Day 4 – May 22, 2024
Today we drove to Patagonia, about 1 ½ hours away, and went to the Paton Center for Hummingbirds nature preserve. This place doesn’t look like much, but they get birders from all over to come and sit and just watch all the birds and butterflies that are all through the preserve. We didn’t have any binoculars, so we just sat and watched and were able to see quite a few species. I used the Merlin app, and these are the ones it picked up: southwestern willow flycatcher, lesser goldfinch, white-winged dove, brown-headed cowbird, Gambel’s quail, Bewicks wren, northern cardinal, house sparrow, canyon towhee, yellow warbler, Gila woodpecker, Aberts towhee, yellow-breasted chat. We managed to see quite a few of these species, so were lucky in that respect. We also saw violet-crowned and broad-billed hummingbirds. They have benches throughout the area where you can sit and watch/listen and it’s very peaceful. Up near the house, they have a big, covered area where there are multiple bird and hummingbird feeders, so the activity is constant!
We then headed to Tombstone, which was another 45-minute drive east, and went to Tombstone Brewery. We sat there for awhile chatting with the bartender as he was giving us tips on some of the places we are going to next. There were some patrons that had been military, so John talked with them for a while. One of them now makes BBQ sauce on the side and graciously gave us a jar of it! We then decided to grab a bite to eat so headed over to the Crystal Palace Saloon and shared a huge plate of ribs with coleslaw and beans. It was the tenderest and meatiest ribs we’ve ever had! Of course, we forgot to take a picture. (Still trying to do better, lol!)
The bartender at the brewery suggested driving down to Bisbee, which was about another 30-minute drive and about 10 miles from the Mexican border. It is known for the mining in the Mule Mountains, and it was one of the richest mineral sites in the world. He said it’s neat just to drive through because it reminds you of a European town. We drove through and it was definitely different than what we have seen so far in AZ. Most of the buildings/housse are brown, but the houses in Bisbee had color and the styles of the houses do remind you of something you would see in Europe. After going through the town, we headed back to Tucson and called it a day!
Tomorrow will be another hiking day! Nite all!
