Earth Day Celebration at Madera Canyon

With Friends of Madera Canyon

By Jean Martin

It started with an idea by Dan White to involve the community in our work.  Michele Gazica with the Preservation and Maintenance committee ran with it and transformed Dan’s idea into a wonderful celebration and collaboration with many other like-minded individuals and groups.  On Saturday, April 26, we all gathered at the top of Mt. Wrightson parking area to naturalize, restore and protect some of the most impacted areas in Madera Canyon identified by the US Forest Service.

Wild Arizona registered all participants and provided hard hats, water and tools.  Board to members who are not part of the Preservation and Maintenance Team showed up to support the event by checking in volunteers, handing out safety equipment and serving breakfast burritos supplied by Posada Java to the participants.  The morning was also supported by the Knights of Columbus who assisted with parking.   True Value Hardware donated protective eyewear, and Summit Hut provided financial support.

Dan White, President of Friends of Madera Canyon, talked about the first Earth Day launched by Gaylord Nelson on April 22, 1970.  What started as a small event has reached 1 billion people in more than 193 countries.  The volunteers at Madera Canyon included members of the Friends’ Preservation and Maintenance Team, the Green Valley Hiking Club, the Sahuarita Hiking Club, the Scouts of Troop 247 and their parents, Wild Arizona and Jim Beck, volunteer Forest Service Ranger.  Dexter Kopas from Wild Arizona reviewed safety procedures and formed three teams to work on designated areas near the Old Baldy trail and upper picnic areas that have been overused and needed to be naturalized and protected from further impact.

The teams worked diligently from 8:00 am until 1:00 pm and restored all the areas designated by the Forest Service.  Although tired from the workout, everyone felt satisfied and shared a great sense of accomplishment.  With all the recent cuts to the National Park Service, volunteer events are now needed more than ever to protect our public lands.  A big THANK YOU to everyone who participated.  We will make this an annual event!  .  Volunteers from the Forest Service, Sahuarita hiking Club, GV Hiking Club, Scout Troop 247, Wild Arizona participated in the event.  Additional support was provided by True Value Hardware of Green Valley, Posada Java, the Knights of Columbus and our friends at Summit Hut.

FoMC Volunteers Work to Improve Hiking Trails

Our FoMC volunteers have been active in the Canyon working on improving various hiking trails. The Canyon Preservation and Maintenance Committee has organized numerous trail maintenance events in the last few months. Here are photos of a group of volunteers working on the Old Baldy Trail near the trailhead at the Roundup parking area.

Our folks also have recently been involved in training events including tread repair and graffiti removal from trees and signs.

Most of us don’t realize the amount of upkeep trails require in order to sustain a safe hiking experience. Fortunately, our volunteers greatly enjoy the satisfaction of working outdoors in the beautiful Canyon as well as appreciating the camaraderie of likeminded individuals.

David Linn

The Friends of Madera Canyon held the 2025 annual meeting of the Friends membership on Saturday morning, January 25.  Some 85 attended, similar to prior years, as the Friends had invited the general public to the meeting as well as members of the organization.

FoMC President Dan White opened the program at the Desert Hills Recreation Center.  Dan recounted some of the Friends’ achievements of the past year in the Canyon, including the replacement of grills in the picnic areas, reestablishment of a program of Canyon trail maintenance, and the repair of the Visitor Information Station at the Proctor Road entrance to Madera.  He specially mentioned the assistance of Scout Troop 247, based in Sahuarita, and the close cooperation of the Friends with the U.S. Forest Service in all its efforts in the Canyon.

Dan outlined as well the Friends’ plans for the new year, including the repair or replacement of benches along the Nature Trail, continued maintenance of specific trails in the Canyon, and the engagement of a stone mason to mend steps in the picnic areas.

Rusty Lombardo, past President of the Friends and co-chairman of the Honor & Memory Wall committee, spoke on the origin and purpose of the Wall, located at Proctor Road, and its importance for the Canyon community. 

Jorge Enríquez, the new Nogales District Ranger in the Coronado National Forest, and Zach MacDonald, the District’s Recreation Officer, spoke to the meeting of the appreciation of the Forest Service with the work of the FoMC in the Forest and of the Friends’ cooperative spirit. 

Pat Holmes, FoMC Treasurer, gave a brief report to the membership, announcing that the Friends had ended 2024 within its budget and with a small surplus.  

This was followed by a report from Carole deRivera, who chairs the FoMC committee for the Music in the Canyon program, on plans for the 2025 MIC concerts, which will take place on four Sundays at the end of March and in April.  Concert tickets will go on sale around March 1.

Hilary Hamlin, chair of the Marketing Committee, reported that the Friends is once again on hand at selected regional events such as the Tubac Festival of the Arts, the Tucson Festival of Books, and the Sahuarita Spooktacular at Halloween, to educate those attending on Madera Canyon and the work of the Friends in preservation and restoration.

President White returned to the podium to request that Friends members with professional skills or certification consider volunteering with the FoMC, which can always employ specially qualified people in furtherance of its programs in the Canyon or the administration of the organization.

There followed a presentation by John Scheuring, State Conservation Chair, Arizona Native Plant Society, who spoke on the need to address invasive species in Madera Canyon, particularly a new threat to Madera’s ecosystem, Yellow Bluestem grass.  John reviewed the history of the introduction of foreign grasses to Arizona and the intensive efforts required to prevent the spread of these plants into areas – such as Madera Canyon – where they can force out native species and make wildfires much more destructive.  He said that while Yellow Bluestem has appeared in the Canyon it has not yet spread there to the point where the grass cannot still be successfully eradicated.  The effort to do so may prove to be the Friends’ major project for this new year.

John’s slides can be see in a pdf.

Summary by Bob Pitcher

The USFS wants to share that the USFS Madera Canyon Recreation Guide is now available online in English and Spanish.

English | Spanish

You can navigate to them (and the other guides that have been developed) on the website by selecting Visit Us > Maps & Publications and then scrolling down to "Recreation Guides."