Picnic at Parker Canyon Lake 11 June 2016 - Photos

Photo: C.Huber

We did not have any our our Italian cars on the road for this event, but those that attended still had a great time!

We met at the Vail Steakhouse Cafe & Diner for coffee and then traveled south on AZ-83 to Sonoita with Dave K./Chuck in a Jeep and Axel/Dave C. in a Porsche Cayenne (nice!).  In and around Sonoita we encountered an early monsoon storm where Dave K. and Chuck got a little wet in the Jeep but dried off quickly as the storm was short and the roads dried up with partly cloudy skies and balmy temperatures all the way to the lake.  When we arrived at the lake we found the grounds moderately occupied as we were unaware that there were events taking place corresponding with National Get Outdoors Day.  There were exhibits and displays set up by the Sierra Vista Ranger District of the Coronado National Forest, the local offices of Arizona Game & Fish, National Parks Service, and The Nature Conservancy, along with several other local agencies and outdoor groups.  We were fortunate to grab a couple of parking spots by the boat ramp.  We even found a nice picnic table in the shade just up the hill with a view of the lake.  Everyone broke out their lunch and talked about cars and adventures they've had.  After lunch we took a tour through the exhibits. Chuck tried on a boa at the snake exhibit put on by the Huachuca Area Herpetology Association.  

Chuck and "friend."

After checking out the exhibits we started our next leg of the run with a trip to Lightning Ridge Cellars where we sampled wine, heard about the adventures of buying cars in Europe and taking a tour of wineries in Napa Valley, California.  We also met the winery's new resident greeter, Monte, named after the popular Montepulciano wine offered by the winery.

Lightning Ridge Cellars' "Monte" (4 months old - look at the size of those feet!)

On the way to the winery Chuck had spotted what appeared to be a new winery or brewery.  We back-tracked just a bit to check it out and learned that it is a microbrewery that just opened up named Copper Hop Ranch.  A couple of the group tried out a beer and we sat on the small deck and talked more about our various adventures with cars.  We departed mid-afternoon and headed back towards Tucson via AZ-83 and split up going our separate ways at the I-10 interchange.

A few more pictures of the event are available >here.<
Pictures of the event from the Southern Arizona Pantera Club can be found >here.<