The Rattlesnake Bridge sits over Broadway Boulevard on the way to downtown. Not only is the 280-foot-long structure rarely seen being used, but the snake’s eyes light up at night and the rattler contains a sensor that goes off when you cross it. It seems a little un-strategically placed, but the very least, the bridge is interesting and something you have to check out in Tucson.
What was once one of the novelties at Magic Carpet Golf on Speedway Boulevard, now resides at The Hut on Fourth Avenue. The Tiki Head, roughly 55,000 pounds, has been around for the past 40 years. When the head was moved in 2008, crowds gathered and the Tiki Head move was continually the topic of conversation. This chunk of Tucson’s whimsical history can be seen all along Fourth Avenue.
Speeding down Speedway Boulevard, you might catch a glimpse of a buffalo on a roof.
Copper Country Antiques houses this buffalo, and if you check back from time to time, you may notice the buffalo changes colors and themes. The buffalo may make more sense when you realize that within the antique store is the Buffalo Bistro. Antiques, food and colorful buffalos — who could want more quirk than that?
Tucson may be home of the Wildcats, but it’s also home to an axe-less lumberjack. On the corner of Stone Avenue and Glenn Street stands 18-foot-tall Paul Bunyon. He’s been around for so long that people can’t remember when he first settled here. He sticks out like any 18-foot man would, having no relevance to the shops around him. He still stands there smiling nevertheless. Bunyon is just another novelty that Tucsonans have grown to love.
Although campus has been the stomping ground for numerous movies, including “”Revenge of the Nerds”” and “”A Kiss Before Dying,”” other parts of Tucson have also caught directors’ eyes. The Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, better known as the airplane graveyard, which was featured in some Tom Petty music videos as well as “”Transformers,”” is an interesting piece of Tucson history. The acres upon acres of decrepit planes, jets and parts are an awesome sight to see. Even if you don’t have an interest in these air vehicles, just to be in the same place as some rock or movie stars is kind of surreal. But even that pales in comparison to the massive yard.
