Nice picnic area in a National Park. The bathrooms are nice and there's plenty of convenient…read moreparking. There are some great hiking trails with lots of opportunities to see birds and other wildlife. The park is a national treasure with a diversity for different habitats which is impressive.

Beautiful place to hike for all abilities The hummingbird…read moresanctuary is a treat to see as well

The Abrego Trailhead provides access to the Anza National Historic Trail. The trailhead is located…read morein the Green Valley area immediately east of Abrego Drive approximately one mile south of Continental Road. It has a shade structure, 15 vehicle spaces including 2 that are accessible, and 4 horse rig parking spaces. Open sunrise to sunset. Dogs permitted on leash. Excellent picnicking area for large groups with electric outlets. One water spout but you need your own Sillcock key.

A beautiful historical place to walk and explore around amidst the ruins of three Spanish colonial…read moremissions. It illustrates the blending cultures of Native Americans and European peoples. Exploring the park is highly immersive and at the same time very calming. It is a short drive from Tucson to the park and is definitely worth a visit.

History was made here and really not all that long ago. A beautiful place to spend about an hour…read moregetting a real feel for the history of southern Arizona. It's a National Monument and located right across the street from the Santa Cruz Chile Company! Very convenient and makes for a great excursion!

First rule of the cave.. no pictures lol. Hence, no pictures are attached. They say it's because of…read moreaccidents reported from people not paying attention. Also, basically nothing is allowed in the cave. They had lockers that takes quarters but as far as I saw, no machine, you have to exchange with cash soooo prepare ahead. Leaving things in the car felt some what okay but not my favorite. I would appreciate if they had more security. They say they are not government funded so everything comes from public support. This was such a cool experience. You can tell the amount of work and detail they've put into the cave and preserving it. Truly different than other caves I've been to. There are two different parts of the cave you can choose from. If you can't do both my preference was the big room tour. I felt there was more to it, more things to see. Also, (sorry parents) perhaps the age limit made it more enjoyable too. Our tour guide Charles was INCREDIBLE. We did both tours back to back 0945 big room tour and 12 rotunda. Timing was perfect. Enough time to use the restroom and eat a snack. We brought our snacks, their cafe was closed. It would be an enjoyable experience to eat a packed lunch outside not sure if it's 100% allowed. Beginning of April was a GORGEOUS day. There's a McDonald about 12 min away. The big room tour is a man made/marked out, well paved easy walk/route. If you're worried about endurance or handiaccesible, it seems very accessible. The rotunda seemed a bit more incline but still well paved. You can wear white shoes and you wouldn't get dirty lol. I don't recommend open toes shoes/sandals because the Floor is very moist/wet. BOOK AHEAD. At least 2 weeks ahead to get the slots you want. If you're by yourself then a lot easier. It sells out quickly Restrooms were very clean and plentiful. As you wait for your tour guide before taking the tram to the cave there are another set of restrooms so that's appreciated. They want you to get there 30 min before. There really wasn't anything much to do ahead, it's just a simple check in. They have a mini museum that's nice to look around. You can get some good pictures outside prior or after the tour. Are both caves a must see, my bf says yes. I'm in between. If I would go back I would choose the big room tour again but that also has limited time opening due to the bats. As an AZ local or visiting this is a very enjoyable spot

As much as I love going underground and at this point have about 15 caves explored in AZ under my…read morebelt, I only finally made it to this one this weekend. Our caving group was having our winter conference here and it was really nice to use the visitor center's auditorium for our all day presentations. I learned about the invertebrates that live in caves, herpetology, bats and lots of other really fun topics about caves! Auditorium was very comfortable and all the IT worked great and the projector and acoustics were perfect. Seats also very comfortable. Later that day, some of us signed up for the headlamp tour of the Big Room that started at 5:30pm, which is only offered on Saturdays in the fall/winter. I was able to use my own headlamp and helmet. This tour is $50 and the price is higher than their regular tours, which is $30 for adults and all the lights in the cavern are on. The tour was good and I'm glad the proceeds of my ticket go to support this park. Phones aren't allowed into the cavern, so I took no pics. We also stayed in one of the 4 cabins on the campgrounds and it was fabulous. Cabin was super cozy and can sleep 6, one bed and two bunk beds. Cabins also come with a dining table, microwave and small fridge. Bathrooms right across from the cabin. Porch on the front and also a picnic table available. Fire pit also available. I had firewood but we could not make a fire because of rain. This was definitely glamping! And it was lovely. I would definitely do this again. Saw some fun turkeys too! A few things to note here, there is a Bat Cave Cafe on site open 11am - 2pm, however, it was difficult to get anything here as there was only one person working and a lot of us here. I brought my lunch from home. Night headlamp tour was fun but for $50, not sure how it differs from the day tours. But, do know that AZ state taxes don't go to supoort this park, so your tour ticket supports this park, so I can be OK with that. Its pretty amazing that two college students crawled their way thru a 10-12 inch sinkhole and then found this place! I am still in awe of this amazing discovery! And this is well before all the fancy equipment was available like lidar to help with uncovering new caves. And, once these guys, Tufts and Tenen found this cavern in 1974, they kept it a secret for awhile to protect against vandalism and damage. And in 1999, the cavern was open to the public. As someone who deeply loves caves, seeing this place was like one of the best sojourns for me! Im so glad I came to see this show cave! And please, let's all do our part to make sure caves are conserved so we can all enjoy them for a long time to come.

This has been a favorite place for us to camp. If you're in the area for hunting or a quick weekend…read moreget away with the family. Part of the grounds has hookups and part is dry. It's remote and quiet at night, except for the friendly neighborhood donkey. The staff is always very friendly and helpful.

I camp. A lot! I'm not a big fan of campgrounds. I call that…read morefancy camping. I'd rather pull off a SR or fire road somewhere and boondock in the woods. That being said, one of my absolute favorite places is La Siesta Campground. It's incomparable! It has all the creature comforts you could possibly desire and (I cannot stress this part enough) 5 star hospitality! Definitely a home away from home. It can be the most peaceful place, or an excellent meeting ground for friends; both old and new. Already have the next 2 trips here planned and there will always be many more!

Beautiful trail that runs along the Santa Cruz River. Water runs year round and you can hike along…read morethe river under a canopy of beautiful cottonwood trees!

This is a very special place. Wally and Marion Paton started inviting birders to their home in…read moreabout 1973. The Tucson Bird Alliance acquired the property in 2014. You will find lots of hummingbirds there, but also dedicated volunteers that help visitors learn about the birds. There are lots more than just hummingbirds, I had several "lifers" at the Center that were not hummingbirds. There are shady benches to watch the birds, and a real community of birders from around the country, well, even international visitors, too. Behind the Center are lots of other birds, one notable place in the Patagonia Sonoita Creek Preserve. The star of the Paton Center is the Violet Crowned Hummingbird. Yes, you can sometimes find this Hummingbird elsewhere, but this the place you can always reliably find it. It's beautiful. The volunteers are not pushy, they are always helpful. They also know other places to find birds. There's a sense of peace here, comradery, and fun. It's all free, but donations are welcome.

This little nestle of nature is just off the main road in Patagonia. Its almost a magical space…read morethat allows you to forget about the world. I went here with my husband for a day trip of bird watching and we got 20+ birds on the Merlin app and where able to spot most of them. The pollinator garden was small but dense filled with hundreds of beautiful flowers. Now the important facts: 4th Saturday they offer a guided bird walk! Be sure to RSVP to AStark@TucsonBirds.org There are also two public restrooms that are very clean! They offer bird guide books AND binoculars to borrow during your visit. The binoculars are great to try out as a new birder. Don't forget to donate to the Tucson Bird Alliance to help fundthese amazing spots!

I've heard of Lake Patagonia and for a belated birthday present. My husband took us to go kayaking…read morein the lake. Living in Tucson it takes just under two hours to drive from where we are to get to Patagonia State Park. The Ranger station opens at 8 AM and it was $20 to Park for the day. Due to mismatch schedules, we went on a Monday and in Tucson. It was in 105F and the escape from the heat was a great plus. Around the lake is an area for swimmers and Kayak launching in a separate space in a different area to launch boats for people going fishing. There are multiple campsites available for tent, camping and RV camping. In addition to dry cabins in Rose with A shared restroom area and showers available. There are multiple picnic areas and a large ramada available for the swimmers and kayakers. They were a generous number of restrooms available where we were. When we arrived employees were cleaning the restrooms and trash was being dumped. In coming on a Monday, the grounds were tidy. If you're bringing children to like Patagonia, they want them wearing life fest and they have a limited number of free life fess available for people that are gonna be in boats or kayaks. We had everything we needed to have a wonderful experience. We took advantage of the picnic tables to inflate our Kayak and it didn't ever feel like a crowded experience. We were able to have a peaceful three hours of enjoyment.

This is a great location for outdoor enthusiasts. They have a nice birding trail and they…read moresometimes lead guided tours. The traffic gets a little congested during weekends in the summer, and there is a slight discount for visiting on weekdays. I thought the admission price at $25 was steep, in comparison to what other states are charging around the country. They don't take American Express, so I had to go 20 miles for an ATM machine. Prices were high in the market concession, and I didn't see any pricing. They charged $8 for a 19.9 oz of Coconut Water, which is at least a 100% markup. I was impressed that they offered free WiFi down by the lakefront, unfortunately it wasn't working.

I hike the Cochise Trail ever few years. There's a lot to see here: rock formations, vistas,…read morebirds, insects and rattlesnakes, and is a challenging hike of ten miles. I usually start this from the west side, driving through Tombstone and taking Middlemarch road north of town for nine miles before turning north on a forest road. This road is a dirt road that gets very rutted the last two miles as it follows a dry wash. This wash fills into a creek during active monsoon season, so a high-clearance vehicle is necessary. Unlike the east side, parking and dry camping on the west side is free. The trail climbs immediately for 1.75 miles before hitting the western Stronghold and from here it's a gradual descent to the eastern trailhead and campground. The only source of water is at Halfmoon tank, a cattle pond about halfway up or down the trail, depending on which direction you start this hike. Lots of butterflies were in the area in September. During active monsoon season, the creek will run and the waterfall on the western side is a sight to behold. My hiking party rests here near the restrooms before returning the way we came. There was no water in the campground last month when I last did this hike. Dogs are allowed The only negative thing about this hike is its remoteness and accessibility. From Sierra Vista it's a two-hour drive each way. Add another five miles for the hike and it's a day-long adventure.

Well we came yesterday to get out of town and visit the dragoon hills…read more This campground is officially closed to all but hikers. They say mountain bikes are permitted but we are riders and I think the trails are too narrow. And slots where you can t pedal. I say hike. So no parking, bathrooms or camping or potable water. But you can park outside the gates. A few did, like us. Since we are new to the site, we only went to the water tank. Lots of shade along the way. Caves. Huge Rock formations. Hawks circling above hunting. Butterflies, BlueJays. Lots to see. I m going to go back while the weather is still cool. It is normally Officially Closed July to September due to extreme temps. Great to use your imagination about where the Apache's would have hidden in wait to protect the Stronghold.

10/10 would get lost in a cave again! ‍ Between the bats, the dramatic rock formations, and enough…read morefangs to make Dracula jealous, this cave tour was seriously unforgettable. Our guide, Eric, was very knowledgeable and cleverly funny.

My fiance and I had a great time at the Colossal Cave. Arik was our guide, and he truly saved the…read moreday! I had briefly set our newborn son on a nearby rock. When I turned back around, he was gone! Arik personally traversed the entire cave system, taking appx. 9.5 hours., in order to find our son. When he returned, he brought us the news that our son had taken up the pickaxe in the mine. Glad to know he's working! Thanks Arik.