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| Hiking | 2.60 Miles |
370 AEG |
| | Hiking | 2.60 Miles | 3 Hrs | | 0.87 mph |
| 370 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | Another fun Thursday morning hike with Wendy- it is really a joy to hike with someone who is as excited about the outdoors as I am. I have been on the trail down to the creek and in the lower pools a million times, but never attempted the scramble past the first falls because I usually brought my dogs along. Fun fact: in February 2002, this is where Brian got down on one knee and proposed that he become Mr. Sirena  So, when we arrived at the creekbed, I was surprised to see that a giant flood had completely scoured the canyon of any shade or vegetation. Not a bit was left, save for one of the giant cottonwoods right at the falls. We saw debris 20 feet high on the sides of the canyon, and giant trees wrenched from their roots laying flat on the ground, a testament to the incredible force and depth of the floodwaters.
On our way to the falls, I saw something move on the rock, and it turned out to be the tiniest frog, so young its vestigal tail still was still attatched. It was maybe a quarter of an inch and super-fast. Too cute! There are two scrambles up minor falls before you get to the big one, both are bypassed on the right (canyon left), and other than the rock being a bit slippery, have plenty of places to put feet and hands. The 30-footer before the falls is quite pretty and would be a destination in itself if there wasn't a 75-footer a short scramble away. The rocks here have attractive white, black and gray striations. After the scramble up the 30-foot waterfall, the canyon opens to reveal Tanque Verde Falls and its massive, deep, dark pool. Wow. I have hiked to most of the major swimming holes in Tucson this summer, and none were near as large and dramatic. It's difficult to get a sense of scale when you first get there as to how vast this pool and falls are.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1mSta7Cw6I
I got my green floatie inflated and went for a float and hung out near the base of the falls for a while until it got kind of chilly because the canyon was still in shade. We laughed at the fact that we were cold in the desert in the middle of August  You really can't complain about that!
It was tough to make ourselves leave, especially since the sun still hadn't hit the canyon yet. In retrospect, I wouldn't have left a minute later, because our idyllic quiet paradise would have been soon overrun by six college guys guaranteed to make a lot of ruckus. Plus, it was getting hot in the rest of the canyon.
On our way back, we stayed mostly on canyon left, which seemed to offer an easier route than the right. The rocks were already warming up and we imagined that it would be really uncomfortable to scramble on them later in the day. The hike out of the canyon was hot, hot, hot!! Thankfully it was only a short distance. What a fantastic way to start the day! |
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Route Editor
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