Saved 4/11/2020

Our 8th Annual Hike Meet at the staging area inside the parking lot of the Avra Valley Airport at 8am. We’ll then caravan to the trailhead, no later than 8:15am. The Avra Valley Airport is also known as the Marana Regional Airport or the Marana NorthWest Regional Airport. Please arrive at the parking area on time so that we can get a head count. We don’t want to leave anyone on the trail. Retired DPS Sergeant Gregg Girard #1151 will be in the parking lot awaiting everyone. His cell number is 602.531.4466. It takes about an hour to hike to the accident site from the trailhead. The terrain is steep and the footing loose in some areas. Please wear hiking boots (tennis shoes are not appropriate), long pants, and gloves. Please be sure to bring water to drink and a hiking stick if needed. If you’re wondering if this hike will continue in inclement weather… four years ago 19 brave souls completed the hike in a cold rain.

Fernanda Echavarri Arizona Daily Star - Saved 4/11/2020

A veteran pilot was killed and three passengers were injured Monday when a Pima County Sheriff's Department helicopter crashed into the side of a mountain northwest of Tucson, officials said.

There is a memorial to Loren E. Leonberger in the Waterman Mountains.

Saved 4/11/2020

On January 31, 2011, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department helicopter crashed near Waterman Road and Silverbell Road while scouting for possible radio towers as part of the PCWIN project for common radio communications within public service agencies. Tragically, veteran Pilot Loren Leonberger was killed.

There is a Loren E. Leonberger memorial on the way to Waterman Peak.