Hikers Dianna Wilson, Bruce Olson, Susan Hollis, Barbara Rutt, and Ruth Caldwell with guide Cathy Meyer (in front)
Cathy Meyer
In mid-December 2023, six SaddleBrooke hikers tackled Blackett’s Ridge, a challenging trail in the Sabino Canyon area. Though only six miles in length, the trek climbs more than 1,300 feet in a rapid ascent.
According to Betty Leavengood’s Tucson Hiking Guide, in 1937 teacher Don Everett of the Southern Arizona School for Boys named Blackett’s Ridge for one of his students, Hill Blackett, Jr. He conferred the name after the boys ascended the steep trail on horseback. The SaddleBrooke hikers would claim that the climb on foot was a bit more challenging than doing it on horseback.
On this day, mostly cloudy skies kept the temperature from the high 50s to low 60s. At the top of the ridge, the group experienced a sprinkle of rain but, happily, there was no threat of a downpour. The sun managed to burn off most of the cloud cover by the time the group was headed downhill, which made it a perfect day for what Leavengood called “one of the best little hikes in the Tucson area.”