Hiking in Tucson Mountain Park

HIKING TUCSON MOUNTAIN PARK

DISCOVER THE SONORAN DESERT ON TWO FEET

BY ROGER NAYLOR

Tucson Mountain Park is the sprawling backyard other cities can only dream about. The park protects 20,000 acres of pristine desert on the western edge of town. It shares the same mountain range, tall cactus forests, and lavish sunsets as neighboring Saguaro National Park. Veined with a network of easyto-access trails, Tucson Mountain Park offers a standing invitation to residents and visitors alike to come outside and play.

There are dozens of trails to choose from but here are a couple of favorites.

Yetman-Rock Wren Trails

Connecting two distant trailheads, Yetman Trail forms the long curving spine of Tucson Mountain Park. The lanky route delivers fantastic scenery with little elevation gain. Doing the whole thing as an out-and-back makes for a long day but connecting trails create other options, like a lollipop loop using Yetman and Rock Wren Trail.

From the eastern trailhead off Camino de Oeste, Yetman dips in and out of a sandy wash. Saguaros guard the surrounding hillsides in thick clusters. At just over a mile, you’ll encounter the weathered remains of a stone house, a surprising find far from civilization. Built in the 1930s, the roofless ruin is ringed by picture windows that are still filled with desert panoramas.

Clockwise from Left: The Bowen Stone House; Viewing the sunset from Starr Pass; Signs guide the way throughout Tucson Mountain Park The trail climbs a small saddle where views spill away in all directions. Rock Wren Trail enters from the right at 2.2 miles but stay on Yetman. Just past Cat Mountain, take the second junction for Rock Wren as it rises out of a wash and rambles across hills covered with some of the densest cactus groves you’ll ever find. Craggy cliffs tower overhead and the path squeezes between tall saguaros beneath a high arching sky. This feels like a Sonoran Desert cathedral. Reconnect with Yetman and follow it back to the trailhead for a 6.2-mile moderate hike that will linger in your memories for years to come.

36th Street Trail

Don’t let the name fool you. It may sound like a bus route but 36th Street Trail is a fast, fun, and easy hike. The trailhead sits at the lonely end of 36th Street, on the flank of the Enchanted Hills. Immediately, the trail bends south past a memorial bench then hugs the rocky slope of a low-shouldered ridge. Views stretch back toward the city before the trail pulls you deeper into the mountains.

An impressive stand of saguaros lines the path that stays level before dropping into an arroyo where it parallels a wide sandy wash. Watch for wildlife through this lush corridor.

You’ll pass the boundary into Tucson Mountain Park and as the trail climbs back up the slope you’re suddenly deep in the quiet outback, surrounded by rough hills and a cradling quiet. How quickly the world changes when you’ve got a backyard like this. 36th Street Trail ends after 1.5 miles at a junction with Starr Pass Trail.

Now comes the hard part. Do you turn around and amble back to the trailhead for an easy 3-mile round trip hike, or do you plunge deeper into the enticing wildness of Tucson Mountain Park?

Guided Hikes

Here’s something else to consider. JW Marriott Tucson Starr Pass Resort and Spa perches at the edge of Tucson Mountain Park and guests of the resort enjoy complimentary guided hikes each morning into beautiful Hidden Canyon.