Mt. Lemmon, Arizona

After a weekend of snow and catching up with people in Phoenix, I took the scenic route south, past the Superstitions to head to Tucson.



Once there, I met up with my brother and we wandered down to the Tucson Gem & Mineral Show. There we were positively overwhelmed by all of the vendors and the endless tables of (as you probably guessed it) gems, minerals, fossils and just about anything else you could think to sell at a booth.



We ogled meteorites and a few other goodies, but found we had an unfortunate lack of disposable funds coupled with a short attention span. So we hopped back in the car for an afternoon drive up Mt. Lemmon.



From the base of the mountain to Summerhaven, the little town at the top, the Catalina Highway is a spectacular drive that takes you up out of the desert...



...up above the scrub...



...to the forests that await you at the top. The rock formations along the way are pretty impressive as well.



Mt. Lemmon is also home to another one of my very favorite street names. Incinerator Ridge Road. Gotta love the sound of that one.



Due to the splotches of leftover snow and the biting icy wind that greeted us at the top, we didn't linger long and headed back down just in time to catch the sunset. This is a shot of the aptly named Thimble Peak as we zipped around one of the many curves.



Back in Tucson, I parted ways with my brother and caught up with another friend to relive old times by going for a nighttime walk through the downtown and Bario districts. This time however, we realized we had never followeded the blue painted line on the pavement that is the Turquoise Trail. Connecting some 23 historic sites, the line winds through the Presidio as a little tour. We followed it dilligently until we were thrown off by conflicting lines and one that led us to nowhere and ended. We suspected hooligans with blue paint and a sense of humor. Defeated, we just blamed our inabilitiy to find the line on the darkness.

Arizona Snow

Bidding a fond farewell to the Bahamas, we hopped one of the tiniest commercial planes I'd ever been on for a short 30 minute flight back to Florida.



Shortly thereafter, I flew back to Arizona for a visit. There, I met up with some friends and we piled in the car in search of snow. We drove from Phoenix up past Strawberry and Pine, crossing our fingers that there would still be some leftover snow to play in.



Winter weather loomed around us on the drive North.



The scenery was a good reminder of how much I missed the desert.



First stop in Payson: (and I hate to say it) Walmart, to procure additional sledding devices and tasty beverages to keep us warm in the snow.



Look, trees! Being on a boat, I hadn't seen real trees in ages.



Fortunately there was still some leftover snow waiting for us!



We gathered discarded intertubes to act as cushions for our not-so-shock-absorbent sleds.



Some of us did more sledding, some of us did more chilling.



All bundled up and grinning like fools from all the sledding.



Demonstrating the emptiness of our drinks in the car on the return trip home. All gone.

Atlantis at Paradise Island, Bahamas

Stormy Bahamian weather that made for fantastic sky scenery followed us everywhere.



Next stop: Atlantis. Our dock at night with the monstrosity of a casino resort towering in the background.



Getting ready for the boss' birthday.



I'm still not quite sure what the hippie theme was all about, but it was really great for a laugh. Big goofballs, yup, that's us.



As part of the resort, Atlanis boasts a massive water park complete with a shark slide. You can see a tuber's feet entering the scene on the right side of the picture.



What the shark slide looks like from the inside.



The view of one of their private beaches from the top of a water slide. It was the coldest, windiest day ever, but since the owners told us to go play for the afternoon, we had no choice but to obey. Rough life, right?



At the bottom of said water slide. Note the "holy crap, it's like ice!" expression.



Tubing on the lazy river. (The palm trees act as the only true indication of the weather in this shot.)



We tubed and did the water slides 'till we were purple. Or at least until I was purple. I practically ran back to the boat to thaw out in a very nice, hot shower.