A night hike to Romero Pools – sunset, centipede, sounds of water, red spotted toad, the pools by headlamp, stars, great company – 5.9 miles, +/- 1300′ of elevation gain/loss.
Night at Romero Pools – 3/11/2015
romero pools
Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection Fundraising, Rescue, Bighorn Protest, Winter Fires
The Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection has a $60,000 year-end fundraising goal and has a donor who has pledged a $15,000 matching gift which is currently (11/29/2014) doubling donations. In a recent mailing the Coalition indicated that in the upcoming year donations will support: a campaign to help pass a new Open Space Bond in Pima County, a re-vegetation project adjacent to the Oracle Road Wildlife Crossing and a new Wildlife Crossing Steward Program.
Stop bighorn relocation project – Green Valley News and Sun, Wildlife group to protest AZ Game & Fish Department – Tucson News Now: Two pieces about the Friends of Wildlife and their protest/opinion that the Bighorn Sheep Reintroduction effort should be stopped.
Hiker rescued out of Romero Pools – KVOA – Jessica Gutierrez: Sprained ankle leads to a flight out.
Coronado National Forest Selects Accela Civic Platform for Recreation and Resource Management – A press release about the Coronado National Forest selecting the Accela Civic Platform, from the press release it is impossible to know if Coronado will/can/has plans to leverage this in the Santa Catalina Ranger District in any meaningful way.
Monsoon-nurtured grasses could fuel winter wildfires – Douglas Kreutz – Arizona Daily Star: I suppose the straight to the point quote in the article is “The potential for winter wildfire on the Coronado National Forest exists” – the article mentions monsoon rains as a factor in the creating the current “abundance of grasses and other fine fuels” but it would be interesting to know how unusual this year is…
Scenic Sabino is the spot for a stroll – Kristen Cook – Arizona Daily Star: Always great to remind people about the great opportunities to explore the outdoors in Sabino Canyon!
OFF-ROAD CYCLISTS Riding trails of advocacy – Nick Meyers – Aztec Press Online: Nice post about TORCA – Tucson Off-Road Cyclists and Activists. An exceprt from TORCA’s About page: “TORCA’s Mission is to take an active and strategic role in the mountain biking community in the maintenance of the resources available to us. We are focused on the All-Mountain and Downhill disciplines of mountain biking with a focus on the Santa Catalina Mountains.”
Bighorns, Dogs, Asteroid, High Water, Rescues, Evening Rides
Bighorn Sheep Restoration Project Status updates for 8/4 to 8/17 and 8/18 to 8/31 are available (all updates are currently available here) – there is not much of note in either document except for a very interesting call for volunteers to help with vegetation sampling in the Santa Catalina Mountains:
we’re still looking for more [volunteers] who like to hike and want to be part of this effort, so if you’d like to get involved (and enjoy some pretty spectacular hiking along the way), please contact either Research Biologist Andrew Jones ([email protected]) or Larisa Harding ([email protected]) and let us know as we begin to organize this effort. Sampling will most likely occur from early January through the end of February 2015. Come join in the fun and contribute to the research efforts!
Hikers stranded due to high water at Catalina State Park – Tucson News Now, Sonu Wasu – the incredible rains on Monday (which also temporarily closed the highway up the mountain and resulted in highwater in many areas) resulted in flooding across the road and Search and Rescue call-outs – including to Romero Pools.
Dogs pose a threat to bighorn sheep survival – Arizona Daily Star, Douglas Kreutz – Information about the year-round rules against dogs in the Bighorn Sheep Management Area.
Close-call asteroid passing Earth discovered from telescopes on Mt. Lemmon – Tucson News Now, Erin Jordan – House sized asteroid 2014 RC will pass close to earth – discovered “by the Catalina Sky Survey, working from a telescope on top of Mt. Lemmon”.
Labor Day weekend helping business in Summerhaven – Tucson News Now, Mauricio Marin – Ski Valley and Summerhaven have a busy Labor Day weekend.
Sabino Canyon evening rides – The Explorer – “During September-November and April-June, Sabino Canyon Tours offers evening rides three nights per month.”
62-year-old woman rescued at Romero Pools – KVOA.com, Alyssa Reilly – A Romero Pools rescue.
Romero Pools Helicopter Rescue
Teens OK after Romero Pools helicopter rescue – A group of teens got lost hiking to Romero Pools, they called 911 and the GPS information from the cell phone was used to locate them and a helicopter was dispatched.