Gilbert Ray Campground, Tucson Mountain Park, 46 mile jump
Regretting not climbing to the top of the Peak due to earlier rain and continuing high winds, we made a short jump to a campground near Saguaro NP. It is about 3000’ elevation in a large basin surrounded by mountains and about 20 minutes from Tucson. There is no RV camping in Saguaro; this is a Pima County facility having electric hookups in large spread out campsites for $20/night. Our site is near a trailhead leading off into the desert in two different loops.
Looking out as I type, I see smoketrees, creosote bushes, palo verde, prickly pear, ocotillo, cholla and saguaro, and lots of stuff I don’t recognize yet. It is still windy; the high was 68F. The sunset is fire red and purple; absolutely gorgeous!
Our plan is to get the fuel pump replaced on the truck in town Wednesday morning and maybe visit the Arizona State Museum while the work is being done. Hopefully, we will see improved fuel MPG. Tomorrow, we want to tour Saguaro NP to see ancient pictographs and saguaro forests.
There is lots to see here, but we have a long way to go to get to Penny’s dad’s birthday party, so we have to be selective. I don’t think I mentioned his 90th birthday party is March 25th. We thought about storing the truck and trailer to fly to Punta Gorda, Fl. But, we would also like to visit Penny’s kids and grandkids in St. Mary’s, Georgia while we are in the neighborhood, so having the camper with us seems more practical and economical.