Now that I have walked the Loop around Tucson (minus the three miles between two points), I want to discover other urban trails in the area. I had picked the Juan Bautista de Anza (JBA) trail next. The historical trail, which begins at the US-MEX border at Nogales, continues in a NW direction and ends in Monterey, CA. Interstates 8 and 10 in Arizona and Interstate 5 and US Highway 101 in California follow his route for the most part. He had many beautiful Spanish missions erected along the way to help convert natives to the Catholic religion. I had driven most of the trail while stationed in California in the 1990s without realizing it. Now I want to explore some of the missions here in Arizona.
I took Sahne as my sole canine partner today and she did great. She never once pulled on the leash except for that one other dog on the trail...
I wanted to start the JBA trail at the southern-most terminus of the Santa Cruz River walk off Valencia Road. This is a busy road and I was surprised that there was no dedicated parking area for the path here. I parked in a medical clinic parking lot facing the loop and started walking north along the western bank of the wash.
This walk isn't very scenic, and I was surprised that there were no historical markers along the path dedicated to JBA. But perhaps I just didn't see them, as I walked part of this section in the wash so that Sahne could drink some water.
The wash here is beset with trash. I picked up enough aluminum cans that I could fit into my backpack, including six golf balls (!!!) Discarded shopping carts, old mattresses and sun-dried clothing littered the wash here.
The terrain here is also very fragile. The walls along the wash get eroded with every flood. Signs prohibiting off-road vehicles also warn of vehicle seizures. Deep crevices along the banks could also be dangerous for wildlife.
Effluent gushes into the wash at the two-mile mark. It looked clean enough and Sahne didn't mind. She lay in the water, splashed around and came back to life. I had enough water for both us in my pack, but always prefer that dogs refresh themselves in creek water. The wash from a distance looks inviting when there's water in it, but the trash up-close is revolting.
The diffusing overcast sky didn't happen until the turn-around point just south of Silverlake Boulevard, where the loop meets up with the Julian Wash. I was tired as well and Sahne looked exhausted. I had taken two breaks to let us rest.
Most of the trail north of Ajo Way in Tucson looked familiar to me, so I must have walked this section unknowingly over the years.
There are many homeless camps along this section. Some areas are heavily taken over by small groups taking over rest areas. While the people seem to leave path users alone, it's the trash that bothers me. If these people can carry bottles and boxes down to their camps, they certainly can carry the trash back out. Instead, the litter trashes the wash and then gets swept away in the next flood.
One such camp had a life-sized stuffed Golden Retriever standing guard by a tent. Even I was fooled by its lifeness, as was Sahne who lunged and barked at it.
There are also a few grave markers along the path, but they seem to be victims of bike-car accidents.
One thing I was surprised about was the lack of wildflowers. I was expecting the poppies to be all along this route. Instead, I only spotted one batch. Most of the yellow flowers were small batches on the southern end of this route.
I was relieved to get this section done with. I was tired and hungry. My next plan was to stop at a new Mexican place and then have two beers at MotoSonora and its dog run for Sahne before driving back home.
I did a slight detour and stopped at the San Xavier del Bac mission since it's not too far from Valencia Road. This mission is on the Tohono O'odham reservation. It was almost 5pm and the mission was already closed, but visitors were allowed to walk the grounds and walk up the nearby hill and its cross. Several residents were still in the parking lot selling fry bread.
My meal was chicken enchiladas at Maico's off 22nd/Park Avenue, then two different wheat ales at MotorSonora. Sahne lay next to me, exhausted. She did so well today. Her leash manners are the best of all the younger dogs. Her only flaw is that she does not want other dogs near me.
It was just past 7pm now and still warm. Looks like spring is around the corner, as morning temperatures will be in the 40s all week.
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