Tortolita Mountains
February 14, 2010

Hikers

Dave O'Brien
Colin Dundas

Description

The Tortolita Mountains are northwest of Tucson, to the west of the much larger Santa Catalina Mountains. Most of the developed trails there start from the Dove Mountain area, notable for a high-end golf course and some expensive houses (as well as some lame tract housing). Fortunately, the trails get away from that stuff fairly quickly, and into a great low desert mountain area. We started from the Dove Mountain trailhead and did a big 12-mile loop using the Wild Mustang and Alamo Springs trails, which circle Wild Burro Canyon.

More info about the trails, including a PDF map, can be found here, and another description of this particular hike can be found here.

Photos

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Hiking through a wash near the beginning
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The Ritz-Carlton resort
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Various baby Saguaro cacti
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The Silverbell Mountains and Ragged Top Peak
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Some other kind of cactus I don;t know the name of
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Saguaro skeleton
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Some kind of Yucca, I believe. There were a ton of these near the higher parts of the hike.
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Snow on the Catalinas in the distance
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Oddly bent Saguaro
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Cholla cactus
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Another kind of Cholla, and an Ocotillo
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A well near the Wild Mustang - Alamo Springs intersection. I think the actual Alamo Spring might be something else, though.
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Looking down Wild Burro Canyon
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Big Sycamore tree in the wash
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Wild Burro Canyon
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Houses + golf course
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Resort
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An infestation of non-native species: golf course grass
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Weird parasitic plants growing in a lot of the trees in the wash
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Snow on the Catalina Mountains in the distance