Tombstone, Arizona

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It was a perfect morning,another clear blue sky, for the short one hour drive down to the famous old west town of Tombstone, AZ. Paulette and I were both amazed to see that Tombstone has not been transferred into a casino based tourist town like Deadwood, SD, another famous old west town that we visited this past summer. In fact, walking down the main street, it seemed that they had done everything possible to keep the town as authentic as possible. No casinos, tacky tourist traps or neon signs everywhere. The store fronts and interiors were all pretty simple and basic and they still had a lot of wooden sidewalks.

From Tombstone, Arizona

From Tombstone, Arizona

It only took about an hour and a half to walk the entire length and breadth of the town as it pretty much consists of just three streets. But every street was filled with interesting shops, each with a story of it's own.

From Tombstone, Arizona

Apart from the saloons and gambling halls, it was the Silver Mine at the far end of town that was the main reason for the town’s prosperity back in the 1880’s. Tours still operate to take visitors down into the silver mine – we chose to skip that.

From Tombstone, Arizona

The O.K. Corral looks a little different from what I remember of the many TV movies I have seen that tell the story about the famous Earp vs Clanton gunfight. But, there are markers around the streets showing where the gunfight took place and where each man was killed.

From Tombstone, Arizona

Boot Hill Graveyard was also very interesting. First, it has a tremendous view out over the desert east of Tombstone. What was unique there was the wording on many of the grave markers – i.e. “Bill Jackson shot by Sherriff Fennel”, “Jack Black taken from county jail and lynched by the Bisby Mob”, “Joe Smith legally hanged…” etc. etc. Different times then for sure. Tombstone – a very small town but worth visiting for sure.

From Tombstone, Arizona

From Tombstone, Arizona

We drove back in Tucson and dropped Paulette off at one of the Bead and Gem shows near where we were staying then I went back to the RV Park. I took Mo and Molly for a walk around the dog park and then just relaxed outside in a lawn chair as it was a nice 72F and sunny.

From Tombstone, Arizona

When I picked Paulette up after she was finished at the Bead Show, she was simply overwhelmed by the displays and sales at the sites she visited. Paulette said she had never seen so many gems in one place "beads heaped up higher and higher, booth after booth after booth – it was incredible!" Table after table, about three football fields long just brimming over with all types of beads and gems. Most impressive to her were the prices – really great bargains.

From Tombstone, Arizona

Tomorrow, we plan to do a bit of sightseeing around Tucson. Paulette says she just can't go to another bead show because she's afraid of becoming addicted - we'll see! Then, I guess we’ll start to pack up and get ready for our short two hour drive up to Apache Junction, AZ on Saturday morning. We'll be staying at the Canyon Vistas Resort about 30-40 minutes from Phoenix.