Other area shows
The next day, I decided to use the rental car to visit shows which were beyond walking distance. First, I thought that I would drive up Sentinel Peak (“A” mountain) and take some photos of the view. However, it turned out that the gates for vehicle access would not be open until much later. (Access was completely eliminated for a couple days each week as well.)
So I headed over to the Oracle show area to check out what John E Garsow had at the RMGM show. The tent was very, very cold — there were holes high up in the walls for heater exhaust, but the heaters apparently had not materialized. I had a nice visit catching up with John and buying an assortment of rough material. Most of the other dealers in that show were mineral and fossil vendors. While not nearly as elegant as a hotel venue, RMGM appeared to have a bit higher quality material than what I saw at the 22nd street main tent.
After that I decided to check out the Casino del Sol show. It was one of the places I had not visited in previous years. It was located quite a distance from the freeway and the venue was as the name implied — a casino resort, very upscale compared to most of the hotels close to the freeway shows. My hope was to check out a dealer of cut and rough gems from Malawi. Unfortunately, that was the one booth which was empty. On the whole, it was perfect for folks who are looking for beads of any kind and findings. The quality appeared to be better and more varied than what I have seen at Gem Faire and G&LW shows. The booth numbering was confusing and the aisles were not very wide, especially since it seemed to be a well-attended event. There were also demonstrations and classes being held there during the show.
From there, it was back to the other side of the freeways, to the JOGS show. Parking was awful as usual and the floorplan seemed less well marked than before. There wasn’t a lot that interested me. A couple of possibilities to cut or recut, but not ideal. When I left the show, I thought I was going out the same door through which I had entered. But no, it wasn’t and I was lucky to locate my rental car.
Next was a quick survey of the Kino show. As always it was windy and cold there. The layout seemed a bit more organized than in previous years. In the past, I found a few equipment dealers there in addition to the many with rocks and fossils. Unfortunately, the ones I wanted to see were not there this time.
In my last couple days in Tucson, I managed to get in a couple other shows which were located away from the freeway area. One of these was the G&LW Holidome and Gem Mall show. That one has a huge parking lot with golf cart shuttles to take buyers to the front doors and multiple huge tents. In one of the tents there were a few suppliers of better quality gems and jewelry, but mostly there was a lot of beads and lower end material. Also obvious was empty space which had not been the case in previous years. Unless I hear that things have changed, it is one show I can skip in future years.
The other place I visited on my last full day in Tucson, was the Mineral City show. It was as the name implies — lots of dealers with all sorts of minerals spread over multiple buildings. It is one of several locations in off Oracle Road a bit north of the freeway show area. I saw only a little of the place, but it looks like a must for those who are mineral collectors or just like seeing some of nature’s artwork.