We had a great bike ride Saturday, May 20th, in the Rancho Vistoso residential area. They have very good bike lanes throughout the area. Our ride was 11.9 miles, with some hills (actually, gentle slopes). The group included Barbara and George Long, Marj and Charlie Wippermann, Linda Livingston, and Ken Perrin.

At the end of the ride, we had a wonderful brunch at The Views on the golfcourse in Rancho Vistoso. The weather was perfect for enjoying the meal outside on the patio. You can see the view of the Santa Catalinas reflected in the window behind Charlie and George.

The Rancho Vistoso Ride was another great Casas Adobes Congregational Church outing, arranged by Charlie.

On April 1st (no Fooling), Charlie and Marj Wippermann led another wonderful desert hike. It started on the King Trail, across from the Desert Museum, to see petroglyphs. The hike then followed the Esperanza Trail past an abandoned mine, and looped back on the Gould Mine Trail. Here is a picture of our intrepid explorers:

Here we see our hikers heading up the trail and later on, heading back down. There is also a majestic view of the hikers and the trail as they head back to the start.

On all of the Casas Adobes hikes and bike rides, we are always amazed at the beauty and splender of our Arizona Desert, as you can see here:

Marj and Charlie Wippermann organized another wonderful bike ride on March 18th, 2017. We started at Jesse Owens Park and rode to Saguaro National Park East, along the Old Spanish Trail. Our group included Marj and Charlie, Linda Livingston, Bill and Cynthia VerDuin, and Michelle and Ken Perrin. Here is our group at the ramada near the Saguaro National Park Visitor's Center.

We got geared up at Jesse Owens Park, south of Broadway on Sarnoff. Gearing up includes wearing helmets and bringing water. We are in a desert, after all.

It was about a 6 mile ride to the Visitor's Center. We parked our bikes while some of the group checked out the center.

From the Visitor's Center, we journeyed on into the park a ways. Charlie, Cynthia, and Bill took an 8 mile loop inside park. Marj, Linda, Michelle, and Ken took a shorter route (about 4 miles round trip) to a parking lot near a picnic area in the park. Here are Marj, Linda, and Michelle in front of the beautiful desert; with the Santa Catalina Mountains in the background. The colors of the desert flora are amazing this time of year.

The group headed back along the Old Spanish Trail and stopped for a reward and some relaxation before heading home. This was another great Casas Adobes Congregational Church outing.

Charlie Wippermann led another great hike on February 18, in Oro Valley. We hiked the Honey Bee Trail. There was a good turnout, even with the potential for some rain. It did look a little ominous in parts of the sky, but we stayed dry.

You can see the petroglyphs behind our group photo above. Here are a couple of better shots of the petroglyphs. Charlie and Phil Hunger were aware we would see these during our hike.

Here we are heading up the trail, with the sun at our backs. It was a cool morning, in the low 60s, which made the hike very comfortable.

Here are a couple of more "people pics".

And, finally, our trek back after a great hike. You can see the desert vegetation in background of the pictures. The desert is truely amazing. Bonnie Mardian is a frequent hiker on these Casas Adobes adventures. It is great to have her, with her extensive knowledge of the desert flora and fauna.

September Bike Ride on the Santa Cruz

Tom Hickson, Charlie & Marj Wippermann, and Ken Perrin enjoyed an amazing ride along the Santa Cruz River on September 17th. We traveled The Loop from the wetlands near Sweatwater Drive and I-10 to the Senoran Delights on Congress and back. Round trip was about 15 miles.

We enjoyed the Raspados at Senoran Delights. The Macedonia Raspados were wonderful. This is a Mexican delight which includes vanilla ice cream, sweet milk and fresh fruit. The fresh fruit included peaches, mangos, strawberries, and pineapples. Coconut is also added, and pecans on request.

The weather was great! The company was great! The Raspados were great!

ENJOYING RASPADOS

Along the trail

The photographer (and also a rider)

Members of the Congregation enjoyed a wonderful ride along the Santa Cruz River on June 14th. The ride was on the Santa Cruz River and Paseo de Iglesias trails. Following a ride on the south Santa Cruz, we rode the Julian Wash Greenway to South 6th Avenue and the "El Super" market. Along the way we saw some beautiful Pascua Yaqui artwork along the trail. These rides on the Tucson bike trails are always an amazing experience.