Finishing up Southern Arizona

The next morning after brakfast burritos, Richard and I got on the road again. First stop, Fairbanks, a ghost town with an interesting old cemetery. We continued down the road to Tombstone. We walked down the historic street and took in the sights, but didnt actually do anything bc it all cost money. Well except for getting my photo with some cowboys (short cowboys) - that was free.

We took a dirt road over the Dragoon Mountains and I admired the scenery - mostly short scrubby bushes and yellow blonde grasses. Richard told me that the grasses are blonde year round - how do they photosynthesize?

Our destination for the day was Chiricahua (chur-i-cow-wa) National Monument for some interesting rock formations and a seven and half mile hike to see the most spectacular ones. It is hard to describe them without a picture, but they are basically rock stacks and boulders that are quite tall. Most of the hike was through cool canyons and tall trees - some parts with ice and snow. On the way back Richard sat on his frisbee and slid down the really icy parts. :) The best part was the Heart of Rocks Loop that had us in and out, over and under, and up and through the rock formations. More than once we were not completely sure we were on the trail, but we didnt get too lost. We finished up as the sun was setting and got on the road to Bisbee.

We met Zoe and John in Bisbee for dinner and conversation. Zoe reminds me a lot of myself with the way she talks and joins one seemingly unrelated topic to another. We could talk for hours (with Coley and Peter still wouldn't get it). After dinner, Richard went home and I stayed the night. Zoe went to bed and I ended up chatting with John for at least an hour though I kept saying I was going to go take shower. These are definitly people I wish I could spend more time with.

John woke me up in the morning and we watched the birds at the feeders while drinking coffee before he had to go to work. I set off for downtown Bisbee to walk the streets before Richard came in to join me for the mine tour. Bisbee is built in a mountain valley so the town goes up in all directions on narrow, windy, steep streets that everyone assures me are two-directional. A lot of the houses are really interesting as far as architecture and why would you build a house there? And a lot fo them are fairly old.

I met Richard and we took a peek at the Lavender Pit Mine that apparently closed more than thirty years ago that is still a big hole in the ground. I wondered why it hadnt been filled in and restored adn Richard told me he thought it was bc it was a tourist attraction.

The Queen Mine in Bisbee is a horizontal mine shaft used for mining copper and a few other minerals and ores including lead, silver, gold, turqouise, and malachite. Taking the tour is hilarious bc you put on hardhats, raincoats, and flashlights and then ride a train into the mine. Sonny, our guide, was 74, hilarious, and used to work in a nearby copper mine for 21 years. He explained all aspects of tunnel mining for copper as well as keeping us entertained.

Richard and I went to the historical museum and learned more about the history of Bisbee and all kinds of mining and minerals found in the area. I stopped by Gloria's to get mom some copper beads and then we were on the road to Sierra Vista. On the way, Richard showed me some local points of interest like huge hilly streets and where he grew up - on a hill - with a hill address, not a street address.