saguaro west

One of the most beautiful spots in Tucson Gilbert Ray campground is located between the Desert Museum and the Old Tucson Studios. It has superb views of Gates Pass, saguaro, and the Tucson stars. Friendly staff and great RV sites on a first-come, first-served basis. Large and small RVs can find a spot. Several tent sites available. Hiking trails. Clean bathrooms, water, dump station, trash/recycle bins. Avoid hot summer months, as altitude is low. Super get-a-way in a National Park.

A beautiful national park with a fantastic landscape of the giant cacti, easily seen from the picture windows of the visitor center - and from the trails within the park. The drive through the park alone is worth the trip. There is a fine orientation film/slide show in the center. Paved trails from the center enable "non-hikers" to enjoy the visit as well. The gift shop is excellent. A very enjoyable place.

Beautiful! We drove and hiked through the Saguaro West. Excellent location for sunset photos. We didn't spend much time in the visitor center, so we didn't see the interpretive exhibits. Thankfully folks had the foresight to save this area from development and make it into a National Park. Looking forward to exploring this park more the next time I get to AZ.

Great time of the year to visit. The drive through the park was fantastic. A visit to the visitor center, was also a lot of fun, a great slide show was presented. With my wife currently in a wheel chair because of a broken foot, it was nice to find two totally paved walkways out into the desert to see lots of cacti and learn about the desert life.

So, when my wife said let's go to the Saguaro National Park to see some cacti I was just overjoyed. Not! Who wants to drive a few hours south of Phoenix to the Tuscon area to see a bunch of cacti? Not me. But interestingly enough the park turned out to be a pretty cool place. The kids liked it and the nature presentation was interesting. I never knew the saguaro cactus was really a tree and if you see a dried up dead one, it's really woody on the inside. Well other people may have known that but I didn't. Anyway, the nature hikes were pretty neat and it was pretty cool. My favorite national park. No. Worth the drive to complete the list of national parks? Sure.

We enjoyed this National Park immensely! It's so different from where we come from - the forests of West Coast British Columbia. We took one of the hiking trails and spend most of the time taking pictures. We met some others from Minnisota who were also blown away by the landspace and beauty of the area. Well worth a visit!

This is a wonderful experience with walking trails and stunning scenery. A forest of Saguaro cactus, some 25 feet in height and 300 years old. Their is an array of birds and many species of cactus. Watch out for the Cholla as it can literally jump out and attach itself and become a painful visit reminder. The visitor center and its volunteers is modern and very informative. Very close to Old Tucson and the Desert Museum just outside town. Visit in the winter if possible or in early spring for the blooms. Summer can literally be life threatening with the 100+ temperatures.

To a North westerner, my idea of beauty is a hillside covered in fir trees; not one scattered with the saguaro cactus. However, the hesitant beauty of these bare green poles sticking out of a rock strewn dessert with thin scrubby brush does begin to grow on you. The more one becomes acquainted with the park, the better one understands that there is a wealth of animal and plant life that is supported by this otherwise desolate looking area. The National Parks Service is administering two sections of this park; one on the east side of the modern city of Tucson and one on the west. As the city and civilization encroach on this pristine area, it is important to preserve this landscape so that future generations can make up their minds about the beauty of this magnificent area. Thanks again National Park Service.

Visitors to national monuments are accustomed to seeing a film about the site. THIS ONE IS EXCEPTIONAL! Outside is an exceptionally peaceful vista of these giants of nature. Pause for awhile and soak in the beauty. You might call ahead to see when the cacti will blossom to add to the experience.

We had spent the early afternoon at Old Tucson and decided to visit Saguaro NP near the end of the day. It was an excellent choice. There were very few visitors left so the drive up the dirt road was no problem.The Saguaros take on another dimension with the setting sun. And just before the actual sunset you can see the contrast between the green cacti and the red soil.

We were fortunate enough to not only see the natural beauty of the park, but also attend a short talk about the geology of the area. The lecturer was a retired professor of geology who volunteers his time to educate visitors on the fascinating history and geology of this unique place.You can choose to simply drive through the park or take the walking paths to see the amazing saguaro (and other cacti and plants) up close. We had just come from the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, which is just down the street, so our visit here was relatively quick as we were a bit tired. I highly recommend adding this park to your list of must-see places in the area. We are very fortunately to have the National Park Service to protect this natural treasure.

We visited the Saguaro West National Park on a sunny 73 degree day in February. The Visitor Center has a 10 to 15 minute film that provides a history of the park. We highly recommend watching it. There is a surprise at the end of the film which is very worthwhile! The Visitor Center also has staff and volunteers to provide recommendations on trails. There is also a small store with books, brochures, some basic snacks, etc. A small walking path with a variety of desert plants can also be found here. Bathrooms are also available. There is a nice "Loop" drive with many pull-offs and various trail heads. There are many trails available along this "Loop" drive with a variety lengths from 0.3 miles to several miles in length. None of these trails seemed to be very hard. Picnic areas are numerous here, many with shelter from the sun. Most of the "Loop" drive is non-paved and dusty. For those with limited mobility, there is a 0.5 mile paved loop trail with plant ID and history. This trail also has a few covered bench sites to rest. This trail is a short distance from the Visitor Center along the paved road.There are many additional trails of various lengths and difficulty. A popular "Loop" trail 3 to 4 miles in length starts at a trail head just before entering the park. ON A NEGATIVE NOTE---while we were at the Visitor Center, a gentleman, probably in his 70's, came in after having fallen and rolled partway down a slope. He had scraped up both legs and had quite a bit of bleeding. He was in need of assistance from the paid staff. He asked for help, but received NONE! The response from the staff was to go in the bathroom and do his best to clean off. He was in need to First Aid, for which we're certain should have been made available!

We only visited the visitors center. We had already driven thru Saguaro East. We understood the road in Saguaro West was not paved. Visitor Center at Saguaro West in newer & nicer than Saguaro East.

you wanna see cactus..? here you will see them, and tons of other great stuff. Stop at the Visitor Center or check out the website www.nps.gov/sagu for what is happening each day.

This is literally one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen on earth, and I've traveled all over the world! It is a cacti forest, and each cacti is roughly one two two stories tall and 4+ feet wide! Totally insane awesome.