Santa Cruz River Trail (Tucson) and some really good Chicago-style pizza

It was a non work day for me and that meant another excuse to head up to Tucson.  The annual Coronado National Forest pass goes up from $20 to $40 on the 9th and I wanted to get another pass before the price increase, even though I only use it about four times a year.  Going to Tucson also means trying out new beer and some good food.  I took Zeke and invited SteveT.  It was a fun day full of discovery.

I had read about how good Rocco's Little Chicago Pizza is (and how quirky its marquee can get.) I didn't even realize, despite 15 years of living in the area, that we had a Chicago-style pizza in town!  Reviews were nearly all five stars.  Before we hit the food, though, I needed to get my new forest pass.

Steve diverted me to Costco off the Kino Parkway in Tucson.  He wanted to check on some eye glasses.  This gave me an excuse to get an annual membership and then compare the prices to Sams Club.  We walked in at noon and the lines were out the door, but we managed and I ended up buying $167 worth of dogfood, coffee, and cream, beer, organic sugar, birdseed.  Then I made it downtown to the National Forest office on 300 W Congress, where an elderly staffer, George Mortimer, told me some stories about his former black enlistees at Fort Huachuca.  He seemed happy to have a customer to talk to, but I didn't want to hold Steve and the dogs up, who were waiting in the car.

I wanted to explore the Santa Cruz River trail near Sentinel Peak.  I had seen the trail from the summit two weeks ago on my last Tucson trip.  It looked like a nice trail to walk on, and let the dogs run down to the river for refreshment.  We parked off Silverlake Road at a trailhead parking lot and walked north, toward Sentinel Peak.  The high rises of downtown Tucson are visible from here.  There was some water in the wash, but most came from a culvert as reclaimed waiter.

While leash laws are strictly enforced on the multi-use trail, dogs are allowed offleash in the washes, under supervision.  The trouble was getting down to the wash safely.  We didn't come up to an access trail until we had walked a mile north.  Congress Avenue was still 1.6 miles away.  When we got down into the wash, what looked like water ahead was merely very soft mud.  Even the dogs were getting stuck in it.  That's when we turned around to get back to the car.  We had walked a short 2.5 miles.  Zeke's fur was warm.  He was glad for the break.  I will have to explore the river another day, when it's cooler and overcast and there is more water available.  The trail itself is level, soft, well-marked.  Surely I could use part of it while walking around Tucson and exploring historic sites?

Tucson is a top-rated bike-friendly town.  The 153 miles of multi-use trails in and around the city attest to this.  When one looks at how the Santa Cruz river feeds into town from the west, the Pantano river from the south, and the Rillito river from the north, one sees on a map how the ancient peoples settled in what became Tucson, using the low foothills of the area we walked as their agricultural base.

With shopping, walking and getting my forest pass done, the last thing on our to-do list was to visit Rocco's Little Chicago Pizzeria on East Broadway.  The building is not very big and can be easily overlooked, if it weren't for the large marquee up front.  The slogans are popular with locals as it changes often.

The shaded outdoor seating is as large as the indoor seating.  When we walked in, we felt the place has been an established eatery for quite a while., with every available wall space taken up.  The bar is small, and there are chairs outside for people on a wait list.  It does look like something I'd find in a Chicago pizzeria.  The owner, Rocco DiGrazia, came to Tuscon 30 years ago to study and ended up falling in love and staying, making very authentic deep-dish pizza instead.  We were barely seated and our server brought us a bucket of water for the dogs.  While small, the restaurant has a very inviting feel to it.  I could sit outside on a summer night and just chill.

We had a beer each and some chicken wings, and the large veggie lovers pizza soon followed.  I should have skipped the beer and gotten something lighter to drink. 

The place wasn't very busy for a Wednesday afternoon.  We didn't have to wait long for service, for food, for refills.  We both enjoyed the meal.  The crust is crispy and buttery and the toppings plentiful.

The outside heaters were turned on as we left, just as the sun set behind the building and a cold air appeared.  We both agreed we will be back to Rocco's.  The business is scheduled to relocate to a larger building a half-mile west  while Broadway will be widened to support more vehicular traffic.

Our last stop was a quick trip to Crooked Tooth Brewery on 6th Street, an area that's considered north downtown.  I had never been up here.  Buildings are warehouses and modern lowrises.  It feels very artisan. Crooked Tooth is an old factory front that is easy to miss at dusk.  The inside, however, is very inviting, dog-friendly, and spacious.  We each had one beer.  I had the 4.4% Golden Ale, a beer that would have gone well with the pizza.

While we could have tried one more brewery, we agreed it was best to just head back home.  There will be plenty of other opportunities to try other brewpubs.  Tuscon has 26 brewpubs and they are all very good.

It was a fun day, mixed with  walking, exploring, food tasting and beer sipping.  I always enjoy my time in Tucson.  I wish the city weren't so far away, so that I can take in its culture, its food and beer, more often.