Tombstone
This was one of the main attractions that I wanted to see. Here was the land where some of the most legendary chapters in the history of the old west took place. The names that made that history here are legendary, and stretch across a vast span of time, as far as the Americas are concerned, anyway. They include Francisco Vázquez de Coronado, a Spanish Conquistador from the 1500's. They also include fierce native warriors, particularly the legendary Geronimo and Cochise. The natives fought until they could not fight anymore, and it was in the mountains of Cochise County where they fought the ever encroaching whites, earning a feared status in the process. The names also include Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and John Slaughter. In the 20th century, Pancho Villa became the first (and so far only) man to invade the United States, and it was in Cochise County where he crossed Mexico into Arizona, which was a new state within the United States. Woodrow Wilson responded by sending American forces into Mexico to retaliate with an invasion of his own, but the Americans never did catch Pancho Villa.
What a fascinating bit of history!
One of my guilty pleasures is the movie Tombstone. I know that it is a bit silly, and surely quite embellished, but it remains one of those movies that I pretty much watch anytime that it is on.
Cochise County essentially epitomizes the West, on so many levels. It is a land of ranching, and a land that has aspects of both greenery and the desert. It is a fairly large county, occupying a decent stretch of southeastern Arizona, and borders Mexico to the south. It is a land of mountains, and fairly strange weather, as it was significantly, even shockingly cooler here than just a couple of hours to the west, in the desert as one approached Phoenix. On the day that we visited Tombstone, the morning began to feel a bit heavy with heat, until storm clouds approached. Much like in an old western, there were storm clouds brewing and the ominous sounds of distant thunder, and it grew overcast and quite cool. I rather appreciated it, as it seemed to make the visit to an old western town feel somehow more real, more in the spirit of the visit, if you will.
This was not entirely unwelcome, as I had read online reviews of Tombstone, some people had mentioned how hot and uncomfortable they were while watching the gunfight show at the O.K. Corral. That was a bit of a worry to me. But it need not have been, because it barely broke 70 degrees Fahrenheit! In fact, as we were driving back towards Phoenix after visiting Cochise County, it dipped down to 67 degrees Fahrenheit, and there was some seriously heavy rains that caused flooding on some local roads (I believe that it was route 80, on the way to I-10). But by the time that we got maybe an hour or so west of Tuscon, the sun was blazing, and the rental's temperature gauge read 108 degrees Fahrenheit!
What a huge difference! You would never know that parts of Arizona that we had been too earlier in the day, and which were a fairly easy drive from bone dry Phoenix were facing severe flooding. On my cell phone, there were several Severe Flood Warnings. Bizarre.
Anyway, after the late night that first day there, I was kind of hoping that day two would be a little calmer. On the itinerary was possibly a chance to visit Sierra Vista, the town where we were staying. We were staying there because the hotel, with pool, was around $30! It was in close proximity to both the Mexican border, as well as to Tombstone, but was far cheaper than hotels either in Tombstone or Nogales, although the hotels in Nogales, Mexico were quite cheap as well. The only reason that I did not book a stay there was because I was not sure they would even let us in, and also, rental cars on not allowed into Mexico, which made me unsure of how to get there.
In any case, we did not get much of an opportunity to explore Sierra Vista, since it seemed like a better idea to let my son enjoy the swimming pool. He was in there for a long time, and I took a nice, lengthy swim, as well. It made my back feel great! In fact, we were able to go into swimming pools more days of the trip, for which I am glad, especially for my son's sake. But my back, and the rest of me, too, really were not complaining much, either.
After that, I took a shower, and we got going towards Tombstone. My son was excited about it, and I was glad. He and I shared an enthusiasm for some old westerns, which I had at least partially grown up with. There were plenty of reruns of old western movies on quite often, and I also grew The Legend of the Lone Ranger:
What a fascinating bit of history!
One of my guilty pleasures is the movie Tombstone. I know that it is a bit silly, and surely quite embellished, but it remains one of those movies that I pretty much watch anytime that it is on.
Cochise County essentially epitomizes the West, on so many levels. It is a land of ranching, and a land that has aspects of both greenery and the desert. It is a fairly large county, occupying a decent stretch of southeastern Arizona, and borders Mexico to the south. It is a land of mountains, and fairly strange weather, as it was significantly, even shockingly cooler here than just a couple of hours to the west, in the desert as one approached Phoenix. On the day that we visited Tombstone, the morning began to feel a bit heavy with heat, until storm clouds approached. Much like in an old western, there were storm clouds brewing and the ominous sounds of distant thunder, and it grew overcast and quite cool. I rather appreciated it, as it seemed to make the visit to an old western town feel somehow more real, more in the spirit of the visit, if you will.
This was not entirely unwelcome, as I had read online reviews of Tombstone, some people had mentioned how hot and uncomfortable they were while watching the gunfight show at the O.K. Corral. That was a bit of a worry to me. But it need not have been, because it barely broke 70 degrees Fahrenheit! In fact, as we were driving back towards Phoenix after visiting Cochise County, it dipped down to 67 degrees Fahrenheit, and there was some seriously heavy rains that caused flooding on some local roads (I believe that it was route 80, on the way to I-10). But by the time that we got maybe an hour or so west of Tuscon, the sun was blazing, and the rental's temperature gauge read 108 degrees Fahrenheit!
What a huge difference! You would never know that parts of Arizona that we had been too earlier in the day, and which were a fairly easy drive from bone dry Phoenix were facing severe flooding. On my cell phone, there were several Severe Flood Warnings. Bizarre.
Anyway, after the late night that first day there, I was kind of hoping that day two would be a little calmer. On the itinerary was possibly a chance to visit Sierra Vista, the town where we were staying. We were staying there because the hotel, with pool, was around $30! It was in close proximity to both the Mexican border, as well as to Tombstone, but was far cheaper than hotels either in Tombstone or Nogales, although the hotels in Nogales, Mexico were quite cheap as well. The only reason that I did not book a stay there was because I was not sure they would even let us in, and also, rental cars on not allowed into Mexico, which made me unsure of how to get there.
In any case, we did not get much of an opportunity to explore Sierra Vista, since it seemed like a better idea to let my son enjoy the swimming pool. He was in there for a long time, and I took a nice, lengthy swim, as well. It made my back feel great! In fact, we were able to go into swimming pools more days of the trip, for which I am glad, especially for my son's sake. But my back, and the rest of me, too, really were not complaining much, either.
After that, I took a shower, and we got going towards Tombstone. My son was excited about it, and I was glad. He and I shared an enthusiasm for some old westerns, which I had at least partially grown up with. There were plenty of reruns of old western movies on quite often, and I also grew The Legend of the Lone Ranger:
Yes, the cartoon version of the Lone Ranger. There were figures that I collected, and that Lone Ranger theme music still can stir something of the child in me at times. There was the French comic (keep in mind that I am a dual citizen of the United States and France) Lucky Luke, the fictional, fastest draw of the West cowboy. A good guy wearing a white hat, of course, and his trusty horse. There were other western movies, and I had those cheap plastic cowboys and Indians figures, which of course gave a false, distorted version of what the Wild West was all about. Later on, as a sort of spin off to the fantasy games like Dungeons and Dragons, there was a Boot Hill game that really captivated my imagination, although I never actually obtained a copy for myself. But yes, the old west, or Wild West, figured fairly prominently in my youth.
Still, it captured my fertile young imagination, this whole idea of what the Wild West was like. And now, my son was growing up with some of these same things. I had allowed him to watch Tombstone prior to the trip, and he had both long looked forward to, and thoroughly enjoyed, the Lone Ranger movie a few years back. Plus, there were other westerns that he enjoyed, such as Shanghai Noon, and possibly a few others. Add to that an unfortunate longing for and strong knowledge of guns, and he was definitely excited. I kind of knew ahead of time that he would want a toy gun coming out of this visit to Tombstone.
So indeed, the Wild West had been part of his upbringing, at least to some extent, even if the Wild West did not loom as large, in the minds of younger generations, the way it had my generation, let alone the generation of my parents.
Of course, the Wild West used to be much, much bigger in the American psyche. Enthusiasm for it had died down over the decades. Less and less movies and television shows focused on this era, and I recently heard (probably during the whole Lone Ranger movie controversy) that Westerns these days were considered toxic, almost a guarantee of box office failure.
So be it. But we were out West, and both my son and I enjoyed those old westerns. We were intrigued, particularly since we were in cactus country, in Arizona. Tombstone was the real deal. This was the quintessential small, Wild West town, where the biggest shootout in Wild West history had actually taken place. We both sensed that this was going to be fun.
Yes, there is a chance that the town overdoes it. There is no shortage of people approaching you, and essentially asking you to do this, or do that. Visit this place, for the "real" Wild West feel. Take a horse carriage ride (which I regret a bit not doing, if only for my son's sake). Take in the show at the OK Corral, to see a reenactment of the shootout (this, we did do). Visit the Birdcage Theater, which is apparently the only period building still standing from those days, without massive renovations.
If you are willing to pay, there are just a ton of places in Tombstone to visit. But when each place is asking $10 per person, and you basically have to pay $20 a pop for each thing visited, your energy and enthusiasm to visit places begins to wane, even if these have a legitimate, Old Western historical significance.
One thing we did do, since I reviewed it online in the weeks and months leading up to the trip, was the O.K. Corral reenactment. The reviews were generally positive, and it seemed to offer a lot of bang for the buck. For $10, you got to watch the show, and visit the actual site of the shootout. Also, there was a movie (it is not just a movie, however, but a rather dated "set" that elaborates on the history of Tombstone, which has earned the name of "The town too tough to die." Finally, you can visit the Tombstone Epitath, where you get a replica copy of the edition that came out covering the shootout at the O.K. Corral.
Knowing this, I made it a point for this to be our first stop in town.
We arrived just in time, too, about twenty minutes before noon. I got the tickets, then rushed to the bathroom before the show.
The show is interactive, with a good amount of audience participation. I thought that they might try and involve some individual audience members at certain points, but this did not happen. We watched the play, with the events inevitable leading up to the big shootout, which lasted perhaps ten to fifteen seconds, if that. It was incredibly quick. Also, if you are going, or plan to go, be warned that it is loud. The shots sound real, and it might be surprising the first time that you hear it. There is plenty of smoke as well. Everything is there to make the experience feel a bit more authentic, more legitimate.
Also be forewarned, the actors ask for money at the end, saying that it was a fund that was near and dear to their hearts (at this point, they all took off their hats), and suggested that it was the "Starving Artists Fund," which the actor portraying Doc Holliday suggested was a real thing. The money would go to some much needed acting lessons, which roused a reaction from the other actors portraying the Earps.
It was a fun and funny show, and my son really, really enjoyed it! He was excited, and I was able to get a nice picture of him standing next to the actors playing the "good guys." Doc Holliday is all the way on the left, and Wyatt Earp is all the way on the right, while my son is in the middle.
After the show, we looked a bit at the exhibits, which are quite informative. You learn about not just Tombstone and the O.K. Corral, but all about the beginnings of the town, including the brothels, which featured very prominently in the town's heyday. Also, you learn a lot about the Natives trying to fight back against the ever encroaching white culture, particularly emphasizing the legendary Geronimo, and the fierce Apaches.
There are plenty of picture taking opportunities everywhere you look, and my son was able to find some spent bullet shells (I'm guessing these are blanks, although I cannot say for sure).
We watched the movie and visual presentation explaining the history of the town of Tombstone (and the region more generally), and eventually went to the Tombstone Epitath, where we each got a replica copy of original newspapers. The one I chose covered the fight at the O.K. Corral, while my son chose another one, which escapes me at the moment.
Of course, we went to the O.K. Corral store, and my son was definitely eyeing the toy guns. He initially wanted one of the big shotguns, and I am glad that I managed to talk him out of it. After some debate, he settled for a smaller handgun, a Billy the Kid gun. I kept telling him that in real Old West shootouts, you needed a smaller gun to have a chance at being quicker then your opponent. Also, it would be a lot easier to pack home, when the time came. I also got him the first rocks and minerals of the trip, including some Pyrite (also know as Fool's Gold) and even a couple of bottles of very tiny fragments of real gold and silver (or so it was advertised). Got myself my first piece of petrified wood (more on that later), and some other things. Even got myself a shot glass with a crystal gun on the side, which was kind of cool for about $4.
We dropped some of the stuff off in the car, then resumed our visit to Tombstone. We went to the Birdcage Theater, although I opted out of the tour there, since I felt that we had spent enough money in the town already. Later, we went to Boothill Cemetery, although again, we remained outside of the gates, for the same reason that we did not pay at the Birdcage Theater. Maybe on the next visit, assuming there is one.
All in all, a fun day for us both, although especially for my son. This was the highlight of the trip for him. Nothing else that we did, including visiting the Grand Canyon, including the Petrified Forest, or the Indian ruins, or the mountains around Flagstaff, or the crystal clear night sky with all of the stars around Sedona, and not even all of the swimming, could compare favorably! Tombstone was his lasting memory! I was pleased that it made him so happy!
As for me, I enjoyed it, too. Admittedly, it was a bit cliché, and played up a bit. But if you like the Old West, it is also a lot of fun, and can be quite educational. Also, if you have children, or at least a son, make sure to prepare to either get your son a toy gun, or be prepared to try and talk him out of it. Plenty of candy, too!
Finally, take in some of the surrounding scenery! Some amazing fields stretching out to the distant mountains, with various specimens of cactus. Really cool, and so very western!
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