Saguaro Nat Park & Monastery in the Desert/ Tucson

Thursday, January 21

34 degrees at 7:30 this morning, with a nice sunrise.  We made coffee and then headed a bit north to Saguaro National Park, with a few stops along the way for photos.  The Saguaro are thick here, in “forests”, along with many other types of cacti.

We arrive at the visitor’s center to find that it isn’t open yet, so we drive to the Bajada Loop, a several mile long dirt road through the saguaro desert.  We stop here and there for a ramble, and take some photos while the morning light is still warm.

We catch a few birds atop cacti and later find out that they are the Gilded Flicker (somewhat rare, we are told) and the Gila Woodpecker (brown headed female, brown with red spot male).   The woodpecker is prolific and responsible for many of the holes in the cactus, where they nest and lay eggs, then abandon to other animals like the elf owl. 

We go back to visitor’s center to check in – though the fee is waived with our pass, they still like to have a record of the numbers of visitors for funding purposes, so we try to sign in everywhere.  Chat with the rangers, then retreat to the Trek for breakfast before heading out.  The winding, undulating road continues till we reach I-10 north, toward Phoenix. 

 We have read about a Monastery in the desert near Florence, so we head there first as they only allow visitors between 10:00 and 2:30.  We are surprised that there are many cars already there and a lady in the gift shop confirms that they are the 3^rd most visited site in Arizona in the Winter.   It is a Greek Orthodox Monastery with about 40 monks in residence.  Visitors must meet their dress code – long trousers and long sleeved shirts for the men and long skirts, long sleeves and headcoverings for the women.  They graciously provide clothing for those who need it, so I pull on a long skirt and add a head scarf.

 

There are quite a few Orthodox folks among the visitors, and they and the monks are dressed in black.  A few monks greet  folks and answer questions,  and we see few others.

The grounds are gorgeous, with immaculate landscaping, citrus and olive groves.  And several impressive chapels filled with icons and elaborate lighting.  The outside of the buildings have intricate detail and nicely designed tile roofs, bell towers, arches, etc.  

At the exit there are two large bins of oranges and lemons with a sign saying, “monastery blessings, help yourself”.  They offered cookies and other goodies for sampling as well, and had other items for sale.  We couldn’t pass up the Baklava! Most of the signs are in Greek and English and many of the people were speaking Greek.

The main church, iconic white with blue dome, is about a mile away, atop a hill.

Just a few miles away is Casa Grande National Monument, showcasing ruins from around 1300.  The major ruin is the “Great House” which was 4 stories high.  The remnants are under a protective covering now and there are obvious signs of re-enforcement and support work to keep it all from tumbling down.  It was the first archeological find to be protected by the government (1896).

We sit under a ramada, shaded area, and listen to a ranger who tells us about life back then.  There actually was quite a bit of farming and the Gila and Salt Rivers provided irrigation in an impressive network of canals.  Many of the southwest Indians used this method which, of course, they lost when the Rivers were dammed and settlers took water for cattle and ranching.

We spend the night at a nearby Walmart in the small town of Coolidge, along with quite a few others.  The Walmarts in Tucson and Phoenix generally do not allow overnights.