Organ Pipes National Monument

Southern Arizona

This place, hard on the southern border with Mexico, is another good place to go in the winter. This trip was in February, 2006. It is a couple hours drive from Tuscon. Most of these photos are from the Alamo Canyon area. First I camped at the primitive car campground near the opening of Alamo Canyon, and then I did a short, trail-less backpack to a ridge overlooking the broad valley. It was a gorgeous setting, but the winds came up something fierce that night, forcing me to move my tent, since the sandy ground did not provide a strong enough anchor. However, due to security issues with the nearby border, all backcountry areas are now closed to even day-use, as of December, 2007.