Thank you .. ‘Dirt du Jour’

for the glowing review! "Go ask Alice ... where all the best vineyard gardens are. She's an erudite charmer; you'll have fun!"

Desert Travel

Eerie Vision: The Salton Sea

Salton Sea Photo - Photo © Alice Joyce

My desert sojourn to Anza-Borrego State Park followed a route south along California State Highway 86 in order to enter the park from the eastern entrance, leading into the town of Borrego Springs. The drive along Hwy. 86 runs nearly parallel to the western edge of the Salton Sea in the Imperial Valley, past Desert Shores and Salton Sea Beach; desolate towns that time seems to have passed by. A unique inland body of water some 200 feet below sea level, the strangely eerie Salton Sea resulted from massive flooding from the Colorado River over 100 years ago.

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Botanical Gardens

Tucson Botanical Gardens

Tucson Botanical Moorish Garden Photo © Alice Joyce

Springtime is a particularly lovely time of year to tour the Tucson Botanical Gardens. Located in the very heart of the city, the Gardens comprise an engaging layout of specially designed spaces where you’ll experience visual delights while taking in the enlightening educational aspects of each area. Near the Gardens Gift Shop you’ll encounter the Porter Patio Garden which surrounds the former home of Bernice and Rutger Porter. Look for mature specimens of olive, myrtle, pomegranate and citrus in this welcoming spot.

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Botanical Gardens

Tucson Travel: Tohono Chul Park

Tohono Chul Moorish Garden Photo © Alice Joyce

Touring Tucson in early Springtime is a treat for the senses…

Having looked forward to exploring the Sonoran Desert city, I was rewarded with beautiful March weather for my foray to Tohono Chul Park, finding the paths abloom with Sophora secundiflora trees.

Sophora secundiflora blooms

The Park is a welcoming setting for all who revel in the natural world, share a love of art, and wish to learn about the

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