We ordered two quesadillas (they come with a bean taco) and two tacos.
The mesquite grilled meat was plentiful and flavorful. We ended up having to order another quesadilla since n ate more than I thought he would.
Next we stopped at Beyond Bread to pick up our dinner to eat later. This local chain was quite large and crowded.
We split a lemon bar while we waited for our to-go order.
There were many dips in the road on our way to the east side of Saguaro National Park that the kids thought were quite fun.
We were able to take a picture by the sign this time.
I’m not sure how this could be a comfortable perch! This was about the extent of our wildlife sighting in the parks.
The kids took their junior ranger oaths here. The movie was not as good as on the west side.
Christmas decorations were still up.
Pretending to be saguaros.
There were many times when it felt like we had the park to ourselves. Such a nice change from the more crowded parks we have been to.
I love that n still wants to hold our hands sometimes.
Loved the sky and light at this moment.
We ate dinner a little early since we had reservations for the park’s Holiday Caravan at 5:30. We just ended up eating the car because it was getting a little chilly outside.
We share a turkey avocado sandwich and a roast beef brie sandwich. As you can see, they did skimp on the brie! These were hefty sandwiches, so two was plenty for the four of us.
I was not sure what to expect from the Holiday Caravan. I imagined some strings of Christmas lights on the saguaros, perhaps with santa hats and sunglasses. Well, it turned out that is was really just a group drive along the loop that we had already taken, but at night. There were a few stops where the park ranger had some commentary which he tried to relate to the holiday season. One stop did have luminarias lighting the path which was a nice touch. The visitor center also had some warm apple cider and prickly pear preserves samples, which was a nice touch.
That dot is Venus, according to some people in our group who seemed to know what they were talking about. I also saw my first shooting star! I was sad that the kids did not see it with me, but hopefully they will have more opportunities in the future.