Travel

This Criminally Underrated National Park Is a Sonoran Desert Wonderland

And this winter, you can have it all to yourself.

Ingram Publishing / getty images
Ingram Publishing / getty images
Ingram Publishing / getty images

It’s almost cliché to say the Sonoran desert looks like the background of a Wile E. Coyote cartoon. But hiking through forests of towering saguaro cacti feels nothing short of cartoonish. The silly, green giants with arms pointed in all directions look like they’re about to break into a musical number at any second.

The saguaro (pronounced sah-WHAH-ro, if you don’t want to be corrected by locals) is also exceedingly rare, found only in southern Arizona and northern Mexico. And if you want to spend the day with these goofy, prickly characters, Saguaro is one of the easiest national parks to visit.

Long overshadowed by Arizona’s marquee national park, the Grand Canyon, Saguaro is a 92,000-acre desert wonderland just outside Tucson. And if you go anytime other than summer and you’ll find it hits that perfect national park trifecta of ideal weather, unusual landscape, and minimal crowds. 

David C Tomlinson / the image bank / getty images
David C Tomlinson / the image bank / getty images
David C Tomlinson / the image bank / getty images

When to visit Saguaro

Prime time in southern Arizona is spring or fall, when daytime highs rarely get over a dry 90 degrees and the mornings are pleasantly cool. Winter is also fantastic if you want to hike during the day-morning and night can be chilly, but nothing a good jacket can’t fix (unless you plan to camp in the backcountry, which can get very cold post sundown).

You’ll find few parks as accessible from major cities as Saguaro, which sits less than half an hour from Tucson and less than two hours from Phoenix. It’s separated into two sections, each of which can be easily tackled in a day: East (also called the Rincon Mountain District or RMD) and West (aka the Tucson Mountain District or TMD). In between are the I-10 and the city of Tucson, so getting here by air or interstate is pretty straightforward.

Buddy Mays / corbis / getty images
Buddy Mays / corbis / getty images
Buddy Mays / corbis / getty images

Hiking in Saguaro National Park

Though the mountainous desert topography might look intimidating, Saguaro National Park is one of the easier national parks to hike.

The crown jewel for hikers is the trek to Wasson Peak in the more-mountainous western section. The entire hike is about eight miles long, and takes between four to five hours. For pretty much the entirety, you’ll be treated to panoramic views out over the park. It ends at the highest point in the western side, the 4.687-foot Wasson Peak.

For something easier on the west side, take the .8-mile Valley View Trail, which as the name suggests also boasts phenomenal views of the valley, on a far shorter walk.

The park is also home to a large number of ancient petroglyphs, best viewed along the Signal Hill Petroglyph Trail, which runs about a quarter of a mile off the Bajada Loop Drive.The eastern part of the park is flatter, a cinch to hike, and easily accessible from the Douglas Spring trailhead at the end of Speedway Blvd. This trailhead has the added bonus of no guard shack, and thus no admission fee.

From here you can delve headfirst into a magical saguaro forest along the Garwood Trail. Follow this to Garwood Dam and then take the Carillo Trial along the mountain ridgeline and back to the trailhead. You’ll be surrounded by saguaros as you hike up to the ridge line, which boasts sweeping views of the park. The whole loop is just under seven miles, or three to four hours.

The best shorter hike on the east side is the Freeman Homestead Trail, which takes you through a desert wash to the foundation of an old homestead-it’s not unusual to see some great horned owls along the way.

imageBROKER / Marc Rasmus / getty images
imageBROKER / Marc Rasmus / getty images
imageBROKER / Marc Rasmus / getty images

Driving and biking in the Sonoran desert

If you prefer to see national parks from the air-conditioned comfort of your car, Saguaro makes that easy too. The most popular scenic drive is the Cactus Forest Loop in the west. The eight-mile paved road offers the best scenery of any route in the park-hiked or driven. You’ll wind through desert mountains covered in saguaros, with plenty of pull outs and photo ops along the way.

On the east side, take the Bajada Loop Road, which is only six miles but is partially unpaved. Make sure to stop at the Signal Hill Petroglyph trail and take the short walk to the ancient etchings. And hit the Desert Discovery Nature Trail, a half-mile detour where you’ll learn all about the flora and fauna of the area.

Both roads are popular with cyclists too. Just make sure to watch out for errant ACME trucks.

John Cancalosi / Stockbyte / getty images
John Cancalosi / Stockbyte / getty images
John Cancalosi / Stockbyte / getty images

Camping and other accommodations 

One of the reasons Saguaro National Park is such a wonderful escape is the sheer lack of RVs, busses, and other large vehicles: The park is intended for hikers and backpackers, so you won’t find any RV sites within its gates. There are only about 20 campsites TOTAL, all of which are only accessible through backcountry hiking. So unless you’re looking to rough it in the desert, you’ll likely need to find a hotel.

The Tanque Verde Ranch borders the east side of the park, and is actually visible from the park’s ridgeline. The luxe dude ranch is about as close to staying in Saguaro National Park as you can get without gear, and even offers guided horseback rides through the saguaros with the added bonus of a bar to enjoy a local craft beer overlooking the Saguaro sunset.

Or just go to Tucson: It’s only a half hour from the park, has an outstanding food and drink scene, and a chilled-out artsy vibe. The Downtown Cliftona chic retro motel done right-has a funky, Austin-back-in-the-day vibe and prices are reasonable.

This easy access and convenient lodging makes it all the more puzzling that Saguaro doesn’t get more love. But its relative obscurity is also its greatest strength-it’s a national park where you can still feel like you’re lost in nature without delving into the backcountry. Its unusual landscape and ideal weather combine to create the experience many look for during a short winter getaway. And as a bonus, you might just feel like  you’re walking around the cartoon set of a childhood memory.Sign up here for our daily Thrillist email, get Next Flight Out for more travel coverage, and subscribe here for our YouTube channel to get your fix of the best in food/drink/fun.

Matt Meltzer is a Miami-based contributor for Thrillist, a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, former pageant judge in the Miss Florida America system, and past contributor to Cosmopolitan magazine. Matt graduated with a BBA from University of Miami and holds a master’s in journalism from the University of Florida. He currently lives in Miami with his Betta fish, Bob.

Travel

Ditch your Phone for ‘Dome Life’ in this Pastoral Paradise Outside Port Macquarie 

A responsible, sustainable travel choice for escaping big city life for a few days.

nature domes port macquarie
Photo: Nature Domes

The urge to get as far away as possible from the incessant noise and pressures of ‘big city life’ has witnessed increasingly more of us turn to off-grid adventures for our holidays: Booking.com polled travellers at the start of 2023 and 55% of us wanted to spend our holidays ‘off-grid’.  Achieving total disconnection from the unyielding demands of our digitised lives via some kind of off-grid nature time—soft or adventurous—is positioned not only as a holiday but, indeed, a necessity for our mental health. 

Tom’s Creek Nature Domes, an accommodation collection of geodesic domes dotted across a lush rural property in Greater Port Macquarie (a few hours’ drive from Sydney, NSW), offers a travel experience that is truly ‘off-grid’. In the figurative ‘wellness travel’ sense of the word, and literally, they run on their own independent power supply—bolstered by solar—and rely not on the town grid. 

Ten minutes before you arrive at the gates for a stay at Tom’s Creek Nature Domes, your phone goes into ‘SOS ONLY’. Apple Maps gives up, and you’re pushed out of your comfort zone, driving down unsealed roads in the dark, dodging dozens of dozing cows. Then, you must ditch your car altogether and hoist yourself into an open-air, all-terrain 4WD with gargantuan wheels. It’s great fun being driven through muddy gullies in this buggy; you feel like Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park.  As your buggy pulls in front of your personal Nature Dome, it’s not far off that “Welcome…to Jurassic Park” jaw-dropping moment—your futuristic-looking home is completely engulfed by thriving native bushland; beyond the outdoor campfire lie expansive hills and valleys of green farmland, dotted with sheep and trees. You’re almost waiting to see a roaming brachiosaurus glide past, munching on a towering gum tree…instead, a few inquisitive llamas trot past your Dome to check out their new visitor. 

To fully capture the awe of inhabiting a geodesic dome for a few days, a little history of these futuristic-looking spherical structures helps. Consisting of interlocking triangular skeletal struts supported by (often transparent) light walls, geodesic domes were developed in the 20th century by American engineer and architect R. Buckminster Fuller, and were used for arenas. Smaller incarnations have evolved into a ‘future-proof’ form of modern housing: domes are able to withstand harsh elements due to the stability provided by the durable materials of their construction and their large surface area to volume ratio (which helps minimize wind impact and prevents the structure from collapsing). As housing, they’re also hugely energy efficient – their curved shape helps to conserve heat and reduce energy costs, making them less susceptible to temperature changes outside. The ample light let in by their panels further reduces the need for artificial power. 

Due to their low environmental impact, they’re an ideal sustainable travel choice. Of course, Tom’s Creek Nature Domes’ owner-operators, Cardia and Lee Forsyth, know all this, which is why they have set up their one-of-a-kind Nature Domes experience for the modern traveller. It’s also no surprise to learn that owner Lee is an electrical engineer—experienced in renewable energy—and that he designed the whole set-up. As well as the off-grid power supply, rainwater tanks are used, and the outdoor hot tub is heated by a wood fire—your campfire heats up your tub water via a large metal coil. Like most places in regional Australia, the nights get cold – but rather than blast a heater, the Domes provide you with hot water bottles, warm blankets, lush robes and heavy curtains to ward off the chill.

nature domes port macquarie
Photo: Nature Domes

You’ll need to be self-sufficient during your stay at the Domes, bringing your own food. Support local businesses and stock up in the town of Wauchope on your drive-in (and grab some pastries and coffee at Baked Culture while you’re at it). There’s a stovetop, fridge (stocked as per a mini bar), BBQs, lanterns and mozzie coils, and you can even order DIY S’More packs for fireside fun. The interiors of the Domes have a cosy, stylish fit-out, with a modern bathroom (and a proper flushing toilet—none of that drop bush toilet stuff). As there’s no mobile reception, pack a good book or make the most of treasures that lie waiting to be discovered at every turn: a bed chest full of board games, a cupboard crammed with retro DVDs, a stargazing telescope (the skies are ablaze come night time). Many of these activities are ideal for couples, but there’s plenty on offer for solo travellers, such as yoga mats, locally-made face masks and bath bombs for hot tub soaks. 

It’s these thoughtful human touches that reinforce the benefit of making a responsible travel choice by booking local and giving your money to a tourism operator in the Greater Port Macquarie Region, such as Tom’s Creek Nature Domes. The owners are still working on the property following the setbacks of COVID-19, and flooding in the region —a new series of Domes designed with families and groups in mind is under construction, along with an open-air, barn-style dining hall and garden stage. Once ready, the venue will be ideal for wedding celebrations, with wedding parties able to book out the property. They’ve already got one couple—who honeymooned at the Domes—ready and waiting. Just need to train up the llamas for ring-bearer duties! 

An abundance of favourite moments come to mind from my two-night stay at Tom’s Creek: sipping champagne and gourmet picnicking at the top of a hill on a giant swing under a tree, with a bird’s eye view of the entire property (the ‘Mountain Top picnic’ is a must-do activity add on during your stay), lying on a deckchair at night wrapped in a blanket gazing up at starry constellations and eating hot melted marshmallows, to revelling in the joys of travellers before me, scrawled on notes in a jar of wishes left by the telescope (you’re encouraged to write your own to add to the jar). But I’ll leave you with a gratitude journal entry I made while staying there. I will preface this by saying that I don’t actually keep a gratitude journal, but Tom’s Creek Nature Domes is just the kind of place that makes you want to start one. And so, waking up on my second morning at Tom’s —lacking any 4G bars to facilitate my bad habit of a morning Instagram scroll—I finally opened up a notebook and made my first journal entry:

‘I am grateful to wake up after a deep sleep and breathe in the biggest breaths of this clean air, purified by nature and scented with eucalyptus and rain. I am grateful for this steaming hot coffee brewed on a fire. I feel accomplished at having made myself. I am grateful for the skittish sheep that made me laugh as I enjoyed a long nature walk at dawn and the animated billy goats and friendly llamas overlooking my shoulder as I write this: agreeable company for any solo traveller. I’m grateful for total peace, absolute stillness.” 

Off-grid holiday status: unlocked.

Where: Tom’s Creek Nature Domes, Port Macquarie, 2001 Toms Creek Rd
Price: $450 per night, book at the Natura Domes website.

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