Baby Jesus Ridge Petroglyphs and Loop

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Length: 7.4 miles / 11.9 km

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Overview: This little-known hike is a great one north of Tucson near the town of Catalina and north of Catalina State Park. Outstanding vistas and great selection of petroglyphs. You start near the 50-Year Trail and head south and then bushwhack about 2 miles until you intersect the Baby Jesus Ridge Trail that leads into Catalina State Park. Head north after you intersect the main trail at the waypoint I marked, and head back to your car.

Tips: Water, camera, leather gloves (for bushwhacking), hat, sunscreen, binocs (lots of birds along the way) and food.

Points of Interest

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Junction with Sutherland Trail

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Old water tank near the beginning of the trail.

No idea how this got filled with water, but a evident water tank along Sutherland Wash.

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Mike along the trail to Baby Jesus

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One of many petroglyphs in the Baby Jesus area

Baby Jesus petroglyph site is one of the largest archaeological sites on the Coronado National Forest. There are over 28 different sites with over 3400 different glyphs.

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Large people glyphs at the lower site.

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Looking back toward the way we came.

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Sunburst glyph

This is one of two "nipple" glyphs at the lower site that remain unexplained. A slight protusion on the rock is surrounded by either the image of a sunflower or sunburst.

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More images along the trail.

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View down the wash from the Sheep Tanks.

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Looking down the canyon.

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Looking toward Sanmaniego Ridge

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Bushwacking toward the Sutherland Trail.

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Looking south from our bushwhack.

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Is this Baby Jesus?

Baby Jesus or Grizzly bear? We heard that there is a rock that looks like an image of a young Jesus kneeling and praying, but we never really found anything that we could identify.