Mike Breiding's Epic Road Trips: November 2025

12 November 2025
A Postman's Holiday: Starr Valley Hike with Cyd

This is our 13th year of leading winter hikes in the Tucson area. During that time we have met hundreds of people, some only seen once and some we see every year upon our return to Tucson.
Cyd is one of those we are fortunate to see every year.
Cyd recently started leading MeetUp hikes again, and I joined her and four others for a 5.5-mile hike in the Starr Valley of Tucson Mountain Park—our "backyard." The Park is on 20,000+ acres located west of Tucson and south of Saguaro National Park.

The white line is the counter clockwise loop Cyd chose for today's hike.

Since our arrival in Tucson on October the 7th, the temperatures have been in the 80s and 90s, necessitating early start times. This morning we were on the trail at 7am, and it was delightfully cool—in the low 50s—and a wonderful time to be in the desert.

Here is a look across the Starr Valley from the Explorer Trail. Ringtail Ridge is the high point in the center of the photo..

"Little Cat" Mountain is in the background.

This is the east end of Little Cat Mountain. I have not hiked up to the top, but it is on my list.

In the foreground is a chain-fruit cholla, one of seven species of cholla we have in this area of the Sonoran Desert.

Here, hike leader Cyd points out some of the high points in the distant Santa Catalina Mountains.

When I lead hikes I am always out front and never have this point of view and, as you will see, I was having fun snapping the shutter.

Here, leafless, covered in thorns, and sporting numerous flower buds, is the ocotillo. For most of our stay here, this is what ocotillos look like, but the flowers usually do not develop until March.

Betsy and I arrived in Tucson on October the 7th. At that time everything looked crispy and dry. On October the 12th and the 13th, the Tucson Mountains received 2.35 inches of rain. Eight days later, the desert had greened up considerably, as witnessed by the luxuriance of the ocotillo in the above photo, taken on October the 21st.
Two weeks later, on November the 13th the ocotillos were starting to return to their leafless state.

On the day of the hike, November the 12th, the ocotillos were starting to show yellowing of the leaves. This will be followed by browning and complete leaf drop.
But, when the next rains come, the ocotillos will green up and start the cycle all over again.

Saguaros may live to be 200 years old. That is a long time for a cactus. When they do reach the end of their life span, they leave behind only their skeletal remains—a work of desert art.

What could be finer than hiking in a Saguaro Forest with those who appreciate and enjoy the beauty of the Sonoran Desert.

We are now on a part of the Yetman Trail that is flanked on both sides by rugged and beautiful cliffs and a dense Saguaro Forest.

This is a creosote bush with more flowers than we have ever seen before. This November, everywhere we hiked in the low desert the creosote bushes were covered in flowers, another bonus from the recent rains.

The saguaro on the right with the multiple "arms" on the top is known as a "Crown Saguaro." This is caused by a suppression of apical dominance. What causes that suppression? No one knows for sure.

Every year when Betsy and I return to the Sonoran Desert, we stand in awe at such a sight.

Speaking of "awe"—isn't this awesome!? First we saw a "Crown Saguaro", we now see a "Crested Saguaro". This one has not one, but two crests. Crested saguaros come in all shapes and sizes as you will see here. What causes this bizarre aberration in growth? Again, as with the Crown Saguaro, no knows for sure.
"The Saguaro is the most studied plant we know the least about."

And so ends our hike in the Starr Valley. Thanks Cyd!

 

⋄⋄⋄⋄⋄⋄BONUS Photos⋄⋄⋄⋄⋄⋄⋄⋄

Here are two photos from recent hikes in the Tucson Mountains.

I don't know why, but when I was first told there were termites in the desert, I was skeptical, to say the least. My skepticism vanished when I crawled under the soon-to-be Rancho Relaxo with the termite inspector. We crawled to the far side of the trailer to where the front porch floor framing was. There, like weird-looking straws, were numerous brown tubes coming up out of the ground underneath the trailer and ascending up to the framing where the termites had entered the 2x6s and were busily munching away.
Are there termites in the desert? Yes.

The photo above shows how the desert encrusting termites (Gnathamitermes perplexus) build a tissue thin crust around the base of the saguaro that acts as protective conduit so they can then feed on the dead parts of the saguaro underneath that crust. This does no harm to the saguaro and is considered beneficial. If you want to read more about this here are a couple of sources.
Bug of the Week: Desert Encrusting Termites
The Ecological Significance of Desert Termites

 

Photo by Cyd

Sometimes the desert gives up its dead. For Betsy and me that is usually in the form of a mule deer carcass or skeleton. This we had not seen before. After some digging around, we finally determined it was a raccoon skeleton. Raccoon, you say!? Those critters that always seem to be near water and "wash" their food because they have no salivary glands? How could a raccoon survive in the desert? The answer? Anyway they can. Like so many other creatures, raccoons are adaptable. Adapt or die! The desert-dwelling raccoons have physically adapted to need less water and depend on getting much of their water from what they eat. And of course if they happen to find a puddle after a rainstorm or a leaky pipe when making forays into urban areas, I am sure they drink deeply.

While examining this skull I noticed a small puncture in the top of the skull. I wonder if a coyote had a good mouth grip on the head of the 'coon as it ambled off to find a place to have a quite meal. Maybe.

See you next time...
Mike and Betsy

 

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