans which features shops and intriguing food venues. Even if not hungry for food or retail the building is a must see. They have music and even a koi pond center stage.

For anyone who is a lover of vintage cars stop by the Franklin Museum. This museum was beyond my every expectation. Luckily, I caught it on the last open day for the season.

A docent who had restored many of the vehicles displayed gave an hour long tour. Franklin’s were an upstate New York company which were in business from 1906 to 1934. They are known for air cooled engines and aluminum bodies. 400,000 were made and 200,000 remain in existence. The docent stated many of the vehicles have required no maintenance except for a valve job. Here are a couple of my favorites.

This is a 1910 touring vehicle with 6300 miles on it. During WW II when metals were being reclaimed for military purposing the owner hid this beauty in his Cazenovia, New York barn under bales of hay.

There are 3 garages of these gems. It is a marvelous collection. Maybe Jay Leno needs to do a show here?.

Finally ready to eat I stopped by Tacos El Tinaco, a taco truck next to the car wash on Navajo and Fort Lowell Road, Tucson. What a tasty fare. Amazing caramelos. Note my smiling chef.

Final stop for the day was the copper mining plant of Asarco Mineral Center in Sahuarita, AZ.

Here I saw how copper is mined from ore and all the items which need copper for construction. Besides wiring, musical instruments, glasses (yes, the eye ones), copper is also in many kitchen related items.

The first step in the process is locating the copper among the ore. Samples from drilling sites are given to geologists who examine these samples and make decisions as to locations to dynamite. Once the area is dynamited gravel is taken to be ground via enormous trucks. After grinding a filtering of the ground particles occur via a water bath to remove the copper and other elements.

The copper is then formed into several hundred pound sheets and sold to vendors for use in their products.

Now I was wondering what happens to the land around the pit? The good news is it is reclaimed and planted over to make a more aesthetic area.

Stay tuned..

Do you recall the spelling of desert and dessert? I was taught there is one “s” in desert since you only want one, however, for the Sonoran Desert there truly is only one.

Driving to Old Tucson, (Wild West), was a feat on Gate Pass, a road filled with curves and dips. The draw of the scenery while driving was mesmerizing. Stop frequently, take pictures at the pull offs, and breathe in the beauty as bicyclists abound on this road.

Old Tucson was a familiar site having been a “town” for over 400 movies, television shows, and music venues. It remains active and a recent episode of Chops is one of their latest additions.

High Chaparral was filmed here as was several episodes of Bonanza, Gunsmoke, and some John Wayne movies. Three Amigos with Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Chevy Chase were also filmed here. They ran 300% over budget with their antics, but one can understand with that cast.

Movie star dynamos from Shelley Winters to Liz Taylor, to Michael Landon to 50’s teen idol Ricky Nelson shot here. Recently, Angie Dickinson, now 87, an alum from 50 plus years ago revisited the town.

There is much to see and do throughout the day with gunfights, live music venues, stage coach and train rides. Don’t miss the videos and live explanations of the saloons, mercantile stores, and sheriff law. My favorite was the stunt man show. Be camera ready for excitement at the show’s end. Surprise! Surprise! It’s Hollywood…………

Put this spot on your calendar as the venue is open Friday, Saturday and Sunday. All ages would enjoy. There were many seniors in rolling walkers reliving their memories. The site is flat and has several places with air conditioning for reprieve.

The Desert Museum is a neighbor to Old Tucson on Kinney Road. Here lives the animals of the desert, mountain lions, lizards, snakes, along with butterflies and hummingbirds. Many of the animals are rescued and retired which was wonderful to see recycling in action. Walk through the replica cave with its mineral exhibit and visit the aquarium.

There are many docents who give free tours, guidance and work with the children. From one of the docents I learned the saguaro flowers at certain times of the year. Their flower provides nectar for birds and these flowers have a hard rim for the bird to perch on as they take in the flower’s nectar. The wonders of nature!

The children seemed to enjoy the butterfly exhibit and had many questions regarding beekeeping. I enjoyed walking the Labyrinth, a meditative walk of concentric circles with a bench to rest at the end of the walk. The museum grounds have many cool spots to sit and rest.

The site opens at 7:30 am and has special evening events and talks. Check their site for specifics, http://www.desertmuseum.org.

For those who wish to see more of the desert, Saguaro National Park, is a short jaunt from this Museum.

Tomorrow will continue with some history, old cars and copper mining. Stay tuned.