Tucson, Arizona, Part 1: December 14 - 17, 2025

Desert Museum Handler and Harris Hawk

Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

We flew to Tucson, Arizona, to celebrate Dan's birthday. We've been to Tucson before but never really explored much of the surrounding area. On this trip we began at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. We went specifically to see the raptor free flight that takes place Friday - Monday at 10:30 am during the winter months. The handlers emphasized that the birds are not captives. They are free to come and go or not come. One of the birds who was expected was a Crested Caracara. The handlers tried to lure it in with special meat treats, but the bird remained at some distance jumping around the cacti. He eventually flew away without coming closer.

Ravens were the first birds to fly in and soar around and over the top of the crowd of people. The ravens were followed by a female Great Horned Owl. The last birds were four very busy Harris Hawks.

From the Raptor Free Flight we strolled around the many trails through cactus gardens and animal enclosures. We saw a couple of napping javelinas and a female big-horn sheep. It was unusually hot (82 ℉/28 ℃) for December even in Tucson. I photographed an amazing crested Saguaro cactus between the parking lot and the museum. The crest may eventually grow to more than six feet wide and become convoluted like a brain. The cause is unknown.

Saguaro grow at elevations ranging from sea level to 4,500 feet. They can grow to be over 40 feet/12 meters high. They can live to exceed 150 years of age and the first side arm appears at about 75 years of age.

At the Gates Pass Scenic Outlook

Biosphere 2

The University of Arizona's Biosphere 2 website states "Space Biospheres Ventures bought the property in 1984 and began construction of the current facility in 1986 to research and develop self-sustaining space-colonization technology. Two missions, between 1991 and 1994, sealed Biospherians inside the glass enclosure to measure survivability. Behind this highly public exercise was useful research that helped further ecological understanding." The University of Arizona assumed ownership of Biosphere 2 in July 2011.

The downloadable tour takes visitors through the buildings, explains some of the issues encountered and how the eight Biospherians survived for 2 years and 20 minutes, and discusses the ongoing scientific experiments. This first mission began September 26, 1991. Some of the history behind the Biospherians and their survival issues (lack of oxygen and not enough food) in Biosphere 2 can be found in this The Guardian news story.

There was a second mission March 6 to September 6, 1994. The crew grew enough food, but management disputes outside Biosphere 2 led to the mass purge of the original Space Biospheres Ventures leadership and the project's handover to a new CEO: Steve Bannon, cutting the mission short. "Yes, that Steve Bannon. Investment banker, future right-wing operator and Donald Trump strategist. As a metaphor for the fate of the planet, it could hardly be more apt." (The Guardian)

Biosphere 1 is our planet earth. The Biosphere 2 tour is very worthwhile. Biosphere 2’s latest mission is researching how life first emerged on Earth – and how to make barren worlds habitable.

Catalina State Park

Leaving Biosphere 2, we stopped at Catalina State Park located very near our friend Sue's home in Oro Valley. We were having dinner with her that evening. At the park we had time to walk a couple of trails (Romero Ruins Interpretive Trail and the Canyon Loop Trail) as the sun got a little lower in the sky.

On Wednesday, Sue went with us to the University of Arizona to visit the Center for Creative Photography. The show was in recognition of the gallery's 50-year anniversary. Ansel Adams co-founded the Center for Creative Photography with then University of Arizona president (and photo enthusiast) John Schaefer in 1975. During an exhibition of Adams' work at Arizona's Museum of Art, Schaefer suggested that Adams entrust the archives of his life's work to the University. Adams said he wasn't interested in having his work stand as an isolated collection but if the University was willing to think in broader terms and include works of many other photographers, he might be interested (May 4, 2025 article in the Arizona Daily Star).

The gallery show "Picture Party: Celebrating the Collection at 50" definitely stayed true to Adams' request. The 80 works of art are arranged as conversational groupings with images in conversation with each other. The gallery was quiet allowing plenty of time to explore the connections and the images. The center holds more than 120,000 works by over 2,200 photographers. It is also the permanent home for archival collections of some 300 masters including Adams.

We strolled around UofA's beautiful campus mall and found the memorial to the USS Arizona and the 1177 crew members who perished on December 7, 1941. One of the ship's two bells is installed in the clock tower.

After returning Sue to her home, Dan and I went to the nearby private garden called Tohono Chul. The gardens were decorated with holiday lights and decorations. My favorite cactus was the unusual Chichipe, a native of Central Mexico, shown below.

Tucson Botanical Garden

We have visited this garden in the past and it is beautiful by day, but there is no comparison to how magical it becomes during the Tucson Botanical Garden LightsUp event. The event begins around Thanksgiving and ends in January. There are over one million twinkling lights adorning trees and garden displays.

Tucson visit continued in Part 2 ...