Hitting the Trails in Tucson Mountain Park

Our RV park, Justin's Diamond J, is right next door to the approximately 60 miles of trails in Tucson Mountain Park. Perfect for us outdoor lovin' types!  Here's what the last few days have looked like...

I never get tired of saguaros so you might as well get used to seeing pics of them!
This many-armed cactus must have had one really good year to sprout so many arms in one area.
This specimen lives in the area immediately behind our rv park.

Even the dead ones can be fascinating!
This one looks like it's wearing a very old, very stretched out sweater.

One day we biked from the rv park to the Gilbert Ray campground in TMP.
Wonderful rolling hills among the lush desert plants...though one had to be very careful of the cactus!

Spotted a young crested cactus! This was probably about half a mile South of the  Old Tucson Studios,
perhaps on the Avery Bryce or Mariposa trails.  The trails were not well marked in this area.

We hiked a 5.5 mile loop from the Sarasota trail head, using the Starr Pass and Yetman trails. We hiked the loop counterclockwise which made for a long and fairly easy climb, with a short and pretty steep with loose rocks, descent. Good variety of terrain and excellent views on this loop, plus a couple of crested saguaros! We were really glad we had cloudy skies during the uphill portions of this hike!

Heading into the foothills near the beginning of the trail.

Hans thought the chollas were good enough to eat!

Wonderful crested beauty on the right side of the Yetman trail through the wash section.

Part of the Starr Pass portion of the trail follows a ridge line with a steep drop off overlooking SE Tucson.

Another crested saguaro right by the parking area.

We've had some great sunsets lately too. 

The last rays of  sun cast a beautiful glow on the the mountains behind the rv park.

Need I say more?