Not sure if I should be reviewing this listing or the one for the South Mountain Activity Complex,…read morebut I'll do this one since I came here for the Holbert trail. I've been here a handful of times, but not too often since it's pretty far from home. I was planning to stop by a local coffee shop in this area, so I decided to do an early morning hike beforehand. It's pretty easy to get to this trailhead, and their hours year-round are 5am - 11pm (gates open and close). I wish they would open a bit earlier during the summer, but I got there a few minutes after 5 anyways. I'm always surprised at how few people/cars I see in the lot, I anticipate it being busier. They recently completely construction here and there's a beautiful pavilion now. Several restrooms and water fountains, which is great. Last time I came here, they had rerouted the beginning of the trail to the northernmost part of the parking lot, so that's where I thought it would be. Took me a few minutes to orient myself from the map because I didn't realize there were multiple bathrooms. Holbert trail is nice and there are a few switchbacks before connecting to Dobbins Lookout, which can be reached by car and has a parking lot. I decided to make the small detour to the lookout and spend a few minutes walking around; I like the little house they have. I really didn't like all the trash I saw lying around; I picked up a few napkins, straws and bottles. Not sure if it's flying out of the trash cans or people just being lazy, but it made me sad. I continued on the trail to the National trail, and made it a loop by connecting to the Kiwanis trail and finally Las Lomitas back to the trailhead. I ran into maybe a dozen people, tops. There are so many parking spots available here and the only time I've seen it full is when I did the Phoenix Summit Challenge in November last year. There are probably other times when it gets busy, like when there are events and such, but usually it's so empty. Maybe because it's the hottest part of the summer. This is one of the trailheads that will close from 8am - 5pm when there is an extreme heat warning from the National Weather Service, so be aware of that. I do want to explore the National trail more, so I plan to be back.

On a Saturday afternoon, I checked out Holbert Trailhead at South Mountain Park. Finding the trail…read moreisn't super easy as it's a bit hidden but here are instructions on how to get there: enter the park and follow the signs that point you to the visitor's center. After passing by the visitor's center, follow the road until you hit an area under construction. The road will make you turn left and then it will bring you into the parking lot. In the corner of the parking lot by the construction, you'll find the entrance to the trail. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's get to the good stuff. Holbert Trailhead is listed as a "moderate difficulty" trail on AllTrails. By the way, if you don't use AllTrails, I highly recommend that you download the app. It keeps track of where you're at on a trail (to make sure you stay on track) and also keeps track of some cool stats for you like the amount of time you've spent on the trails, the number of miles you've hiked, the elevation, etc. Rating Holbert as a moderate trail is fair. The first half of the hike is at an incline as you're scaling the mountain. You'll come across a lot of uneven rocks so it's not easy. Make sure to bring plenty of water. You'll eventually reach a fork where one path will continue on Holbert and the other will take you to Dobbins Lookout. Take the path on the right to get to Dobbins Lookout which is one of the most spectacular nature views in Phoenix. To get to Dobbins, depending on your pace, it will take you about an hour and a half. Once you arrive, you'll be rewarded with spectacular views of Phoenix and surrounding suburbs. And you'll have the satisfaction of knowing that you walked there instead of driving there like a bunch of other people you'll see at Dobbins. From there, you'll return along the same path to get to the beginning of the trail again. The return trip will be quicker as you're going on a decline. It will be harder on your knees and you'll have to be careful with your footing, but it will be less strenuous. All in all, it should take you anywhere between two and a half to three and a half hours depending on how long you chill at Dobbins. All in all, a top hike!

Nice river walk. Start at the casino. Out and back trail. No maps! See photos-only map I found.read more

if you're staying at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa this trail is located right on the…read moreresort. if you're not there are plenty of ways to get on this trail as well. as it looked like there were a lot of open spaces where folks can just walk on at any time. you'll be walking through the resort golf course. it's a dirt path. there's no incline and is flat all the way which makes it a super easy trail. there are times when you'll have to cross the street so do take caution and look both ways before crossing the street. i loved that there were signs that informed you of which plants were which or even information providing history of certain things. so it was a very educational hike. there wasn't any shades on this hike so do wear a hat, put on sunscreen, and bring some water as it is arizona and it can get pretty hot.

Let me start by saying that before, taking any hike, please take heed to every warning sign that is…read moreposted. I made the mistake of seeing extremely difficult and comparing it to a hike I did in New Mexico that was difficult thinking that this was just slightly higher than the one in New Mexico. I only looked at the distance and did not pay attention to the incline. This trail is 1.47 miles but has a gain of over 1300 feet. It is extremely steep and that is the part that will take you out! No pets are allowed on this trail, which is definitely a wise decision given how steep and narrow it is. Another hiker told us that there are a total of 36 markers along the trail, I made it to marker five, my husband made it to marker seven. By the time I hit marker five I was dizzy and nauseous. I was definitely not ready for how extremely difficult this hiking trail was. I feel like I looked at the warning signs, but didn't quite register what they were saying. It is a beautiful hike, but you definitely have to be accustomed to the incline and the altitude. The views were beautiful, but you absolutely must be careful, I would recommend a hiking stick to help keep your balance, especially on the way down. So my rating of five star is that they 100% accurately described the trail, it was absolutely beautiful, I just failed to register the warnings.

Quality/Quantity - 2-3 hour round trip hike (my guest does this hike in 4 hours, lol). We got here…read morelate, so we only did 1 hour as we did not want to get a $118 ticket for staying past sunset. So we only hiked to marker 8. A fairly steep rocky trail. No shade, but perfect weather for us on this winter afternoon. Beautiful views; see my pictures. Views of Scottsdale and Phoenix. Atmosphere - At the start of the trail there were restrooms, drinking fountain, bike rack, etc. Very limited parking, make sure you pay attention to the street signs. We got lucky and got a perfect space, probably because we got here an hour before closing and most people had already left. Summit - 2,704 feet. Animals - We saw loose dogs, rabbits, etc. Open from sunrise to sunset. Service - Self service. Price - Free. Owner Comment - Congrats on your success since 1960's since The Preservation of Camelback Mountain Foundation.

Excellent trail on this chilly morning and I'm very proud of how all the kiddos did. The telegraph…read morepass trail has some incline to it, we went to the old rock "house" structure at the top. Great views. The parking lot here is big and there's a restroom and water fountain. We got started at 8am and it wasn't super busy yet. As day went on more people seemed to be on the trail. It's dog friendly which is great since my boy Flynn loves to hike. Great hike with my peoples.

This review is for Telegraph Pass Trail. It is an easy to moderate 2.3-mile out-and-back trail in…read morethe Ahwatukee foothills area near the AZ-202. The facilities at the start of the trailhead are pretty nice and clean. I love doing this hike in the evening because you get gorgeous views of the Valley at night. Once you get to the top next to Summit Rd (the road is paved), there is bench that you can rest on. There you can get some great panoramic pictures of the Valley with Sky Harbor airport and Camelback Mountain in the background. Once at the top, you have the option of heading back or accessing one of a few trails that connect to it. There is a little stone house to the west and the transmitter towers that blink red at night on South Mountain to the east. We once brought up s'mores to the stone house at night and had some campfire fun over a mini propane stove. If you continue on with the Kiwanis trail from here, you can see some Hohokam rock art. Telegraph Pass is one of my favorite Valley trails and makes for a fun quick hike.

It's been some years since I've been to South Mountain for a casual hike. This time I selected the…read moreBeverly Canyon Trailhead. There's a modest parking lot with about 30 spaces that shared between the Javalina Trailhead and the Beverly Canyon Trailhead. The parking lot is easy to access off S 46th Street, just south of Baseline Road and close to the I-10 and US60 interchange. The Beverly Canyon trail is just under 2mi and you can extend your hike as once you're over a mile in there's other trails that intersect. This trail is marked as moderate difficulty but it's probably on the easier side. You do climb up ~250ft from the trailhead but it's a slow incline. There's areas of large rock with some erosion that can make a few steps tenuous but overall this is a great trail for beginners. There's a few lookouts that are really spectacular. You can clearly see the downtown area (and likely the typical layer of smog), Camelback Mtn, Papago Park, ASU 'A' Mountain and more. I've never been disappointed spending a few hours out here above the city getting some exercise. If you're looking for a casual hike with friends or a beginner friendly trail, this is a good starting spot.

I enjoy coming here for a nearby, local hike. The parking lot is small but always has an open spot…read more This trail connects to a bunch of other trails so you can hike whatever distance you want. It's rocky and steep at times so it's not the easiest to trail run for me, but it's great for a sunset hike.

This hike is a 6.4-mile out-and-back trail in the hills of Phoenix's South Mountain Preserve…read more Corona de Loma is a challenging trail that is located just east of Eagle Pass and will take a few hours to complete. The beginning of the trail connects with the Thash Kavid Loop Trail or Warpaint Loop Trail. It is usually called the Warpaint Loop because it is off Warpaint Drive. I came here with a friend and we did the loop trail portion of the hike. The Warpaint Loop trail is around 2-miles and easy to hike because there is no elevation. It is a popular area for hiking, mountain biking and running. Because it is in a desert region, proper precautions should be taken while hiking it during the warmer seasons. Dogs must be on a leash. The Corona de Loma Trail takes you through a diverse terrain with a combination of flat sections. Parking is on the side of the road.

Great South Mountain trailhead, commonly called Warpaint trailhead due to entrance on Warpaint Dr…read morein Awahtukee. There's a decent number of trails with varying degrees of difficulty for hikers and bikers. Most of the trails are fairly flat// little elevation change, so if you're a local and want to try hiking, this is a great start. Also good for visitors/tourists. Most popular trails are Desert Classic and Warpaint Loops. If you want climbing, try the Guadalupe Perimeter. Most of the trails can connect you to other trail systems in the park. Because of the fairly-flat nature of this trailhead system, it's great for star-gazing & observing sunrise/sunset. Fair warning though, some of the bigger desert critters (coyotes) will come out at night... I've heard them! The only downside of this trailhead are limited street parking and no bathrooms. Happy trails!

A fun loop trail with nice vegetation, a few wash crossings and a lot of connector trails. It is a…read moresolid, runnable 5K loop that has slight grades and a mostly clear route -- no rock scrambling needed. This one is doable on a bike, even if you're not that experienced, though there's a bit of sand west of the horse staging parking area. There are (flush!) toilets and a water fountain at the trailhead.

Blevins Trail in Usery Mountain Regional Park is a gem! It's a perfect, moderate hike with stunning…read morevistas and peaceful surroundings. A favorite spot for every visit--always an amazing experience! Saluti

A difficult hike with amazing views! I loved this hike. It's a long way back to the trailhead from…read morethe road and there are places where having 4x4 or higher clearance would be nice, but I saw a Prius at the trailhead. There are workarounds. It's a long and steady climb, definitely one of the more challenging hikes in the west valley. The last little bit there's some scrambling to get to the peak. The views are amazing and the giant slabs of quartz are beautiful.

For years, I had stared out at the Sierra Estrella mountains wondering if I'd ever get the chance…read moreto hike to the top of Quartz Peak. I'm a Civic owner, so as soon as I heard about the sand roads and necessity of a high clearance/4x4 vehicle, I thought the day would never come (there's no way I'm buying a gas guzzling Jeep with a 30-mi each way work commute lol). That is, until I met some other awesome hikers from the Valley and coordinated an epic carpool! We met up in downtown Phoenix and headed out in the Jeeps to Goodyear. After getting off the 10 and heading down Estrella/Rainbow Ranch roads for what seemed like a good while, along came the sand/dirt roads. And man did they live up to their reputation! Some super fun off-roading action ensued, and let's just say I was so glad I wasn't in my own little car. One of the hiking buddies advised that he once tried to get to the trailhead in his Dodge Caravan but got stuck in the sand and wrecked the transmission. Yikes! Once we got to the trailhead (obviously an adventure in and of itself), it was a steady 5-6 mile uphill climb to the summit. There are definitely some false Peaks to conquer along the way that are grueling physically and mentally; however, once you get to the last half mile or so, it's a fairly short scramble and totally doable. Once you get to the top, you are greeted by a fantastic view of West Valley, South Mountain, Four Peaks, the Supes, East Valley, and the vast desert to the southwest. The way down is easier on the cardio but harder on the knees due to loose rocks so watch your step and don't rush it. Your legs will probably be sore for the next day or two but it'll be accompanied by the feeling of accomplishment! I also recommend going with a group as I did. Strength and support in numbers people! Plus, you may meet someone new and make friends along the way! I'm not sure when I'll get the chance to hike Quartz Peak again, but now every time I look out to the west at it, the memories will never fade!