Hiking in the Heat

On Thursday afternoon the girls were supposed to fly out of Tucson.  However, when you fly standby no plans are "for sure" and they ended up not being able to go home that day.  We decided to take advantage of the fact that we were already in Tucson and go hiking in Sabino Canyon.  After a quick stop at Walmart for water bottles and oranges we headed up the Phone Line Trail.  Three and a half hours later we were hot, sunburnt, exhausted, and riding the tram out to the parking lot!

Just leaving the visitors center...

Joy spotted these adorable little cacti under a bush.

The Phone Line Trail goes along the side of the mountains on the south side of the canyon.  It's quite a hike to get up to the actual trail, but once you're there it's pretty easy going.

Resting in the shade...

  It might not have been such a smart idea to hike 7 miles in 100 degree heat!

:: Prickly Pear Cactus Fruit ::

Joy actually picked one off and poked a hole in it and was sucking the juice out.  It actually tasted pretty good!  Just be careful not to get one of those tiny brown thorns in your lip!

I love the rugged scenery of Sabino Canyon.

That little winding road you see to the left is the tram road.  We had to hike .7 miles down to it to catch the tram out.

Every so often a cloud would cover the sun and we would hike with renewed vigor in the lovely coolness it provided!

This is a picture as we descended on the trail down to tram stop #7.  (There are 9 stops total but we didn't have time to hike all the way to the end of the canyon.  The last tram of the day goes at 4p.m. otherwise you have to walk out 4 miles.)  The line you see up on the hillside is the Phone Line Trail.

WE DID IT!!!!

*     *     *     *     *

Friday morning I took the girls back to Tucson for their 12:30 flight.  It was sad to say good bye!

Safe travels!!  Come see us again soon...

SaveSave