Click on the thumbnails to get the larger photos

Four people went: Robin, Margaret, Sara, and myself

Sara's tour report and photos
Robin's cycling and Grand Canyon photos

Day 0, Drive from Phoenix to Benson

About a two hour drive to southeastern Arizona to get to the tour starting point in Benson. Ten miles from Benson, Sara realizes she forgot her bike shoes; tries to contact people in Phoenix to bring them to Benson.

   Ironwood Tree

Day 1, Benson to Tombstone, 25 miles

Drove back to Phoenix to get Sara's bike shoes. Started riding from Benson sometime after 1 PM. Still had some time to check out the touristy sites in Tombstone - famous for the shootout at the OK Corral, Wyatt Earp, and all the other stuff in the movie "Tombstone".

   Robin riding along.

   Sara riding along.

   Tombstone

Day 2, Tombstone to Bisbee, 24 miles

More checking out of Tombstone in the morning. Steep climb to Bisbee - former mining town turned artist colony. Robin proves that he's a billiards shark - at least compared to the rest of us...

   Old Cochise County courthouse

   More Tombstone

   The others in Bisbee:  from left to right: Robin, Sara, Margaret

   Art car in Bisbee

Day 3, Bisbee to Sierra Vista, 35 miles

Went on a tour of an old copper mine in Bisbee. Stopped for apple pie in Palominas. Bumped into a couple of cycletourists heading the opposite direction. Robin gets a lousy bed yet another night.

   About to go on the mine tour!!!

   Mine entrance.

   Only the boss got to ride this bike - otherwise you'd get sent up to the office!!

Day 4, Sierra Vista to Benson, 36 miles

Fairly flat day to get back to Benson to finish the tour. Margaret gets her third and final flat about a mile or two from the finishing point - not quite close enough to ride it in on the rim.

   Margaret and Robin taking a rest.

   Robin and Margaret again.

   Coming down the hill back into Benson.

The weather couldn't have been better, with sunny skies and highs in the low 70s.

Due to the short winter days, this year's tour had short mileage days and overnight stays in hotels instead of camping. This arrangement worked out rather well, giving enough time to enjoy the sights.

Too bad the Kartchner Caverns (just outside of Benson) weren't yet open to tourists at the time of our tour - we passed the site on the way back to Benson.  National Public Radio did a three part series on their Morning Edition show - you can listen to it from their Kartchner Caverns page.

Grand Canyon