One of the more… unique trips of my time in LA. Kudos to my friend Katie, who was at least my bridge to this trip. We parked and met at her place in Ocean Park, walked to the Santa Monica station, and it was all train from there. We hopped on the Amtrak once we made it to LA’s Union Station. It was also someone on the trip’s birthday, so we boarded with a case or two of beer and a full cake with candles. Very different experience than an airport. After some festivities, we woke up in the heart of Tucson, all before 7 a.m. The trip included exploring local spots, a hike to Seven Falls, and a rodeo. I’m one to wear my boots to work, being Texan and all, before it was trendy — but this trip I found myself at a local rodeo in only my colorful hiking clothes and shorts. We watched the local events and joined the two-steppin’ afterward, where I taught my friends some southern moves and ended up more active than a lot of my neighbors in full getup.
February 17, 2018
If you go
The train is the Amtrak Sunset Limited, which runs Los Angeles to New Orleans through Tucson. It’s slow, but as a way to start a trip with a cake and a case of beer instead of a TSA line, it’s hard to beat, and it rolls into Tucson early.
The rodeo is La Fiesta de los Vaqueros, the Tucson Rodeo, which runs every February — so if you want to catch it, plan a winter trip. The hike was Seven Falls in Sabino Canyon (more on that in the next post).
