Spring trip to the desert, mainly to visit Saguaro National Park. The park has a west and east section, with Tucson in between the sections. Main feature of the park is the Saguaro Cactus, the tall pipe cactus which is the main icon of the American desert.
I stayed at Country Inn and Suites, near downtown Tucson. This hotel is about 30 minutes from each section of Saguaro National Park. Great weather during my trip - sunny skies and temperatures ranging from 50-84F.
My rental car is a Ford Mustang. At night, the Mustang logo lights up near the door when I unlock the vehicle.
There is Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, near the west section of Saguaro National Park. This museum is more like an outdoor zoo, featuring lots of animals found in the desert. There are also several gardens with cacti and flowers. A popular spot is the raptor free flight, where many people gather to watch birds fly. The type of birds vary each day - when I visited we saw several caracaras and falcons.
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| Burrowing owl |
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| Minerals in Arizona produce colorful rock. Reminds me of Artist Palette in Death Valley. |
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| Mountain lion |
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| Lizard |
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| Caracara at the raptor flight |
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| Falcon |
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| Bighorn sheep |
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| River otter |
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| Prickly pear cacti (round shape) and pipe cacti (tube shaped) |
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| Bobcat |
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| Coyote |
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Crested caracara
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| Ocelot |
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Macaw
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The west section of Saguaro National Park has a higher saguaro cactus density, with opportunities to get close to the cacti. I hiked in the cactus garden near Red Hills Visitor Center and the Valley View trail which has overlooks.
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| Saguaro cactus can grow over 40ft tall. |
Watched the sunset at Gates Pass. The mountains turn a bright orange color at sunset.
The East side of Saguaro National Park is inside mountains. There are lots of mountain trails with pine and conifer trees. I hiked part of the Cactus Forest trail, to a dried falls. Also climbed the Javalina rocks.
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| Rope cactus |
