Over Presidents Day weekend we went to Tucson to see the Sonoran Desert Museum, Saguaro National Park, and visit a few other sites. One of the other sites was Agua Caliente Park, home of the closest hot springs to Tucson. The park is located in the Northeast corner of the city. We pulled in to the parking lot, looked across into the park, and saw several large bushes adorned with oranges! It was pretty fun to see them. We later learned that they were ornamental oranges and to sour for enjoyable eating.
We wandered down to the small pond and had a picnic on the shore. Then we wandered around the park to see what there was.
It seems like a decent park for birdwatching- this egret was strutting through the shallows.
We finally found the hot spring- on the east side of the pond, near the top of a palm tree lined drainage ditch. The spring flow has been really low the last several years, and when we visited it was essentially a small hollow filled with water.
The north side of the pond had a few logs that were covered by sunbathing turtles. It was fun to watch them jostle for position, and inevitably nudge another one off.
The park is a beautiful park, but it's not good for much other than picnics, walks, and sunbathing. There are signs all over the place telling you what not do do there. Apparently you even need to get a (free) permit from Pima County just to take pictures there.
I actually found some palm trees I like. The palm trees at Agua Caliente Park are really pretty. Dense, close together, and untrimmed. Since I have a few in my yard, I now know that I would never plant them though. They're messy and don't lend much shade although they are exotic looking. Maybe I need several dozen more back there so it looks like this and I might like them.
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