TUBAC ARIZONA. USA........GOING TO

Off to the Arts and Crafts colony (and not to mention a room for the night) of Tubac, Arizona. With my bike rack reaching suggested carrying weight, hope I don’t see a Chimenea we like!

Great camp.

The best part of waking up,

is................

 

AMADO, ARIZONA. USA..........

AMADO, ARIZONA. USA

Almost since we left Tucson, Arizona we’ve be gradually climbing.( the kind you don’t notice driving a car but once on a bike the mole hill becomes a………………) Here we again will climb coming out of Arivaca but before not long it’s payback baby. Cashing in our vertical chips for a nice thirty-five kilometre decent into Amado, Arizona. Upon landing we`ll find a nice quiet little community park right beside the school. We know it’s going to be quiet with Christmas break commencing, what kid in his or her right mind is going to anywhere near a school when they don’t have to.

Bike story exchange.

"How much is that Armadillo in the window?"

With our target destinations primarily determined by the availability of services, our needs and reasonable desires, we've been averaging fifty kilometres a day.

Today we will bang off seventy-five K`s thanks to going down the right road.

Border control.

Closed be it.

Día perfecto! 

Buenas noches

 

AIRIVCA, ARIZONA. USA.....CYCLING THROUGH. DECEMBER 18. 2022

Hard to have found a nicer stay to capture the true spirit of the American Southwest.

"Hey Dude, Where's My Bike" 

Today we will saddle up and start some high plains drifting.

We will start by heading to Arivaca, Arizona.

"the road is long with a many a winding turns"...

......wait a minute?

Turn right!

Arivaca refuel and re supply.

Hot, hot, hot!

 

RANCHO DE LA OSA, SASABE., ARIZONA. USA. DECEMBER 17, 2022

RANCHO DE LA OSA; DECEMBER 17, 2022

It not necessarily being our first choice but our only choice, tonight we will stay at the historic Rancho de la Osa. In our time on the road we’ve stayed at too many overnight properties to remember but few with as much history as here. 

The original ranch in the 1700`s was home to one of the largest cattle herds in the USA that roamed on acreage equal to the size of Canada's smallest province. 

Serving as an “Dude” guest ranch (still working cattle today) since the 1920`s, it's hosted the most famous of famous Presidents and First Ladies, served as home and movie set for some of the most famous Western movies and their stars, our villa was appropriately named after Pancho Villa who during the Mexican Revolution in the early 1900`s stormed the property( a cannonball is still embedded in the Hacienda), the Cantina that we had beverages in before supper is the oldest continuously occupied building in ALL of Arizona (get the &锧 out), the “Marshall Plan” the WWII post war European recovery plan was penned here, …..talking about penned here, Margaret Mitchell wrote portions of “Gone with the Wind” while hanging out “Dude” style. The lore is endless.  I guess with over three hundred years of roping and ranching , there’d be a few stories. 

When we leave will have one of our own. We had the pleasure at the family style supper service to exchange stories with renown wildlife documentarist Chris Morgan and his partner. We could “Bearly” stop exchanging adventures.

If you might be wondering, considering the age of the property, the bed linens were not original. ( I think they were Egyptian….)

Where Pancho be at?

As discreetly as possible, after a couple of nights of frosty camping were letting it all hang out.

The historic cantina.

Better not dolly after the ringing of the dinner bell or........

Check out Chris and his work.

Click

 

SASABE, ARIZONA; USA

It’s always a little more fun breaking camp and rolling out, especially after two nights, when we know we have a room booked for the night. 

But first we’re heading to one edge of the USA and into Sasabe, Arizona. 

For the past two days we have the pretty much the road to ourselves and what seems like an endless parade of Border Patrol vehicles. The twenty or so vehicles with accompanying agents might make up for the whole population of the town. 

The locals we’ve talked to seem to disagree whether the town is home to nineteen or twenty three souls.(there not sure about Russell?) Perhaps the later today, as the only business in town is the local mercantile store and for those souls and for us it’s a big day. The cantina is open(maximum capacity…nineteen or twenty-three, all depends who you….) for it’s weekly afternoon and more so for us, they are serving burritos for lunch. 

No better place for this Mexican staple as we’re right on the border in full view of the “Wall”, and I’m not talking about “The Wall”, the eleventh studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released on 30 November 1979. The rock opera that explores Pink, a jaded rock star whose eventual self-imposed isolation from society forms a figurative wall. 

Going...flat.....out.

Burrito with gas.

How convenient.

Simplifies things.

USA/Mexico border.

Not here or today, but we do plan a quick visit up down the road.

I need to add to my list of countries visited. I've seen Mexico a number of times but the time is near.

"Hey, teacher, leave us kids alone

All in all, you're just another steel I beam in the wall

All in all, you're just another steel I beam in the wall"

Passing through downtown Sasabe, Arizona on out way to a night on the rancho.