Southern Arizona has numerous little ghost towns, most located where a mine used to exist. Gleeson is one of those towns.
At one time the Copper Belle Mine employed enough people that Gleeson had around 500 residents. Today there are a couple of mostly collapsed buildings, a foundation and a restored jail.
The well built jail was restored in 2008 and serves as a tourist center (but apparently not on weekdays).
A couple of old cars adorn the grounds.
Across the highway are the remains of a couple of stores.
This building was made of adobe, as evidenced by the remaining walls.
Joseph Bono was born in the area and recently purchased the entire ‘town’ to preserve it.
Next door is an open foundation with a scenic view of the nearby mountains and remaining mining facility.
If you find yourself in Tombstone and want to see the true old west, head east for 16 miles to Gleeson.
We found ourselves back at the convenience store that is home to ‘The Thing’. In addition to that, they have a plethora of Mexican and Southwestern tchotchkes.
A revisit to the Pima Air & Space Museum with a new lens resulted in different views than the standard ‘documentation’ looks. The goal is to see the abstract art in the airplanes, rather than just a profile photo.
Note the reflection of the DC-10 sitting next to this De Havilland Australia DHA-3 Drover.
The coverings on the windows to protect the interiors from the sun gives this aircraft a ghostly look.
A plane that will never fly again looks longingly at the contrail of the passing flight.
The missing engines makes it look like it now has giant mouse ears.
The wide open mouth of this fighter airplane with red lipstick on it’s lips.
A long grounded TWA Constellation, continuing to fade in the sun.
April is the time of year for roasting agave for a multiple of purposes. The photo below shows a field of them not yet ready for harvest at the Mission Garden where we attending an event to highlight the long history of roasting agave.
The harvesting involves pulling the entire plant and cutting off the leaves.
Once you have the hearts separated from the leaves all of the pieces are placed into a pit, covered with layers of agave pieces, burlap and finally dirt and roasted for 48 hours. The burlap keeps the agave clean while it roasts.
We arrived not long before it was time to open the pit. This person decided to test how warm the ground felt.
Time to open it up!
There were multiple layers of agave plants, along with burlap and other coverings. First to come out were the leaves.
The roasting gives the leaves a distinctive smell and taste.
Once the leaves were removed it revealed the layer of burlap overtop the hearts in the bottom of the pit.
At last, the roasted agave hearts.
While a variety of products, both alcoholic and non alcoholic, can be made from the hearts, you can chew the pieces for a somewhat sweet taste.
In addition to food and drink products, some people use the agave stalks to make amazing art pieces, including this fiddle.
Agave has a long history in this part of the world, providing food, sweets and drink from the time of the Hohokam.
When I started this blog a few years ago I did so to share my photos with family and friends. Little did I realize it would become so popular that I would’ve passed 100,000 visitors in it’s history.
Thank you to all who have stopped by to check out the photos. I am looking forward to many more years of sharing.
Since people have made this blog I thought I would share some of my favorite photos of people.
Up first is a Rosenmontag Parade in Trier, Germany. Apparently this person was parodying a French Army soldier (so I was told, could be wrong).
While checking out the geysers in Yellowstone National Park this person felt compelled to walk out in front of everyone and say ‘All Hail the Geyser Gods’
An elderly couple at an Italian Festival in Columbus, Ohio.
The key to their marriage is fire eating.
Even warriors need to share child care duties.
The next two come from the same Renaissance Festival in Cincinnati.
Would you trust a total stranger to shove a knife down your throat?
The Johnny Depp look alike winner.
When a big guy in a kilt asks to pose for a photo you oblige.
Two people, one furry because – well it is Furry Time in Pittsburgh.
A Powwow participant.
You can’t beat the Twins Day Parade in Twinsburg, Ohio for people watching. These two ladies married identical twins and have had children who share DNA that resembles siblings instead of cousins, as they have achieved some notoriety in the national press.
Krampus!
A subway station in Manhattan has more than 100 of these cool little statues scattered all over the place. This person was peddling some alternate newspaper as I went to take a photo of the statues.
The look of him making eye contact with the statue is fantastic.
A 1940s celebration in Cincinnati included a Rosie the Riveter contest.
Halloween Highball in Columbus
A Kona Hawaii coffee festival include dancers.
Embassy Open House in Washington DC.
Parade the Circle in Cleveland is always a great photo op.
Gaucho Festival in San Antonio de Areco, Argentina.
A Palace Guard at the Presidential Palace in Buenos Aires. Thrilled to pose for yet another photo.
Sonoita, Arizona – In the middle of field in the middle of nowhere we came across a group of people enjoying their own mediaeval times, complete with a mediaeval dog.
DÃa de Los Muertos in Tucson..
Thanks to those 100,000 people who have stopped by over the years.
The town of Bisbee is well known as an artist’s center, and the houses, stairways and artwork show it.
We went on what turned out to be a personal walking tour with Boyd Nicoll on the streets and stairways along the hills above the main street.
Boyd is a long time resident and photographer of Bisbee, as well as a leader of the local museum. His knowledge of the town added to the visual impact.
RDZ Photography 