Birds building nests, bees making hives and wildflowers bursting into bloom, combined with our exceptional spring weather, makes March southern Arizona’s busiest month. Saguaro National Park has scheduled a special week of programs to celebrate these rites of spring at the Rincon Mountain District Visitor Center on Tucson’s East Side. Each day from Monday March 15 through Friday March 19, guided activities will focus on the springtime rituals of birds, wildlife and wildflowers.
Each day during this year’s “Desert Springfest,” the park will provide free public programs on the natural world in this wondrous season of change. At 9:00 am volunteers lead morning hikes of 2 to 4 miles to various locations in the park, focusing on desert natural history. At 11:00 am and again at 3:00 pm, an activity in the park’s Cactus Garden will look into the secrets of desert plants. And at 1:00 pm a Desert Botany seminar session of 90 minutes will offer an in-depth exploration of cactus and wildflowers as the blooming season begins. The Botany seminars can be enjoyed as a five day course, or by attending an individual session.
No special arrangements are required to attend the events, which begin each day Monday through Friday at the park’s Visitor Center at 3693 South Old Spanish Trail in Tucson. There is no charge for the programs, although the usual park entrance fee is required to participate in the field hikes and seminar in the park.
