3 Forests to Explore in Santa Cruz County

The Las Cienegas National Conservation Area is a National Conservation Area of Arizona, located in the transitional zone between the Sonoran Desert and the Chihuahuan Desert. tMore han 45,000 acres of rolling grasslands and woodlands in Arizona’s Pima and Santa Cruz counties was protected as a National Conservation Area. The region’s rolling grasslands, oak-studded hills that connect several "sky island" mountain ranges, and lush riparian corridors attract both people and wildlife.

Mount Wrightson is visible from great distances at a magnificent 7,000 feet from the desert floor, 9,452-foot. It has rough hillsides, deep canyons, and lofty ridges and peaks surrounded on all sides by semiarid hills and sloping grasslands.Much of this wilderness was affected by a wildfire during the summer of 2005. Trail and spring conditions have changed and current information should be obtained from the local Forest Service office prior to hiking or camping in this area.

Pajarita Wilderness is a 7,553-acre property in Coronado National Forest against the Sonora border. The array of canyons that make up the area sit at the western end of the Pajarito Mountains, and form a well-known migration route for birds. Sycamore Canyon is the centerpiece of the wilderness, a riparian forest that supports more than 160 bird species.