Green Valley, AZ area?

Not really sure why they call it green valley. I mean there is greenery along the Nogales freeway (19S), but really it's in the middle of desert. The area is extremely heavy in rock formations, I mean literally within a 15 minute drive of downtown. There are three HUGE pit excavations on the west side of town. I mean ginormous! There are quite a few exceedingly large ranches west of town too. You can look up the Duval Mine and see if they allow any pickers on the property, there is TONS of stuff there, but it's been years and years since I was in that area so not sure they allow any public in there. You can take Contenental or West Duval Mine road, headed west out of town and you end up at either Duval Lake (tiny cess pool) or the Duval mine. Maybe a 15 minute drive.

There are so many washes and canyons within minutes of there. I mean as a kid I used to get lost out there for hours, just hiking or riding my dirt bike up and down the dry washes. You've got Ocotillo Preserve and Madeira Canyon, both on the edge of the Coronado National Forest. It's absolutely spectacular!

There is a simply najestic drive that we used to ride our motorcycles up, We used to call it the Coronado Triangle. I was stationed north of Green Valley at Davis-Monthan AFB, outside of Tucson. from Green Valley, you can go north or south on 19 to start the drive. Let's say you go 19 north towards Tucson. Take that to 10 East. You'll go through Drexel-Alvernon and Littletown, down to Vail, where you want to get off at Hwy 83 South, which is also called the South Sonoita Highway, or locally known as the South Sonoita Mountain View Highway. That is a fabulous road! Oh gosh this is making me miss that area!!!!

Take 83 south, and you are going to go from low desert like in Tucson, to high desert, and you'll watch the scenery change all along the way. Every where along there are small roads off into the desert. There are literally hundreds of mines around that area, most abandoned. I probably still have a geologic survey map or two of that area! I'll have to look through all my boxes. It is one of the most interesting places to just wander around. So, so so beautiful. Make sure whatever you do you take plenty of water, keep a walking stick, or like me a light spade or shovel, as that area does have plenty of snakes and scorpions.

If you continue down 83 south, past Empire Ranch, you go from light tan sandy desert environment, through browns, into red sand, then as you pass beside the Coronado you start coming up into high desert and it starts getting cool and green. When you come into the town of Sonoita, there's not much there, but you need to watch for the intersection of 83 and 82, as you need to turn south-west on 82. That intersection used to have the Fire station and a bank at it, probably still does.

At 82 you'll be turning right going towards Nogales (Nogietown to the locals). You'll be riding on top of a ridge in the mountains but lots of desert around you. You'll go through the town of Patagonia, a great place to stop for Ice Cream! Continue on 82 and you'll go right past the Nogales Airport, into Nogales. At Nogales you want to get back onto 19 and head north back to Green Valley.

This is an all-day trip. Take camera and plenty of film and batteries! I think I've made that trip at least 50 times! Each time I'd find someplace else to pull off and wander. Such a great place and so lucky your sister is!

I'd tell you more of all the roads I used to take out of Green Valley, both east and west, that take you into the mountains, but I could drive you there from memory but don't remember the names. And some were just dirt tracks that may not even exist any longer. Oh I used to wander that area, my wife hated it. I'd take off on my motorcycle and disappear for hours on end. Such a beautiful place that is.

Oh I could wander out there for days and days. It's really got some areas that are like the surface of Mars - hot, empty, unfriendly, but full of rocks... then some areas that are heavily forested and just beautiful. Such a nice place.

Figured as much, Green Valley is pretty much a retirement community, unless you work for the ranches or the mines. You know, they aren't too far from the Saguaro National Park. There are walking trails there with such magnificent scenery, it's not to be missed! Tell them to take a camera!

Every time I hiked through that park it was a different experience. I wish I'd been into rocks and photography back then, but I really was more interested in girls and drinking and those locations were great for taking a date...