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A photo series · 2021–2026

Still Standing

One saguaro in the Desert Garden along the Bajada Loop Nature Trail in the Sabino Canyon Recreation Area, photographed over more than 100 visits in nearly five years.

The 20 photographs

All 20 were photographed in the late afternoon or evening, most within an hour of sunset.

Tap or click a photo to see it full screen, then swipe or use the arrow keys to see the next one.

The saguaro in full height, tall arms reaching into a blue sky with sunlit clouds, and one arm curving down to the ground near a bench.

01 · Dec 4, 2021 5:05 pm

Summer storm clouds behind the saguaro; its long down-turned arm runs along the ground and ends at the edge of a wooden bench.

02 · Jul 22, 2022 3:15 pm

Under a gray overcast sky, the saguaro's lowest arm loops down to the ground and rests against the end of the bench.

03 · Nov 3, 2022 3:04 pm

The saguaro and its many arms against a bright blue sky with scattered clouds, the down-turned arm reaching the bench and mountains in the distance.

04 · Jan 17, 2023 5:04 pm

Late sun turns the saguaro golden under dramatic clouds, with the bench beside its curving arm.

05 · Apr 11, 2023 6:31 pm

In soft evening light, crowns of buds, a few just opening, sit on the tips of the saguaro's arms; its down-turned arm curls to the bench.

06 · May 28, 2023 7:37 pm

The saguaro in silhouette against a rippled gray sky, the sun glowing through the gap between its trunk and an arm; one lower arm ends in a broken stump, and a fallen arm lies on the ground in front, with fruiting prickly pear nearby.

07 · Aug 18, 2023 5:20 pm

Storm clouds lit gold above the saguaro, with a dragonfly caught in flight and the bench below its curving arm.

08 · Aug 22, 2023 6:37 pm

Low sun lights the saguaro yellow; a black streak of ooze runs down one side of the lower trunk, its arm tips are crowned with spent flowers and new green fruit, and its down-turned arm rests by the bench.

09 · Jun 10, 2024 7:03 pm

The saguaro in silhouette against a pink and orange sunset, dark crowns of spent flowers on its arm tips and one lower arm broken off short.

10 · Jun 22, 2024 7:36 pm

In evening light, the saguaro's chest is exposed where an arm broke away, one large arm lies on the ground in front, and the curving arm still reaches the bench.

11 · Sep 26, 2024 6:30 pm

On a moonlit night under stars, with Comet Tsuchinshan–ATLAS streaking across the sky, the saguaro stands with two tall arms and a broken stump.

12 · Oct 15, 2024 7:05 pm

In pale dawn light, the tip of the saguaro has fallen and a stump marks a large arm lost earlier; two arms have snapped and lean into the tree beside it, and the curving arm still reaches the bench.

13 · Aug 22, 2025 7:05 pm

Only a broken trunk is left standing, the prickly pear still growing on it; two fallen arms lie on the ground beside the bench.

14 · Jan 4, 2026 4:40 pm

Late light on the broken trunk, its skin peeling away to show the woody ribs and the prickly pear still growing on it, with fallen pieces piled at its base by the bench.

15 · Mar 2, 2026 5:13 pm

Close view of the trunk, now a weathered skeleton of wooden ribs with the prickly pear still visible on it, and decaying pieces piled at its base next to the bench.

16 · Apr 2, 2026 6:28 pm

Backlit above creosote in the foreground, the remaining skeleton bends over like a long neck, its ribs and torn top dark against the sky.

17 · Jun 2, 2026 6:45 pm

The bare skeleton, ribs exposed and top frayed, stands among green trees, with a large skeletal arm lying on the ground.

18 · Jul 17, 2026 7:14 pm

Glowing in golden-hour light, the bare skeleton stands beside the trail; the remains of the fallen arms lie in a line on the ground, and the bench stands empty beyond.

19 · Aug 20, 2026 6:17 pm

The sun bursts through the skeleton, seen in silhouette, the same evening as the photo before.

20 · Aug 20, 2026 6:24 pm

The print

The Still Standing print: 20 photographs of one saguaro arranged in 4 columns and 5 rows

The print

24 × 34 in., with the 20 photos in the same order as above.

First shown

Nov 1, 2026, La Jolla Gallery, Corazón del Barrio, in the South Tucson Photo Club's first photography exhibition. Announcement

The story

The trail

When I first moved to Tucson in December 2021, I started visiting the Bajada Loop Nature Trail in Sabino Canyon.1 I kept going back, and every time I'd see something new. I really enjoy noticing how things change over time, and I got to know the whole trail really well, especially one saguaro.

The Bajada Loop Nature Trail sign on a sandy path, with desert shrubs, saguaros and the Santa Catalina Mountains under big clouds

1Oct 9, 2023 · The trail

The saguaro

When I first saw this saguaro, it had several tall arms that pierced the sky, and on stormy, windy days I'd watch them sway. It also had one odd arm that bent down into the bench next to it, with its tip growing right between the wooden slats. The flower buds on its tip looked almost like little Brussels sprouts.2 Some years, it even tried to flower, but the flowers got squished by the seat.

I enjoyed looking at the details, like the patterns on its massive trunk that you can see in some of the photographs.3 A prickly pear even took root up where the arms meet it, and it's still there on what remains.4 The last time I checked, it was starting to turn brown.

The tip of the down-turned arm pushed up between the bench slats, its top white and woolly and covered in round green flower buds

2May 14, 2023 · Flower buds in the bench

The massive base of the trunk, its ribs dark and gnarled and covered in yellow-green lichen

3Dec 4, 2022 · The base of the trunk

Prickly pear pads growing out of the saguaro where its arms meet the trunk, lit by morning sun

4Sep 17, 2022 · The prickly pear

The decline

I noticed the first fallen arm in August 2023. Then, in June 2024, I noticed a thick, dark fluid dripping down the trunk and pooling at the bottom, as if the saguaro were bleeding out.5,6 This can be a sign of bacterial necrosis, which I later learned can mean the beginning of the end for a saguaro.

Looking up the saguaro from beside the bench: a dark streak of fluid runs down the trunk, and the down-turned arm curves to the bench

5Jun 10, 2024 · The dark fluid

Close-up of thick, dark, glossy fluid running down between the ribs of the trunk

6Jun 10, 2024 · Close-up

After that, the rest of the arms came down one by one.7 One of them left a large gap in the chest, where it had rotted through, and you could see the wooden ribs inside.8 In December 2025, I noticed the trunk turning brown.9 The fallen arms decayed slowly, with a sweet smell you couldn't miss.10 I watched them rot until the outer layer fell off and only the skeletons were left, some scattered over the branches around them.11

A fallen arm lying on the ground beside the bench, broken in two, its skin turning gray

7Sep 26, 2024 · A fallen arm

A fresh gap torn in the side of the trunk where an arm broke away, showing pale wood inside

8Sep 26, 2024 · The gap in the chest

The trunk turned dark brown and rotting where an arm meets it, its skin peeling away from the ribs

9Dec 18, 2025 · Turning brown

The two large fallen arms lying beside the dark trunk, their skin gone pale and yellow

10Jan 4, 2026 · The large arms down

The decayed arms reduced to skeletons, their woody ribs scattered over branches on the ground

11Aug 20, 2026 · The skeletons

Around the saguaro

In this one small spot, I've heard cactus wrens revving up their motorcycle-like calls and watched roadrunners and lizards dart past. Hummingbirds would zip by and hover close, and after the rain, the dragonflies would come out. One even flew into one of the 20 photographs. I've seen young round-tailed ground squirrels exploring,12 a family of Harris' antelope squirrels at play,13 javelinas with a young one feeding on prickly pear, and desert cottontails coming out for dinner.

A young round-tailed ground squirrel crouched on the gravel under bare branches, holding a yellow fruit in its front paws

12Jun 3, 2026 · A young round-tailed ground squirrel

A Harris' antelope squirrel on the sandy ground, its white side stripe showing

13Jun 3, 2026 · A Harris' antelope squirrel, one of the family

What it's about

For me, this series is about watching nature tell its story slowly, one visit at a time, and about the calm, meditative feeling I get from returning to a familiar place. While the towering saguaro is no longer here, its presence lives on. Its skeleton still stands,14 and its fallen arms now shelter small animals.15 I think about everyone who's sat on that bench and all the people who stop by to enjoy Sabino Canyon. The memories they have of it stay too.

A Gila woodpecker perched on the ragged, splintered top of the saguaro's skeleton against a pale sky

14Jun 3, 2026 · A Gila woodpecker on the skeleton

A roadrunner on one of the fallen arms' skeletons, a yellow butterfly it has just caught in its beak

15Aug 31, 2026 · A roadrunner catches a yellow butterfly on one of the skeletons

I'll keep going back to see if it's still standing. For now, it is.

Where it stands

The saguaro stands in the Desert Garden along the Bajada Loop Nature Trail, a short walk from the Sabino Canyon visitor center in Tucson, Arizona.

Trail closed for construction It's being rebuilt as the Bajada Ethnobotanical Loop, with an accessible path, new signs and benches.
Last checked Oct 24, 2026

Coordinates
32.31029° N, 110.82134° W
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Further reading

This saguaro

About saguaros

Visiting Sabino Canyon