Tucson, Saguaro N.P. October 26

Inn-and-Out Burger

  We drove about 450+ miles today, leaving San Diego around 7. We stopped for coffee at a Winchell's as a nod to our memories of Egypt, probably the last time we stopped at a Winchell's.
   It was a day of a huge variety of elevations, from sea level to 4000 feet and spectacular scenery. We went through a pass which was mountains made of huge rocks, no soil, no plants. (We did not take photos as we were driving.) We dropped into the desert flats and passed through the Imperial Valley which is irrigated.

Cactus Wren

   We were close to the border for most of the day and felt great sadness for the way migrants are being treated today and passed through one border checkpoint. The terrain is so inhospitable that it is hard to imagine people being desperate enough to risk the crossing.
    We decided to take the time to go to Saguaro National Park which was probably not too much more than a 20 mile detour, but, of course, longer in time because we had to leave the interstate.
     The park is starkly beautiful. We stopped at the Visitor Center and took a walk through a cactus garden which identified the various cacti. We saw a lovely Cactus Wren which Mark managed to photograph. We went through Gates Pass over the Red Rock Mountains and dropped into Tucson where we are staying at a Ramada. We were too tired to go into town for food, so visited the hot tub for our weary bones and then went to the hotel lobby and had some mediocre food.