Saguaro National park West: Hugh Norris Trail to Wasson Peak - Five Star Trails Tucson - page 143

left and continue an easy 0.3 mile to the summit, with views of the Tucson basin to
the east, surrounded by the Catalina, Rincon, and Santa Rita mountain ranges. (The
King Canyon Trail heads right and descends to the pass, where it joins the Sweetwater
Trail, covered in the next hike . ) There is a trail register 100 yards before the summit
of Wasson Peak.
The peak was named after John A. Wasson, a co-founder and controversial early
editor of the Arizona Citizen newspaper, which later became the Tucson Citizen and
now is an online magazine.
Nearby Attractions
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum (2021 N. Kinney Rd.) is justifiably the best
“museum” in southern Arizona. Most of it is outdoors, with exhibits showing off the
plants and animals of the Arizona-Sonora desert. There's much to see here: Two walk-
in aviaries bring you close to hummingbirds and orioles; winding trails separate you
from javelinas with almost invisible electronic fences; caves have secret passages that
kids can squirm through; aquariums and terrariums surprise you with desert creatures.
The museum has snack bars and an upscale restaurant as well. Admission: $19.50
adults, $6 ages 4-12; more information: 520-883-2702, desertmuseum.org.
The Esperanza Trailhead is 2.75 miles north and then east of the Hugh Norris
Trailhead. The parking area here accommodates horse trailers and about 20 cars and
has an accessible restroom; the Ez-Kim-In-Zin Picnic Area is across the road. The
Esperanza Trail climbs 1.7 miles to the intersection with the Hugh Norris Trail, then
drops 1.4 miles to the Mam-A-Gah Picnic Area on the Kings Canyon Trail. If you've
had the bad luck of not getting a parking spot at the Hugh Norris Trailhead, you'll al-
most certainly get one here, and you can hike to Wasson Peak on this shorter, steeper
trail.
Directions
Drive west on Speedway Boulevard, one of Tucson's longest and most important
east-west thoroughfares. (I-10 intersects Speedway at Exit 257.) Speedway becomes
Gates Pass Road at Camino de Oeste, 4.8 miles west of I-10. Continue 4.6 miles on
Gates Pass Road, over Gates Pass (no trailers or RVs allowed), to its intersection with