A day of rest, then...saguaros!

I spent yesterday reminiscing about the previous night's final Five for Fighting concert of the tour...and the other three shows I attended, too. I will not soon forget the good times! As I left Thousand Oaks and headed east, Sunday traffic was much more manageable than what I had experienced for the past couple of days. It was smooth sailing to Indio, where I made a brief stop for lunch and picked up some dates from Shields Date Garden. The hot temps continued when I crossed over into Arizona. It was the low 90s when I arrived in Yuma. I had planned to visit the Yuma Territorial Prison State Historic Park, but confusion over Mountain Time and general weariness nixed that. I had assumed it was an hour later, which would not have given me much time to visit the park properly. But, after deciding to call it a day and check into my hotel early, I found out from the desk clerk that Arizona doesn't adhere to Daylight Savings Time. So, I was still technically on Pacific Time.  But, after so much driving for the past few days and not enough sleep, I needed a rest.

When I left Yuma this morning, I continued driving east and a couple hours later arrived at Painted Rock Petroglyph Site near Gila Bend, AZ. This site preserves the petroglyphs created by the ancient ancestors of the Yavapai people. The pile of rocks are located somewhat in the middle of nowhere, but it was well worth the drive off the interstate.

I was experimenting with my camera settings and decided to try out Expressive in the above photo. Hmm...it sure seems to give those rocks some personality! As I walked on the the loop trail, I spotted a pretty barrel cactus and an equally pretty lizard.

After my little walk, I ate my lunch at a shaded picnic table, then continued my drive all the way to Tucson. Initially, I was afraid it might be too hot to visit Saguaro National Park. But, once there, I realized the high 80s was not too bad at all. I picked up a map at the visitor center and some info on a couple of good short trails. I was actually at the western Tucson Mountain District of the park...the eastern section is the Rincon Mountain District. I drove along a gravel/dirt road to the Valley View Trail. Once out of my car and walking among the saguaros, I forgot all about the heat. The landscape was breathtaking!

I also did another short hike on the Signal Hill Trail, which features more cactus views and petroglyphs. And, I did see a couple more lizards! Sadly, no gila monster.

 

Tomorrow, I'll be starting my day with a museum visit in Tucson, then head north to (hopefully) cooler temps and a cultural site. I'm in the homestretch and will be slowly making my way back to Washington. It seems like so long ago that my road trip started. I'm really, REALLY missing my cat!