Sonoita-Elgin, AZ

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Sonoita


In the heart of southern Arizona wine country sits a couple of little, but noteworthy towns.  Both Sonoita and Elgin are small, but offer quite a lot of things to do besides visiting the vineyards.  They are located in the picturesque Santa Cruz County with rolling hills, swanky grasslands, wildflowers, and oak trees, but no cacti.  There is an extensive diversity of activities for you to do.  You will find 9 award-winning wineries, one-of-a-kind shops, an array of restaurants, several places to stay, horseback riding, fishing, camping, scenic bicycling, boating, and many places to hike.  They are located approximately 45 minutes from places such as Tombstone, Kartchner Caverns, Bisbee, Sierra Vista, Tubac, Patagonia Lake, and Tucson.

In the early 1880’s, these locales had many cattle ranches and areas where mines have been discovered.  Each area then evolved into settlements known as Fort Buchanan and Fort Crittenden.  In 1861, Fort Buchanan was deserted because of the civil war, and Fort Crittenden followed 12 years later.  Both towns were founded in 1882 and lie next to the Santa Fe railroad and the Sonoita creek.  The region began as a mining and ranching community, but has taken on a whole different atmosphere nowadays.  In the Sonoita/Elgin Valleys, you will still see many ranches, but also there are several vineyards as well.  This is a great place for a family vacation, romance, and ladies/men’s getaways.

In the next few posts, I will give you places to stay and things to do while visiting these territories.  Some of this information will also be found on posts on my Julie Ferguson Designs blog.




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