Rock Art
Arizona State Trust Lands permit required.
For us, this route is a story …. About two women who have a few things in common. They are seniors who live in the Voyager RV Resort. They love spending time in the desert. And they have more energy than most forty somethings.
First, there is Carol, she bikes around putting in routes. So when you see the markers here and there across this maze of gravel/mountain bike trails, there’s a good chance she had something to do with it. We’ve bumped into her out there raking up the cholla pieces off the trail.
Then there is Karen, she’s a rock artist. She bikes around looking for rocks to collect (which she hauls around in both a bucket or on a trailer behind her bike) so she can make her rock art. You’ll find her masterpieces tucked away across the trail network. Not all of them are hers, but we have featured a few so you can recognize her style.
Both of these superheroes spend hours (and hours) in this area making this a truly fun place to ride. Whimsical is how we think of it all. It’s amazing how they have transformed this area into a rideable art museum, art mixed in with the beauty of the desert.
We rode this area at least a dozen times, scouting out different versions of this route. In the end, we decided that exploration was really part of the fun. So we give you a route that will get you started. Every day a group from Voyager RV Resort is out scheming new routes, so we know you will find trails we don’t even know existed. (Some of them are definite, some of them are a little harder to find.) And every day artists like Karen are adding more art. It’s all evolving.
We hope you enjoy this route; we hope you leave inspired by Carol and Karen. It’s impossible to use the word “retired” when you think of either one of them. If you bump into them on the trails or at Fat Willy’s, the local bar and grill in Voyager RV Resort, make sure you give them a big high five.
When We Like to Ride This
Almost anytime of the year. In the summer go early to beat the heat. In the winter go when the sun shines bright. This is a great ride for just after work. Do not go immediately after rains, it can be muddy.
Terrain & Riding
The terrain is classic desert scrub found in and around the Tucson area. Palo verde trees, arrel and cholla cactus, and a few saguaros. The riding is flat, on hard pack desert sand with spots of loose and scattered stone. Nothing too big. You will cross through a wash or two. Nothing too tricky. It is all rideable. The biggest hazard are the chollas.
You will also get great views of several Sky Island Mountain ranges. The Catalinas to the north, the Rincons to the east, the Tucson mountains to the west and the Santa Ritas to the south.
The Start
Voyager RV park. At the gate tell the attendant you are there to eat at Fat Willy’s restaurant (yes, it is open to the public!). Inside the park, go straight to the “T”, then left. In ~ 100 yards there is a large parking lot with Fat Willy’s just on the far end.
Route Notes
The desert is a very special place. The plants are prickly but also fragile; they take a long time to grow. Do you part and please stay on the trail especially when passing an oncoming rider. Either “skinny-up” on the trail or stop and put a foot down. But don’t veer off the trail into the fragile soils.
Most of this route is on Arizona State Trust Lands. For access a permit is required. We strongly encourage you to do the “right thing” and purchase a permit. The fee is nominal.
Bring a comb or fork in case you get “stuck” by a jumping cholla. See this video. Ouch!
We have rated the navigation as challenger. There are a zillion turns out here, many unmarked. But a wrong turn is not a crises. You are bounded by roads on all sides, thus you cannot get too lost.
Route Options
There is so much to ride in this area, go explore! We have just documented a short route that highlights the “Rock Art”. Here is our personal heat map of the area.
Love Where You Ride! Learn More
Much of this ride takes place on Arizona State Trust lands. These lands are managed to obtain their highest and best use and to maximize their financial return to the State Trust beneficiaries. Two of the primary beneficiaries are K-12 Public Education and Arizona’s three state universities (Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University, and the University of Arizona). This means that individual parcels may remain undeveloped, sold for development, leased for commercial, agricultural, grazing or mineral uses, or be open for approved activities under a recreational or special use permit.
If you would like to see these lands and trails maintained as a recreation area, we recommend that you contact and work the local non-profit Sonoran Desert Mountain Bicyclists.
Videos
The Ride! Rock Art
A quick 2-minute video of what to expect on your ride!
The Most Dangerous Plant in the Desert
In this 2-minute video learn about the jumping (Teddy Bear) cholla and all its prickly tricks from savage backward pointing barbs that are sharp enough to pierce flesh.
Podcasts
Rock Art!
Riding on obscure Tuscon trails, we ran across amazing art that was created out of rocks carefully arranged in the sand to form very cool figures. A huge rabbit, a heart, a wolf howling in a moonlight, a horse, a hummingbird …. we also ran across the original artist, Karen Garno, who [...]
Keep it Local! Learn More
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