Towards the end of April, catching up with a friend in Bisbee kept me busy with quite a bit of chatting, eating out, and a tour of the Copper Queen Mine. Many will know the streets of Bisbee can be steep and narrow but I lucked out and camped in front of my friends house at very little slant.
After the second day visiting Tumacácori National Historic Park I continued east towards Bisbee with a Walmart night in Sierra Vista along the way. The next day, not far down the road, I saw a brown sign for Coronado National Memorial and the visitor center was only five paved miles off SR92. So why not, I had a little time. Unfortunately, not really enough time to explore scenic roads or trails.
This site commemorates the Coronado expedition and cultural conflict and exchange between indigenous peoples and Spaniards during the 1500s. I perused the visitor center displays and was overwhelmed by the weight of the chain-mail soldiers had to wear.
Picked up my Junior Ranger book, but no badge because I wasn’t there long enough. However I did buy a hat pin and sticker.
Once I got to Bisbee and parked on a few leveling boards we went to lunch at the Bisbee Breakfast Club and walked around one of the many historic districts admiring the classic cars, trucks, and even a converted Greyhound bus.
Saturday morning we went to a local Farmers’ Market with lots of good produce and hand-crafted products to look at. In the afternoon we took a tour of the Copper Queen Mine in Bisbee.
We road a mine car on tracks 1500 feet into the mountain and got off it a couple times for short walks and talks. Tough place to take photos and only took the phone.
Guess what that is
Our guide was a retired miner, very informative, and lots of stories. Tour was a little over an hour.
Then to the gift shop where I got another hatpin and sticker.
We had dinner downtown at Bisbee Table after finally finding parking and a 45-minute wait for seating that was entirely worth it just to eat the truffle fries. The walk around town while waiting proved entertaining as it was Alice in Bisbeeland night and many people were dressed up for the occasion. If I’d known, would have worn my madhatter hat.
Sunday we stayed home and talked away the day then enjoyed dinner at the neighbors. Bisbee has a great vibe and seems full of interesting people.
Mural can be covered for the easily offended
Back to work after the weekend and I finished a video driving historic US80 between Tacna and Yuma, Arizona, also known as the Mother of Arizona Highways. Plus I posted the blog post about my hot Easter weekend in the Sonoran Desert. Yes, I am far behind from real time.
Said a sad goodbye Wednesday morning and bought a few groceries before heading east and northeast across Springs Valley towards the Chiricahua Mountains and my next destination.
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Still planning summer road trip northward. Who lives in southwestern Utah, southern or western Nevada, or northeastern California? Tentative route: Utah SR18 N, SR56 W; Nevada SR319 W, SR93 S, SR375 W, US6 W; California US395 N. Short side trips considered.