THE PERFECT WEEKEND IN SAGUARO NATIONAL PARK

Eating lunch at a great Mexican restaurant and hiking a remote crown jewel of a trail are typically not things you can do in the same day, but Saguaro National Park is the rare exception. The park’s two districts, protecting large swaths of the wild Sonoran Desert, flank the Tucson metro area — and in between is some of the best dining in Arizona.

Day 1
Start your weekend in the park’s 24,000-acre Tucson Mountain District, on the west side of Tucson, with a sunrise ramble through a forest of saguaros on the Desert Discovery Nature Trail. Like many paths and picnic areas in the park, this half-mile trail is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, so people of all abilities can experience the Sonoran Desert. “You can get so up close and personal with the saguaros on this trail that you can feel the heat coming off of them,” says Cam Juarez, the park’s community engagement and outreach coordinator. Juarez has a congenital heart defect and has made it his mission to increase the park’s accessibility.

Next, take a short drive to the Signal Hill Picnic Area. Enjoy a picnic breakfast, then scramble up a short path to view boulders covered with 800-year-old petroglyphs. Finish off the morning with a hike through more recent history on the 2.4-mile King Canyon/Gould Mine Loop, which is Juarez’s favorite west-side trail. While this route is located almost entirely in the park, the trailhead is just outside the park boundary, on Kinney Road in the adjacent Tucson Mountain Park. Start on the Gould Mine Trail, which climbs a gentle incline to ruins of an old copper mine. Then, pick up the Sendero Esperanza and King Canyon trails to complete the loop. As you descend a desert wash, take in the expansive views of the Tucson Mountains and saguaro-filled Avra Valley.

After an action-packed morning, head 30 miles across town to the park’s Rincon Mountain District. But first, stop for lunch at one of Tucson’s many authentic Mexican restaurants. Juarez, a lifelong Tucson resident, recommends Teresa’s Mosaic Cafe for chicken mole and fresh tortillas made right in the dining area.
 

The Rincon district is the oldest part of Saguaro National Park, established in 1933 by President Herbert Hoover to protect the abundant stands of saguaros from urban development and cactus poaching. The park’s 67,000-acre east side sits at a higher elevation than the west side and offers a range of ecological zones, from lush Sonoran Desert all the way up to Douglas-fir habitat high in the Rincon Mountains. Begin your tour of the east side on the 8-mile Cactus Forest Drive. This loop was built in the late 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps and has plenty of strategically placed viewpoints and picnic areas overlooking lush bajadas filled with saguaros, ocotillos and paloverdes. It takes about 10 years for the slow-growing saguaro to reach just 1 inch in height, and reaching 25 feet can take a century.

When you’re done contemplating the amazing fact that these forests of towering saguaros existed long before modern-day Tucson, take the spur road off Cactus Forest Drive to the Mica View Picnic Area for a rest stop. And near the end of the loop drive is the Javelina Rocks pullout, an excellent place to watch a panoramic Sonoran Desert sunset.

Day 2
While Saguaro National Park does not have developed campgrounds, it does offer one of the best backpacking experiences in Southern Arizona via the Tanque Verde Ridge Trail. The 11-mile trail, which begins at the Javelina Picnic Area, follows part of the ridge of the same name, which climbs from 3,100 feet at its western end to 8,668 feet on the Rincons’ Mica Mountain. On the trail, you experience many of the ecological zones present in Southern Arizona, from desert to grassland to pine forest. And the higher you get, the more you feel like you’re looking out an airplane window at the sprawling Tucson Basin, surrounded by distant mountain ranges. Hiking 7 miles (one way), to Juniper Basin Campground, with 3,000 feet of elevation gain along the way, makes for an excellent overnight trip. (Camping permits are required.)

If you’re not up for backpacking, Juarez recommends a 6.4-mile loop hike that includes historic Garwood Dam. The route begins at the Douglas Spring Trailhead. Follow the signs to Garwood Dam, a relic of the park’s ranching days. The trail then climbs a ridge as you wander through one of the densest saguaro forests in the park. As you circle back toward the trailhead, enjoy sweeping views of the Santa Catalina Mountains to the north.
 

Eat + Sleep

5 Points Market and Restaurant
756 S. Stone Avenue, Tucson; 520-623-3888
5pointstucson.com

Baja Café
7002 E. Broadway Boulevard, Tucson; 520-495-4772
bajacafetucson.com

Ball-Paylore House
Tucson
preservetucson.org/ball-paylore-house

Charro Steak
188 E. Broadway Boulevard, Tucson; 520-485-1922
charrosteak.com

Divine Bovine
1021 N. Wilmot Road, Tucson; 520-203-8884
divinebovineburgers.com

Gourmet Girls
5845 N. Oracle Road, Tucson; 520-408-9000
gourmetgirlsglutenfree.com

La Mesa Tortillas and Tamales
7823 E. Broadway Boulevard, Tucson; 520-298-5966
lamesatortillas.com

Lodge on the Desert
306 N. Alvernon Way, Tucson; 520-320-2000
lodgeonthedesert.com

Prep and Pastry
2660 N. Campbell Avenue, Tucson; 520-326-7737
prepandpastry.com

Reilly Craft Pizza and Drink
101 E. Pennington Street, Tucson; 520-882-5550
reillypizza.com

Renee’s
7065 E. Tanque Verde Road, Tucson; 520-886-0484
reneestucson.com

Rincon Creek Ranch
14545 E. Rincon Creek Ranch Road, Tucson; 520-760-5557
rinconcreekranch.com

The Hub Restaurant and Creamery
266 E. Congress Street, Tucson; 520-207-8201
hubdowntown.com

Union Public House
4340 N. Campbell Avenue, Tucson; 520-329-8575
uniontucson.com

White Stallion Ranch
9251 W. Twin Peaks Road, Tucson; 520-297-0252
whitestallion.com