We ended up getting a bit of a later start in the morning than originally planned, so by the time we made it to Tucson it was lunch time. The inn where we stayed offered some great suggestions on places to eat along the way so we decided to check out one of the Mexican restaurants they recommended. We stopped at the San Agustin Market and ate some tasty tacos and taquitos at Seis Kitchen, but the real star of the show was their prickly pear refresher. Dan in particular is a huge fan of prickly pear (the flavor, the fruit, the cactus, all of it), but this was incredible and we both loved it.

Part of stopping where we did for lunch was strategic so we could take the scenic route from Tucson to the inn. We were able to drive through Gates Pass which was well worth the bit of extra driving time. The views were stunning and it was a preview of what was to come.

We both had a great time taking pictures during the trip. I, of course, went a bit overboard and brought all of my cameras: my DSLR, polaroid camera, and the disposable cameras we got for our honeymoon which still had a couple shots left on them.

Finally, we made our way to the inn. It had been probably a couple of years since either of us had driven on such a rough dirt road, but it just added to the excitement and anticipation of really getting out away from the city.

For years I’ve followed Joshua Tree House on Instagram and dreamed of staying at either of their small boutique inns. They have a location in, you guessed it, Joshua Tree California and one outside of Tucson, where we stayed. It’s small, remote, and just breathtaking. Every little detail is so thoughtfully designed, from the local coffee and other beverages they provide to the fully equipped chef’s kitchen to the beautiful (and functioning!) fireplaces in every room.

The inn is designed with many large common spaces to encourage guests to mingle if they’d like, but also giving plenty of space so you don’t have to. We enjoyed meeting some fellow travelers and a fellow New Englander while we spent time in the kitchen having Dan’s requested birthday meal: a classic egg sandwich and his grandma’s cherry cream cheese pie.

When we left we actually got to meet the owner’s and probably repeated ourselves five times saying how incredible the inn is and how much we enjoyed our stay. I’ll share more about the inn itself (and lots more pictures!) in tomorrow’s post.

The inn is situated on 38 acres of otherwise undeveloped desert, throughout which the owner’s have carved out numerous walking trails. Since we got there a bit later than intended, we decided to stay put on the property and enjoy their trails instead of driving down the road to Saguaro National Park. We knew we wanted to catch the sunset out in the desert and enjoy some time outside.

One of the things I struggle with now that Dan is working days is being stuck inside so much of the time during the days that he works. We live in a not so nice neighbourhood in Phoenix we’ve come to realize, so neither of us feel super comfortable going out for walks alone. All that to say, we were both incredibly grateful for the chance to spend so much time outside enjoying the landscape and admiring the variety of cacti on full display at the inn.

The sunset ended up being so beautiful that we decided we’d try to get up in time to see the sunrise also. It was a bit of a struggle, but we did manage to catch the sunrise, and were both glad that we did. It’s amazing how much and how quickly the temperature changes out in the desert as the sun goes down and as it comes up, but we braved the cold (yeah yeah I know all you Montrealers and New Englanders are laughing at my wimpiness) and were rewarded with some stunning views and pictures.

After we left the inn, we made our way just ten or so minutes down the road to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. It’s sort of a cross between a museum, a zoo, and botanical gardens. The views were, again, spectacular and we ran into even more New Englanders who recognized Dan’s UNH sweatshirt.

Dan was very excited to discover that there are dozens of varietals of prickly pear cacti, but his favourite is the purple coloured Santa Rita Prickly Pear. The museum had an entire agave garden and a cactus garden, both of which were fascinating and so beautiful. The zoo portion was also a favourite, especially when we got to see the ocelot climbing around!

After meeting some people at the inn who had travelled from Michigan for the gem show in Tucson, we decided to add that to our trip. I actually somehow completely missed that we would be overlapping with the gem show during our stay, but we were so glad we made it! The show basically takes over the city with pop ups everywhere and massive tents filling one of the local sports stadiums and the entire parking lot.

It ended up being the perfect addition to our trip because Dan loves admiring and learning about different gems and minerals. Let’s just say that we’ll be heading back east next month with some beautiful souvenirs that would have probably cost five times the price had we bought them anyplace else.

We had such a great time and both wished we could have stayed for longer. Someday down the line, I think (and hope) we may make an effort to head back to Tucson and the inn for another desert getaway.