Cape to Milan

The mountainous, vineyard-filled region of the Mountain Empire is a self-reliant liberal’s paradise.

We stopped in Patagonia, home to 800 very positive people, per the rules in the town center.

The local Pilates studio.

The old train station in the town center.

One of my favorite Arizonan acronyms.

It almost seems like an imaginary place, doesn’t it?

The surrounding mountains make for postcard-perfect shots.

The town is close to an idyllic nature reserve, chock full of nature vistas and enormous trees.

We spotted some mule deer…

lizards…

…and plenty of birds.

On the way back to Tucson, we tuned in to the local radio station, KPUP 100.5 (a Lonely Planet guidebook suggestion)–a fluid mix of jazz, rock, and random that keeps the road trip through the Mountain Empire as pleasant to the ears as to the eyes.