South Mountain Park – Urban Adventure
Posted in Scenery, Travel | By Shelley Gillespie | Tags: Desert, Hiking, Phoenix, Southwest, US Domestic Travel
South Mountain Park, located in Phoenix, Arizona is the largest city park in the US. Especially on weekends, throngs of people spend time hiking and exploring the trails. (51 miles worth of trials, according to the City of Phoenix’s Web site.)
Certain perspectives are almost otherworldly as you can be hiking with no one around, yet you’ll see the City of Phoenix below, spread out as far as the eye can see!
View of Phoenix from South Mountain Park
The hiking paths themselves can be challenging, but there are variations that can range from easy to difficult. One minute you’re heading down an almost vertical path with sliding rock. A little while later, you’re walking along a sandy, flat area that seems like a dry riverbed.
In the spring especially, the abundance of blooms almost makes you question whether you are really in the desert. The saguaro, arms up, sometimes twisting, is there to remind you that, yes, you are in the desert!
Hillside of saguaro
There are picnic areas that can be reserved, stone rest stations, restrooms (rustic, hole in the ground type) and rules and regs to follow.
Stone Shelter On South Mountain Trail
But, if you don’t mind sharing the paths with bicyclists and horses, the hikes and views can be very rewarding. We’ve hiked in South Mountain Park many times and, even if we take the same path, there are always new plants, native creatures and interesting people about.
Saguaro on South Mountain Trail
One hike starts in an area that backs on condominiums. I could never understand why people would want someone to be able to see their yards, but I guess that’s the price they pay for having a view of nature and not other rows of homes.
A favorite trail is the Kiwanis Trail, which gives a good view of the City of Phoenix. – Of course, on a day when the air is cloudy – Phoenix does have pollution – it is harder to see.
If you come to South Mountain Park… be prepared to come early before the parking lots and roadsides are full. (They now only allow parking on one side of the entrance road that leads from the Elliot Road entrance.) There are three major entrance areas, two off of Central Avenue and one just north of the Elliot Road intersection. There are also other related businesses, like a horse rental firm and “civilization” nearby. Also, bring your own water supply and first aid kit. Once we saw a biker who had scraped up his leg. There was no one else around with first aid equipment. We helped him. We had “stuff” in our car.
Tags: Desert, Hiking, Phoenix, Southwest, US Domestic Travel