nature | Raven About The Parks

Miles 101 to 265 required big climbs in Saguaro National Park and the Santa Catalina Mountains within Coronado National Forest. Lots of cool Sonoran Desert wildflowers and wildlife along the way, plus some great sunsets on the way to the Gila River. Thursday I am taking a “zero day” off the trail with my family in Chandler and probably going to a Mark Chesnutt concert.

Arizona Trail Day 6, Mile 101 to 101 a “Zero Day” in Tucson with a huge breakfast at Rocking K, one Talenti gelato (for a backup container to cold soak meals), and night in the camper van with my trail angel Mom.

Arizona Trail Day 7, Mile 101 to 126 after my first “zero day” passed under Interstate 10 to the border with Saguaro National Park and saw the first saguaro cacti along the route. I achieved my goal of finding a rock in the shape of Arizona! Enjoyed talking and walking with Ziggy, a Navy veteran. Big thank you to my Mom for meeting up with me in Tucson.

Arizona Trail Day 8, Mile 126 to 144 from spines to pines in Saguaro National Park. Over 6,000 feet cumulative elevation gain in the Rincon Mountains. Camped with and hiked with some fellow NAU Lumberjacks and two young women from Florida.

Arizona Trail Day 9, Mile 144 to 164 out of the Rincon Mountains to the Catalina Highway. Lots of wildflowers in bloom! I met Trail Angel Gabriel who I helped to fill up a water cache with 48 gallons. Thanks to all the trail angels out there.

Arizona Trail Day 10, Mile 164 to 187 up Mt. Lemmon in Coronado National Forest. Another great memory made in the Santa Catalina Mountains and my first horned lizard of the trip was seen above 8,000 feet in elevation. Thanks to my Mom for meeting me at the top with my big backpack. I was told by one AZT finisher that this is the “classic Lemmon cheat.” I’ll take any help I can get.

Arizona Trail Day 11, Mile 187 to 215 down the west side of the Santa Catalina Mountains, a cumulative drop of around 8,000 feet. I had two wonderful trail angels meet me in Oracle for lunch. Thanks everyone for your support in this endeavor! Sunrise to sunset was 12:01 so now unofficially past the equinox. Yay!

Arizona Trail Day 12, Mile 215 to 245 past Antelope Peak in the Sonoran Desert. I saw my first wild desert tortoise in my life! I hiked a while with Martin and Mama Goose who were great to talk to. I avoided the heat of the day and went to the movie Hoppers in Oro Valley with my Mom, then did 8.5 miles after sunset.

Arizona Trail Day 13, Mile 245 to 265 down to the Kelvin Bridge across the Gila River. Starting in the dark, I was able to finish before noon for a pickup from my parents. With temperatures 28 degrees above average for the next few days, I’ve decided to head home to Pine to cover some higher elevation miles on the AZT then come back when it cools down.

You can keep track of where I am at on the Garmin website through this link: https://live.garmin.com/ScottSink

I will also be updating my Instagram account with photos when I have signal: https://www.instagram.com/ravenabouttheparks/

Found a rock almost in the shape of the state

Know someone who loves National Parks? Gift them my travel guide A Park to Yourself: Finding Solitude in America’s 63 National Parks.

This week I am starting out northbound on the Arizona National Scenic Trail. According to the official website, it is 800 miles (with 105,000 feet of cumulative elevation gain) from the international border with Mexico in Coronado National Memorial to the Stateline Campground on the Utah border in Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. Due to last summer’s Dragon Bravo Fire in Grand Canyon National Park, more than 20 miles of the trail is closed on the North Rim making a thru-hike impossible this year. Since I am already in northern Arizona, I am going to begin by backpacking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon to spend one night before turning around and driving south to the official start. That will be on Wednesday! Once I return to Grand Canyon National Park (Mile 700), I will get a ride north to finish up the trail.

You can keep track of where I am at on the Garmin website through this link: https://live.garmin.com/ScottSink

I will also be updating my Instagram account with photos when I have signal: https://www.instagram.com/ravenabouttheparks/

I recently moved back to Arizona for the 5th time in my life and I thought backpacking across the state would be a great way to reconnect. If you haven’t already read it, check out my 7-day Arizona Road Trip Itinerary with plenty of options to make it a month-long visit.

Once I finish the Arizona Trail, then I will get back to writing my latest guidebook American History 101: Reliving a Country’s Past at 101 National Park Service Sites, which I hope to publish by July 4, 2026, for the 250th anniversary of the vote to approve the Declaration of Independence.

Here are links to my blog posts on the public lands I will be traversing on the Arizona Trail:

Grand Canyon National Park

Coronado National Memorial

Coronado National Forest

Saguaro National Park

Tonto National Forest

Coconino National Forest

Walnut Canyon National Monument

Kaibab National Forest

Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni–Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument

Vermilion Cliffs National Monument