
Water Above Sabino Dam
Snowmelt on Mt. Lemmon has water in Sabino Creek for the first time in months.

Water running in Sabino Creek — Images by kenne
Water Above Sabino Dam
Snowmelt on Mt. Lemmon has water in Sabino Creek for the first time in months.
Water running in Sabino Creek — Images by kenne
The Bluff Trail In Sabino Canyon — Panorama by kenne
The bluff trail runs a short distance from Sabino Canyon Road to Sabino Creek.
Fall Colors Along Sabino Creek Hiking to Hutch’s Pool — Panorama by kenne
One of my favorite hikes is to Hutch’s Pool. In the past, the Sabino Canyon Volunteer Naturalists (SCVN)
would guide a fall and spring hike, each hike having a many as 15 hikers.
However, like so many things, not this fall because of the pandemic.
The trail is open, but not for groups.
— kenne
— Paulo Coelho
Crossing Sabino Creek Below Hutch’s Pool — Image by kenne
Sabino Creek — Ash From The Bighorn Fire — Image by kenne
— from Day of the Dead In June by Lucha Corpi
Yesterday (08/05/20), I drove up the Catalina Highway to Mt. Lemmon. The highway was opened to the general public last Saturday morning for the first time since the Bighorn Fire began in early June. The mountain town of Summerheaven, successfully protected from the fire, is now open for business, although still having to follow HOVID-19 business regulations in Arizona.
Oracle Ridge and Mt. Lemmon Fire Station
Before entering Summerheaven, there are two ridges going north; Red Ridge and Oracle Ridge. Both ridges were severely burned during the 2003 Aspen Fire that destroyed almost all the homes in Summerheaven. Over the years since the Aspen Fire, the forest canopy has still not returned on these ridges. However, a lot of ground cover containing some bushes and small trees had returned. On June 17th, the two ridges were again burned. On June 19th, I posted two time-delay videos of the fire coming through the area pictured in the above photo. The fire station and most of the pines behind it were spared — not true of the storage building and new growth since the 2003 fire. It has now been 50 days since the fire occurred. Note how green the scared area has become with the return of ferns on the mountain slopes.
Except for the highway and Summerheaven, the public is not allowed to go anywhere in the National Forest. From what I was able to observe from the highway, most of the hiking trails with trailheads near the highway are ok, at least partially. Parts of Lower Butterfly Trail and Green Mountain Trail don’t look good from a distance.
My guess is that the trails in the forest around Summerheaven were burned like the two ridges north of Summerheaven. From a review of burn scar maps, the Marshall Gulch area to the north and west, which would include Carter Canyon, has been badly burned. For those of you who hike this area, It’s possible a lot of the Marshall and Mint Springs trails were destroyed. We may not know until November.
Since Sabino Creek originates along the Marshall Gulch Trail, the monsoon rains can result in a lot of potential flash flooding coming down through Sabino Canyon. So far, the rain amounts are very below average, but we are still in the monsoon season.
— kenne
Slideshow
Images Taken From Catalina Highway by kenne
Sabino Creek Has Two Ducks — Image by kenne
— kenne
Sabino Creek Below The Dam In Sabino Canyon — Image and video by kenne
Sabino Creek Art — Photo-Artistry by kenne
Sabino Creek
— kenne
“Moments Alone” (Sabino Creek) — Image by kenne
— kenne
Students Panning For Garnets In Sabino Creek — Infrared Image by kenne
— kenne
One of the subjects we teach is geology, how the Santa Catalina Mountains were
formed, and the importance of water in the formation of Sabino Canyon. Twelve
million years ago, the Santa Catalina Mountains were just a range of hills, but the
earth’s crust in western North America was being stretched. What resulted were
huge blocks with steep vaults forming an up-and-down landscape called the
Basin and Range Province.
Naturalist, Kenne Turner with 3rd Grade Students (Sabino Canyon Dam Area)
— Images by Teacher
Sabino Canyon is composed of a hard metamorphic rock called “Catalina gneiss.”
Gneiss contains rock and five minerals; quartz, mica, feldspar, magnetite, and garnets.
Over time water and earthquakes have eroded the gneiss rock carrying smaller rocks
and minerals down streams like Sabino Creek. The minerals are deposited along the
creek edges, which created a natural laboratory to learn about the minerals by panning
for garnets. Need I say, kids love panning for garnets.
Students panning for garnets in Sabino Creek.
— from Sabino Canyon: The Life of a Southwestern Oasis by David Wentworth Lazaroff
View of Sabino Canyon Dam Area — Image by kenne
— kenne
Sabino Dam, January 2020 — Image by kenne
— kenne
Sabino Creek is flowing in the new year due to some winter rains
and new snow melting in the mountains. — Images by kenne
Fall Colors Along Sabino Creek in Winter (January 2020) — Image by kenne
— kenne