January 30, 2022

By Tim Briese

3.8 miles, 1000’ elevation gain, 3:05 roundtrip time

The southwest border area of Arizona was always a blank spot on the map for me until Teresa and I visited Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, which sits right on the international border about a hundred miles southwest of Phoenix. We drove down US 85 from Phoenix to the little town of Ajo about 40 miles from the border, where we spent the night. This highway is a major corridor into Mexico, used by many Americans to travel to Rocky Point on the Sea of Cortez. The area is also popular for smugglers and illegal immigration. Ajo is an interesting little town, with a large Hispanic population, signs all over the place advertising auto insurance for Mexico, and rundown stuff everywhere, but with a beautiful town square and church.

the immaculate conception church in ajo

We stayed in a quirky little cabin at the somewhat scruffy La Siesta RV park. We were told that there were about 50 army soldiers staying at the RV park for several months. Their mission was unknown to us but we suspected they were there for border patrol. We drove out into the empty desert just northwest of town to watch the sunset that evening.

The next morning we left at dawn and headed south down the highway toward Organ Pipe and the border. It was exciting to explore a new place. We cruised past an immigration checkpoint that was in the northbound lane. The empty desert was beautiful on this pristine morning, green with cacti and other desert plants. Organ pipe cacti grow naturally only in this part of southern Arizona and down into Mexico. We entered the monument and continued several more miles down to the visitor center, which is only about five miles north of the border.

From the visitor center we took the gravel Ajo Mountain loop road to the east. A sign warned about smuggling and illegal immigration here.

on the ajo mountain loop road

We followed the 21 mile long one-way loop road about half way round and parked at the base of the Ajo Mountains at the trailhead for the Estes Canyon/Bull Pasture loop trail. Around mid morning we headed up the Estes Canyon Trail in the pleasant bright sunshine.

at the trailhead

This was a gorgeous desert hike, with abundant organ pipe, saguaro, and cholla cactus along the way. We took our time, exploring with exhilaration, snapping numerous photos along the way.

me standing beside an organ pipe cactus

a close view of an organ pipe cactus

mt. ajo framed by a buckhorn cholla cactus

on the trail between two saguaro cacti

teresa by an organ pipe cactus

Eventually the trail climbed up out of the canyon and connected with the Bull Pasture Trail.

the trail climbed up to the saddle in the center of the photo

We turned left at the trail junction onto the Bull Pasture Trail and climbed steeply up to a saddle and continued on up to Bull Pasture. Mt. Ajo (4808’) towered impressively above to the northeast. A couple of other hikers we met mentioned that this trail accesses a route that could be followed to the summit of the peak, but that was way beyond the scope of what we were doing today.

mt. ajo is the peak on the ridge at left center

the rugged ajo mountains

a view to the south of mountains in mexico

After looking around for a while we turned around and began hiking back down the Bull Pasture Trail. 

the organ pipes were prolific on this slope

teddy bear chollas along the trail

close-up view of a teddy bear cholla

The trail looped around to the south and switchbacked down to the trailhead, where we arrived around 1230. There was only one other vehicle here earlier when we started but there were about ten now. After a lunch break we loaded up and headed for Tucson.