PHOENIX — Looking for a way to stay active outside as the weather starts to cool down? Check out this list of scenic trails around the Valley!
The City of Phoenix recommends reading the “Take a Hike. Do it right,” guidelines before hiking any trails. It advises hikers to turn around and head back to the trailhead before finishing all of their water.
Hole-in-the-Rock Trail – Papago Park
- The trail is very short and has a step path on natural dirt to bring hikers to a large viewing hole in the Hole-in-the-Rock Butte. Visitors can look over the Phoenix metropolitan area.
- Rating/Length: Easy, 0.2 miles, with an elevation change of 200 feet.
- Parking/Entrance Hours:
- East of Galvin Pkwy: 5 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- West of Galvin Pkwy: Sunrise to Sunset
- Trail hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
- Entry Cost: Free
- Address: 625 N Galvin Pkwy, Phoenix, AZ 85008
Aside from the Hole-in-the-Rock trail, there are multiple other hikes at Papago Park. Find more information here.
Camelback Mountain
- Camelback Mountain is home to two trailheads, otherwise known as the Cholla Trailhead and the Echo Canyon Trailhead. Both are extremely strenuous, rocky, steep, and come together at the summit of the mountain. Cholla Trail is said to be less difficult of the two but is longer. According to the City of Phoenix website, the Echo Canyon Trail starts relatively light, but “quickly escalates to a strenuous climb that increases in difficulty as you ascend along the mountain’s western slope.”
- Rating/Length:
- Cholla Trailhead – Extremely Difficult, at 1.5 miles and an elevation change of 1,420 feet.
- Echo Canyon Trailhead – Extremely Difficult, at 1.14 miles and an elevation change of 1,400 feet.
- Park Hours/Parking: Sunrise to Sunset; parking is very limited.
- Entry: Free
- Address:
- Cholla Trailhead – 5150 N. Invergordon Rd.
- Echo Canyon Trailhead – 4925 E. McDonald Dr.
Mesquite Trailhead (302 Trailhead) - Piestewa Peak/Dreamy Draw Trails
- This trailhead is home to two trails, the Piestewa Peak Freedom Trail and the Piestewa Peak Summit Trail. “The Freedom Trail is an awesome circumference trail that skirts the base of Piestewa Peak,” according to the City of Phoenix website. The Summit Trail offers a three-hundred-sixty-degree view of the Phoenix metropolitan area for those who complete the hike.
- Rating/Length:
- Piestewa Peak Freedom Trail – Difficult, at 3.7 miles with an elevation change of 720 feet.
- Piestewa Peak Summit Trail – Extremely Difficult, at 1.2 miles with an elevation change of 1,200 feet.
- Parking/Entrance Hours: 5 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Trail Hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
- Entry Cost: Free
- Address: 2701 E. Piestewa Peak Dr.
Aside from the Mesquite Trailhead, there are five other trailheads located in Piestewa Peak/ Dreamy Draw Trails. Find more information here.
More Things to Do stories:
Deem Hills Park (West Trailhead & East Trailhead)
- The park covers nearly 1,000 acres of Sonoran Desert and offers a multitude of trails to hike. According to the City of Phoenix website, it is “known for its unique basalt volcanic rock formations. The trails found in the park have a difference in length and difficulty level.
- Rating/Length:
- West Trailhead
- Deem Hills Circumference Trail – Moderate, at 5.7 miles and an elevation change of 306 feet
- Deem Hills Ridgeline Trail – Difficult, at 1.5 miles and an elevation change of 353 feet
- East Trailhead
- Basalt Trail – Moderate, at 0.6 miles and an elevation change of 158 feet
- CAP Road Trail – Easy, at 1.6 miles and an elevation change of 104 feet
- Palisade Trail – Moderate, at 1.5 miles and an elevation change of 395 feet
- West Trailhead
- Parking/Entrance Hours: 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Trail Hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
- Entry Cost: Free
- Address: 26606 N. Deem Hills Pkwy.
East & West Skip Rimsza Paseo – Apache Wash Trailhead at the Phoenix Sonoran Preserve
- Both trails start at the Apache Wash Trailhead. The East is a concrete surface that is used by walkers, joggers, and bikers, and has a very gradual incline and goof views. The West is “a concrete trail with little gain in elevation. The trail stays close to Ocotillo Trail, but then heads south and ends at Dove Valley Road,” according to the City of Phoenix.
- Trail Rating/Length:
- East Skip Rimsza – Easiest, at 1.9 miles and an elevation change of 37 feet.
- West Skip Rimsza Paseo – Easiest, at 3.1 miles and an elevation change of 15 feet.
- Parking/Entrance Hours: 5 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Trail Hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
- Entry Cost: Free
- Address: 1600 E. Sonoran Desert. Dr.
Aside from the East and West Rimsza Paseo, there are multiple other trails within the Phoenix Sonoran Preserve. Find more information here.
Hidden Valley Trail via Mormon Trail – South Mountain Preserve and Park
- The trail offers a bunch of unique features for hikers to enjoy, including a naturally smooth rockslide, a small cliff, a trail turn, and a natural tunnel.
- Trail Rating/Length: Moderate/Difficult, at 2.2 miles.
- Parking/Entrance Hours: 5 a.m. to 7 p.m., trails are open through 11 p.m.
- South Mountain has an event called "Silent Sundays,” where Summit Road is closed to motor vehicles and is reserved for non-motorized activities.
- Every fourth Sunday, the event is from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m.
- Any other Sunday of the month, the event goes from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Entry Cost: Free
- Address: 8610 S 24th St.
Aside from the Hidden Valley Trail via Mormon Trail, there are multiple other trails within the South Mountain Preserve and Park. Find more information here.
