Wife and I just returned from an impromptu picnic lunch at Agua Caliente Park on the east side of Tucson. It’s yet another bright & sunny 70° day, so why not?

Being a weekday there were not many folks there; I think the humans were outnumbered by the well-behaved resident mallard population lounging about the grounds and shoreline. The park was very clean and orderly, and we enjoyed the hour or so we spent there eating  our lunch.

I can’t get over the weather here. In the ten days since we arrived there’s only been one day that was not bright and sunny, and even that day it was still good enough to be out and about. And over the last week it’s progressively become warmer, consistently hovering around that 70° mark. Although the locals are still dressing for their winter, I broke out the shorts and summer shirts a few days ago.

Except on the trails. Everything out there wants to stab or scratch you, so the long pants prevail, as do the hiking boots. I’ve been on several treks since the last post, most notably a hike up Saddleback Mountain with Youngest Son last Friday. Saddleback is located in the Sabino Canyon Recreation Area managed by the US Forest Service. It’s a very popular hiking area, and when we were there the parking lot was full. It reminded me of the lot at the Hull Cove Visitor Center at Acadia National Park during the height of summer.

Regardless, Son and I saddled up that sunny morning and hit the trails. Specifically Bear Canyon Trail => Phoneline Trail => Beckett Ridge Trail and on up to the peaks of Saddleback. It wasn’t an especially difficult walk, but we did gain about 2000 feet of elevation in the three miles going up. 

The initial walk was along what I’d call a dirt road, and that led onto an actual paved road for a time. At roughly the 1 mile mark a “real” trail headed towards the mountain. Shortly thereafter we turned onto Beckett Ridge Trail and the ups began in earnest.

The well-done switchbacks heading up took a lot of the edge off the elevation gain, but it was still a good workout. One of the downsides to hiking out here is you are never out of the sun. And the sun does take its toll, even in the winter. It is quite different from hiking through the cool, green forests of the Appalachians. 

The trade off are the incredible views. Little elevation is needed.

The actual peak wasn’t reached until several false ones were skirted, but when you do finally get there the view was pretty fantastic. The shear drop-off into Sabino Canyon to the east induced a bit of wobbly-knee for me. The mountains in the distance were striking, as always.

Just as we started down the mountain Son spotted a deer crossing the trail- bonus!

We hoofed it down the trails much faster than we did going up, and didn’t pass as many people as I thought we would when starting. I guess most chose different, perhaps less demanding activities offered at the canyon. We did see a shuttle, or trolley cruising back and forth on the canyon floor road while up on the hill. Once back to the Transcontinental Jeep we returned back to Son’s house on the other side of Tucson. It only took an hour to drive the 23 miles.

Though I’ve managed to fit in quite a lot of trekking so far, there have been other explorations. Wife and I visited the Cathedral of St. Augustine in downtown Tucson while out and about. On that same trip we found a fantastic and authentic Italian market, Roma Imports, where we bought the appropriate supplies to build a lasagna. 

Tucson is known as a foodie town, and that is an attraction, at least for me. While out here last October I sampled a few local eateries, and during this extended stay I hope to discover more. We started off in the right direction last Saturday night having an excellent dinner at Hana Tokyo, not too far from here. Son & I opted for the Sushi & Sashimi Combo, while Wife enjoyed the Teriyaki Salmon. All of the food was great, and the service was on the mark as well.

I’ll close out this post with a link to a short video I made of a different hike last week, one up The Soldier Trail. I enjoyed that one a lot.

That’s it until next time. Thanks for dropping by.