Castle Dome Mines Museum
Castle Dome Mines Museum
Yuma Visitors Bureau
New YVB Discovery Tours highlight sites to north and south of city
At 5,519 square miles in area, Yuma County is bigger than three U.S. states*, so it’s not surprising that a lot of visitors never see big swathes of its wide-open spaces.
Yuma Visitors Bureau aims to change that in 2017, with new Discovery Tours headed to “Points North” and “Points South” in the county. Tours kick off with a northbound trip Jan. 24, with a second Points North tour set for March 21. Points South tours are set for Feb. 21 and April 11.
“We want to make it easy for folks to see things they might otherwise miss, without worrying about getting lost,” said Linda Morgan, YVB executive director. “Going with a group, you can relax and enjoy and leave the details to us.”
Onboard guide for the Points North tours will be Bruce Gwynn, vice president of the Yuma County Historical Society and grandson of E.F. Sanguinetti, one of Yuma’s leading merchants and entrepreneurs.
Stops on the northern loop will include Castle Dome Mines Museum; Yuma Proving Ground Visitor Center and Wahner Brooks Display Area; and Cloud Museum. Expert guides will be on hand at each site. A sit-down lunch at Hidden Shores Resort is also included, and time permitting, the tour will stop at Imperial Date Gardens.
The tour price of $50 per person includes deluxe motor coach transportation, all entrance fees, and lunch. The Points North tours begin (8 a.m.) and end (3 p.m.) at Yuma Quartermaster Depot State Historic Park (201 N. 4th Ave.).
Morgan will be the onboard guide for the Points South tours, which follow a similar schedule but begin and end at Cocopah Casino, a tour sponsor.
First stop will be the Cesar Chavez Cultural Center in San Luis for a brief presentation on the life of the labor leader who was born and died in Yuma County. The tour will pass by the home where Chavez died, and stop at Friendship Park in San Luis for a look at the border crossing and a short talk about border and immigration issues.
Next up will be a stop at the Gadsden Museum, an eclectic private collection of artifacts and antiques from the pioneer days of this little town. Lunch will be at Main Street Café in Somerton, followed by a guided tour of the Cocopah Museum and Cultural Center, with a fry bread demonstration by a tribal elder and tasting for interested participants.
The Points South tour also costs $50 and includes transportation, entrance fees, and lunch.
“We’ve lined up some features that are only available on this tour,” Morgan said. “It should give folks a new perspective on some lesser known history and our multicultural community.”
Tickets for both Points North and Points South Discovery tours are on sale at the Visitor Information Center, 201 N. 4th Ave., by phone at 800-293-0071 or 928-783-0071, or online at VisitYuma.com.
*Yuma County is larger in area than Rhode Island, Delaware, and Connecticut.