We finally made it to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. Set aside in 1937, Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument preserves the northern-most natural habitat of the organ pipe cactus. The climate is too cold for it to grow any further north. Even here, the cactus only grows on the warmer,sunnier southern exposure of the mountains and hills.
The whole area is quite densely covered by other types of cactus including the ubiquitous saguaro. In fact, much of the area reminds us of our trip to Saguaro National Park.
We set up camp just outside the park at Gunsite Wash off AZ 85. There’s quite a few people here and the maze of roads are a bit confusing. But if you can figure out how to get towards the back, you can find some solitude. The the huge Barry M. Goldwater Air Force Gunnery Range is nearby and we can hear the occasional explosion of munitions and see a fighter jet streaking by.
The area is covered with signs about smuggling and illegal immigration. There is however, a large, visible presence of Border Patrol agents around so we felt safe.
Scenic Drives
South Puerto Blanco Drive
There are a couple scenic drives in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument that are gravel roads but fit for passenger vehicles. You can download a guide for the drives from the National Park Service web site. One is the 14 mile South Puerto Blanco Drive, which is part of a 41 mile loop takes 4-5 hours and requires a high clearance vehicle. This drive takes you along the southern US border with the wall on one side and Sonoran desert views on the other.
At the end of the road is a small parking area and a short trail leading to Quitobaquito Springs. This spring is the only reliable above-ground water sources in the Sonoran Desert. Water continually streams out of the ground, down a small channel, and into a pond. The spring has a long history. It’s provided water to Hia C-ed O’odham and the Tohono O’odham Tribes for thousands of years and is part of a prehistoric trade route.
In the 1860s, Andrew Dorsey built a dam and dug irrigation ditches to water his pomegranate and fig trees. Dorsey lived in the area until the 1890s. In 1887, a former Texas Ranger named Jefferson Davis Milton established a United States customs and immigration station at Quitobaquito. Milton mined for gold and silver in the area and established the Milton Mine that you can visit in the monument today. Around 1903, local rancher Thomas Childs Jr. arrived and rebuilt Dorsey’s dam and irrigation ditches. Among other crops, he started to grow watermelons.
These protected springs are the only place to find several endangered and threatened species within the United States. The Quitobaquito pupfish, the Sonoyta mud turtle, and the Quitobaquito spring snail only live there and within a small number of other springs in Mexico. In addition, the site has become a popular place for drug smugglers to attempt to cross into the U.S. This created quite a controversy when the Department of Homeland Security began building a wall in 2020 and threatening the existence of these endangered species.
Ajo Mountain Drive
The other scenic route is the 21 mile Ajo Mountain Drive, the most popular scenic drive in the monument. Vehicles over 25 feet are prohibited, due to the twisting and dipping nature of the road. This road provides excellent views of the desert landscape, going through desert washes and up into the Ajo Mountains. There are large stands organ pipe cacti, as well as saguaros, cholla, and barrel cacti.
The downloaded guide follows the numbered stops located along the drive explaining what you’re seeing. You can get a paper guide from the visitors center but you have to return it when you finish the tour.
Estes Canyon
There are very maintained trails in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument has few maintained trails. About halfway around on the Ajo Scenic Drive is a picnic area and the trailhead to Estes Canyon and Bull Pasture. If you only have time for one hike, this is the one. The views are awesome right from the start!
The trail begins through a series of washes with a variety of desert vegetation surrounded by the the shear cliffs and walls Ajo Mountains. I have seen it described as a ‘natural amphitheater’. We tripped over some rocks and roots because we kept looking up at the views rather than where we were walking.
The trail then starts up through some switch backs to the top of a ridge with some tremendous views of the Estes Canyon against the backdrop of the Ajo Mountains. Turning around, you can see across the Sonoyta Valley and into Mexico. There’s a bench up here to sit, snack and enjoy the scenery. There’s a short, strenuous trail spur at the top that leads to Bull Pasture Overlook that we didn’t take. Bull Pasture is an elevated grasslands area that was an important summer pasture from the areas’ ranching past. Heading down the backside of the ridge is a bit more rocky with some stands of organ pipe cacti on the southern facing slopes. This is definitely a five star hike that we’ll be doing again if we come back here.
Victoria Mine Trail
One of the most popular is the Victoria Mine Trail. This is a great, fairly easy trail that stays level overall, apart from several dry wash crossings, passing hillsides covered by the typical landscape of the area. The path becomes a little more overgrown and undulating towards the end, with fine, long distance views south and east across the Sonoyta Valley, to the Ajo Mountains.
After 2.2 miles, you arrive at the site of Victoria Mine, a center for sporadic gold and silver excavations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Here you find the stone remains of a mining store, rusted iron equipment and several sealed of mine shafts. We accessed the trailhead from the Twin Peaks Campground. You can also get to the mine from the Senita Basin, which was recently reopened after a closure due to problems with illegal immigration. If you want to add another four miles (two miles one way) to your hike, you can continue to Lost Cabin Mine.
Moving On . . .
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is much more green than we thought and it has some absolutely stunning scenery. But now we’re moving on to do some moochdocking, driveway surfing, of whatever you want to call it at my sister’s house. It will be good to visit family, do some maintenance and upgrades on Freebird, and take care of some business. We really don’t know where we’re going from there. It all depends on the weather. Stay tuned to see where we end up.
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