I’ve apparently dissuaded at least one reader from visiting Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, after he read my blog post yesterday that it was listed in the book “101 Places Not to Visit.” But there are plenty of other options for great hiking and beautiful desert landscapes in Tucson and Southern Arizona. Here are a few:
Saguaro National Park – This huge park west of Tucson looks like the set of an old western – and in fact an old movie lot there has been turned into a tourist attraction (which I’ve avoided.) You expect to see cowboys and Indians (okay, Native Americans) racing down the mountains when you drive through. Lots of good hiking trails and the wonderful Desert Museum.
Chiricahua National Monument – this is about two hours, as I recall, east of Tucson and it’s full of bizarre rock formations that you can hike right through, up and around. Well worth a visit. This from the monument’s websites: “The Apaches called this place ‘The Land of Standing-Up Rocks’, a fitting name for an extraordinary rock wonderland. Early pioneers in the late 1800s sensed the unique beauty and singularity of the rock formations in the area. They were instrumental in persuading Congress to protect this ‘Wonderland of Rocks’…
There are approximately twelve thousand acres of wild, rugged terrain within which the rock formations and a great ecological diversity are protected.”
Pichacho Peak State Park – never been but heard it’s nice, especially during wildflower blooming months
Catalina State Park – this is a sentimental favorite right near my father’s house, some nice easy trails and a trail I’ve always wanted to take to Mount Lemmon. Speaking of which, that’s another place to visit, weather permitting.
TakeBetsywithyou 