If it gets too hot, head uphill

©2015 Lydia Hinshaw

Up the hill toward Mount Lemmon

 TUCSON, AZ -- A dozen days in desert suburbia was wearing on us, so Wednesday we drove to the top of Mount Lemmon.

 The trip was nearly 50 miles each way, the first 20 a slog through multiple stoplights in the northern edge of the city.  The last 30 grew increasingly scenic as the Magic Bus managed the twisting climb to more than 9,150 feet.  That's nearly 7,000 feet higher than the house where we're living.

 At the top, it was cool and foggy and smelling of evergreens, a refreshing change from the dry heat and the dusty desert smell down in the city.

 We looked at several campgrounds, noting them for possible future visits.  We stopped at several overlooks to admire the views.

 Inevitably, we had to come back down the hill, to the heat and the traffic.  It was time to hunker down in the air conditioning again.