Sierra Vista

History Paleo-Indian hunters lived in this valley more than 11,000 years ago, and two of their sites, the Murray Springs Clovis Site and the Lehner Mammoth-Kill Site, are National Historic Landmarks. Later came a large Sobaipuri settlement near Fairbank and the Spanish Presidio Santa Cruz de Terrenate on the San Pedro River. The area became part of the United States with the Gadsden Purchase of 1854.

On March 3, 1877, Captain Samuel Whitside and two companies of the 6th Cavalry founded Camp Huachuca at the base of the mountains, where sheltering hills and a perennial stream made a good site. It became a fort in 1882. From 1913 to 1933 it was the base of the 10th Cavalry's Buffalo Soldiers, and in World War II it had quarters for more than 25,000 soldiers. Settlements grew up outside the gate under a string of names, and the city that resulted took the name Sierra Vista. Fort Huachuca is now home to the U.S. Army Intelligence Center.

What to See Ramsey Canyon Preserve, run by The Nature Conservancy, is a cool, spring-fed canyon in the Huachucas known for hummingbirds and rare birds such as the elegant trogon; it is about 10 road miles from the city and closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The San Pedro House, a 1930s ranch house that is now the visitor center for the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area, is 6 miles east of Sierra Vista along Fry Boulevard. Coronado National Memorial, at the southern end of the Huachucas, has a limestone cave you can explore with your own lights and a short trail to Coronado Peak above the border. Kartchner Caverns State Park, about 23 miles north by road near Benson, shows a limestone cave on guided tours only.

Fort Huachuca has two museums, including the Fort Huachuca Museum, which covers the Army in the Southwest with emphasis on the Buffalo Soldiers and the Apache Wars. The post is an active military base: visitors 18 and over without a Defense Department ID must pass a background check at the Visitor Control Center, and non-U.S. citizens must be escorted at all times by someone with a Defense Department ID. Carr Canyon, southwest of the city, has a rough road of about 7 miles, only two of them paved, that needs a high-clearance vehicle.

Getting There Sierra Vista is about 70 miles by road from Tucson International Airport: take Interstate 10 east to exit 302 and State Route 90 south. State Route 92 continues south and east toward Coronado National Memorial and Bisbee, about 24 miles away. Tombstone is about 19 miles to the northeast. The local airport, shared with the Army's Libby Army Airfield, has no commercial flights. Vista Transit runs city buses, and the Cochise Connection links Sierra Vista with Bisbee and Douglas.

When to Go The monsoon brings almost half of the year's rain in July and August, and winter nights usually fall below freezing. Snow is uncommon in town, but Miller Peak and Carr Peak are often white for four or five months of the year. Ramsey Canyon's best birding months are April through September, while the San Pedro is best for birds in spring and fall. The city hosts the Southwest Wings birding festival in August.