On Thursday, May 7, at 5:30 a.m., six members of the SaddleBrooke Hiking Club met at the MountainView parking lot to depart for a hike in Pima Canyon. Dianna Wilson, the club’s Chief Hiking Guide, organized the outing. She set the early start time to prepare hikers for the hot summer soon to arrive.
The group reached the 45-vehicle paved parking area at the east end of Magee Road at 6 a.m. The proper name of the trail is the Iris O. Dewhirst Trail, although it is commonly known as the Pima Canyon Trail. Beginning at the parking area, the trail provides access to the Coronado National Forest and is perhaps one of the most popular and scenic hiking destinations in southern Arizona.
From the trailhead, the route ascends a V-shaped notch carved along the south face of Pusch Ridge. Views down the canyon improved steadily as we climbed, revealing spectacular vistas of Tucson and the surrounding mountain ranges. Shade is limited throughout most of the hike; however the steep rock faces rising on either side of the trail and the surrounding mountain ridges sheltered the group for several hours, something we attributed to our early morning departure.
After hiking for about three hours, we rested at a small dam near several Indian grinding holes before retracing our steps to the parking lot. By 11 a.m., we were back at our cars and heading home to SaddleBrooke having hiked over six miles, climbed more than 1,000 feet and experienced some of Tucson’s finest scenery.
Historic bank vault now new Tucson speakeasy
