Dear Maia, Isaac, and Virtual Wonderers,

It’s now day 4 of our epic Southwest road trip. Today, we hit the low desert! There is something about leaving one ecosystem for another that resets a switch in me. Is there any place you travel that resets a switch?

We started in Globe at Besh-Ba-Gowah. That place is awesome, although a bit tricky to get to. Lots of winding mining roads. But, well work it. It’s like ruins and a botanic garden in one. I loved that place and I will definitely go back in the future. We spent the morning there – it is dog friendly. The dogs always go through a big shift from CO winter to AZ spring, but they look hotter than they really are. It was in the high 80s if I recall.

From there, it was down the road to Catalina State Park near Tucson. Today was an easy drive. It was too hot to hike when we got there, so I found a nursery and got some Southwest plants to bring home. I always wonder why I decide to go into the city with all the stressful traffic. Tucson was our only urban spot.

After the plants, we hiked at Catalina State Park. I love that place. It was our first Sonoran Desert road trip in 2015 and we have been there several times. Dog friendly, and a little way out of town. We hiked the bird trail with Sazi hanging out of her carrier because it was hot. I now call it “riding Tucson”. It didn’t take long to get dark, though. We headed to the model in Tucson – which neither my Garmin nor google could find – but we got there.

By now, Moki has gone on a hunger strike for some reason. Probably too many treats. Road trips with dogs are like road trips with toddlers. LOL.