Areas Visitor Guide

Birding, Hiking, Biking

We like to think that the Amado Territory Ranch is the perfect getaway spot for visitors to Tucson and southern Arizona.  For those not familiar with the region, the drive from Tucson to Amado takes about thirty minutes on the uncrowded I-19 freeway.  We’re roughly halfway between Tucson and Nogales, Mexico, and just minutes from the arts community of Tubac.

We are within 15 minutes drive of:

Tubac, Arizona - Southern Arizona’s renowned and popular arts community has more than 100 shops, art galleries, working studios and restaurants. Tubac is open year ’round, and the Amado Territory is the idea place to stay if a visit to Tubac is on your itinerary.

Tubac Presidio State Historic Park - While in Tubac, explore the history of the region surrounding the Amado Territory.  For more information, click here.

Tumacácori National Historic Park - An original Spanish Mission open all year. http://www.nps.gov/tuma/

We are within 30 minutes drive of:

Mount Hopkins Observatory Visitor Center - The Mount Hopkins Observatory Visitor Center is just minutes from the Amado Territory Ranch.  Visit their official site for more information: Click Here.

Titan Missile Museum - In Green Valley, this cold war era attraction offers fascinating tours that take you underground into the control room and passageways of a Titan Missile silo.

Tucson: The second largest city in Arizona, Tucson has a large university and a diverse selection of restaurants, shops and nightlife venues. It is also steeped in history and is still known as “Old Pueblo” to the locals. For more information, please click here.

Activities within an hour from the ranch include:

Horseback riding, off-roading on the nearby Bull Springs Road which traverses the Santa Rita range southwards to Patagonia.

Open-pit mine tours at ASARCO Mineral Discovery Center

Bird watching / Hiking - Madera Canyon and the Mount Wrightson summit, Patagonia, Sonoita Creek Preserve or Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge.  For birding articles, click here.

Explore ghost towns: Harshaw, Washington Camp, Duquesne, Lochiel, Ruby

Easy day trips:

Explore the caves at Colossal Cave or Karchner Caverns
Go wine tasting and scenic touring on Highway 82
Fishing at Patagonia Lake State Park and Parker Canyon Lake or Picnic at Peña Blanca Lake.
Visit 1880 historic Tombstone, “The Town too Tough to Die”
Kitt Peak - Stargaze at one of the most prestigious observatories in the world.
Sabino Canyon and Mt. Lemmon
Old Tucson Studios
Saguaro National Park
Bisbee - the once tough frontier mining town turned artists’ enclave.

Birding
Bird watching / Hiking - Madera Canyon and the Mount Wrightson summit, Patagonia, Sonoita Creek Preserve or Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge.  For birding articles and our bird list, click here.

Biking - Go cycling up the scenic Mount Hopkins Road, and for something more challenging there are mountain biking trails that crawl through the Santa Rita Mountains’ foothills from Madera Canyon near Green Valley to the base of Elephant Head.

For information on the Santa Cruz River Park Trail, click here.

For information on the Elephant Head Biking Trail, please click here.

Hiking - The Anza Trail, which can be picked up in either Tubac Presidio State Park or Tumacacori National Historical Park, offers birders an extraordinary opportunity to hike along one of the largest riparian cottonwood forests in Arizona. This connecting trail is 4.5 miles, and runs along the same alignment of the historic Anza route, crossing the Santa Cruz River three times. The trail is a hiking and equestrian trail only, no motorized vehicles of any kind are allowed. You can contact the Tubac Presidio State Historic Park at (520) 398-2252, for more information.

For information on the Coronado National Forest Hiking Trails, please click here. 
For information on the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Area hikes, tours and events, please click here.

Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail - for details, click here.