Gold Canyon, Az

Gold Canyon, Az
New Years Day 2015, Gold Canyon, AZ

Saturday, February 21, 2015

Boyce Thompson Arboretum

I had previously posted about the Arboretum and the moonlight walk we took with pictures of the full moon rising over the old Thompson residence.  This post will be pictures I took on 2 different daytime visits to the Arboretum.  On the last visit we met Alane and John, friends from Selkirk, who joined us on a walk through the desert gardens.  Both visits were capped off by lunch at Porters, located in Superior which is a small town 2 miles down the road from the Arboretum.

I said in my Moonlight Walk post that we really loved this place and I hope the following pictures will give you an idea of how striking the desert landscape can be.  Since a picture is worth a 1000 words I will be quiet now.










 Lori, contemplating retired life.
All is good with the world.

 Standing next to a Red Gum Eucalyptus tree. These trees grow 6-10 feet per year when young and can get over 100 feet tall.  Native to Australia but didn't see any Koala feeding on the leaves.
Their bark peels away not unlike a birch tree providing a beautiful contrast to the surrounding vegetation. The make a striking feature in this garden.



Even had a palm tree section.
And an Australian Outback section.  This shed is not actually as old as it looks.  It was built to look old.




John, Alane and Lori next to Mr Big.  This Eucalyptus is over 100 feet tall, 8 feet in diameter and was planted in 1926.  At one time it was the largest Eucalyptus tree in the US.
 We went to Porters for lunch and I had the Superior burger and Lori had the Bar-b-que Chicken Salad.
Both were excellent but the burger and fries when combined with a beer does bring on an immediate need to have a nap.

Even though Lori is retired she hasn't lost that school teacher look of disapproval.  I see this look periodically, more often than I'd like to admit.  Very scary.
Brewing up some ice tea on the patio.  One thing to remember when ordering Ice Tea in the states.  Its not the sugary stuff we are used to.  


Porter's doesn't look like much from the outside or from the inside for that matter.  It has what you would call Atmosphere.  Don't think it would qualify for a liquor license back home.  Basically an old bar, old furniture and outside a concrete patio with some shelter from the sun  and old picnic tables.  But the food is fantastic and both times we were there we were lucky to get a seat.
The view from Main St in Superior.  For the most part its an old mining town whose most affluent days are behind it but the scenery is quite beautiful. 











Later

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