Page 97 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Southwest USA & National Parks
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SOUTHERN ARIZ ONA 95
cultural heritage of the upper decorative blankets, furniture,
Santa Cruz Valley, is held on the and crafts are good value.
mission grounds. People used to shop on both
sides of the border, but the
P Tubac Presidio State US government has issued
Historic Park warnings over crossing into
1 Burruel St. Tel (520) 3982252. Open Mexico, as ongoing drug wars
9am–5pm daily. Closed Dec 25. & have made border towns
7 8 ∑ tubacpresidiopark.com potentially dangerous, and
P Tumacácori National visitors are at risk of theft.
Mission church at Tumacácori National Historical Park If you cross over into Mexico,
Historical Park 1891 East Frontage Rd. Tel (520) 377 you are advised to leave your
5060. Open 9am–5pm daily. Closed car on the US side, where
next hundred years, Tubac Thanksgiving, Dec 25. & 7 8 attendants mind the parking
declined. Today, the town is a ∑ nps.gov/tuma lots, and to walk across the
small but thriving art colony, border. Not only is parking
with attractive shops, galleries, extremely difficult, but cars
and restaurants lining the 9 Nogales with US license plates are likely
streets around the plaza. Road map C5. * 20,400. @ @ targets for thieves. It can also
Tubac’s historical remains are n 123 W. Kino Park (520) 2873685. take 2–3 hours to go through
displayed at the Tubac Presidio Open 9am–5pm Mon–Fri. customs by car. Visas are
State Historic Park, which ∑ thenogaleschamber.org required only for those traveling
encompasses the foundations farther south than the town and
of the original presidio in an Nogales is really two towns for stays of more than 72
underground display, as well as that straddle the US hours. US and Canadian
several historic buildings. Also border with Mexico, at citizens should
here, the Presidio Museum the end of Mexico’s carry a passport
contains artifacts covering over Pacific Highway. This for identification, as
one hundred years of Tubac’s is a busy port of drivers’ licenses may
history, including painted entry, handling huge not be sufficient proof
altarpieces and colonial furniture. amounts of freight, of citizenship. Foreign
including many of the Mexican pottery found nationals should make
Environs winter fruit and in Nogales sure their visa status
Just 3 miles (5 km) south of vegetables sold in enables them to
town lies Tumacácori National North America. The town reenter the US; those on the
Historical Park with the attracts large numbers of Visa Waiver Program (see p276)
beautiful ruined mission. The visitors in search of bargains – should have no problem.
present church was built in
around 1800 upon the ruins Astronomy in Southern Arizona
of the original 1691 mission
established by Jesuit priest, Southern Arizona’s dry air and dark, clear nights have made it an
Father Eusebio Kino (see p44). international center for astronomy. Within a 75mile (120km) radius
The Mission was abandoned in of Tucson, there is a cluster of prestigious observatories located in
1848, and today its weather the mountains, including the Kitt Peak National Observatory, with
beaten ocher façade together its large telescopes, and the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory,
with its brick columns, arched both of which can be toured (reservations required). Mount Graham
entry, and carved wooden door International Observatory features some of the world’s most
is an evocative reminder of advanced telescope technology. Opportunities for stargazing are
former times. The cavernous exceptional, but, even without highpowered equipment, anyone
interior is wonderfully atmos can enjoy the countless constellations in the night skies.
pheric, with patches of exposed
adobe brick and faded murals
on the sanctuary walls. A small
museum provides an excellent
background on the mission
builders and native Pima
Indians. Weekend craft
demonstrations, including
tortillamaking, basketry, and
Mexican pottery, are held
October through April. During
the first weekend in December,
La Fiesta de Tumacácori (see Observatories in the mountains of southern Arizona
p39), which celebrates the
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