Arizona Trail from Molino Basin

This morning we hiked a very short section of the Ariona Trail in the Santa Catalina Mountains. We hiked from the Molino Basin Campground north until we were overlooking the Gordon Hirabayashi Campground. 4.5 miles round trip with 600 ft of overall gain. Here are some views from along the trail.

Linda Vista Loop

This morning we drove north of Tucson to the Linda Vista Trailhead in the Coronado National Forest. We did the outer loop, 2.6 miles with 450 ft of overall gain. The trail soon enters the Pusch Ridge Wilderness. We hiked the loop in a clockwise direction. 

There was both a great abundance and a variety of wildflowers in bloom today. The desert was so colorful!

There were lots of cacti including saguaros.

bird on top of a saguaro

lupine and chicory growing together

ocotillo in bloom

There were great mountain views all around the loop, and lots of brittle bush in bloom.

bright orange mariposa Lillies dotted the landscape

lupine blooming next to a prickly pear cactus

Hedgehog cactus in bloom 

Prickly pear cactus budding

more views as we continue around the loop

lizard on a rock

In the far distance to the southwest are Tucson Mountains and

to the northwest are the Tortolita Mountains.

More views continuing down the other side of the loop:

Back to the beginning 

some of the wildflowers we saw in bloom today: