Nogales to Tucson

When we drove to Patagonia Lake State Park from Picacho Peak State Park we travelled on I-10 to the scenic route down Arizona #82 and #83.  Today, our GPS directed us to continue south to Nogales and pick up I-19 up to Tucson.  At first we were going to retrace our steps, but then thought that going to Nogales would give us the opportunity to see new territory and, I'm glad we did.

Nogales is larger than I thought it would be and sprawls in all directions on either side of the border. The most interesting aspect for me were the truck docks and distribution centers, mostly produce, that line I-19 on either side of the road for several miles northward. Most of the trucks that travel through Nogales have Mexico license plates from Sonora. They don't seem to travel very far north of Nogales, but then the lines of US trucks begin. When we were at Picacho Peak State Park, I-10 was about three miles away and we could see the highway from the campground. All day, and all night too, streams of trucks passed by on the six-lane interstate. Now I think I know what they are hauling, the fresh fruits and vegetables from Mexico and So. America to stock the shelves of US supermarkets.

The scenery between Nogales and Tucson continued the basin and range theme.

We also had to pass through a Border Check-point.

By this point there were very few Mexican trucks.

Interestingly, all the highway signage, from distance markers to highway signs, recorded the distance in kilometers. Not the speed limit signs, though.

Mountains outside of Tucson.