TRAVEL AND PHOTOGRAPHY

Under The Tucson Sun

Visiting the Cactus City in the Grand Canyon State

You are probably wondering what I am calling the Cactus City, but it’s not the one you may have Googled. This is entirely a work of my own doing — nicknaming a city in which the cactus is king, and I take full responsibility. Okay, now that’s settled, let’s continue.

Arizona in the USA is perhaps one of those states that don’t need an introduction because it is the land of the Grand Canyon — one of the natural wonders of the world.

The last time I went to Arizona was in 2007 with my family. We went to Phoenix, Arizona’s capital city, and then visited the Grand Canyon and Sedona.

Around the Christmas holidays, a dear friend I hadn’t seen in 15 years called me and invited me to visit her and her kids in Tucson, Arizona. The Seattle rain had been nonstop as usual and was starting to weigh me down. So, I accepted her invitation and went to indulge my sun-deprived skin.

It was my first time in that city, and I expected to look just like Phoenix or have the same landscape as what I had seen in the Grand Canyon. But what I saw was a completely different landscape.

While the Grand Canyon’s red rocks are the most impressive, Tucson’s cactus vegetation is an ecosystem of its own. I have never seen so many cactus trees anywhere else.

At first glance, Tucson looked bare and it seemed like there wasn’t much to discover. For me, I think it comes from the fact that when I visit a city, I expect high-rise buildings and skyscrapers. But none of that can be found in Tucson, even in downtown. So, I had to fight the urge to go to Phoenix just because there was no high rise in Tucson.

I settled for nature exploration and it didn’t disappoint. It was just a different experience than what I normally do on my solo travels, where I usually discover the major city centers and surroundings first, before moving to nature exploration.

Saguaro National Park

On the second day of my visit, my friend and her kids took me to Saguaro National Park — a desert landscape with cacti to no end. I learned that the average cactus can grow up to 45 feet tall, and there was even a record of 78 feet tall in 1986, but the cactus fell because it couldn’t sustain the height. They grow slowly and it can take more than 50 years to grow their first branch, also called an arm. After 100 years, they have a few arms and are extremely tall.

On our way home, we visited a few other parks and walked around her neighborhood. I was a little anxious that we might meet rattlesnakes because my friend’s neighbor had warned us that they may come out for a little bit of warmth. Thank God we didn’t see any.

Kartchner Caverns State Park

On the third day, we went to Kartchner Caverns State Park — in the city of Benson, 45 miles from Tucson, and we took a tour to visit the caves. It’s half of a mile-long tour and takes one hour to visit the underground. We learned that the Kartchner Cavern was discovered in 1974.

Before taking us on the tour, the guide, Mr. Mike, a seventy-something-year-old started by giving us a short lecture on the dos and don’ts while in the caves. Things like: no touching anything and no picture-taking while in the caves, and also, we were not allowed to bring our cell phones — which is why I don’t have any photos of the caves.

He then counted to see how many were on his tour — it was only 10 of us. As he counted, our eyes met. I was the only black person in the group and I think he sensed what I was thinking. He turned to me and asked me:

“Have you ever been underground?”

I said: “No sir. I try to avoid going in there.”

I wanted to add: Ever since Harriett Tubman’s Underground Railroad. He laughed and so did the people on the tour. They got the joke!

It was amazing learning about the underground formations, the geological compositions of the caves, and the inhabitants that call it home during the summer months — aka bats. In the summer, the caves house mama bats that come to have their babies there and then migrate to hibernate in caves located in the mountains of southeastern Arizona, from mid-autumn to the end of winter.

Mr. Mike also told us that the caves were discovered by two cave explorers named Gary Tenen and Randy Tufts, in Tucson in 1974. But they didn’t want anyone to know until they had secured the caves and it took 14 years before they opened it to the public.

I thought it would feel claustrophobic since this was my first time visiting a cave, but once you get used to the humidity, it’s pretty comfortable and easy to walk through.

Papago Park

On the fourth day, on the way to Phoenix, we stopped at Papago Park — also known as Hole in the Rock which is a park that belongs to the cities of Phoenix and Tempe.

Papago Park is located not far from the Phoenix Zoo and is known for its rock formations. It’s a place where people can enjoy trail hiking and running, or simply walking while enjoying the view. We only stopped at the Hole in the Rock and took a few pictures before continuing our drive to Phoenix for an early Christmas celebration.

San Xavier del Bac Mission

On my last day in Tucson, before heading to the airport, my friend and I visited the San Xavier del Bac Mission — a roman catholic church located 10 miles south of downtown Tucson. It is a historic Spanish Catholic mission on the grounds of the Tohono O’odham Nation Reservation. It caters to mostly the native Americans who live on the reservation.

We sat down in the beautiful breezy weather and just took it all in. We met some locals including three stray dogs wandering around the reservation. They took a good look at us and decided not to disturb our bliss and just continued their journey.

One of the local inhabitants came closer to where we were sitting, perhaps hoping for feeding but we didn’t have any food for this roadrunner.

It was the perfect day weather-wise. Not too hot and not cold — about 77 degrees Fahrenheit, just the way I like it. I didn’t want to leave, knowing how much rain and cloudy skies were waiting for me in Seattle. But even good things must come to an end, and we can’t always stay in the sun.

And as much as I don’t like the cloudy and rainy Seattle weather, I would not enjoy living all year long in places like Phoenix or Tucson where summers can reach 120 degrees Fahrenheit. I would rather visit only in the winter like a snowbird.

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