Tucson, AZ?

It's a dry heat.

Right now I wouldn't want to be messing around within 30 miles of the border. I did see a lot of Mexican license plates in town last weekend and a lot of well heeled Mexican familys doing thier Christmas shopping. These were all well dressed and mannered family groups all out for a good time all from across the line and carry valid border crossing ID's.
Tucson has an old and rich Hispanic culture and if you are put of by sometimes feeling the minority then beware.

Lot's of good camping areas and outdoor activities to the north of Tucson.

Cartels controlling parts of the state? You must be confusing AZ with Afghanistan...or maybe Colombia....

Come on down and have a good time, enjoy the weather but, make sure that you are "prepaired".

sernv99, no, not a joke, signs were put up in various places by fed.gov warning US citizens to stay out of areas practially ceded to the cartels. Vekal Valley, about 40 miles from me, is known for bandits who prey on drug smugglers, and the cartels are rumored by law enforcement to have sent neforceres in to clean up the bandits. Go figure.
Does it affect day to day living? No. Could it? Possibly, depending on your activites and location, but I wouldn't reccomend hiking down on the border at night.
Tucson does have a very rich Hispanic culture mix, good resteraunts, and a bunch of great museums and sightseeing close to hand, including Colossal Cave, Karchner Caverns, Sabino Canyon, Saguaro National Monument, The Desert Museum, (MUST SEE!), Biosphere II, Tucson Rifle Club...well, it's not on most sightseeing lists, but for shooters it should be!
I don't know if the Gaslight Theatre is still in business - that place was a riot.

armoredman said:

I don't know if the Gaslight Theatre is still in business - that place was a riot.

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I think it is, though it's probably changed companies a bunch of times since I worked there in 1989. Came back from summer work too late to enroll in the U that fall, so I did whatever came up, stage hand was one thing that came up.... man the pay was awful!

I don't notice or hear about any excessive degree of crime for a city the size of Tucson. Moved in 2005, but mom still lives there so I visit several times a year and still talk to a lot of friends. I've no doubt one could find trouble if they went looking, but I don't remember any part of town that felt especially rough compared to bigger cities.

I've heard crazy stuff about the border areas around Cabeza Prieta Wildlife Refuge, Organ Pipe NM, and the Barry Goldwater Gunnery Range. Pretty un-populated over there, so it tends to get a lot of traffic. I don't think the other border areas are quite as bad, though I probably wouldn't wander around un-armed like I do elsewhere in the desert.

Slash K is a fine place for reloading stuff. They also reload for Tucson PD. It's a big operation in a small place. Out back there's a cement mixer full of walnut shells polishing brass! Murphy's is excellent, so is Diamondback Police Supply. As for the border, I live in the southeast corner of AZ 4 miles from it. We have no problems to speak of, occasional illegals passing through looking for work.

HOWEVER, don't go wandering around east of Douglas at night, or on the southside of the Huachua Mountains, or northwest of Nogales, for that matter. Confine your hiking to the daytime.

Open carry, sure, perfectly legal, but why would you want to? Are you making a statement? Sure, but what exactly is it? I'm a former LEO and I don't want anyone to know I'm carrying. Let's say you're in a Circle K doing your open carry and suddenly three guys barge in with guns. Obviously, they're not nice folks. When they see you with your big-assed 1911 on your hip you're a clear threat to accomplishing their goal, which is to rob the place, and so Pop, Pop, Pop, and it's lights out for you.

Which is why I don't OC.

Yes it is;

www.thegaslighttheatre.com/

I agree with exdetsgt. As much as I support your right to OC, you need the element of surprise that concealed carry gives you.

Wankerjake: do you remember who it was that gave you a hard time? And what was it about?

Good information, folks. Me and the wife drive over to Tucson periodically from NM to visit relatives and I always want to know where the better gun shops are...

Really enjoyed Jensens. Guess they got into legal troubles?

Take care,



M

A guy I went to college with is a ranger (or whatever) at Organ Pipe. I haven't stayed in touch, but another friend has. I'll ask about some first hand info if you like.

With the change in Federal carry rules for NM's last year, you should be able to carry at Organ Pipe, though I'm not sure if the AZ concealed carry rule applies as well. I wouldn't avoid going personally, just might not camp overnight.

Chiricahua National Monument is probably my favorite in the state
http://www.nps.gov/chir/index.htm

I have a friend who camps regularly in Organ Pipe with his wife. They've never had a problem.

You have my sympathies as I have learned that no good thing comes from Tucson, Arizona.

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