For two weeks in January we hiked the trails around Tucson, Arizona. The city is an excellent base for winter hiking: daytime temperatures were in the 60’s and we used just nine gallons of gas driving our rental car to nearby trailheads.
Sabino Canyon Recreation Area
On our first full day, we hiked an in-and-out trail for much the day through the Sabino Canyon Recreation Area, turning around at the Instagram-worthy Seven (water) Falls. During the next two weeks I took way too many cactus pictures.Another day we hiked the Santa Catalina Mountains above Tucson to a height where fewer cacti roam.
Saguaro National Park East
We hiked trails of nearby Saguaro National Park East (named after the tall cacti) several times during our stay.Cactus face.Looking across the entire city of Tucson towards the mountains of Saguaro National Park West.
Saguaro National Park West
Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.Layers of desert, mountain, and sky from a trail in Saguaro National Park West.We stayed one night in this lodge to avoid driving and to enjoy the nearby national park over two days.
Around Town
The city is surrounded by a walking/cycling path. On the day we arrived we walked part of the path before checking into a VRBO rental apartment.One day, we explored Tucson on foot, bike, and streetcar.The Tucson Botanical Gardens made a change of pace from our desert hikes..We found many coffee shops and restaurants in Tucson that we liked, all locally owned.On our drive back to Tucson TUS we glimpsed the largest aircraft boneyard in the world, housing almost 4,000 carefully lined up military planes.
