Catalinas - Esperero

December 19, 2021 hike: Esperero Canyon to the Cathedral Rock Trail intersection.

What a spectacular day! Temps were in the mid-60s, there wasn't a cloud in the sky and there was almost no wind. And, there were surprisingly few people at Sabino Canyon. I didn't see another person after the outbound approach to Cardiac Gap (a bit less than half way up). Perfect hiking conditions!

This trail starts out flat, but then has a lot of up and down with some quite steep sections (especially the appropriately-named Cardiac Gap) to the end of the lower front canyon. Cardiac Gap roughly marks the half way point of the trail. There is a good view of the lower canyon and Tucson from the top of Cardiac Gap and that is about as far as most hikers go.

After Cardiac Gap, the back-country starts with a large bowl-shaped section that is quite spectacular from the distant end in the late afternoon sun. Then you descend into a lovely flat forested section that includes the very pleasant Geronimo Meadow. There is a magnificent rock wall along the eastern side of Geronimo Meadow.

After Geronimo Meadow the hike turns seriously uphill to the top. The trail tops out about 6,130 feet, although there are hikes above that, that go much higher. The views from the top are amazing, providing a view of the massive upper canyon bowl bounded by high peaks and ridges.

Photo 1 shows the distant ranges from the Sabino Canyon road near the start of the hike. The hike goes between the nearer mountains and continues well beyond the distant mountains.

Photo 2 shows beautiful saguaros on a hill in the early up-down section of the trail.

Photo 3 is taken in the steep lower canyon, just before the very steep Cardiac Gap ascent to the top of the lower canyon. The trail zig-zags across the Cardiac Gap slope because CG would be far too steep to climb directly up. It is still quite a workout, especially if you climb it at speed.

Photo 4 shows the view looking down the lower canyon from the top of Cardiac Gap, with Tucson beyond the canyon and the Santa Rita mountains in the distance.

Photo 5 looks up at the massive rock wall that runs along the eastern side of Geronimo Meadow.

Photo 6 shows some of the rock structures of the rock wall shown in photo 5.

Photo 7 is a video that provides a panorama of the eastern and central section of the very wide bowl that makes up the upper part of the canyon. There is a real sense of the grandeur of nature looking across the canyon from the top.

Photo 8 looks at the rock wall along the eastern side of Geronimo Meadow from the high canyon. The twin spires of the wall are quite dramatic. The mountains in the background are the Rincons.

Photo 9 looks south from the top of the large bowl just beyond Cardiac Gap. This was a breathtaking scene in the late afternoon sun. The mountains at the end of the bowl are the sides of the lower canyon, with Tucson stretching beyond the canyon and the Santa Ritas in the distance.

Photos 10-12 show some of the few wildflowers I encountered.

It was a truly spectacular day, especially considering it was only 2 days before the winter solstice.

Hike stats: about 14 miles with roughly 3,400 feet of vertical to a peak of 6,130 feet in 6 hours 25 minutes (3 hours 40 minutes up, 2 hours 45 minutes down - it is a lot faster and easier coming down!).