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.
It also offers a self-guided short course in desert life. Signs along the route identify plants and animals native to the area.
The half-mile trail begins at the visitor center and bookstore in the popular canyon northeast of Tucson.
Winding through an expanse of typical Sonoran Desert terrain, it's set against a backdrop of the craggy Catalina Mountains and — on many midsummer days — towering monsoon clouds.
An introductory sign explains the trail's name, noting that a bajada is a "gently sloping skirt of sediments surrounding a desert mountain range." You're on a bajada as you travel the trail.
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Consider an early-morning or post-sunset walk to avoid midday heat.
Signs along the way point out a botanical bonanza of desert plants — including a chainfruit cholla cactus, Englemann prickly pear cactus, triangle-leaf bursage, four-wing saltbrush, paperflower, Mormon tea, white thorn acacia, canyon ragweed, turpentine bush, catclaw acacia, brittlebush, foothill palo verde tree, staghorn cholla, robust hedgehog, desert hackberry, velvet mesquite tree and others.
Additional panels show pictures of desert critters you might see, including the Gila monster and Sonoran Desert tortoise.
Signs also direct your attention to a large pack-rat nest and a rare cristate, or crested, saguaro cactus.
Elsewhere along the way, you'll see a large mesquite that's serving as a "nurse tree" — providing natural shade and shelter for young saguaros.
To get to Sabino Canyon, take Tanque Verde Road to Sabino Canyon Road and follow Sabino Canyon Road north about four miles to the entrance.
The Forest Service charges a $5 fee in the canyon.
Information: 749-8700.
Next week: Into the woods.
