Run 'n Stitch: Catalina State Park

Catalina State Park is one of our all time favorite camping spots. We aren’t the only ones that love the park which makes it the most difficult park to get reservations for. We stayed in Catalina several times in your 11 years of Southwest travel and in the early years, you could drive up and there would be a place to stay for a couple of days. Those days are over. The opportunity to reserve a site opens 6 months in advance of your visit. We went on-line to make reservations 5 months in advance of our travel and there were very few opportunities for more than a one night stay. We would stay for the two week limit if there were openings. We were able to find a site for 3 nights and we booked it right away.

We actually boon docked in the overflow parking lot the night before we moved into our campsite so we were able to stay for 4 nights total. Overflow parking costs $15.00 per night. There are no hookups but there is a very clean bathroom/shower room very near the area.

The campsites offer electricity and water. There is a central dump station for your gray and black water.

Why do we love it here? There are so many reasons and one of them is location. When you are in the park you feel like you are in the wilderness but the city is very close. You can hike one of the many trails in the day and go out for dinner or a movie in the evening.

The mountain views are incredible.

Trails are everywhere. This park has many different trails and Northern Tucson has an amazing number of great hiking trails just a short drive away.

The campsites are very private. There is a lot of room between campsites and there are bushes and trees between them in many spots.

There are birds everywhere, which means birdsong everywhere. This is a great spot for birders. If you visit, bring your bird feeder and the birds will come to you.

If you have a horse, this is the spot for you. This park caters to the horseback rider with facilities and great trails.