Our campsite in McDowell Nature Preserve is beautifully situated. Very quiet. We had a mini-reunion with Roselie’s brother Carmine and his wife Rosemarie, who drove in from Southern California, and my cousin Jules, who lives in the Fountain Hills area adjacent to the preserve. Jules has worked and lived throughout the world, but decided that the weather and culture of Phoenix was the best fit – that was 16 years ago. Demographically, Phoenix is 45% white and 45% Hispanic. Fountain Hills is predominately white, upper middle class. The area includes several Indian reservations with casinos that provide an annual allotment to each tribal family. It is better described as a commingling rather than a melting pot. With our limited time here it is hard to say whether Fountain Hills is representative of the greater Phoenix area.
Our campsite in McDowell Preserve
Desert in full color.
The following morning, we set out for Tucson, which will be our ‘home’ for the next few days. My brother Marcel and his wife Sandi joined us for the rest of this trip. Since Phoenix and Tucson are only about 50 miles apart, the traffic on the main connecting artery is very congested. Each city is ‘growing’ in the direction of the other, with development along most of the corridor. We noticed several strip malls and housing developments shut down or abandoned part way through construction. The 2008-10 recession hit the Phoenix-Tucson economy hard. They are just now coming back to the pre-recession employment level. Despite this economic hardship, they have continued to invest in infrastructure – roads and irrigation canals. The highway overpasses and exchanges are striking in their decoration and landscaping. A lot of creativity, money, and work went to achieve such a special look.
Our camp is in Saguaro National park, just west of the city. As in Phoenix, this is a desert campsite next to a natural history exhibit. Since we arrived by mid-day, we took the afternoon to visit the Mission San Xavier.
Mission San Xavier In Tucson
Inside Mission San Xavier
Mission San Xavier grounds.
Family gathering at a great local Mexican restaurant. Roselie, Andre, Marcel, Jules, Carmine, Rosemarie, Sandi
Marcel, Andre, Jules, Carmine
Catholicism was first brought to the village of Wa:k by Spanish Jesuits in 1692. The present church was started by the Franciscan order, after the Jesuits were expelled, and completed in 1797. The mission and the parish of indigenous people went through four nation transitions. Initially they were under Spanish rule, until Mexico won independence from Spain in 1821. The Gadsden Purchase in 1854, moved the territory, the mission, and its people to the jurisdiction of the United States. Finally, the mission was included in the creation of the Tobono O’odham Indian reservation. I spoke with one of the mission guides about this El Norte concept. She made it very clear that they are not Mexican and don’t share any cultural affinity. The Mexican people across the border are extremely poor. She could not imagine how they could be part of a common culture. While Woodard discusses the Indian cultures, it didn’t seem to play as key a role in El Norte as we’re learning today.
Visiting the Pima Air Museum
Another success landing by Ace pilots
Walk on the moon.
As a change of pace, we visited the Pima Air Museum the next day. This is a must-see for anyone who loves airplanes……which of course, I do. Besides seeing the various experimental, military, and civilian airplanes, we had a special treat. A fully restored B29 WWII bomber was on display in a dedicated hanger. We had the opportunity to meet and listen to the pilot who flew 47 mission over Europe in this airplane. He is now 93 years old. Each plane required a crew of 10. Of the several hundred B29 crews that flew over Europe, one third died, one third were captured, and one third completed their deployment. He told us many stories of what it was like – it was very hard duty. Several other veterans joined his talk, greeting each other with the military salute, to reminisce and contribute comments. After the war, he transitioned to fighter jets and flew his last mission over Viet Nam when he was 48 years old. Fascinating feats, hardships, and heroism.
B29 Bomber pilot who flew 47 missions over Europe
B29 Bomber
On our final day in Tucson, we visited Biosphere 2, about an hour’s drive north of the city – Biosphere 1 is our Earth! The facilities’ existence can be broken into the three phases: The objective of the first and original phase was to build and test a closed ecological system that could support human life. Hopefully to learn how and what it would take to live on another planet. It was built in the late 1980s and in 1991 it was occupied by eight crew members who lived in this ‘bubble’ for two years. After completion of the two year stint, a second crew of seven spent seven months in the system before the whole experiment was shut down; in the second phase, Columbia University was brought in to determine whether the facility could serve as a useful platform for scientific research – the answer was yes; in the third and current phase, just prior to a decision to demolish the facility, investors purchased it and gifted it to the University of Arizona, which now owns, manages, and directs its research.
Biosphere 2
Biosphere 2 research buildings.
There are a lot of questions and intrigue about the first phase. Undoubtedly there were some learnings, but the integrity of some aspects of the experiment is up for question. Today’s visitors program and guides are provided by the University of Arizona. They focus on programs looking forward. However, in presenting an overview, they are not very forthcoming and honest about what happened in the first phase – it’s as if they want to forget about it. While there is recognition that the original undertaking was an act of vision and courage, it also resulted in problems between crew members, constant hunger and below-target caloric intake goals, high levels of CO2, doctored scientific data, food hoarding, breaking into emergency supplies, factions and intrigue, sneaking in food, and even sabotage on the second crew by members of the first crew. The experiment was terminated early during the second group’s program and disbanded.
Tropical area in Biosphere 2.
Desert area of Biosphere 2.
Equipment to support the Biosphere 2 closed environment.
In its latest incarnation, Biosphere 2 is conducting some very exciting research about water and the environment. The basic premise being that the Southwest will continue to get hotter and water will become more scarce. How can the area support life and survive under those conditions? A major new experiment on how soil is generated from rock and water will be coming on line in the near term. Their first experiment is to find which plants and what amount of water can accelerate and sustain soil production – given the envelope of expected high temperatures and decreasing water.
Sunset in the desert.
A beautiful sunset caps the end of an interesting few days. Tomorrow, we head further south into the Old West territory of Tombstone.
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