Saguaro National Park is one of the coolest places in the world to see true desert scenery. Saguaro National Park is renowned for cactus forests, desert trees, shrubs and animals that are unique to the ecosystem in the Sonoran Desert of the American Southwest.

Saguaro National Park is named after the saguaro cactus. The saguaro is known as the monarch of the Sonoran Desert and it is said that they have personality. This is said because the shapes they take are very human in nature. I have to say some of the shapes are pretty cool and they can look somewhat human.

Saguaro National Park is a great place to visit. Saguaro National Park itself is actually broken into two separate districts: Saguaro West-Tucson Mountain District and Saguaro East-Rincon Mountain District. They are separated by the city of Tucson, Arizona.

Tucson is located in the southern part of Arizona and is some 120 miles south of Phoenix. I left the W Scottsdale Hotel in Phoenix and arrived at the visitor center of the Saguaro National Park Eastern District about 2 hours later. It’s an easy and scenic drive down I-10 from Phoenix for a day trip but Tucson is also a very cool city and worthy of some time. Tucson has some great Mexican restaurants including the oldest in America, El Charro Cafe, some historic places and monuments and is also home to the University of Arizona.

The Eastern District of Saguaro National Park includes a healthy saguaro forest at the foot of the Rincon Mountains and a variety of other desert communities and wildlife. Stop in at the visitor center and get a map for the Cactus Forest Drive; which is the best way to see the Eastern District.

The Cactus Forest Drive is only 8 miles but it will take you about an hour or so if you stop at all the lookout points and/or stop for photos. The scenery is breathtaking. There are also some 130 miles of trails. Some are paved and some aren’t but you have to be careful of wildlife and of course the absurd summer heat from about May-September where temperatures are almost always over 100 degrees.

The Western District of Saguaro National Park is best viewed via the 5 mile, scenic Bajada Loop Drive. It loops through a dense saguaro forest on a graded, unpaved road.

Entrance to Saguaro National Park is $10 or free if you have a US National Park annual pass and the admission grants you access to both districts.

Saguaro National Park is great because it showcases desert life and the amazing saguaro cacti. It is also great because you can easily do it as a daytrip and spend as little or as much time there as you want. The Sonoran Desert is one of the prettiest places in the United States and few places are better to view it than Saguaro National Park.

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