After conquering all
of the golf courses,
here are a few
other activities to try
TravelGolf.com Staff Report
Once you’ve played a few rounds on Tucson’s superlative courses, you’ll be looking for more recreation. Whether it’s hiking, climbing, gold panning, or cave-crawling you yearn for, Tucson can keep you busy.
Cycle round and round and up and down
Bicycling magazine has ranked Tucson with its 300 days of sunshine as one of the top three North American cities for spinning your wheels – right up there with Moab, Utah, and Austin, Texas.
The Greater Arizona Bicycling Association, one of many local clubs catering to a variety of styles and speeds, has more than 1,000 members and can provide you lots of information at the group web site, bikegaba.org. There are tons of organized races and rides going on all the time.
 There are scenic biking trails at Saguaro National Park and Coronado National Forest. Rangers can help you find the best places to ride. Guided bike tours can also be arranged for everyone from beginners to extremists.
If you’re really a glutton for sore muscles, take the 27-mile climb up 9,000-foot Mt. Lemmon just past the city limits, the miles of trails that snake into the desert right from town. Mountain bikers love to bump along the trails in the Tortolita and Santa Catalina Mountains.
Tucson is a gem for rock lovers
Tucson is a haven for rockhounds -- people who like to hunt for gold, garnets, or gems in the desert or mountains.
That’s probably why the largest collection of gem, mineral and fossil shows in the world is held in Tucson every January and February. The shows attract tens of thousands of people from all over the world to buy, sell and trade precious gems, ancient fossils and simple rocks. There is something for everyone at the gem and mineral shows. If you come to the show, you’ll find exhibits are spread throughout the city at motels and hotels as well as the Tucson Convention Center and Tucson Show Place. Check out the web site at http://www.tucsonshowguide.com/tsg/ for more information.
Going down under the earth
If you’re interested in the underworld, try exploring Colossal Cave Park, just east of Tucson in the foothills of the Rincon Mountains, where you can visit one of the largest dry caverns in the world. This desert cave served as a shelter for humans for more than a thousand years. It has been home, shrine, hideout, challenging workplace, exciting playground and tranquil retreat. Today the 2,000-acre park is owned by Pima County and is managed by the Pima County Parklands Foundation.
The park includes crystal-filled Colossal Cave and historic La Posta Quemada Ranch, a working ranch for more than 120 years. Visitors can take a cave tour, browse in the historical museum, relax in the wooded picnic areas, hike, saddle up for a trail ride, sluice for gemstones, enjoy a meal at fresh-air cafés and explore southwestern gift shops. To find out more, check out the Web site colossalcave.com.
Forty-five minutes southeast of Tucson, you can take on an even bigger adventure at Kartchner Caverns State Park, an area discovered by cavehunters in the 1970s. You can take a tour led by a trained guide and see such formations as a 21-foot “soda straw,” a 58-foot high column named Kubla Khan and translucent orange “bacon," watched over by some 2,000 bats. The stunning “living” wet cave is located 45 minutes southeast of Tucson, Arizona, near the town of Benson. Call (520) 586-CAVE for information. Check out pr.state.az.us/Parks/parkhtml/kartchner.html.
If climbing is the high point of your life...
Those who aspire to high positions will find paradise in Tucson. The city offers some of the best year-round technical rock-climbing in the United States. If you want to get the hang of the sport before trying it outdoors, there’s a rock-climbing gym in town that can show you the ropes in a safe, non-threatening environment.
Feel right at home on the range
If you’ve always fantasized about the Wild West, you can really fulfill your cowpoke fantasies here. Spend a day on horseback on a cattle drive or watch the action from a comfortable hay wagon. Longer pack trips can also be organized. Simply want to ride off into the sunset? Nothing could be easier. Horseback riding is available at public stables throughout the area and at a number of state parks like La Posta Quemada Ranch at Colossal Cave.
Wheel your way through the backcountry
 Another great way to explore the backcountry is by Jeep. Local outfitters will be happy to take you for an organized excursion. Not only do they know the best routes, but Jeep tour guides can find the best and biggest saguaros, take you to Indian ruins or even organize cookouts and theme parties for larger groups. And imagine the photos you can take home to show your friends. Of course, if you’re a four-wheel drive expert, you can check out the many mountain tracks that are open to you here.
Get a bird’s-eye view of Southern Arizona
Hot air balloon operators can offer sky-high views of Tucson and champagne and fine dining besides. It’s easy, too, to be up above the stunning vistas of the valley that helicopter tours afford. Skydiving is also a possibility.
Hike along skyscraping peaks
Tucson has some of the best mountain hiking possibilities in Arizona. The Santa Catalina mountains and Southern Arizona’s Chiricahua mountains are sky islands, where unique vegetation and wildlife abound, and hiking trails offer spectacular views of the desert floor below. Try taking a wildflower trek in the spring or make a climb to see the Indian petroglyphs.
For more information, check out the web site at http://arizona.sierraclub.org/trail_guide/ for more details on hiking in Tucson.
Any opinions expressed above are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the management. The information in this story was accurate at the time of publication. All contact information, directions and prices should be confirmed directly with the golf course or resort before making reservations and/or travel plans.
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