Catalina State Park is an excellent place to add steps to anyone's walking/hiking plan. A beautiful setting at the foot of the Santa Catalina Mountains, the park hosts some 15 trails from easy to difficult.

In June of 2020, that wretched year when it seemed the whole world was in an explosion of turmoil, residents of Oro Valley, north of Tucson, witnessed a fire on Bighorn Mountain, the result of a lightning strike. From that time forward, evidence of the fire could be seen on many of the hikes in the state park.

It is said fires are good for the land, but seeing burned and downed Saguaros was difficult.

I've made two hikes in the park, one before the fire and one after. In 2019, the stream flowed and the hills were lush. A year later, not only due to the fire, but because of a general drought, there's a marked difference in the terrain. I've made additional hikes over the years, and still in 2026, results of the fire exist.

With that said, Catalina State Park is still one of the best hiking areas in Pima County.

The year following the fire was another difficult one for Catalina State Park. Monsoon season came with a vengeance, dumping tons of water on plants that rapidly grew to new heights. Which is all and well except that a soon-after drought killed the tall foliage, leaving mounds of dead thicket over mass sections of the park. In the images below, taken along the Birding Trail, the dried coverage is evident.