An Arizona vacation in the summer might sound a little crazy, but don’t rule it out!
This past June with Temperatures hovering around 116 degrees, I took my suitcase and my daughter Kate for a short vacation to Phoenix and Tucson. It was my birthday and I had promised myself a little get-a-way. My good friend Kim has a house north of Phoenix. She and her family were out of town and she had offered it as a quiet sanctuary. of course, nothing is quite as quiet as you might like when you have a five year old with you, but it was wonderful none-the-less.
Kate and I flew into Phoenix and picked up our rental car – upgraded because they have plenty sitting around when it is hot enough outside to melt the rubber off the tires. We headed North of Phoenix to Cave Creek and settled ourselves at Kim’s house. Then, we got into the pool, darting across the sizzling deck, and stayed cool while admiring the desert all around us. Kim’s house is beautifully situated off the beaten path. The back of her house overlooks a wide desert landscape dotted with cactus and active with wildlife. A hawk perched on a fence post monitored our swim, and a family of quail paraded around the edge of the hot tub. After dinner at a quaint Mexican restaurant in the little old west town of Cave Creek, we climbed to Kim’s roof deck and watched a dazzling sunset over the hills. As soon as the sun disappeared over the horizon the temperatures dropped and the night air felt soothing.
Looking ahead to the next day, I was tempted to plan a busy schedule of climate-controlled museum hopping, but I didn’t want to drive around and hide in the air conditioning just because it was summer. So instead I decided to get up early and make the best of the cool desert morning.
We were up bright and early to watch a brilliant desert sunrise. There is something so special about the way the desert smells in the morning, earthy and clean at the same time. Then we packed lots of water and a light breakfast, and headed to Cave Creek Regional Park for an early morning hike. Boasting nearly 3,000 acres of pristine desert, this park is a fabulous place to get back to nature. It opens at 6 am, leaving plenty of time for a walk through the desert before the heat sets in. We saw lots of wildlife, and my daughter had her picture taken in front of her “favorite” saguaro. We even found a little kids park with a scorpion shaped slide.
As the temperatures started to climb we headed into the air conditioning at the nature center. a friendly docent took us around to see a number of displays including live snakes, scorpions, and tarantulas (not my favorite desert critters, but much more appealing behind glass). By mid-day we had earned lunch, a siesta, and some more pool time. We watched another fantastic sunset while eating dinner on the roof deck and felt thoroughly recharged for the next phase of our short adventure.
Early the next morning, with the desert just waking up around us, we headed South to Tucson. For many years growing up I lived in the foothills of of this charming town and it always feels a bit like going home when I go back. Tucson has grown a lot since I lived there more than 25 years ago, but it has retained it’s western small-town ambiance. After a quick detour past my childhood house, Kate and I met up with Carole, an old friend of mine, for a quick lunch where our kids had a chance to get to know each other.
Carole had graciously invited us to stay at her house, but it was my birthday and I had decided to do something special. In the many years that I have made trips back to Tucson I have always wanted to stay at one of the fabulous resorts in the area, but at peak travel times they have been beyond my budget. However, at the end of June, smack in the middle of an incredibly hot summer, even I could afford one of these five star options. I chose Loews Ventana Canyon and moved into my luxuriously appointed room with pool and canyon views.
Our first stop was, of course, to the pool. Even in the middle of the day it was perfectly comfortable to sit poolside under an umbrella and watch my daughter swim. The hotel provides towels, water infused with lemon or cucumber, and even pool toys for the kids. An attendant circulates adjusting umbrellas, and waiters from the restaurant bring poolside snacks. Beyond the pool the canyon cliffs rise up and waterfalls pour down, it feels amazingly tranquil.
Though we could have stayed at the pool for the entire evening, we tore ourselves away to meet my friend and her family for dinner and a trip to a little ghost-town kids park complete with a train ride through a “mine”. On the way back to our resort my daughter fell asleep, but I had a chance to appreciate how the lack of light pollution allows you to see millions of stars invisible in most cities. Because of the proximity of Kitt Peak National observatory all of the street lights in Tucson are dim and both the stars and the city lights from the valley seem to glitter all the brighter. High in the foothills perched above the valley, Ventana Canyon is a perfect place to admire both the city and the stars. After putting my daughter to bed I sat on my balcony and listened to the sounds of the desert. The Sonoran Desert is truly a living desert and there is a lot going on day and night. Some of it is pretty creepy crawly, but most is not.
We had to head back to Phoenix the next day to catch our plane home, but we still had plenty of time to hike into Ventana Canyon. The paths are perfectly maintained and there are signs explaining all about the flora, fauna, and the stunning waterfall. We finished our walk and had breakfast poolside, and we did all of this long before it was too hot to enjoy it.
Before leaving the resort I picked up information about all of the great adult and kid activities that they offer year round. I am already planning a trip next year for more than one night! I can imagine mornings filled with hikes and leisurely afternoons relaxing, and dare to dream, reading a book while my daughter attends an afternoon kids camp. And while I will be tempted never to leave the resort, I will make time to take time to take Kate to the Desert Museum and up to the top of pined tree studded Mt. Lemon. I will also take Kate back to Phoenix for a “drift” down the Salt River.
We had a great few days in Arizona, even in June.