October 28, 2013 / Modified oct 29, 2013 8:47 a.m.

Abundance of Wildlife, Nature in Heart of Desert

Sabino Canyon is a popular destination for locals, tourists, nature enthusiasts as it has exquisite landscapes every season of the year.

Sabino Canyon, located in the Santa Catalina Mountains and the Coronado National Forest north of Tucson, is a world of natural beauty.

It has exquisite landscapes and abundant wildlife every season of the year, said Heidi Schewel, a communication staff officer at Sabino Canyon. There are many opportunities for hiking, exercising, picnicking, studying nature, and bird watching, she added.

Dawn Cantrell, a Tucson resident, comes up to Sabino Canyon three, four times a week.

"It is a beautiful, safe place," she said. "People say it is a desert, but there is a lot of green...(they) just take it for granted.”

Many people come to see the Saguaros, Schewel said.

“But if you really get into the story of how some of these plants have adopted how to live in arid conditions, it is just fascinating,” she said. They have developed strategies that allowed them to survive and even thrive in what can be very harsh conditions. “

One of the places with panoramic views of the town and canyon is Sabino Overlooks, Schewel said. It is a nice spot to look down onto the Sabino Dam and see the Sabino Creek coming down and falling over the dam, she explained.

"Sabino Dam was constructed to hold back Sabino Creek to actually form a fishing lake in the 1930s," Schewel said. "People did use to come, the lake was stocked and people fished."

Today, it is an area to experience the water flow and its serenity.

"It is really nice to swim…in the dead of summer too," said Brandon Frazho, a Tucson resident, who started coming out to the canyon this year.

“I’ll go alone if no one else wants to go, but I enjoy coming with other people," Frazho said. "If you (want to get) into your own vibe, maybe listen to some music and take a walk it is better to be alone."

To somebody who has never been to Sabino Canyon before, bring your curiosity, Schewel said. You are going to learn a lot.

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