Saguaro National Park Arizona

Our first excursion while staying in Tucson took us to the Saguaro National Park Arizona.

Saguaro National Park Arizona

You know those tall cactus that sometimes look like people from old westerns? Well those are Saguaro cactus. And we never could imagine seeing an entire forest of them. But there we were in the middle of a cactus forest. The Saguaro National Park Arizona owes its existence to the foresight of local residents. In the 1920s grazing and development threatened the saguaro’s future. Saguaro forests began to disappear as mature cactuses were chopped down to make room for new roads. Livestock added to the damage as cattle trampled seedlings. Fearing the destruction of the southwest’s saguaro forests, Homer Shantz, University of Arizona President, led the effort that created Saguaro National Park and hence protected saguaros for generations to come.

Timeline to National Park status

In 1933 President Hoover authorized the establishment of the Saguaro National Monument in the Rincon Mountains. Later, in 1961, President Kennedy added Tucson Mountains to the monument. In 1976 Congress designated 71,400 acres as wilderness. And in 1994 Congress established Saguaro National Park. According to Shantz “nowhere else can so fine a collection of native desert plants be found as on this land.”

Driving trail

This was one of those awesome trips through the forest where we had to keep pulling the car over so that we could get out to take photos. But it made for a very Covid safe attraction, I never realized just how many different types of cactus there are! And they are all fabulous. But the saguaros seem to be the most interesting. They live to be quite old. In fact they don’t even start growing arms until they are about 30 years old. And then they go wild. Their appendages shoot out at every imaginable angle. Some of the arms grow arms. So they take on these amazing shapes. They remind me of people in various poses. Very, very cool indeed,

Diverse natural cactus garden

At Saguaro National Park Arizona the land around you bristles with life. From the towering giant saguaros in the distance to the low lying prickly pear at your feet, 25 different cactus species grow there. The spine studded chollas alone represent seven types. Saguaro National Park contains the most diverse natural cactus garden in the country.

Desert extremes would wither most plants, but not cactus. They are able to withstand infrequent rain and harsh temperatures, each employs its own strategy for survival. Some, like queen of the night, bloom in the evening, protecting fragile flowers from blistering daytime heat. Prickly pear’s tough pads grow perpendicular to the sun’s rays. And the barrel cactus stores large amounts of water in its expandable stem.

Cactus Condominiums

Did you know there were Cactus Condominiums? All we had to do was look for baseball size holes high on the trunks and branches of the giant saguaro cactuses. Those holes open into hollowed out nests excavated by gilded flickers and Gila woodpeckers. Carefully avoiding the saguaros sharp spines, the birds carve nests into the cactus’ spongy flesh.

The saguaro’s moisture filled tissue keeps the nests cool in the summer and warm in the winter. Once the original occupant abandons a nest, elf owls and other opportunistic house hunters move in to enjoy the insulated shelter. Over the life of a saguaro many different birds will raise their young in these cactus condominiums.

Our driving tour of Saguaro National Park Arizona was informative and awe inspiring. It opened our eyes to a whole new type of forest!