Arizona's Centennial Celebration
#6 of 100 Things To See & Do In Arizona
Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument celebrates the raw, unspoiled Sonoran Desert. The park is the only place in the United States where the Organ Pipe Cactus grows wild. Along with Organ Pipe, many other types of cacti, as well as other desert flora native to the Yuma Desert section of the Sonoran Desert region grow here.
You'll definitely want to put this National Park on your list of things to see and do in Arizona as it is a beautiful preservation of the American Southwest. Within the 500 square miles of desert wilderness, filled with plants; animals; dramatic mountains; and plains scenery, are three unique desert habitats. Among the extraordinary collection of plants of the Sonoran Desert, is the Organ Pipe Cactus, a large cactus rarely found in the United States.
The 21 mile, mostly gravely Ajo Mountain Drive is suitable for both cars and bikes. The Bull Pasture-Estes Canyon loop hike, a moderate 4.1 miles, is thick with the park's namesake cactus as well as saguaros and other desert plants.
If you've wondered why the Organ and Saguaro cacti don't grow in all the American deserts or how the Sonoran Desert is different from others, then be sure to join one of the park's free interpretive programs. To extend your Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument visit, spend the night at the Twin Peaks Campground for an unforgettable experience under the stars on a black desert night.
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