A grand abundance of bird life and a visual feast of scenery lure visitors to the hamlet of Portal and nearby Cave Creek Canyon. ...
You could take a hike in an average canyon — or trek across the incomparable Grand Canyon from rim to rim. ...
Miller Peak is as high as you can go in the Huachuca Mountains south of Sierra Vista. ...
Two words will give you a pretty good idea of how tough it is to pedal a bicycle up the Catalina Highway near Tucson: Lance Armstrong. ...
Find the trailhead at the end of a short road into the Gordon Hirabayashi Recreation Site....
Hike up Piestewa Peak in Phoenix and you're likely to give your social skills as much of a workout as your legs. ...
The Sweetwater Trail, in Saguaro National Park's western unit, begins at the western end of El Camino del Cerro and winds in sweeping switchbacks into the heart of the Tucson Mountains. ...
A short stretch of the scenic Bluff Trail in Sabino Canyon proved to be the perfect path one day recently....
This blade of stone, stabbing at the sky along Interstate 10 between Tucson and Phoenix, all but cries out to passing motorists: ...
Snow-plastered summits, primeval forests, Buddhist shrines and colorful festivals make the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan a dream destination for trekkers. ...
A bird lands on a limb. You look at it. ...
Someday you might wake up and say to yourself: I feel like walking across the entire state of Arizona! ...
Call it seasonal synchronicity. It's the pleasing practice of choosing outdoor destinations to fit particular seasons....
ORACLE — The pavement peters out after about three miles, and the road goes to dirt. ...
The good thing about the first half-mile of the Soldier Trail is that you don't have to negotiate a bunch of boring switchbacks....
It's easier than ever to appreciate the natural splendor of Saguaro National Park East. ...
Most of us think we've achieved something when we hike trails. Mark Flint? He blazes them. Flint, an avid hiker and mountain biker, is leading volunteers in building a new segment of the cross-state Arizona Trail southeast of Tucson.Of the 25-mile trail segment, Flint says: "People will be enjoying it long after I'm moldering in the ground, forgotten. And that's fine with me." ...
SONOITA CREEK STATE NATURAL AREA — Here, human beings come second....
Moniqua Lane and Lexis Mazerski ambled down the David Yetman Trail as the last rays of day bathed ridges of the Tucson Mountains in golden light. ...
When the urge to stride right up the spine of a mountain strikes, many Tucson hikers head for the Tanque Verde Ridge Trail....
Sylvia Hardt and her dog, Dusty, ambled past the horse corrals, over the footbridge and along the creek. ...
We're not here to tell you it's a sin to stuff yourself silly at Thanksgiving dinner. ...
The world's top rock climbers move like lithe spiders up dead-vertical, almost glass-smooth cliffs — but most climbers are "weekend warriors" with more modest skills. ...
KITT PEAK — Below you: a vast expanse of magnificent mountains and distant deserts. Above you: Pretty much the rest of the universe. ...
Ron Kauk, 49, a renowned rock climber known for his far-out-on-the-cutting-edge ascents in Yosemite Valley and elsewhere, is in Tucson this week....
If you love to move like the wind through juniper woodlands and rolling rangeland, you might want to mountain bike the Bellota Trail. ...
RIO RICO — Carmen Friedman stepped two-and-a-half centuries into the past, peered at a crumbling adobe wall and found a faint sign of faith. ...
Birds, as far as we know, can't read. ...
For a fun hike in autumn, consider Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park, near Superior, where the fall color is sublime this month and where there's a music festival Saturday. ...
No need to ponder how the Finger Rock Canyon Trail got its name. ...
A new state natural area near Patagonia opens officially on Friday — and you're invited to join in dedication ceremonies, a bird-watching walk, a horseback ride and other activities. ...
Sometimes we're blasé about the beauty in our own backyard. Exhibit A: Pima Canyon. ...
Your fitness program is in ruins. ...
EMPIRE RANCH — You've heard the song. Now visit the place: a genuine home on the range. ...
Babad Do'ag is one of those trails that is a bit boring in the beginning and way better at the end. ...
A historic Downtown site — which someday might house offices and rehearsals of Arizona Opera — has long echoed with music and the dialogue of live theatrical performances. ...
The Tucson Valley, soon to hit a population of 1 million, is hardly ideal habitat for wildlife — but one spot on the East Side is a splendid exception. ...
It will take you to no cloud-shrouded summits or hidden desert canyons, but the Rillito River Park Trail offers one magnificent advantage: It's convenient. ...
Let it rain. And rain. And rain some more. ...
BISBEE — For 95 years, the purpose and prosperity of this town in the Mule Mountains of Southeastern Arizona could be smelted down to a single word: copper. ...
Learn to make your own holiday greeting cards. ...
Sometimes a name paints a perfect picture of a place. ...
Crisp alpine air, golden leaves and strains of Oktoberfest music sing out the season on a trail high in the Catalina Mountains: ...
Picture a typical autumn day in Tucson: The temperature plummets into the 80s, a saguaro needle flutters to the ground, and the gravel of your "lawn" shows no sign of withering because, hey, it's gravel....
Windy Point Vista in the Catalina Mountains makes a fine stop if you just want a quick, glorious view — but the overlook is also a good starting point for a rocky ramble. ...
The McCain Loop Road is not a direct route to anywhere. ...
Elizabeth Jackson — with muscles flexed and mind focused — pinches a tiny handhold high on a wall at the Rocks and Ropes climbing gym. ...
You might sense something in the air as you walk along the banks of Madera Creek, treading here and there on yellow-brown leaves shed by sycamore trees. ...
A hike up Blackett's Ridge covers 6.2 miles round-trip — including an approach walk from Sabino Canyon — and gains nearly 1,700 feet in elevation....
The rich cultures and vibrant arts of Tucson-area Indian tribes are the focus of a new traveling ARTSmobile exhibit for schools. ...
Some hiking routes reveal their good views only after you've plodded for miles to reach an airy overlook. ...
Kiley Parrish, at the tender age of 20 months, has learned something wonderful about the University of Arizona campus. ...
Live in the moment. ...
Meditation. ...
The classic desert terrain of the King Canyon Trail in Saguaro National Park West is perfect for a winter hike. ...
Sometimes we hurry right past the good stuff. ...
Bill Borland, at the age of 64, might be at the perfect time of life to enjoy a nice round of golf. Some tennis, perhaps. Or bird-watching. Maybe a bit of casual gardening. ...
You've heard that bit about "the journey is more important than the destination."
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Baseball diamonds, soccer fields and a three-quarter-mile exercise path create a green and inviting recreational haven at Silverlake Park. ...
ORACLE — You don't often come across an old Arizona ranch house in Mediterranean-revival style accented with Moorish influences. ...
It's still a deep-cut, saguaro-studded slice of paradise on the edge of our daily lives — but flood-struck Sabino Canyon will never be the same. ...
Trails around Tucson — scorched by fires and scoured by floods — can lead unwary hikers into real-life episodes of "Lost" or "Survivor." ...
Next time you want to travel to a land of fascinating cultures, vibrant languages and beautiful landscapes, you might take Anne O'Brien's advice: Stay right here in Arizona. ...
You won't need Tour-de-France bicycling skills — or performance-boosting drugs, for that matter — to enjoy a ride in the Rincon Valley. ...
Some of us leave a lasting legacy on the landscape — a legacy of litter. ...
Sky-scraping sycamore trees and old gnarly oaks shade the forest floor around Bog Springs. ...
Monarch butterflies might look like fragile little flutterers — but they're actually winged dynamos known to fly hundreds to thousands of miles on annual migration journeys. ...
You're cruising up the Catalina Highway — salivating for a fat sandwich or a huge piece of pie in the mountain village of Summerhaven northeast of Tucson. ...
Three books celebrating Southwestern landscapes — a canyon, a desert and a grassland — will be featured at a free "Tribute to the Southwest" event Saturday in Tucson. ...
Some trails in Sabino Canyon seem fit mainly for mountain goats — but the very short, flat Bajada Loop Nature Trail is perfect for everyday folks in search of a scenic stroll. ...
Frank Fields casts his line into the tranquil waters of Kennedy Lake — inviting fish to sample baits of night crawlers, shrimp and hot dogs. ...
They call it the "crest quest." Tucsonans Bob Cardell and Pat Hammes spend their weekends journeying deep into the deserts of Southern Arizona in search of rare crested saguaro cacti. ...
You might see butterflies along the Butterfly Trail — but a glimpse of fluttering beauty is just one of many pleasures for those who trek the route. ...
You might look at some of Robert Adams' photographs and turn away in disgust. He won't mind. He wasn't going for pretty. ...
Centuries ago, Indians known today as the Hohokam pecked pictures of animals, human-like figures and spiral designs on rock faces northwest of Tucson. ...
They weigh about as much as a penny, hover like helicopters and then dart through the air like tiny jets on a mission. ...
HUMPHREYS PEAK — ...
MADERA CANYON — Beth Kipper peered through a high-powered spotting scope at a bird-watcher's prize. ...
One need not be a Tibetan monk to find value in sitting quietly on a good, solid chunk of mountain rock. ...
You're strolling on the banks of a tranquil lagoon — savoring the shade of huge cottonwood trees and the sight of ducks drifting on the water. ...
The winner might be that dazzling sunset photo you took on the Hermit Trail in the Grand Canyon. ...
Sometimes the best hiking trail is a quiet back road in deep, green woods. ...
Ten-year-old Alyssa Sullivan clings to tiny holds high on a rock wall, takes a deep breath, reaches up and pulls herself to the top, sure as a spider. ...
Here's a different take on the hot fury of a forest fire: Think of it as a wonderful fertilizer for ferns and wildflowers. ...
Now and then, you might want to get out of the fast lane, off the pavement and onto some slow road to nowhere. ...
A hot dog can be an OK thing if you're talking about the main course at a wienie roast. ...
Plein-air painters will show their work, share techniques — and explain what the heck plein-air means — at the Boyce Thompson Arboretum Saturday. ...
Two words for Tucson hikers who aren't crazy about trekking in desert heat: ...
Oh, no — not again. ...
Summer heat sends many desert dwellers fleeing to the high, cool refuge of the White Mountains — where wildlife watching is a prime attraction. ...
Gene Garza sits in a cool pool of shade on the banks of Silverbell Lake — waiting patiently for a catfish or a bass to show some interest in his fishing line. ...
Christy and Paul Fini peered down. And down. ...
If it weren't for Booger Spring in the Chiricahua Mountains, Incinerator Ridge might have the most off-putting name among all outdoor recreation sites in Southern Arizona. ...
Besh-Ba-Gowah might sound like the name of a rap music artist or some kind of exotic Middle Eastern cuisine — but actually it's a place for a hands-on encounter with history. ...
Towering rock formations along the Catalina Highway are wondrous to behold — but feel free to take them for granite. ...
New York is the place to go for a good off-Broadway show. But stay right here in Tucson if you're up for an off-Broadway trail. ...
PORTAL — Joe Seebacher of Chicago gladly washes dishes to earn his keep here. ...
Come here for stark beauty. Yeah, we know, seeking out "stark beauty" may involve some of the same wishful thinking as basking in the comfort of "dry heat." ...
The next time you need a refuge from hectic daily life, you could go where the deer and the antelope play. ...
PRESCOTT — ...
You'll catch a whiff of sweet pine scent, hear sprightly bird songs and gaze up at sheer cliffs if you hike the Green Mountain Trail. ...
It's not the sandy Sahara — but the Sonoran Desert is still a dauntingly dry place where a permanent water hole is a soothing sight. ...
Recent rains after months of drought remind us that a little water can work wonders in the way we feel. ...
You never know where love will grow. The Holocaust, for example. In that nightmare era of Nazi persecution of Jews more than 60 years ago, love somehow endured — and sometimes even blossomed in the aftermath. ...
MADERA CANYON — Eleven-year-old Sarah Bibbey paused in pine shade on the Old Baldy Trail, peered up at the snow-whitened heights of Mount Wrightson and summed up the scene in two words: ...
American Indian history comes alive east of Benson — in a museum and in the wild. ...
Tucson's desert climate is a key factor in attracting baseball teams for spring training. But when visiting fans and locals want a break from the ballpark and the lowlands, it's easy to rise above the desert on a quick getaway to the mountains. ...
David Herr basked in winter sunshine at his campsite in Catalina State Park and reeled off three things he loves about the park's new campground. ...
Some baseball fans can watch spring-training games day in and day out without taking a seventh-inning — or even seventh-day — stretch. ...
Frank Martinez uses humble raw materials — driftwood from the Santa Cruz River and "store-bought" acrylic paint — to create precious ceremonial masks for his Yaqui people. ...
It may be the Year of the Dog in China, but in Tucson it has been the week of the horse. ...
High on the spine of a stone lizard, your main fear is that you might have missed a vista. ...
Women — from river rafters and hikers to conservationists, writers and musicians — have carved a rich history in the canyons and deserts of the Southwest. ...
The natural wildflower show in the desert is likely to be a blooming dud this year because of severe drought. ...
Steve Shaw could be the cowboy from central casting. Six-two. Two hundred sturdy pounds. Wrangler jeans. Trail-battered boots. Brown vest. Sweat-stained hat adorned with a genuine buzzard's feather. And — final tonsorial touch — a slicked-up handlebar mustache. ...
Visitors in town for La Fiesta de los Vaqueros — along with many Tucsonans — might want to take a quick break from the city and high-tail it into the desert. ...
Those of us who love hiking and other outdoor pursuits lost a favorite playground when a wildfire ravaged the Santa Rita Mountains last summer. ...
Many of us — visitors and locals alike — have logged some serious mileage while viewing indoor exhibits at the Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase. ...
Suzi Dow can't forget that startling morning when a bull moose wandered into the Wyoming campsite she shared with her husband. ...
Thousands of you visitors — and local residents, too — have seen brilliant indoor displays of rocks at the Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase. Here's a suggested jaunt to view some magnificent geological splendor in a natural setting. ...
Generosity. ...
IN THE SUPERSTITION MOUNTAINS — Generations of dreamers have searched for a legendary trove of gold in these rugged heights east of Phoenix. ...
Two LGBs — little gray birds of indeterminate species — flit out of a palo verde tree, take wing along a trail and vanish in a clump of mesquites on the banks of a dry wash. ...
PATAGONIA LAKE — ...
ATASCOSA LOOKOUT — A real estate agent might call this place a "fixer-upper." ...
