Tohono Chul -- meaning "desert corner" in the Tohono O'odham language -- is a 49-acre, non-profit desert preserve within the city of Tucson. The park was established in 1985 to enrich people's lives by providing them the opportunity to find peace and inspiration in a place of beauty, to experience the wonders of the Sonoran Desert and to gain knowledge of the natural and cultural heritage of this region. The Park employs a variety of educational programming to achieve its aims.
Art & Cultural Exhibits
Since its opening in 1985, Tohono Chul Park has had an active arts and cultural exhibition program. Their mission is to educate the public and enrich their lives through a greater understanding of the plants, wildlife, peoples and cultures of the Tucson region. One of the ways they accomplish their mission is through our exhibits program.
They select, primarily, the work of Arizona artists, and, occasionally, art produced in Mexico. As the southwest is a confluence of many cultures, they feature the contributions of Native Americans, Hispanics, Anglos and African-Americans, among others. Through artists eyes they explored desert themes-- birds, insects, animals and wildflowers of the Sonoran Desert.
In the Exhibition House there is the Gallery, a single room which features works that are small in scale, and the Exhibit Hall, two large rooms which are suitable for large-scale work or group shows.
Tohono Chul Park enters the GPS age with the addition of their first geocache.
What is Geocaching? It’s an adventure game for GPS users (GPS stands for global positioning system which allows a user to locate any spot on the earth given latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates). The word comes from geo for geography and caching for the process of hiding a cache. Taking part in a cache hunt takes advantage of the features and capabilities of a GPS unit, while involving participants in a search for hidden “treasure.” There are almost 270,000 caches hidden in 221 countries; locations are posted on the internet for GPS users.
You may think that once you have the coordinates, you already know where the geocache is hidden, but it’s not as easy as it seems. It’s one thing to see where a cache is hidden; it’s a different story to actually get there, and once there, to find the cache which is usually well concealed from the casual observer.
There are many different kinds of caches, some with exchange items, some with log books large enough to write notes, and some, like the one at Tohono Chul Park , is so small there is only room in the log for a name and date (entries from visitors are shared on the Geocaching website).
For those in the know, our waypoint is GCVWA4. If you are new to the sport, visit the website at www.geocaching.com, and find out how to get started! Happy Geocaching!
Location
- From I-10: Take the Ina Road exit and drive east approximately five miles. After the La Canada stoplight, get into the left lane. The next stoplight is Paseo del Norte on the north side of the street. Turn left and go to the second driveway on your right which is the entrance to the Park.
- From east Tucson: Go north to Sunrise Drive. Drive west on Sunrise which will become Skyline Drive and then Ina Road. Tohono Chul is one block (stoplight) west of Oracle Road on Ina Road. Turn right and go to the second driveway on your right which is the entrance to the Park.
- From central Tucson: Go north on Oracle Road. Turn left or west on Ina Road. Tohono Chul is one block (stoplight) west of Oracle Road on Ina Road. Turn right and go to the second driveway on your right which is the entrance to the Park.
Seasons & Hours
- Tohono Chul Park grounds open 7 a.m. - sunset daily
Galleries and Museum Shops open 9:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Monday - Saturday;
11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Sundays
Plant Interpretation Center and Greenhouse open 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. June through
Labor Day; 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. the remainder of the year
Tea Room open 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily
Admission to the Park $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for
students with ID, and $2 for children (5 - 12).
Most of the Park is accessible by wheelchair. Although none of the trails are paved, most of them are handicapped-accessible. Those that are not are clearly marked. All buildings at Tohono Chul Park are accessible to wheelchairs. All restrooms are also handicapped-accessible and a wheelchair is available in the Exhibit Hall. Handicapped parking spaces are located near the Tea Room and the Exhibit Hall.
Tohono Chul Park
7366 N. Paseo del Norte
Tucson, Arizona 85704
520-742-6455
Website: http://www.tohonochulpark.org
Arboretums & Botanical Gardens of Arizona
Arboretum at Arizona State University
Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
Boyce Thompson Arboretum State Park
Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden
The Arboretum at Flagstaff
Tohono Chul Park
Tucson Botanical Gardens
