Top 10 things to do in Benson, Patagonia, Tubac and Sonoita

Kartchner Caverns State Park

Kartchner Caverns is a good place to visit in winter. That's because both cave tours — the Big Room and the Rotunda/Throne Room — are offered. The Big Room is closed from mid-April to mid-October, when more than 1,000 pregnant myotis bats migrate there. Each bat gives birth to a single pup in late June.

The cave was discovered in 1974 by Gary Tenen and Randy Tufts, who kept it a secret until they could learn more about the people who owned the property. James and Lois Kartchner were impressed and thought the cave deserved protection.

Caves are living things. They breathe. They change shape. They have live organisms within them, bugs and bats that need dark places to survive. Kartchner Caverns has infrastructure and rules in place to keep the underground habitat thriving.

Details: 9 miles south of Benson on Arizona 90, 520-586-2283, azstateparks.com/kartchner.

RELATED:Southern Arizona wine trail hotels | Southern Arizona wine trail restaurants

Calls for cop's arrest in Michael Brown shooting grow

Patagonia Lake State Park/Sonoita Creek Natural Area

Patagonia Lake State Park is in the lowlands west of the Santa Rita Mountains and the Patagonia range, a short drive from wineries and the grasslands of the San Rafael Valley. This is sky-island country, where the Chihuahuan and Sonoran deserts meet, where ecosystems blend and fade into one another. Snow hits the highest peaks, but temperatures below are generally mild.

Cottonwood, seep willow, mesquite, ash and hackberry trees grow along Sonoita Creek, a lazy, perennial stream. About 300 species of migratory birds pass through. Mexican species such as the elegant trogon come here, the northern end of their range. Bird-watchers love this place. The park has boat rentals, and Patagonia Lake is stocked with flathead and channel catfish, green and red-ear sunfish, crappie and bass. The Arizona Game & Fish Department also stocks trout in the winter.

Downstream from the lake is Sonoita Creek State Natural Area, a lovely desert getaway with 21 miles of trails and three backcountry campsites for backpackers. The park and the natural area are technically separate, though both are maintained by the state. The park is for recreation; the natural area is for conservation. The park's visitor center provides information on both areas, as well as free hiking permits and backcountry campsite reservations for the natural area.

Details: 400 Patagonia Lake Road, Patagonia, 520-287-6965, azstateparks.com/patagonia-lake.

Parker Canyon Lake

Nestled in the gentle hills about 30 miles southeast of Sonoita, Parker Canyon Lake is ringed with cottonwoods, juniper, piñon pine, scrub oak and manzanita. Locals say the temperature in the area, which lies about 5,400 feet above sea level, generally runs about 10 degrees cooler than Tucson's.

From just about any point along the shore, Parker Canyon Lake doesn't look very big. Take off on the trail around the lake, though, and you'll find it's bigger than you thought. The 130-acre jewel, just 7 miles north of Mexico, has a number of side canyons, inlets and coves that stretch back from the main body of the lake, creating a surprising amount of shoreline.

The route around the lake is a fairly level dirt pathway that, for the most part, stays within a few yards of the water. There are a couple of places, however, where the route climbs rather steeply over high rocky bluffs and the trail becomes a slightly exposed, narrow passage 50 or 60 feet above the lake's surface.

There's also a marina where you can rent boats and kayaks, a general store and a campground.

Details: 30 miles southeast of Sonoita on Arizona 83, 520-455-5847, parkercanyonlake.com.

RELATED:Arizona travel guides for out-of-state visitors: Sedona, Flagstaff, national parks | Sign up for XAZ | Shop XAZ merchandise

Madera Canyon

Rated the third-best birding destination in the United States, Madera Canyon is one of Arizona's most scenic places and is a hiker's paradise.

This gorgeous area in Green Valley also is known for abundant wildlife, including white-tail and mule deer, coatimundis, foxes, ring-tail cats, raccoons and at least 16 species of bats. Madera Canyon traverses four life zones and many habitats in Coronado National Forest, from prickly-pear cactus to fir and aspen.

Details: 25 miles south of Tucson, off Interstate 19, 520-281-2296, fs.usda.gov.

Tubac Presidio State Historic Park

Tubac Presidio State Historic Park was established in 1958 as Arizona's first state park. Tucked into old Tubac south of Tucson, the park is named for the presidio, or fort, whose ruins it contains. Spain established the garrison in 1752 to protect colonists and the mission of Jesuit priest Eusebio Francisco Kino.

This was the final staging area for two expeditions to California led by Spanish Capt. Juan Bautista de Anza, the fort's second commander. The second expedition resulted in the founding of San Francisco and is commemorated in Anza Days every October at the park.

But long before it was the earliest European community of what would become Arizona, the site was home to O'odham (called Pimas by the Spaniards), Tohono O'odham (Papagos) and Apache Indians. You'll see evidence of their contributions and those of other cultures in the park's museum and archaeological dig.

Details: One Burruel St., Tubac, 520-398-2252, azstateparks.com/tubac.

Editor's Note: Click on the arrow next to the title on the top left corner of the map to select which hotels, things to do and restaurants display

Sonoita/Elgin Wine Trail

Just a 2 1/2-hour drive southeast of Phoenix is a delightful weekend getaway filled with wine tastings, good food and charming bed-and-breakfasts. The Sonoita-Elgin area is home to more than a dozen wineries, including award-winning Dos Cabezas and Callaghan.

There aren't many antiques stores or spas around Sonoita and Elgin, where you find most of southern Arizona's wineries. The only things that could distract you are the gorgeous views. Most wineries are concentrated along a stretch of Elgin Road, southeast of the intersection of Arizona 82 and 83 in Sonoita. Take a day or two to explore the region. Many wineries have great areas for picnics, so bring one.

Details: Highway 83, 45 minutes south of Tucson.  520-455-5498, sonoitaelginchamber.org.

Empire Ranch

A non-profit volunteer organization purchased the Empire Ranch house and has been restoring it since 1997. The ranch house was built in 1870 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

You can hike, picnic, look for birds and other wildlife, and visit the ranch headquarters. Free guided tours are offered at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on the second Saturday of the month.

Details: 45 miles southeast of Tucson off Arizona 83, 888-364-2829, empireranchfoundation.org.

Coronado National Memorial

Southeastern Arizona is an incredible blend of mountains, grasslands and desert, and Coronado National Memorial is a great place to learn about it. The park is about 27, according to Google Maps miles south of Sierra Vista.

Get the lay of the land by driving to Montezuma Pass, 3 miles west of the visitor center along a steep and twisting gravel road. In good weather, it's fine for all cars. At the pass, the 0.4-mile Coronado Peak Trail leads to a promontory where you can see endlessly across the flats and mountains of Arizona and Mexico. Signs along the way describe the travels of Spanish explorer Francisco Vasquez de Coronado.

Don't miss Coronado Cave. A moderate, 0.75-mile trail leads uphill to the cave entrance. Clamber down the smooth rocks to enter the dry cave, which is about 600 feet long, 20 feet high and 70 feet wide. Inside are limestone formations and various passages. You can't get lost; the passages either dead-end or rejoin the main room. Bring at least one flashlight per person.

Details: 27 miles south of Sierra Vista off Arizona 92, 520-366-5515, nps.gov/coro.

Ramsey Canyon

Ramsey Canyon Preserve is a great place to learn about Arizona and its natural history. The preserve once was home to about 100 settlers, who built homes and held dances under one of the big sycamore trees the canyon is known for.

Today, the 380-acre preserve operated by the Nature Conservancy, a private non-profit organization devoted to protecting plant and wildlife habitat. A visitor center includes a bookstore and a hummingbird-observation area.

Sycamores tower over the trail; a creek burbles nearby. In the peak of spring and fall bird-watching season, birders arrive from Michigan, New York, Oregon and many other states.

Details: 27 E. Ramsey Canyon Road, 10 miles south of Sierra Vista off Arizona 92, 520-378-2785, nature.org.

Tubac arts colony

Art and history meet at this former colonial town, now a distinctive shopping destination. Think the quaint and quirky shops of historic Jerome, enveloped by Scottsdale's el Pedregal.

New buildings in the Plaza de Anza, stuccoed and painted shades of wheat, sage and plum, complement the striking vistas of the Santa Cruz Valley. The town's adobe homes and historic buildings add to the atmosphere.

The narrow streets of the former Spanish presidio, established in 1752, are lined with more than 80 businesses, galleries, studios and eateries. On the north side of town, visitors dine, shop and tee off at the Tubac Golf Resort. On the south side is Barrio de Tubac, a master-planned community of several hundred upscale homes.

Details: 50 miles south of Tucson on Interstate 19, 520-398-2704, tubacaz.com.