Still in Tubac

We drove into Tubac on Wednesday afternoon with a plan to have coffee and walk around a bit and then head on down the road.  Today it's Friday and we're still here in this peaceful place of art and desert magic.  Tubac is about halfway between Tucson and the Mexican border town of Nogales.

Tubac has layers of history going back into the mists of the past.  The Tohono O'odham people lived here peacefully for 1200 years before the Spanish arrived in the 16th Century.  The Tumacacori Mission was built a couple miles south of Tubac and its ruins are now a lovely national heritage site. 

 

In Tubac itself the site of the Presidio (Spanish fortified camp) is worth exploring to learn about the push and pull between the Native peoples and the Spanish and American cultures. 

Today Tubac is a very artsy place.  An art school was started here in 1959 and it is home to many artists and craftspeople.  Its annual Arts Festival takes place in February (unfortunately a week before we arrived).  

It's a small town, easy to walk around and surrounded by grassy meadows and rolling hills.  In the distance are the Santa Rita mountains.  The weather is lovely here in the high desert.  It's cold at night but sunny every day.  Yesterday the temperature rose to 79 in the afternoon. 

Some very tasteful townhome developments have been recently built and we toured around yesterday on our bikes. It's a pleasant place to hang out for a few days.