December 13, 2019 hike: Romero Canyon to Romero Pass. Romero Pass is a trail connection point, connecting up to the high Mount Lemmon trails and down to the Sabino Canyon trails.
This was a great day for a hike, especially since it was less than two weeks before the winter solstice. It was sunny with temperatures in the mid 60s to low 70s through the day and winds were light. The strong sun and light wind made it feel warmer than the actual temperature. This is a common experience, even with the sun being so low at this time of the year. It is important to wear sunscreen when hiking (or doing anything outside) in Tucson!
Everything looked great in the brilliant sunshine, with beautiful saguaro and othe lower desert plants in the front range mountains, grasslands, mesquite and oaks in the mid plateau area and towering conifers in the upper creek and mountain reaches. The creek was running strongly as is shown in one of the below photos.
Photo 1 looks east about one-third of the way along the trail - about the same place as the Photo 1 in the Feb 14, 2020 hike. You can see the canyons and high mountains bordering the middle part of this trail in this picture. The picture was taken near the end of the climb through front-side range that leads to Romero Pools, a set of stream pools on the lower part of Romero stream. The trail climbs from the flats near the parking lot through the front-side range and then descends to the pools. This is good workout climb with some spectacular scenery. It is often very busy, but most hikers stop at the pools and you are often on your own from then on.<
Photo 2 is a similar shot to Photo 1, but taken looking slightly more to the north. The more northern side is mostly grasslands while the southern sector has steep canyons and mountains that mark the back side of the front range Catalinas facing Tucson.
Photo 3 shows a nice waterfall on Romero Creek near the end of the mid section of the trail. There is a very nice forest clearing near this point, which is a good place for a group lunch in dappled shade.
Photo 4 was taken near Photo 3, looking up toward the high mountains and Romero Pass. The trail shifts at this point from fairly easy plateau hiking to moderately more challenging forest trekking and finally turns into a very steep and difficult ascent in the last mile or so to the Pass.
Photo 5 looks east from the middle of the front side range in the late afternoon sun. The mountains and canyons are very rugged in this region.
Photo 6 shows another late day view from the front side range.
All in all, an amazing pre-Christmas day in the Catalinas!
Hike stats: 14.1 miles round trip and 3,300 foot elevation gain, 6 hours of hiking/trail running.
