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Saguaro National Park

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Vera Marie
First Reviewer
4 out of 5
Avg. Member Rating
7
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19
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Editor Pick

Saguaro National Park

  • July 27, 2007
  • Rated 5 of 5 by rubylu from Sebastopol, California
Saguaro National Park

One afternoon in Tucson, we went out to the Douglas Spring Trail at Saguaro National Park. This trail is in the east part of the park. To get to the trailhead, take Speedway Blvd. east from Tucson to the end of the road. There's a small parking lot, which was almost empty on this weekday summer afternoon. There is no visitor center or other facility at this trailhead. As always when hiking, be sure to bring plenty of water.

The park has many trails, and you can combine them for just about any length of hike. We just took a nice easy walk—we went about a mile just before sunset, then turned around and walked back.

My friends had hoped that maybe we’d see a javelina, a wild piglike animal that eats the prickly pear cactus. We didn’t, but I turned a corner and saw a rattlesnake crossing the trail. It was big, about 4 1/2 feet long. I stopped immediately--seeing one of those gives you a quick adrenalin rush. The snake didn’t seem to notice us, and took its time slithering across the path. We had to wait until it moved on, as there wasn’t an easy way around the trail.

The park is home to many kinds of cactus, including its namesake saguaro, the tall cactus with long arms pointing up. There had been some rain recently, and everything was in bloom. Walking in the desert is one on my favorite things to do, and Saguaro Park is some of the most beautiful desert I've seen. I loved every minute of our short hike.

From journal Into the Sunset

Editor Pick

Saguaro National Park

  • April 20, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by mplunkert from Centennial, Colorado
Saguaro National Park

When I learned that southern Arizona is only one of three areas in which the Saguaro (pronounced “sah WAH roe”) are found, I decided I had to see them up close and personal. (The other two areas are along the Colorado River in California and in the state of Sonora in northern Mexico.) Saguaro National Park was thus a must-see on our Tucson trip, although I was not expecting the spectacular beauty that the park offered.

Saguaro National Park is divided into two parts, Saguaro National Park West and Saguaro National Park East, flanking Tucson on either side. Each section has its own visitor center as well as plenty of picnic areas, scenic drives, and short nature trails. More serious hikers can enjoy longer treks in either part that will take them into the mountains overlooking Tucson. Trail information is available at the visitor centers. There is an entrance fee for both of the park districts. In March 2006, those fees were $10 for private vehicles and $5 for motorcyclists, bicyclists, and pedestrians. The fee is good for 1 week and can be used to visit either or both districts in that time frame. An annual pass is also available for $25. If one person in the party is at least 62 years old and a U.S. citizen and resident, the best deal is to purchase a Golden Age Passport. With proof of age and residency (driver's license or birth certificate), you can purchase a lifetime entrance pass to all the national parks for only $10.

Saguaro West is located just north of Tucson Mountain Park. A tour of this region of the park can easily be coupled with a visit to the Wildlife Museum, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, or the Old Tucson Studios, all of which lie along the way between downtown Tucson and Saguaro National Park West. The weather was chilly and rainy the day we went, so we simply enjoyed driving through Saguaro West, stopping at numerous pull-offs to hike a short way down a trail to enjoy the scenery. I did hear a woman in the visitor center telling one of the employees that they had stopped at the Sonora Desert Museum and had enjoyed a lot of really amazing exhibits, but had aborted their tour because of the weather. A stop at the visitor center is highly recommended. I learned a lot from the audio-visual exhibits, and my hard-to-fit husband was thrilled to find a cool hat in his size to protect him from the UV rays. Saguaro East, in the Rincon Mountain district, encompasses a much larger area and has many more hiking trails. The 8-mile scenic drive we took through Saguaro East was along a one-lane paved road that provided more of a sensation of driving through a forest of cacti than did the scenic drives we took through Saguaro West. Both park regions have wheelchair-accessible facilities. There are also some accommodations for the vision- and/or hearing-impaired.

From journal Spring Training in Tucson

Saguaro National Park

  • June 4, 2005
  • Rated 5 of 5 by ArnyZona from Venlo, Netherlands
Saguaro National Park

The most famous symbol of the southwest is most likely the Saguaro cactus. It is the biggest cactus in the USA. They may live up to 200 years, and a full-grown specimen can reach 50 feet in height and weighs several tons.

The town of Huston divides the park. Most people visit the west part of the park. Here you can drive the 6-mile Bajada Loop Drive. Be sure to stop at one of the short hiking trails like the Cactus Garden Trail. On one of the hills, ancient pytroglyphs of the Hohocan can be found.

The east part of the park is more secluded. The 8-mile Cactus Forest Drive winds through an old Saguaro forest. Be sure to visit one of the visitor centers for maps and tips.

From journal Tucson in 1 Day

Editor Pick

Saguaro National Park and Desert Museum

  • April 27, 2005
  • Rated 5 of 5 by JaneTamlyn from North Reading, Massachusetts
Saguaro National Park and Desert Museum

The Saguaro West park is a stunning expanse of protected saguaro cactus and other native flora outside of Tucson. It covers over 91,000 acres of land, and can be traversed by foot on marked trails, or by bike or car on the many "loop" roads (some paved, some dirt) throughout the park. Walking trails are dotted with man-made shelters of stone (many with roofs of saguaro "ribs") with tables and grills for picnics or just a rest out of the sun.

The museum building includes a small but interesting display of desert wildlife, including a javelina, rattlesnake, and several birds. The gift shop includes a number of unique items, including cookbooks using local ingredients like prickly pears and mesquite "meal" (which can also be purchased) and CDs of great "native" music that are the perfect accompaniment to those long drives through the Arizona mountains. The 15-minute slide presentation includes moving descriptions by Native Americans of the cultural and spiritual significance of the Saguaro and a dramatic ending that everyone will enjoy.

The website for the park is http://www.nps.gov/sagu/index.htm. Enjoy (but watch out for rattlesnakes!).

From journal Arizona Adventure

Editor Pick

Saguaro National Park

  • November 27, 2002
  • Rated 3 of 5 by BurliBear from Overland Park, Kansas
Saguaro National Park

A very nice drive through the desert as it actually exists. Everything growing here is just the way it would actually be if the park did not exist. The main thing the National Park Service has done is put in roads with a minimum of disruption to the desert so you can drive through and see what life in the desert is like.

There is a nice visitor center where you enter the park with a nice exhibit explaining the different types of deserts and what kind of desert is contained within the Park itself.

By the visitor center is a small walk through Desert Garden where you can see the various kinds of desert plant life up close.

The visitor center and walk through Desert Garden are free. The eight mile drive through loop costs $6.00 per vehicle unless you have one of the National Park Service's special passes, such as the Golden Eagle Pass which costs $50.00 for one year and lets you into all the Parks, or a Golden Age Passport if you are 62 or older which costs $10.00 one time and lets you visit all the parks for the rest of your life.

From journal Tucson - Day Trip from Phoenix

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