See our YouTube channel with more videos from this and other 

Mid Atlantic Touring events!  

@midatlantictouring 

2024 Itinerary:

Day 1:   Arrival Day, Finger Rock Trail Sunset Hike

Arrival in Tucson (TUS International Airport), Check into Embassy Suites Paloma Village hotel, short introductory hike on Finger Rock Trail.   See pictures from Day 0 below.  We got to see our first of many beautiful sunsets.

Day 2:  Sabino Canyon Hike

Tram ride and Hike in Sabino Canyon Recreational Area, part of the Coronado National Forest, in the Santa Catalina Mountains.  See pictures below.  "Scat" was the word of the day as we practiced our wildlife tracking skills.  😄💩

Day 3:   Bike Ride on Tucson Loop

Bike ride on the Tucson Loop.  We saw horse running in the Rillito River wash, and had a great lunch at Guadalajara Fiesta Grill with tableside salsa and guacamole!   We also stopped by a shop to see artisan creations from Mexico, and had a quick visit at the University of Arizona campus.  See pictures below.

Day 4:  Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum

We visited the Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum, which allowed us to see native wildlife and critters in a safe setting (though the tour guide, Mary P, has seen all of these animals in the wild around Tucson too!).  The clouds and eventual rain made for beautiful sky views and a snowstorm on top of the mountains!  We saw some incredible wildlife and desert plant life at the museum.  See pics below.

Day 5:   Improvised, Multi-Adventure Day

Our plan to drive up Mt. Lemmon was thwarted by the snow storm (roads closed), so we had to improvise.  We visited the San Xavier del Bac Mission, went to one of the many local brew pubs (Barrio Brewing Co), and went to a movie.  See pictures below from our improvised day and other adventures around Tucson.

Day 6:  Hike in Saguaro National Park East from Douglas Spring Trailhead

Hike in Saguaro National Park East, the Rincon Mountains, from the Douglas Spring Trailhead.  (See map in pictures.)   It was a beautiful and challenging hike, with about 700+ feet elevation climb in the first 1.5 miles, about a 10% grade.  Then we mostly leveled out and stopped at the Steel Tank for a lunch break, before heading back down for a total of 4.8 miles.  

Day 6 continued:  Redington Pass

Since we couldn't drive up Mt. Lemmon the day before, the thought we'd give it another try, but were turned away by the sheriff.  😕  So we drove up Redington Pass instead, a dirt road going through national forest land.   We had a beautiful view of the sunset over the city, and a great view of the stars - so bright we could even capture them with a phone camera.  See pictures below.

Day 7:  Saguaro National Park E. Bike Tour

Bike tour through Saguaro National Park East.   We started and ended at Saguaro Corners Restaurant where we had a pre-bike ride lunch and saw a javalina out back!  The ride took us into the park and around the loop on the hilly Cactus Forest Drive.  We took a couple detours off the road onto dirt trails that tested our mountain biking skills over rocky, curvy, narrow trails.  ⛰️🚲  But we were rewarded by seeing many huge saguaro cactus with a backdrop of the mountain, included a rare crested version. "Cristate or “crested” saguaros form when the cells in the growing stem begin to divide outward, rather than in the circular pattern of a normal cactus. This is an unusual mutation which results in the growth of a large fan-shaped crest at the growing tip of a saguaro’s main stem or arms." - National Park Service.   We also saw ruins of old lime kilns that were used over a century ago to create adobe bricks used to build structures and homes around Tucson.  We also did some rock climbing when we scrambled up Javelina Rocks - a giant rock formation in the park - that afforded us awesome views of the surrounding national park and the city.  It was an excellent multi-adventure tour.  See pictures below.

Day 8:  The End 

Sadly, our trip has come to an end.  ☹️  We had an amazing time, and hope you'll join us for more adventures next year!  Stay tuned on the WhatsApp group and  www.midatlantictouring.com for more outdoor adventures, including the Arizona Mixed Adventure Tour next year!

Videos from the Trip

See links to videos taken by participants during the tour.  They are breathtakingly beautiful and sometimes silly!