Mike Breiding's Epic Road Trips: February 2026

Living in Tucson Estates provides us with easy access to nearly 50 thousand acres of public lands and 100 miles of trails on the west side of Tucson. These are the totals for Saguaro National Park West and Pima county's Tucson Mountain Park.

The hike at the top in Saguaro NP (6.2 miles and 1000' of elevation gain) was a group hike with friends, the lower hike was in Tucson Mt Park (6.6 miles and 1300' of elevation gain.) You can see the route maps here..

Here we are on the Vertical Cliffs trail. What are those strange looking things? The ones behind the group that is. They are Chain-fruit cholla, one of seven species of chollas found in the Sonoran Desert.

Several years ago we had a youngster in his early 20s on one of our hikes. He was recently transplanted from Missouri and had never been to the Sonoran Desert before. When he came to an area of Cholla like the one above, he stopped and looked out into the desert in disbelief. He turned to me and said— "This looks like something out of a Star Trek episode - an alien landscape!" We all got a kick out of that!

Every once in a while Saguaros exhibit unusual terminal growth such as this. No one is quite sure what triggers this aberrant growth.

Ahhh... the beautiful Lupine. There are about 23 species of lupine (Lupinus spp.) found throughout the state of Arizona, but only a smaller number are specifically adapted to the low-elevation, arid environment of the Sonoran Desert.

There are over 100 species of lupine in the Unites States. In 2015, we saw these gorgeous lupines growing in a wet ditch in the area of Bergland MI.

One of the hillier sections on the hike. In the back groundground are Sombrero and Panther Peak summits.

Another look at Sombrero and Panther Peak summits.

When we got to the top of the hill we had a splendid view across the Tucson basin to the Catalina Mountains.

This is a rather strange growth form on a gnarly and beat up Ironwood tree.

A nice trio of desert survivors—saguaro, brittle bush and nipple cactus.

There sure are a lot of saguros out there, don't ya think? This is our traditional place for a break on this hike. It is down in a wash adjacent to this windmill. At one time it pumped water into a trough. Why, I don't know.

In the distance you can see the Vertical Cliffs for which the trail is named.

Directly opposite Cindy and Rob is a large, weather worn rock with about ten morteros.

Here is one of those morteros. How many years it would take to grind a hole like this in solid rock is anyone's guess. The indigenous people of the area ground seeds and other plant parts as part of their food source

Hiker Jen strikes a pose.

When we arrived in Tucson this past October the Creosote Bush was in bloom with lots of flowers. Those matured into seed pods and now there is a new flush of flowers coming on.

Now that be a nice place to call home. It was complete with a connecting foot path to the Vertical Cliffs trail.

Here be the Vertical Cliffs. They are not large and imposing, but they certainly stand out.

This fishhook barrel cactus had some babies—some call them pups. This rarely happens, and I always wonder what the group will look like in 10-20 years. Perhaps I will find out. Perhaps not.

Another nice view of Panther Peak and Sombrero. Safford Peak is Sombrero's official name. You can see there are two high points. I have been on top of both. The higher point was a nerve-wracking hike/climb/scramble, and I will never do it again.

In 2017, while hiking here I came across this beauty. Gila monsters spend most of their life underground and it is a rarity to see one.

The last several years, during the winter and spring, have been nearly devoid of wildflowers. Not so this year. The 2025 summer monsoon was wetter than previous years, and there were several storms this winter, which provided enough rain to coax the wildflowers into showing their lovely colors.
And now, the February of 2026 we are seeing lots of color.

This is Desert evening-primrose. How tiny it is compared to our West Virginia evening-primrose which often grows three feet tall.

A closer look at the Desert evening-primrose

The Brittlebush shown here is one of tens of thousands currently in bloom. They will bloom just about anytime they get enough water, this means they have several bloom periods throughout the year.

As has been said: "You had to be there." This photo in no way does justice to the beauty of this scene.

This itty-bitty cutie is Mojave desertstar. As with most other plants here in the Sonoran desert it is found in sandy, rocky, and gravelly habitats.

Here is a Desertstar getting cozy with a Trailing Windmill.

As the flowers mature, they turn a pale to deep lavendar.

When en masse, the color intensity of the Desert Globe Mallow can be a real eyeball knocker.

This is Phacelia distans. There are over 100 species of Phacelia in the southwest. As a group they are known as scorpionweed, and the common names appear to be interchangeable from species to species. This paricualar species prefers the shade of shrubs and can cover large areas.

This is Notch-leaved Phacelia. It prefers full sun and generally grows in small clumps.

The real show stoppers in these here parts are California poppies and Bladderpods. The latter sometimes cover square miles of open country and desert and they area essential for the native pollinators.

Poppies - as far as the eye can see.

This is the Bladderpod I mentioned above. The flower period is several weeks and it always makes a splash.

Here you can see the seed pod that gives this plant its common name.

Still more Bladderpod with Bushmaster Peak in the distance.
Bushmaster Peak (4,059 feet) is named in honor of the Arizona National Guard’s 158th Infantry Regiment, which was nicknamed the "Bushmasters". The name "Bushmaster" refers to a venomous pit viper found in Central and South America, and it is among the largest and most venomous pit vipers in the world.

This is Desert Chickory. Unlike the Blue Chickory we have in West Virginia, the Desert Chickory is native to the area.

I love this view of Bushmaster and the clouds today made for some nice picture taking.

This, and photo below were taken from Betsy's View Point at the east end of Ringtail Ridge.

A nice clump of Brtittlebush with Bushmaster in the distance.

This gal was grinding her way up the trail and was soon out of sight.

This is a look across the Starr Valley which we refer to as "our backyard." The distant, cloud enshrouded mountians are the Santa Catalinas.

This is looking back towards the Starr Vally. Star Pass is straight ahead and Cat Mountain is on the right.

As the hike was wrapping up, these folks were just getting started. They are headed towards the Starr Pass and a very warm hike.

Here we are looking south towards Red Butte, Beehive peak and the distant Santa Rita mountins. This view is about a 15 minute walk from Rancho Relaxo.

One final shot and then back home we went.

See you next time...
Mike and Betsy