After hiking at Picacho Peak the previous day on a rather warm day in an area with no water available, I found the idea of hiking up Bear Canyon to Seven Falls a welcome change. Bear Canyon is accessed from the Sabino Canyon Recreation Area. This is a very popular area and a very popular trail, so hiking it mid-week sounded like a good idea. As it turned out, my dad and I only encountered about 10 other hikers on our trek to Seven Falls.

Though it is possible to walk the 1.5 miles to the trailhead from the Visitor Center, we arrived just in time to make the 9:00 AM shuttle which took us to the Lower Bear Canyon Recreation Area and the Bear Canyon Trail trailhead. At the trailhead we found a restroom which was locked. The sign on it suggested vandalism had played a role in having to lock it. To utilize another restroom, one has to walk another 300 yards further up the road. Alongside the locked restroom, there is water available from a spigot mounted to a wood post.

Also found at the trailhead is a sign denoting this as the “Bear Canyon Trailhead #29” and that "East Fork Trail #24A" and "Sycamore Trail #39" are 6.5 miles from this point.

The first 1.8 miles of this trail is a very easy hike along and crossing the pleasantly flowing creek found at the bottom of this canyon. It took us about 40 minutes to cross the creek 7 times and climb the 360 feet. At each crossing are stepping stones made from concrete, which provide little chance of slipping into the creek. The vegetation is quite heavy along the river but surprisingly we saw very few birds on our hike.

After the seventh crossing, the trail takes a hard right and switchbacks to climb 120 feet then again providing a rather easy ascent until Seven Falls can be seen across the canyon some 10 to 15 minutes later. The Bear Canyon Trail actually begins another set of switchbacks to further climb Bear Canyon, but a spur trail is followed from this point to descend into Seven Falls. On this spur trail I experienced my first Tarantula sighting. Including his legs, this furry brown spider was probably 5 inches across. Unfortunately he was shy and retreated under a rock before I could capture him with my camera.

Seven Falls is actually a cascade of small falls which provide a couple small swimming holes. We climbed the slick rocks to the uppermost pool to find someone climbing out of the chilly water and rushing for a towel. The day we hiked was a rather warm day, but the temperature of this water told me I was going to be content with washing my face and hands.

After snapping a few pictures we headed down to the lower swimming hole where a trio of hikers were getting ready to jump in. Only one of the three spent any time in the water as the temperature didn’t seem to bother her. My dad and I explored a little further below this swimming hole. The rock here is extremely slick, and as I found out, when boots get wet it is very easy to slip and fall. After a few more pictures we decided to head back to the trailhead to catch the shuttle ride back to the Visitor Center.

Getting there: Sabino and Bear Canyon Recreation Area is located in Northeast Tucson at Sabino Canyon Road and Sunrise Drive.

Stats:Trailhead is at 2760 feet. Trail rises to 3400 feet before descending approximately 100 feet to the falls. Distance to Seven Falls is 2.3 miles.

Tips: $3 fee for shuttle to trailhead or can be accessed by walking 1.5 miles from Visitor Center. Shuttles leave on the hour from the Visitor Center starting at 8:00 AM. The falls and creek were flowing pretty well when we went, but I know there are times of the year when this may not be. The area around the falls is very slick rock.