Molino Basin to La Milagrosa Canyon Trail Hike - part 1

This trail starts at Molino Basin trailhead. The path climbs up the Molino canyon wall, and then continues over the saddle to the Bellota trail which continues about 1.8 miles over to the top of La Milagrosa canyon ridge trail. The path continues down that ridge trail to the valley, and then continues down a road for half a mile or so through private streets to the public street.

There is a nice description on hikearizona.com for both Bellota and also for La Milagrosa, It's an Arizona trails website, and it's a great resource for people who are looking for a hiking trail, especially near Tucson, Az.

hikearizona.com provides lots of very useful information, including distance, elevation, AEG, elevation gain, average duration time of hike, and a write up of what to expect.

The main idea is to get fresh air, good exercise that is a good experience and is good for me, and is a pleasant pastime. In Florida in February or January or late December most years, it's pleasant for outside exercise.

The other side of that coin is if you're going to go on this trail, then definitely don't do it in the summer. There is very little shade on this trail, but plenty of exposure. Typically the arizona sunload is about 20 degrees Farenheit, so it's very hot in the summer.

First of all, it's the desert southwest, and it's really too hot in the summer to do outside exercise without getting a heatstroke. Probably be ok from about November to April. The wildlife such as rattlesnakes, gila monsters, tarantulas, scorpions, and other things come out in the summer.

It's magical to hike in Arizona in the fall, winter and spring. Only risk in winter is that you can have rainstorms, which translate to snowstorms in the mountains from December- March. Ice is the enemy of the mountain hiker. Low friction surfaces are not good. Hiking poles and crampons are useful in dealing with snow and ice, but one still needs to be careful. But the rewards are definitely there for the careful planning winter hiker.

On the day when we hiked La Milagrosa canyon, it was a perfect day for hiking like most days in Tucson in the winter. La Milagrosa is spanish for "the Magnificent". It is a beautiful canyon and very scenic. It's a great way to spend a day hiking down this 8 ish mile trail.