Coronado National Forest — Attraction in Benson

I camped near barefoot campground on 4/23/21. Had a great time and there wasn't a lot of other campers around. There was a handful of people at the actual campground but I found a pullout spot about a mile between Barefoot and Rustlers. The drawbacks to these sites are a pretty long, washboarded dirt road to get there and the top of the mountain is very barren. All the trees are dead in large areas but still beautiful if you look in the right direction. On the plus side, firewood is very abundant. I camped for two nights and never had to walk more than 30 feet to collect wood. Bugs were not an issue either. I saw one bee, a couple flies and 2 or 3 ants. Not a single spider or mosquito. All in all a nice area to camp in the sticks. If you're looking for a spot with some amenities, definitely go with Barefoot over Rustlers. Rustlers has ramadas,tables, and toilets but it's in the completely barren area of the mountain. A sad sight to behold. Barefoot is beautiful and shady. I just drove through the area and saw cement tables but I don't recall if there were toilets. No ramada but no need for them. Plenty of shade trees and I saw a really nice spot for a large group. 3 or 4 rock rings in a large, mostly flat clearing. Hopefully this information will be useful to someone....

These are the forests of Southern Arizona... The Sky Islands. You could make an excellent vacation out of this area of the country. Go to the Santa ritas and into beautiful Madera Canyon. You can actually Lodge there. Birds Galore for those who like that, and beautiful Scenic hiking to the top of Mount wrightson. Why not drive up the paved Scenic Mountain Road near Tucson all the way up to Mount Lemmon? There are good eats up there. Go to Safford and drive up the scenic paved road to Riggs Lake. Phenomenal views and gorgeous hiking. Remember... it may be the hot summer in the desert, but going to these elevations will be refreshingly cool. Go to the chiricahuas, and visit chiricahua National Monument. Go up to rustler Park and enjoy the hiking and the Beautiful gigantic ponderosas. Cross over to the east foothills to the Portal area and cave creek with its stunningly beautiful Campgrounds and idyllic rustic lodges. Go to the Huachucas and look out to the South to Mexico from Montezuma pass. Also Parker Lake. This area is chock-full of historic places of interest, natural beauty, and wildlife, but also cities and small towns that offer great lodging and food and...

So...another beautiful day in the Catalina Foothills. Trust Tucson to have perfect weather for hiking in the middle of January. Today my target was 2.4 miles in to the Virgin Pools, but in all reality I was more excited about the journey to get there And the actual destination. Cliche as that might sound, it was another perfect hike; virtually clear skies with little wisps of white clouds flowing directly overhead towards the apex of the trail where it would join the others on the northern end, just a little tiny hint of a breeze with enough of a temperature differential to instantly cool you down and keep you from sweating profusely, and a sprinkling of both local and visiting hikers with perfect hiking etiquette.

I am sadly not in as good a shape as I wanted to to reach where all the trails conjoined and come back down through either Pima Canyon or finger Rock, but it was definitely a gorgeous day. Lots of parking, so I definitely recommend you come and take advantage of this free hiking trail whenever...