I came up A Mountain for the first time this weekend to watch the sunset. I enjoyed the new view of Tucson! The drive is a little risky, especially with all the pullouts to see the views being on the far side of the road with limited guardrails. Make sure to drive slow and drive up with a confident driver. The road does close at the sunset time exactly, so if you are someone that likes to watch the sunset until it is completely dark, A Mountain is not the place for you. Nonetheless, A Mountain has great views and is also a popular place to hike and cycle! read more

A Mountain - Sunset - Parks Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Might be one of the most picturesque places to visit in Tucson. Might be a little difficult to find the road to get here, but once you do, you make it up to the top and are greeted by some fantastic views of Tucson and the valley below. Highly recommend going as it approaches sunset for the best views around. Parking is also plentiful, making for an excellent place to take a walk or hike :) read more

See all

Such a great spot to take in the Tucson area. I don't know how long ago they cleaned up the trash problem but I I hiked all the way up and saw only a few pieces. read more

A Mountain - View to the south. - Parks Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Fourth of July Fireworks show. We can see it nicely from our Patio in the back yard. Quite a display! read more

I was in Tucson yesterday for official business in downtown. I brought my dog along because I wanted to do a short hike. With rain in the forecast, I opted to stay in lower elevations to avoid any flashflooding. I chose Sentinel Peak Park. It's only four miles from downtown, free, and dog friendly. I followed my Alltrails.com app to get me to the trailhead, which had me parking on the lower end. Alltrails says it's a 1.7 mile loop hike, but that's on the narrow road shared by speeding cyclists. There is no map of the trails and most of the trails are unmarked. I opted for the Gilbert Escabron Jiminez trail (the former Sentinel Ridge trail) which took me on the east side of Tumonoc Hill (not dog friendly) and along a ridge before taking me to the road. Views in all directions are nice, but because alcohol is allowed in this park, careless drinkers toss their bottles and cans off the road. There is a lot of broken glass everywhere! There are also several roadside crosses in memoriam for people who died in this park. I also got annoyed at all the graffiti on the rocks. Seriously, people, do you have to trash everything? I ended up logging four miles between the two big hills. The rainy weather made this a cool, enjoyable hike so close to downtown. This is a nice place to see the sun or moon rise or set. Just be careful while walking your dog, because of all the broken glass near the top https://www.mapmyhike.com/workout/3907107160 read more

See all

First the Plus: A Mountain is a Tucson landmark that you can see all over the city. It's a little difficult to find the road but it is marked once your close. GPS will get you there. A Mountain is pet friendly but you are to pick up any droppings. We parked at the bottom lot and hiked first to the small picnic area about 1/2 way up. Then we took to the hiking trails and climbed the face next to the white A. (This trail goes straight up the Mountain- wear good climbing shoes and it's not for the beginners). Once on the top there is a beautiful view in every direction. We even saw a Road Runner at the top! Next the Minus: Unfortunately, vandalism is apparent all over this wonderful place. There wasn't a lot of trash, (we saw a person picking up trash when we hiked down.) But there is broken glass everywhere and many of the signs and plaques have spray paint on them or dents and holes from rocks being thrown at them. Additional info: If you drive, be aware of the very narrow road and that pedestrians and bicyclists that also use the road. Also be aware that the edges of the road in most places are long drops and there are no barriers. read more

A Mountain - Parks Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

See all

It's so funny to me that I was born in Tucson and grew up here until I was almost 10yrs old and always saw "A" Mountain, but never made the trek up to the namesake until returning over 20yrs later...life is interesting that way I guess! "A" Mountain (aka Sentinel Peak) has a pretty rich history (there are plaques in both english and spanish explaining the peak's importance and even where Tucson got its name). The drive up gives you pretty great panoramic views of Tucson, especially downtown. But warning, for some reason people drive up here like bats outta hell...I don't know why you would go over 25mph on the road up here when there are so many things to see on the drive up...but people are idiots and feel the need to race up the mountain. I had to pull over a couple of times to let said idiots pass me so I could enjoy my jaunt up to the top. You can park in front of the "A" itself and even attempt to climb it (though make sure you have closed toed, sturdy shoes because it is steep and there is broken glass everywhere!). But, if you make it up to the top of the "A", the photo opp is pretty epic! I will say that I went in late afternoon on a weekday (and maybe it was because of Spring Break), but among the local and out-of-state tourists, there is a certain "element" here that is blaring music, smoking blunts, and leaving trash, broken beer/alcohol bottles and cigarette butts everywhere. That just makes me sad that people cannot respect this place for themselves or for others... That being said, it was a fun little Tucsonian experience that was very nostalgic for me and would recommend if you are driving through Tucson to make the detour. I was there for just under 45mins and most of that time was climbing up and climbing down the "A" portion of the mountain. read more

See all

Came up here July 4 weekend and was scared out of my mind during the drive up. The road doesn't have any barriers protecting you from a steep tumble. Parking is available along the side of the winding road or in parallel spots almost to the zenith. There was a swarm of bees at the main path so we had to take the path less traveled, which was essentially bouldering over loose rock. The view was nice from up top but the peak has broken glass bottles all over the ground. Guess it's a party hangout. I was sad to see a stray puppy up there trying to scavenge from tourist litter. I would have scooped him up but he was skittish and a bit aggressive so he wouldn't come to me. read more

Nice spot to see downtown Tucson and view of beautiful mountains full of Saguaro trees. Great on those cloudy days, great for folks who enjoy walking and semi-hiking. There is a structure at the top where you can sit and use as a photo opp. read more

My wife and I were on vacation in Tucson and my mother-in-law recommended that we do up to "A" mountain for the view. I went to U of A in 1992-1993 for a year on scholarship. (I know..Stupid to leave school for free to go to University of Minnesota, but a super fat guy sweated a lot in class during the late spring months.) Anyway..I never went up to "A" mountain, but I always saw it from campus in red, white, and blue. The view is nice from above. Tucson isn't a huge downtown,but this is a nice overhead view. read more

Man was the A hard to find! And the road was too narrow to park so we can see the A Also, don't go in June-August!! It was friggin' hot!!! But we had to see this landmark before we leave this city.. read more

See all

"A" mountain is a tawdry pile of rocks & dust with an old pass on it. It's notorious for idiots going up there to make out, drink or kill people. Once up on the top you can see how ugly Tucson has grown, & inhale the smog from cars. The local idiot politicans recently fought a battle to paint it "blue & red" like a flag to support the war. Wow, great idea, jump aboard the war wagon. But, that's what we have to deal with in Tucson, idiot politicans & idiots who drive cars too much while war is waged. read more

A Mountain - Parks Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Steeeeeeeep. But not too bad. I guess it's a good way to catch an ASU game if you don't have tickets. View was cool. You got a river on one side (which is called a lake on google maps, but whatever, looked like a river to me), stadium on another side, the city on another side, and an airport. Good way to see the bellies of planes as they come in and out of the airport. Quibble quibble let me grumble: "hike" was short. Compared to other hikes, I guess I prefer to be away from the city but this gave you a bird's eye view of it (which some people like, I respect that). read more

I was in Tucson for work and had some extra time in the late afternoon. The front desk attendant at my hotel suggested I come here for an easy walk/hike that I could do alone. The parking was ample and there were multiple hiking paths. What prevents me from giving this five stars is the trash everywhere! Mainly in the form of broken bottles, I was truly shocked. (Granted, I suppose it helped ensure I was on an actual path.) Please be careful if you choose to bring your pet here. read more

Great place to see the beautiful city and nice clean area to bring dogs and children too

So I have to agree with other posts that the drive up to the "A" is fairly short and the views are average. I have noticed the smog on certain days but I like this place because it is about a 15 min bike ride from my place (near the university) and a great place for me to work on climbing on my road bike. Mt. Lemmon would be my choice if I could go but it is not exactly close - so I go here in the early morning to get my work out for the day! It is nice and quiet at 6-8 am. I haven't noticed or met any weed smokers at this time of day... they may be asleep... I wouldn't know :) But other than me and some other cyclists, there are some nice people walking and taking in the morning sunrise. It's not bad and I appreciate the fact that it is a nice alternative to staring at the four walls of the student rec center or gym! *For those of you who are driving, the gates to the parking at the "middle" are usually not open until after 8-9 but you can park in the neighborhood at the "base" and just walk up. Also, they set off fireworks off here on the Fourth of July. As you know, it is impossible to get close since they barricade the roads but if you are on a bike, they will let you through. I was able to ride to almost the parking lot level where they set off the fireworks - amazing view - never been this close to fireworks before! Going home was a breeze too since I wasn't in a car stuck in the parking lot traffic! read more

A Mountain ( Sentinel Peak) serves several purposes- folks like to drive up and take in the views, others do a little hiking, cyclists ride up and down, and I mostly like to take in the view from my neighborhood. It's a Tucson staple and I love it for the peak that it is with an A stamp on it. read more

One more star for this icon of Tucson. Still think it needs to be cleaned of all the riffraff before it reaches its true potential, but I've found a little known trail up the back side, from Starr Pass. Maybe I should keep this to myself, but it is too fun to not share. A great little trail, up past a couple memorials. Wide and shallow enough that you can walk your bicycle up (or ride if you can!). Then you can ride down the paved road for a fun little jaunt towards the heart of downtown. So how do you find this little trail? Well, that's half the fun! read more

This is a great hike for little kids and a get a brief history of the settlement of Tucson. You also get a nice panoramic view of the surrounding areas as well as downtown. As far as cycling and running go, it's a vigorous workout getting up there. read more

A Mountain - Parks Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

See all

Very depressing how beautiful the view from the top can be but yet the conditions of the peak itself are absolutely abhorrent broken glass bottles and trash everywhere you look and inconsiderate people driving far to fast for a place with pedestrians. What has happened to the friendly community I remember? read more

A Mountain - Shelby at the "A" - Parks Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Should be called 'Glass Shard Peak". So much broken glass everywhere from beer bottles. Do not recommend bringing the dogs. Nice spot otherwise. read more

A quick drive to the top and a great view of the city. For a tourist like me, it was A-OK. From the vast parking area you can easily walk up to the A summit on the east end, but it's covered in broken glass. There's a gazebo on the west end of the park where you can catch up on the latest local graffiti. That's about it... pretty uninspired. I guess it's too windy for a picnic anyway. read more

A Mountain - View from the top - Parks Near Me - Tucson, Arizona

Great hike, try and go early. Always nice during the morning, wildlife is present. Great view of Tucson

Once upon a time there lived a beautiful Jewish princess... She moved to Tucson years ago, and, like her proud Israeli ancestors, began to build a new life day by day in the desert sands, one grain of sand at the time, discovering the T-town with her best friends :) About a week ago my friend and I decided to take a short drive to A-mountain - supposedly, the perfect sunset watching spot. After reading some mixed reviews online, we wanted to see the A-peak and find out what it's all about. The famous A turned out to be an average city-meets-Wild West mountain landscape , nothing too spectacular or picturesque, should I say. There's a sandy dirt-like road there, an unremarkable gift store and a weird parking lot. We indeed had a chance to watch the sunset, but it was more like an Uhm, okay, I've been to the A Mountain. Nothing too romantic, especially when it comes to a perfect sunset-watching date. You wouldn't wanna see your lady walking in the sand wearing her favorite high heels and a skinny mini, trying to climb the A. read more

We finally found the A after two attempts and driving by it a few times in each attempt. Unfortunately, it was already too hot to hike the top. read more

I love how accessible Sentinel Peak (A Mountain) is and free...no admission. It is 2 miles from the base for one round trip. I like getting a walk in early in the morning to beat the heat and to walk without cars going by! The view is fantastic and a great look out spot in the evening. The gazebo needs renovation and sad that there are areas of graffiti. It is a fantastic Tucson landmark and a great walk outdoors! read more

I wish I liked this mountain more. The views are nice enough, but really, it's all city sprawl, if you want a great desert view you have to get out of town. The paths are short hikes to view points so I suppose they'd be decent for families and children. Unfortunately, the parking lot was packed with people blasting their radios and there was trash and graffiti everywhere. Not exactly the nature break I was hoping for. read more

Perfect place to bring out of town guests to enjoy sweeping views of the City. New picnic ramadas and trails makes it fun for locals looking for a close hike. Dogs are allowed on leash. Love this place! Visit Friends of A Mountain on Facebook for information about hikes. read more

A good place to take out of towners to have a big picture view of the Tucson area. No walking or hiking needed and you can get up and back in to town fairly easy. For what it is, its great. Tumamoc hill is much better if you're looking for a hike with a great view, as others have said. read more

It is a great lookout high above the city with lots of trails around it. The best part is that the place was almost void of tourists looking to be pampered. The people were mostly local it is a hangout, as it was a weekend when I was there a lot of parents had their kids with them to spend time together... all were friendly, it was not trashed. read more

You have great views of the city from here and it's really pretty at night but don't stick around too long or look like a naive victim after dark. It's a nice little drive and seems fine during the day. read more

A Tucson icon with beautiful views of downtown and beyond. A nice hike right in town--don't miss it!