Tumacacori Santa Cruz Valley

Scenic Historic Tour

Nov. 2, 2024

THE most popular GABA bicycle ride in Southern Arizona! Three options are available for riders from novice to very experienced cyclists.

What makes this such a GREAT ride?

• It's November in Tucson...perfect weather for a bicycle ride.

• With El Tour De Tucson a couple weeks away, it proves to be an excellent training ride.
• The route is a mixture of flat, rolling hills, and challenging climbs, all the while being very picturesque!

The initial start for this ride was at Kennedy Park and over many years it has moved to Sahuarita H/S and then Sahuarita Town Center. There have been many route changes during the last 40 years. Some years the routes went East on Sahuarita Rd to Houghton and back or down to Calabasas Picnic grounds which is near Pena Blanca Lake, up to the Keystone Peak or to Whipple Visitor Center in the Santa Rita Mountains. In 1984 we had 105 riders, 483 riders in 1987, 450 in 1992, and by 2006 had 647 riders. We offered 25-, 60- and 100-mile options.

The last few years we had to cancel this ride because of the Covid-19 restrictions. It takes at least six months of planning to put on this event along with many volunteers to man the SAG stops, put out all the turn signs, deliver all the food to the SAGS and help with the lunch. Hope to see everyone on the ride this year.

This version of the ride will start at Sopori Elementary School. This is located just South of Green Valley in the small town of Amado. There will be 3 distances for experienced riders to the novice. The routes have a variety of terrain from flat, rolling hills, steep short hills, to gradual long ascents. Expect to be dazzled with views of tree lined creeks, rolling grassland hills, white cliffs bordering a lake, and mountain ranges all around the courses. It follows one of the few rivers in the U.S. that flows North. The Santa Cruz River valley is where Father Kino traveled back in the 1700's to establish missions and tame the American West ( or tried too) including the Tumacacori mission which we will ride past. Now the river valley bearly flows but as you ride along you can imagine what an oasis it might have been given the surrounding arid land. The longer ride will take you to the historic Mining town of Patagonia and an old train line that serviced the area. Come out and enjoy this scenic ride in Southern Arizona along with some of it's finest weather.

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