2 Canadians looking to escape winter! Visited AZ last May, and fell in love with your state! On this trip, we are going to Organ Pipe the first three days. Any input about tent camping there? I have read that there are 2 campgrounds within monument grounds. Also, any suggestions for moderate backcou...

We're thinking about spending a week on trails in the Tucson area and perhaps further south. We were in AZ in May, and discovered your great State Parks! My question is: are there good State Parks throughout the south of the state, and what kind of weather can we expect (really) in terms of night te...

OK, we were new to AZ hiking, so we had an excuse. Destination, Hutch's Pool, 100 degrees, hit trailhead (Bear Canyon, oh, the LONG way huh?) at noon (early risers!). 45 pounds on the back, most of which is water, but let's not forget the GPS, heavy DSLR, mattress (we were overnighting), well, you g...

Fire restrictions? You bet. We just camped at Catalina State Park, and our site was surrounded by fields of dry grass. Signs were posted at the entrance stating NO FIRES. So what happens? About midnight, two guys pull into the park, and proceed to unload everything they own from the back of a pickup...

Two winter-dazed Canadians just finished our first trip to beautiful Arizona. 11 days of glorious scenery, fantasic people and (yikes!) sunny HOT weather. I guess we lucked out and hit a heat wave (week of May 21), but it really only added to the experience. We did Tucson (Bear Canyon, Hutch's Pool,...

In response to montezumawell's reply:

The ground around the tent that is....not your information! Thanks again.

In response to montezumawell's reply: Kill a snake? Never. I am rather fond of our beauts back here in Ontario, they do wonders for the rodent population, hey, just like in AZ! Ain't that something? I was just concerned about the layin on a desert floor and waking up with one syndrome. But you have...

In response to joe bartels' reply: Yes, wasn't really concerned about snakes "preying" on people (although that might make for some fun!).........just wondered if they would take the opportunity to sneak a bit of heat. Wait a minute........perhaps I can bring some Canadian maple syrup, pu...

OK, hope I'm not abusing the forum and asking dumb questions, but can't seem to find straightforward answers to straightforward questions on the web or in the books. We're going to be overnighting out there. Are rattlers (or other critters,for that matter) going to be attracted to the tent (read bod...

In response to Shi's reply: Yikes! Thanks for the information........we will definitely be bagging or using provided boxes.

Relatively new to backpacking, and I'm planning my first trip to Arizona in May. We will be in the Tucson area, as well as up in Sedona. The books all say ALWAYS bear bag food well away from camp. Is this a necessity in the desert? I realize Sedona probably represents more of a problem in terms of f...