Saguaro — the Giant cactus !!!!
Which national park is this, was my first expression when I came across Saguaro National Park in Arizona. I spent some time to look up this one for sure as I had never heard about it just to find out that its iconic cactus makes to the state symbol of Arizona and could be seen on every single car plates. Its one of the secluded parks which does not attract many visitors, though I found it pretty interesting.
Saguaro — a monarch of the Sonoran Desert, a prickly horror, the supreme symbol of the American Southwest, and a plant with its own personality. It is renowned for the variety of odd, the human shapes it assumes, shapes that inspire wild and fanciful imaginings. Giant saguaro cacti, unique to the Sonoran Desert, covers the valley floor, rising into the Rincon and West Tucson mountains.
These are indeed huge (as you can see above)protected within Saguaro National Park. Okay! So to give you some insight — unlike other national parks, which are generally spread in vast area, Saguaro National Park is split into two sections — the Tucson Mountain District (west); the Rincon Mountain District (east); and between the two sits the city of Tucson and its 1-million residents . Isn’t this interesting ??….
I know what you all are thinking — which one should we visit??
Wait till you read the next section because that might give you some direction. While the two sides of the park bare the same name and share likeness in desert landscape, they are quite different in terms of nuance. Saguaro West is home to the dense saguaro forests that rise from the hillside. Here you will find low-desert grasslands, shrubs, and densely populated saguaro forests. Saguaro East is the area of parkland originally preserved by Herbert Hoover when he dedicated it as a monument in 1933. It is the jumping off point to back country and the habitat of elusive wildlife such as the rare Gila monster and the Coyote. Here you will find high-elevation conifer forests, in addition to saguaros and desert mainstays such as cactus and wildflowers. In a general sense, Saguaro West is more manicured; Saguaro East is wilder. For me I liked the Saguaro East more as it was more secluded and out of cities reach.
In lushness and variety of life the Sonoran Desert far surpasses all other North American deserts and yet paradoxically, it is one of the hottest and driest regions on the continent. Summer midday temperatures commonly climb above 100 degrees F. Less than 12 inches of rain fall in a typical year. Between summer and winter rainy seasons, it is not unusual for months to pass without a drop of rain, though we visited the park during Christmas holidays and encountered rain at the east park for our entire time we were there (which was half a day), thus limiting our time spent in the park.
The plants and animals able to survive this environment, with adaptations specially designed for desert survival, make up one of the most interesting and unusual collections of life in the United States. The desert is immense and infinitely variable, yet delicate and fragile. It is a land shaped by sudden torrents of rain and climatic extremes. Rainfall is sparse and unpredictable. Streambeds are usually dry and water holes are few. This land may appear lifeless, but within its parched environment are intricate living systems, each fragment performing a slightly different function and each fragment depending upon the whole system for survival.
To capture an iconic shot of the lone saguaro tree in one shot was difficult (but not impossible) challenge. After several tries to fit the whole thing in frame, we found our favorite saguaros to photograph which looked amazing at the end. Photography here is all about capturing desert silhouettes, and those exist everywhere you look. To our surprise, we also found tons of saguaros on I-10 W while going towards LA 😊
A must park to visit if you are ever in the Southwest area. Humans in the form of trees!!
