Arizona Sonoran Desert Cycling
6 days
From $ 2759
Duration6 days
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  • Etepia
  • Arizona Sonoran Desert Cycling

Seek out Arizona’s wildlife, wine country and other desert surprises on a 6-day jaunt through the Sonoran Desert. Craving sunshine and memorable time in the saddle? This fully supported tour features both. Food and nature experiences deepen the Southwest flavor. With friendly guides and co-adventurers, you’ll cycle and explore around Phoenix, Tucson and Sonoita. (Sorry, no ebikes.) Bring your own bike or be fitted for a high-end rental bike at no extra charge. Expect blue skies and bewitching Sonoran Desert vistas around every curve. Ride handpicked roads through varied terrain, among vineyards, hoodoos, palo verde trees, and spectacular overlooks. Behold forests of cacti up to five stories tall in Saguaro National Park. Tackle legendary-for-a-reason Mount Lemmon (or a more restful route). Take in epic mountain ranges and lush wine-country hills. Spy elusive creatures at the Arizona-Sonoran Desert Museum’s naturalistic exhibits. Meet an ocelot in the Cat Canyon, be hypnotized by seahorses at the Sea of Cortez saltwater aquarium, and stroll among chattering cactus wrens at the walk-in aviary. Enjoy locavore meals, like a farm-to-table lunch in a pecan grove. With each experience, you’ll be awed anew by the beauty of the Southwest.

This tour is operated by

  • Duration: 6 days
    Service level: Standard
  • Physical Grading: Average
  • Ends in: Alkali Lake
    Ages: 18+
Arizona Sonoran Desert Cycling - Tour Map

Itinerary

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Day 1: Ride Fountain to Mountain
Meet your guides and fellow trip members in the lobby of our host hotel that offers an easy airport shuttle option. We’ll meet one another, do a trip orientation, then transfer to our lodging for tonight, We’ll begin our first ride of the trip, riding directly from our hotel to Fountain Park, where the town’s namesake water feature shoots water almost 600 feet in the air (one of the tallest fountains in the world). After enjoying the quiet rolling streets of Fountain Hills, we ride out into the gorgeous Sonoran Desert, along the banks of the Verde River, and into McDowell Mountain Regional Park. Once back at our hotel, there will be time to check-in, relax, enjoy the hotel’s spa or pools before a group dinner at the family-owned Tuscany-inspired restaurant right on property. Lunch and dinner included.
Cycling: 53 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +3,188'/-3,179'; Van transfer 25 minutes
Meals: D
Day 2: South Mountain Summit & Pecan Grove Farm Lunch
Today we join the locals in celebrating Silent Sunday at South Mountain Park, a day blissfully free of vehicular traffic on this popular summit drive. If the twists and turns of the summit road up to 2,330’ overlooking the city isn’t your style, detour along the flatter but equally scenic San Juan Road, which lets you enjoy a more casual ride between two mountain ranges. We descend to the Farm at South Mountain to enjoy a local farm-to-table lunch set in a pecan grove. After lunch, we transfer south to Tucson, a bike-friendly community set in the heart of southern Arizona’s most dramatic mountain ranges. After checking in, we’ll settle in to our hotel for the next 3 nights before gathering for a dinner on property. All meals included.
Cycling: 33 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +2,108'/-2,108'; Van transfer 2.5 hours
Meals: B, L, D
Day 3: Catalina Vistas, Desert Museum & Saguaro National Park
This morning we'll have breakfast together where we'll take in stunning views of the Catalina Mountains. Once we're properly fueled, we’ll begin our ride right from the hotel, utilizing the popular Loop multi-use path through town and along the Santa Cruz River. We climb Gates Pass and descend into the heart of Saguaro National Park, where nearly 2 million saguaro cacti thrive, the densest population in the world. We enjoy lunch at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum; part garden, part museum, and part native wildlife zoo, this well-kept secret will be one of the highlights of your trip. We’ll have lunch at the museum’s on-site restaurant, followed by a choice to enjoy the afternoon exploring the museum, or do all or part of the return ride back to the hotel. We'll have time this evening to clean up and relax a bit before meeting back up with the group to enjoy dinner together at a local favorite restaurant serving a du jour menu.
Cycling: 56 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +2700'/-2700'
Day 4: Rest Day with Optional Adventures (No Extra Cost)
All meals are on your own today to allow maximum flexibility in choosing your own breed of adventure! Options include: a casual ride through the beautiful Catalina State Park, a challenging climb to the Mt. Lemmon summit, or lace up your boots and hike to the beautiful Maiden Pools of Ventana Canyon. For those interested in a change of pace, stay on property and relax by the pool or book a well-earned spa service! Breakfast included.
Cycling (Optional): Mount Lemon - 64 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +6999'/-6999'
Cycling (Optional): Catalina State Park -29 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +971'/-969'
Meals: B
Day 5: Journey to Sonoita, Arizona’s Wine Country
This morning we'll eat breakfast together before we check out and head further south into Arizona’s wine country. Today's route will take us through the eastern side of Saguaro National Park, a not-to-be-missed ride local roadies enjoy weekly, before making our way south to remote Sonoita, AZ. The final leg of our ride will find us at the foothills of the Rincon Mountains where we'll begin our steady climb to the high desert grasslands where vineyards thrive. After check-in we'll have time to freshen up before enjoying a privately hosted dinner and wine pairing at a local family-owned winery! All meals included.
Cycling: 76 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +4810'/-4810'; Van transfer (optional): 45 minutes
Cycling (Optional): 45 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +2241'/-1709'; Van transfer: 1 hour
Meals: B, L, D
Day 6: Parker Canyon Lake Picnic
We’ll wake on our final day in the comfort of Sonoita Inn, and a hand-delivered in-room breakfast, courtesy of our guides. After packing our belongings into the vehicle, we take on our final ride of the journey – straight from our hotel to Parker Canyon Lake. Our route today should provide quiet and solitude as we take in the incredible landscape lush southern Arizona, replete with hillsides dotted with vineyards. We'll stop at Parker Canyon Lake for a guide-prepared picnic lunch with a view before our return ride to our hotel. We'll have the opportunity to shower before our guide transfers us to the airport to return home to Phoenix. Breakfast and lunch included.
Cycling: 62 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +4221'/-4221'; Van transfer: 3 hours
Cycling (Optional): 33 miles; Elevation gain/loss: +2404'/-1867'; Van transfer: +1 hour

End place: Alkali Lake

Meals: B, L

Inclusions

Included

  • Five nights accommodations
  • permits and associated fees
  • all meals as noted in the daily itinerary and bikes

  • Accommodation

    Lodge or cottage accommodations, 6 nights

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