Sabino Canyon.....

Sabino Canyon is located on the northeast side of Tucson, and is actually in the Coronado National Forest. There is a small visitor center, complete with gift shop and clean modern bathrooms. A paved road goes through the park for 3.7miles, and you can either walk or take a tram ride. If you opt for the tram ride, you can get out and walk at any of the 9 different stops they make along the way. There are bathrooms at some of the stops too! (We did not take the tram, but I have to say that at this time of year, we did not see too many trams. I think one ran ever hour or so).

We wanted to hike, and talked to the ranger about different possible hikes that would be good for me us. Two young girls were asking another ranger about hikes for them, and apparently one of them was afraid of heights. The ranger said pretty loudly, "who's afraid of heights", sort of to tease the girl, and about  four of us in the room raised our hands and said "I am"....hahahhaha. It was pretty funny! Anyway, our ranger recommended the paved road for us, since it was our first time there, and, well, the height issue. She said the views would be great, and she was right. It was really nice.

the road meanders gently up for 3.7 miles

lots of cool cacti here

pretty

no cars allowed on the road

so many cacti

you can see where the river runs....with the deciduous trees changing color

the colors are particularly vivid in the desert

a shot of the river

you can't tell, but this road is going UP through the canyon

the views are amazing

a road runner!

The river runs through the canyon, and we were wondering where all the water comes from. Yes, we were in the "hills", but still...there was a fair amount of water in the river. You could see exactly where it meandered too, because that is where the beautifully colored deciduous trees were. It was so cool to see them growing with the cactus and other desert plants. Ecosystems change so quickly! Within feet! The spot we chose for lunch was at the river, and if you didn't look around too much past our "spot", you would never think you were in the desert.

there are 7 bridges on this road

sometimes the water covers the road and its flooded

oop....lunchtime!

tuna or peanut butter?

the colors of these leaves are striking! (and so are you Tom...hahahahah)

going deeper into the canyon now

The road rose steadily, on the way through the canyon. You know what that means? The way back was going to be great!!! A nice easy downhill walk. Just sayin'. Hahaha.

in the desert? you can tell exactly where the water is!

i know......

watch for those crazy bikers Tom

so pretty - with the reflection too

great views on this hike

deciduous trees and cactus together....cool!

still going up...its beautiful though....look through the canyon there

beautiful!

the views are terrific

very cool canyon

we are almost as far as the road will take us here

oh hey, here comes the tram now

these guys didn't even get out at the end of the road here

at the end of the road here

a view of the road we came up

there are also lots of hiking trails..one is along the mountain there (see the line in the middle of that mountain)

maybe next time??

oh look, that cactus is talking to us....go "that way"

another little bridge on the way back down 

is that a picture or what?

As we were finishing up our walk (7.5miles!), the skies started clouding up. It felt great....nature's air-conditioning! We admired the view of Tucson, which we could see through the mountain pass on our way back to the parking lot. If you are in the area, this is a great place to hike. Next time (?) we would like to check out some of the trails, but I have to say we thoroughly enjoyed the walk on the paved road. There was so much to look at as we were walking, and we didn't have to concentrate on where we were stepping. Just sayin'.

its starting to cloud up here

Tucson through the hills there

desert flora

great "hike" 

so pretty!

After dinner, we drove about 15 minutes to get a different view of the spectacular sunsets here in Tucson. We were on the way to Gates Pass, a popular spot for watching the sunset, when we decided to stop at Tucson Mountain Park. We stopped in a pullout and thought it was a perfect spot for us. The lighting was something else on the sides of the mountain. Once the sun set, the colors in the sky were fabulous. I really need to consider getting a wide angle lens for situations like this....I just can't capture the enormity of the sky and the beautiful colors!

Sunsets....as I always say....its the little things!!! Really!

sunset across the way

the sun has set...and the sky is gorgeous

the colors change so quickly

wish I had a wide angle lens :)

pretty sunset in the desert

the sunsets (and sunrises) are spectacular-i just can't do it justice with my pics!

end of another beautiful day in the desert