AREA ACTIVITIES

A visit to Southeastern Arizona can change your perspective. Come and enjoy a high mountain desert experience.

KARTCHNER CAVERNS
Come to Arizona's newest state park which is just a short drive from Casa. Kartchner Caverns is one of the only "living" caverns in the world and will thrill you with their exquisite beauty and breath-taking formations.  Call (520) 586-2283 for reservations.

HIKING
The Sky Islands of Southeastern Arizona create some of the most diverse hiking in our state. Where else can you take a hike in a deep canyon hidden from the sun and journey to the 9,500 foot summit of Miller Peak, with a view of the Mexican interior as far as you can see. Then come home to the comfort and peace of our inn.  Hiking trails in the Huachuca Mountains offer great vistas, diverse fauna and flora and great exercise.  Arizona Hiking Trails in Sierra Vista.

If you prefer a less strenuous hike, you can walk in the shade of the cottonwood trees along the San Pedro River, which represents the most extensive healthy riparian ecosystem remaining in the desert Southwest.  This area has been designated by the Nature Conservancy as one of the "Last Great Places". It provides habitat to hundreds of different species of birds and animals.  Two popular riparian hikes are described below.

Casa de San Pedro:  Enter the San Pedro Riparian Area 100 feet from Casa's courtyard gate.  Trails give you access to mesquite grassland and stream-side habitats.  A popular hike with our guests is the four hour round trip to Hereford bridge.  If desired, we can pack a lunch for your party to add to your enjoyment of this leisurely adventure.  Please allow 48 hours advance notice so that we can supply fresh ingredients for your lunch.  Casa guests have raved about their encounters with a variety of birds, butterflies and wild flowers. 

San Pedro House: On Highway 90 about 8 miles east of Sierra Vista, turn south just before the San Pedro River. The San Pedro House, is operated by the Friends of the San Pedro River. It is located in the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area and is the site where interpretive walks and other activities are coordinated. The San Pedro House also has exhibits, materials, a book store and a gift shop with nature gifts and other sundries. The gift shop and bookstore are open every day from 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., except Thanksgiving and Christmas. 

WESTERN HISTORY TOURING

You may choose to visit Southeast Arizona's many historical sites. This is where the old west still lives. Follow in the footsteps of Coronado, visit the remains of an ancient fort or pre-historic village, or visit one of the many mining camps or ghost towns.   Check out Coronado National Monument, Fort Huachuca, the Courthouse in Tombstone, the Mining Museum and Mine Tour in Bisbee or any of the abandoned towns dotting the countryside to relive exciting historical moments from this region. The Buffalo Soldiers, Geronimo, Cochise and the gun fight at the OK Corral all happened here.

BIKING
Let us introduce you to over twenty miles of GREAT trail biking and vistas from our back door along the San Pedro River, over the Hereford Bridge to the old Hereford Town site and Quarry.  Bike further north along the East side of the San Pedro for several miles until you are ready to stop for a picnic on the river. Then reluctantly return to Casa with stories to tell about all the beautiful scenery and wildlife you observed.

If your idea of a great bike excursion is to travel about 40 miles over fairly easy terrain, ride from the inn to Bisbee. You'll have plenty of time to explore the old mining town, enjoy lunch at one of Bisbee's great restaurants and return to the inn in time for a hot shower and rest before dinner..

If you want a longer ride with more diverse elevations, take a trip to Tombstone. You'll travel about 70 miles through some flat lands, canyons and mountains. If you need to stop along the way, you can pick from any number of historical or archaeological sites to enjoy a picnic or relax in the shade of the trees along the San Pedro.

If you'd like a challenging ride on an unimproved county road, take off through the Coronado National Memorial to Parker Canyon Lake. It's more of a mountain biking trip and your destination is a great fishing lake about 25 miles from Casa de San Pedro.

BIRDING

Southeastern Arizona is one of the most noteworthy locations in the nation for birding activities.  Home to a diverse range of wildlife and a vast array of birds that are residents or migrants, we offer the birder (serious or casual) opportunities to see a wider range of birds than can be found elsewhere in the US.  Ramsey Canyon is internationally famous for its hummingbirds.  Whitewater Draw for its sandhill cranes. The Santa Cruz, San Pedro and Sulfur Springs valleys offer numerous opportunities to track down the unusual and sensational birds that will fill out your lifetime bird list.  Talented and knowledgeable birding guides are available to facilitate your stay, entertain and inform you.  And Casa de San Pedro is at the heart of all the action.

    San Pedro River

On first seeing the San Pedro River, many people can't help but laugh.  From most perspectives, it hardly qualifies as a creek.  But its character and location in relationship to the surrounding environment make it important well beyond its size.  In 1988, Congress designated a roughly 40-mile stretch of the upper San Pedro River as the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (SPRNCA), created to protect what is arguably the most rare ecosystem in North America, desert riparian woodland.  In 1990, The Nature Conservancy designated the San Pedro River basin as one of the "last Great Places" in the Western Hemisphere - an area so unique it warranted international recognition.  In 2003, Congress requested, through the 2004 Defense Authorization Act, that our loc al communities eliminate the area's water pumping deficit by 2011, language aimed, in large part, at preventing the rapidly growing population along the San Pedro River basin from destroying the SPRNCA.  So what is it about the San Pedro River that has generated so much national and international attention?  Simply stated, the San Pedro River is home to the highest vertebrate animal diversity in the U.S. and is the "last of its kind". 

In the early 1800's, approximately one percent of what is today the state of Arizona consisted of riparian habitat - lands associated with water features, like rivers, springs, and lakes.  Much of this habitat in the desert areas of Arizona consisted of desert riparian woodland, an ecosystem central to the existence of myriad animals and the Native Americans that made Arizona's deserts their home.  Two hundred years later, 90% - 95% of that former riparian habitat has been destroyed or seriously degraded.  Picture the dry riverbeds of the Salt and Santa Cruz rivers to get a picture of "destroyed or seriously degraded."  Today, all of Arizona's desert rivers have been dammed -- all but one, and that one is our own San Pedro River.  The San Pedro River is the last free-flowing river in the southwest U.S.  Its cottonwood-willow woodland is the most productive wildlife habitat in the U.S.

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