Sandhill Snowbirds #1 | SOLD OUT | call 742-6455 x 228 to be wait listed

Tuesday, January 15, 2019 | 7:30am-5pm | $99 members | $120 general public

No one ever forgets their first sight, nor sound, of quite literally thousands of Sandhill Cranes filling the wide-open skies above Sulphur Springs Valley. These majestic birds fly with their long necks and legs fully extended, chorusing a wild-sounding guttural bugle in flight. The Cranes are winter visitors to the area, “snowbirds” if you will, and gather to feed on corn stubble and other grain waste. On this daylong birding trip with guide Lynn Hassler, we visit Whitewater Draw to meet Cranes coming back from early morning feeding forays, and to check out the local waterfowl. Sulphur Springs is also a good spot for wintering raptors. Cost of the trip includes transportation, guide services and boxed lunch.

Sandhill Snowbirds #2 | SOLD OUT | call 742-6455 x 228 to be wait listed

Thursday, January 17, 2019 | 7:30am-5pm | $99 members | $120 general public

No one ever forgets their first sight, nor sound, of quite literally thousands of Sandhill Cranes filling the wide-open skies above Sulphur Springs Valley. These majestic birds fly with their long necks and legs fully extended, chorusing a wild-sounding guttural bugle in flight. The Cranes are winter visitors to the area, “snowbirds” if you will, and gather to feed on corn stubble and other grain waste. On this daylong birding trip with guide Lynn Hassler, we visit Whitewater Draw to meet Cranes coming back from early morning feeding forays, and to check out the local waterfowl. Sulphur Springs is also a good spot for wintering raptors. Cost of the trip includes transportation, guide services and boxed lunch.

Women Who Talk with the Clay: Artists’ Studio Tour

Wednesday, February 20 | 9am-6pm | $115 members | $135 general public

It is often said that ceramists, those who work with clay, develop an extra sense, an ability to understand the personality of their chosen medium. Why? Because it is also said that clay becomes what it wishes to be, and not always what the artist desires. Travel with us around Tucson and meet four women who talk with the clay:

• Kathleen Wallace Greer’s earth-hued stoneware vessels feature glazes in the colors of the desert highlighted by unique impressions of native plants forever captured in the clay;
• Wendy Timm’s abiding interest in the creatures of the Sonoran Desert finds expression in her sculptural creations, along with a healthy dose of her fun-loving personality – like cottontails with six guns and javelina with wings;
• Robin Chlad is NOT afraid of color and uses it exuberantly in her contemporary folk art, three dimensional mosaics and vibrant functional pottery best described as “playful” Southwest;
• Andree Richmond’s whimsical wheeled animals are created in response to our daily struggles for balance, as we travel too fast to nourish our souls and sense of humor.

This is a special opportunity to visit each artist in her studio, discover what inspires her and learn how she works to bring life from the earth. Cost includes transportation and lunch at Harvest.

Image | clockwise, left to right: Kathleen Wallace Greer, Wendy Timm, Andree Richmond, Robin Chlad

Everything’s Coming Up Wildflowers! Trip #1

Tuesday, February 26 | 7am-7pm | $125 members | $140 general public

Poppies and lupines and chicory, oh my! The winter rains we have been enjoying have also been a blessing for our desert wildflowers, and it is looking like we will have a good turnout this spring. For those of you interested in traveling where the wildflowers are, and getting expert assistance with flower identification from our resident wildflower guru, Lynn Hassler, we are offering a choice of two dates this spring — February 26 OR March 5. Both ed-ventures will take us by mini-bus all the way to Organ Pipe National Monument, checking for flowers along the way as we drive across the Tohono O’odham Reservation. We expect a wide variety from tiny belly flowers, like pygmy daisy, to yardstick tall prickly poppies. If we are really lucky, there might even be some Ajo lilies! Cost includes transportation, fees, picnic lunch and guide services.

Everything’s Coming Up Wildflowers! Trip #2

Tuesday, March 5 | 7am-7pm | $125 members | $140 general public

Poppies and lupines and chicory, oh my! The winter rains we have been enjoying have also been a blessing for our desert wildflowers, and it is looking like we will have a good turnout this spring. For those of you interested in traveling where the wildflowers are, and getting expert assistance with flower identification from our resident wildflower guru, Lynn Hassler, we are offering a choice of two dates this spring — February 26 OR March 5. Both ed-ventures will take us by mini-bus all the way to Organ Pipe National Monument, checking for flowers along the way as we drive across the Tohono O’odham Reservation. We expect a wide variety from tiny belly flowers, like pygmy daisy, to yardstick tall prickly poppies. If we are really lucky, there might even be some Ajo lilies! Cost includes transportation, fees, picnic lunch and guide services.

Downtown for “Dummies”

Thursday, February 28 | 8:30am-3:30pm | $115 members | $125 general public

If you are one of those who hardly ever travels south of River Road, you don’t know what you’re missing! Downtown Tucson is experiencing a renaissance in cultural attractions, museums, restaurants and restored historic landmarks, making city center a true pedestrian experience. Who better than local historian and preservationist Ken Scoville to show us where to abandon the car and set off on foot to navigate the city’s streets? Scoville pinpoints the top attractions, highlights the hippest restaurants, and even gives tips on making jury duty or paying your property taxes relatively painless. Discover the real “Old Pueblo” and the historic neighborhoods you might not know exist through an historical perspective that examines the physical features, major events and cyclical changes that have led to its renaissance today. Come exploring with us and next time you have out-of-town guests, you’ll be able to amaze them with all there is to see and do – south of River Road! Cost includes transportation around the town (limited walking), guide services and lunch at industrial Barrio Brewing Company – home of Arizona’s longest continually brewed beer!

61st Annual Heard Guild Indian Fair and Market

Sunday, March 3 | 8am-5pm | $75 members | $85 general public

Known as the world’s preeminent museum for the presentation, interpretation and advancement of American Indian art, the Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market is a world-acclaimed cultural event that draws 15,000 visitors and nearly 600 of the nation’s most outstanding and successful American Indian artists. In booths throughout the grounds of the Museum, you will have the opportunity to meet both established traditional and contemporary artists, as well as cutting-edge younger artists selling their works alongside their relatives. Curator of Exhibitions James Schaub and Director of Education Jo Falls will be along to help navigate the array of vendors, explain things like technique, design and materials and answer your questions. Cost includes transportation and Market admission. Lunch can be enjoyed on your own at any number of food booths or in the restaurants on the Museum grounds. If you have always wanted to attend but the drive to Phoenix and the parking challenge seemed just too daunting, leave the car at home and leave the driving AND the parking to us!

Cultural and Ecological Explorations among the Mayo

March 7-13, 2019 | $2275 per person/double occupancy | $550 single supplement | a $500 deposit secures your spot

Join us this spring for a journey through the land of the Mayo as we explore the cultural traditions of southern Sonora with folk historian and naturalist Jesús García as our guide and interpreter. Combining the best elements of a cultural tour and a natural history voyage we’ll visit the Mayo village of Júpare to observe their celebrations for Ash Wednesday and the beginning of the Lenten season, experience a Sonoran culture fair, bird the mangrove estuary of Yávaros, and explore the colonial city of Alamos, a members only ed-venture not to be missed, and clearly not one you will soon forget. Hosted by South of the Border Tours in conjunction with the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.

Tucson Walkabout: El Presidio Historic District

Thursday, March 21 | 9:30am-2:30pm | $89 members | $110 general public

Local historian and preservationist, Ken Scoville is passionate about Tucson and its past. Whenever development threatens the Old Pueblo, Scoville is there to argue for the streets, the buildings and the history that cannot speak for themselves. What better guide to take us on a walking tour of Tucson’s history? We’ll  peel back the layers of culture, architectural styles and citizen’s attitudes and reveal why Tucson is the city it is today, discovering the architectural traditions that have evolved throughout Tucson’s development. Meet the pioneer families that established homes along the Camino Real and marvel at the homes of the elite built along today’s Main Avenue. “History is all about trying to understand humans,” Scoville says, “and El Presidio is my living lesson.” Cost includes transportation to and from the Presidio Museum, our starting point; guide services, information packet and lunch at Café a la C’arte in the historic Stevens House next door to the Tucson Museum of Art.

Birding Patagonia and Sonoita Creek

Thursday, April 18 | 7am-5pm | $99 members | $120 general public

Our favorite birder, Lynn Hassler, takes us out for a day of birding some of the richest of the state’s remaining streamside habitat in all of southeastern Arizona. The Patagonia-Sonoita Creek Preserve, owned and operated by The Nature Conservancy, is renowned for its amazing biological diversity. We’ll ramble among Fremont cottonwoods and Goodding willows in search of birds such as Gray Hawk, Cassin’s Kingbird, Summer Tanager, Lazuli Bunting, Vermilion Flycatcher and Bell’s Vireo. Before we call it a day, there’s time for a stop at Tucson Audubon’s Paton Center for Hummingbirds where the dancing jewels abound and at Lake Patagonia to check for water birds. Cost includes transportation, guide services and a picnic lunch.

Hopi Arts, Hopi Culture | SOLD OUT | call 742-6455 x 228 to be wait listed

May 10-13, 2019 | $1575 per person/double occupancy | $300 single supplement | a $275 deposit secures your spot

In this members only tour, we’re on the road to the land of the Hopi where culture and tradition are rooted in the landscape. Along the way we will enjoy the company of Southwest scholar and second-generation Indian art dealer Mark Bahti. With his lifelong connections, Mark will introduce us to silversmiths, potters, basket weavers and katsinam carvers working in both historical and contemporary ways who will share with us their art, their lives and their rich cultural heritage. And, we’ve planned this departure over the Mother’s Day weekend to improve our chances of witnessing the very special celebrations that may be taking place in many of the villages. Hosted by South of the Border Tours in conjunction with the Heard Museum Guild.

Chaco Culture: Beyond the Canyon Walls

September 23-27 | $1850 per person/double occupancy | $230 single supplement | a $500 deposit secures your spot

The center of Ancestral Puebloan (Anasazi) culture 1000 years ago, Chaco Canyon in northwest New Mexico is one of the most impressive archaeological sites north of the Rio Grande. The magnificent masonry ruins of this UNESCO World Heritage site encompass six large pueblos containing over 1600 multi-story rooms, more than 90 kivas and numerous Great Kivas. Ancestral Puebloans blended work and worship; they were master artisans, farmers, astronomers, traders and skilled engineers, creating an extensive trade network of pueblos with connecting roads throughout the San Juan Basin and beyond.

Our personal guide is geomorphologist Fred Nials whose research focuses on subjects as diverse, and as interrelated, as the Chacoan road system, the influence of streamflow on Hohokam canals and the effects of environmental variation (El Niño in particular) on cultural development in the Southwest. Oh, and in case you were wondering, geomorphology is the study of landforms and how processes such as wind, water and ice can shape the landscape.

From an overview of Chacoan culture in the Canyon itself, to an off-road trek to visit Chacoan outliers, our exploration takes us not only to well-known sites such as Pueblo Bonito, but to significant and seldom-visited sites including Pierre’s and Twin Angels; in-depth visits to Salmon Ruins and Aztec Ruins National Monument are also featured. All along the way, Nials describes the science and the theories surrounding the strategies and techniques Chacoan people used to adapt to their often-challenging environment.

Hosted by Stephen Bernier and South of the Border Tours, all-inclusive cost covers transportation by motorcoach and passenger van, accommodations at the Best Western Gallup Inn and Suites and the Courtyard by Marriott in Farmington, meals, guide services and admission fees.