Bucket list short trip to Organ Pipe National Monument and Ajo, Arizona

I absolutely love going to national parks and monuments. Getting to see all of them is a major part of my bucket list. We have wintered in Arizona for the last nine years and every year I look longingly at the map at the Organ Pipe National Monument near the southern border, but every year we find somewhere else to go. This is the year for a road trip to Los Algodones, Mexico, for dental work (more on that here), then overnight in Ajo, Arizona, and on to Organ Pipe.

We have been experimenting with car trips instead of only RV trips. I am the traveler in the family, so I want to make sure we have planned for travel when our RVing days may need to change, whether we downsize RVs from the 40-foot RV or do more car trips. So far, staying in hotels has been cheaper in the long run—but not nearly as enjoyable as having our RV.

Sonoran Desert Inn and Conference Center

After a quick stop in Mexico for dental work, we drove on to Ajo, Arizona—about two-and-a-half hours away. Not really liking staying in hotels and being horribly picky, after reading hundreds of reviews I finally settled on a rather unique hotel, the Sonoran Desert Inn and Conference Center.

The hotel was created from an abandoned elementary school built in the 1940s. All the renovation work was supplied locally and an additional journeyman apprenticeship program was created to build skills. Adjacent to the hotel now is a wing for artists to live and work in.

It was a delightful place to stay. Each spacious room is an old classroom, individually furnished and painted differently. Every room was remodeled with a private bathroom and a small kitchenette. Our room was mustard yellow with two stuffed javelina pillows, Southwest/Mexican decor, huge old school windows overlooking the desert gardens, and a creative hanging light made from the old fluorescent ceiling fixtures.

The desert courtyard gardens are part of a youth internship program with orchards, trees, plants, and even a chicken coop. I had never seen a pomegranate tree before!

The hotel was designed to be a place to unplug, and although there were no TVs, there was strong cell service and Wi-Fi. We were only half-unplugged. Different chefs are invited to create meals to eat at the courtyard picnic tables. For those who arrive late, frozen Mexican meals can be purchased in the office and reheated in your room.

Ajo, Arizona

Ajo, Arizona, has a unique history shaped by copper mining, distinctive architecture, and the surrounding Sonoran Desert. Ajo’s history began with Native Americans who mined the area’s rich copper deposits centuries before Europeans arrived. Spanish explorers in the 18th century also recognized the area’s mineral wealth and Ajo’s modern history began in the early 1900s when large-scale copper mining took off.

In 1911, the New Cornelia Copper Company began operations that transformed Ajo into a bustling mining town. To accommodate the growing workforce, the company constructed the town in a Spanish Colonial Revival style, designing homes, plazas, and public buildings with red-tile roofs and white stucco exteriors to reflect a Spanish influence. The Ajo Plaza, a beautiful centerpiece of the town, was designed as a traditional Mexican town square, complete with archways, a fountain, and lush landscaping that contrasts with the surrounding desert.

Organ Pipe National Monument

On to the Organ Pipe National Monument. We reached the entrance to the park a mere 15 miles from Ajo, but the visitor’s center is another 30 or so miles. It was an easy drive on a well-kept highway with some amazing scenery. Towns are few, so get gas and any other supplies in Ajo or Why. On our drive back north we saw RV after RV headed south, probably to winter near the border or in Mexico.

Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is a UNESCO biosphere reserve located in the Sonoran Desert in southern Arizona, on the U.S.-Mexico border. The monument, established in 1937, covers more than 330,000 acres. It is named after the distinctive organ pipe cactus, which is found in abundance here but is rare in the United States. This region is one of the few places in the country where this cactus grows naturally. It also boasts a range of other unique desert plants, including saguaro, cholla, and ocotillo.

Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument also offers excellent opportunities for stargazing with little to no light pollution. The monument is open year-round, though the cooler winter months are the most popular time for visitors, as summer temperatures can be extreme.

We did a short hike behind the visitor’s center and drove through the large campground. There were picnic tables with ramadas, concrete pads, and huge sites. There are no hookups, but there is a place to fill water and dump, along with plenty of sunshine for solar. It made me wish we had the RV!

There are numerous hiking trails and all have warnings to bring water, don’t over-exert, and watch your surroundings.

Lukeville is a U.S. border town five more miles south, but we wanted to get back to our own bed before dark!

RELATED

• Top 5 Arizona campgrounds for snowbirds
• Heading to Arizona? Check out these oddball AZ attractions
• 7 weird road trip landmarks in Arizona
• Arizona’s Tumacacori National Historical Park worth a stop

##RVT1183