Sabino Canyon, Arizona

April 2, 2009
Sabino Canyon lies on the north side of Tucson, at the very edge of the residential area. Since today was Bill's birthday, he was in charge of the itinerary.

We were amazed to find Sabino Canyon full of visitors. It is a very popular place for hiking, mountain biking and birdwatching. We had stopped by Beyond Bread, our favorite lunch spot, and picked up sandwiches to go and packed our backpack with food and water for the hike up into the Canyon. As you can see by this picture, the desert paths were clearly marked, so easy to follow.

The more popular area in Sabino Canyon is Seven Falls, which must be reached by tram, so most of the visitors were headed there. We took the road less traveled.

Even though the temperature was in the moderate 70's and a gentle breeze was blowing, the sun was shining so intensely here that it felt hot. Our final destination was a nice cool oasis, a spring fed river flowing out of the mountains, which was about a mile up the canyon.

Once again I am amazed at finding water in the desert. This picture is of the river bed, taken from the top of the dam where we sat and ate our lunch.

This is a view looking up the canyon. It is hard to imagine that this river runs right next to the desert landscape that is pictured above.

Bill did spot a large bird's nest next to the river. After making some distressed mouse calls, a beautiful, golden colored hawk peer over the side of the nest at him.

Later, we stopped a park ranger who identified the bird as a Cooper's Hawk and said this had been the first sighting of the bird, since the park service had thought they would not come back this year. Apparently, they build their nests on top of another and generally come back until the nest becomes uninhabitable because of mites.

We came home and had ice cream to finish off the celebration. I think Bill had a nice birthday, doing the things he loves to do - spending time in the great outdoors and birdwatching. Happy Birthday, Bill. I love you.