Camelback Mountain: Echo Canyon and Cholla Trails
Camelback Mountain is the hike most visitors mean when they ask about Phoenix hiking, and it rises on the boundary between Phoenix and the town of Paradise Valley -- the Echo Canyon Trailhead sits at 4925 E. McDonald Dr., Paradise Valley. The City of Phoenix rates both summit routes Extremely Difficult, its highest trail rating. Echo Canyon Trail runs 1.14 miles with 1,400 feet of elevation change, and the city's own description notes it requires the assistance of handrails and other aides to reach the top. The Cholla Trail climbs the mountain's eastern slope to the same 2,704-foot summit over 1.5 miles and 1,420 feet of elevation change, completely exposed, with an upper third the city describes as extremely steep, strewn with boulders, and difficult to follow.
Both routes reward the effort with a summit view that takes in the whole Valley floor, but neither is a casual walk. Trail hours at both trailheads are sunrise to sunset. Parking is free and first-come: the Echo Canyon lot fills from late morning through early afternoon on winter and spring weekdays and stays full all day on weekends, and once it reaches capacity the entry gate closes -- police ticket drivers who idle on McDonald Drive or Tatum Boulevard waiting for it to reopen, and tow illegally parked cars. Cholla Trailhead has no designated parking spots at all, only limited marked parallel parking on the west side of Invergordon Road. Check the City of Phoenix Camelback Mountain page for current closures before you drive over; Cholla Trail is scheduled to close for construction August 10-21, 2026, with Echo Canyon as the alternate access.
Piestewa Peak
Piestewa Peak rises 2,608 feet in the Phoenix Mountains Park and Recreation Area north of downtown, and it is the city's other classic tough climb. It is named for Lori Piestewa, a member of the Hopi Tribe from Tuba City, Arizona, who served with the Army's 507th Maintenance Company and was the first Native American woman to die in combat while serving with the U.S. military. The summit trail is steep and rocky in its upper sections, comparable in difficulty to Camelback for many hikers, while the surrounding preserve also has gentler trails for those who want desert scenery without the full summit push.
Because it sits inside a city-run preserve with multiple trailheads and connecting paths, Piestewa Peak is a good option if Camelback's parking is full. Two rules to know before you load the car: dogs are prohibited year-round on the Piestewa Peak Summit Trail, and the trailhead parking lot runs 5 a.m. to 7 p.m., extended annually from June 1 through September 30 so the lot entrance stays open until 9 p.m. Trail hours are 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
South Mountain Park and Preserve
At more than 16,000 acres, South Mountain Park/Preserve is one of the largest municipally managed parks in the nation, spanning three mountain ranges -- the Ma Ha Tauk, Gila, and Guadalupe -- with more than 100 miles of trails. That scale means it covers the full range of difficulty rather than one signature climb. Trails range from short, flat desert walks near the entrances to longer ridgeline routes with real elevation gain, and Dobbins Lookout, at 2,330 feet the highest point in the park open to the public, is reachable by Summit Road for anyone who wants the view without the hike. Note that Summit Road closes to motor vehicles every Sunday morning for Silent Sunday, and all day (5 a.m. to 7 p.m.) on the fourth Sunday of the month.
Because the trail network is so extensive, South Mountain is worth checking a current map for before you go -- it's easy to end up on a longer or more remote route than intended if you just pick a trailhead and start walking. It's also popular with mountain bikers and equestrians on shared-use trails, so stay alert to other trail users.
Pinnacle Peak
Pinnacle Peak Park is run by the City of Scottsdale, not Phoenix, and its single trail is a well-graded out-and-back through classic Sonoran Desert terrain -- saguaro, rock outcrops, and long views without the scrambling that makes Camelback and Piestewa demanding. Scottsdale rates it moderate and says plainly that it is not as difficult as Camelback Mountain or Piestewa Peak. The trail runs 2 miles one way, 4 miles over and back, with about 1,300 feet of cumulative elevation gain and a high point of 2,889 feet.
The trail is an out-and-back along the flank of the peak rather than a summit push, though experienced rock climbers with proper gear are permitted in three designated climbing areas reached by the climbing trails. Dogs and bikes are not allowed on the Pinnacle Peak trail -- Scottsdale directs both to Brown's Ranch Trailhead instead. Parking is limited at the trailhead, so an early arrival matters here too, especially on cool-season weekends.
Lost Dog Wash and the McDowell Sonoran Preserve
Lost Dog Wash is a trailhead into the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, which the City of Scottsdale describes as one of the largest permanently protected urban desert preserves in the world -- more than 30,500 acres with over 230 miles of multi-use trails. The trails here are generally gentler than the four peaks above -- washes and rolling desert terrain rather than steep summit routes -- which makes it a good choice for families, beginners, or anyone easing into desert hiking before attempting Camelback or Piestewa.
The preserve is open every day, sunrise to sunset, free of charge, and its trails are shared by hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians, so a current trail map is worth checking before you go if you plan to link several together. Note that the preserve is Scottsdale's, so the Phoenix trail-closure program below does not apply here -- but the heat does, and the same rules still govern how you plan the day.
Heat Safety and When to Hike
Roughly November through March is the comfortable window for any of these five trails, with cool mornings and mild daytime temperatures. Spring and fall shoulder seasons still work well if you start early. Summer is a different situation, and not a matter of comfort: the City of Phoenix reports that more than 200 hikers a year are rescued from its desert parks and mountain preserves. In 2024 the city logged 121 days at or above 105°F, 69 of them above 110°F.
The trail-closure rule you must check
Phoenix runs a formal Trail Heat Safety Program, and it is not advisory. On any day the National Weather Service issues an Extreme Heat Warning (the current NWS term, which replaced “Excessive Heat Warning”), these trails are restricted from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.:
- Camelback Mountain -- Echo Canyon Trail and Cholla Trail
- Phoenix Mountains Preserve -- the Piestewa Peak Summit Trail and associated trails
- South Mountain Park and Preserve -- Holbert Trail, Mormon Trail, Hau'pal Loop Trail, and access to the National Trail from the Pima Canyon Trailhead
The rest of South Mountain's 100-plus miles stays open during a warning, as do North Mountain, Dreamy Draw, and Lookout Mountain. Rules change -- the Parks Board last revised them in March 2025 -- so confirm the current list on the Phoenix Trail Heat Safety Program page the morning you plan to hike. Pinnacle Peak and the McDowell Sonoran Preserve are Scottsdale's and are not covered by this program.
Leave the dog at home in the heat. The Phoenix Parks and Recreation Code of Conduct prohibits endangering dogs on difficult trails or in adverse weather conditions, such as temperatures over 100°F, in any desert park or mountain preserve. Separately, dogs are prohibited year-round on the Piestewa Peak Summit Trail, and dogs are not allowed on the Pinnacle Peak trail at all.
Water, timing, and the city's own checklist
Phoenix Parks does not publish a fixed number of ounces per hiker, and neither will we -- your needs depend on the trail, the temperature, and you. What the city does say is more useful anyway: hydrate before you go, carry more water than you think you need, and turn around and head back to the trailhead before you drink all of your water. Hike when it's cool -- early mornings and evenings, when there is more shade. Wear proper shoes, clothing, a hat, and sunscreen. Carry a phone. Hike with others, and if you go solo, tell someone your start and end times and your location. Be honest about asthma, heart problems, diabetes, or knee and back trouble; the city notes that even trained athletes get caught out by dehydration on Arizona trails. Stay on designated trails.
Heat exhaustion vs. heat stroke -- know the difference
These are two different emergencies and they are treated differently. Per the National Weather Service:
- Heat exhaustion looks like heavy sweating; weakness or tiredness; cool, pale, clammy skin; a fast, weak pulse; muscle cramps; dizziness, nausea or vomiting; headache; fainting. Move the person somewhere cooler, ideally air conditioning. Remove excess clothing, apply cool wet cloths or use a cool bath, and give small amounts of water to drink. Get immediate medical attention if the person vomits, if symptoms worsen, or if they last longer than one hour.
- Heat stroke looks like a throbbing headache; confusion; slurred speech; nausea; dizziness; a body temperature above 103°F; hot, red, dry or damp skin; a rapid, strong pulse; fainting; loss of consciousness. Call 911 or get the person to a hospital immediately. Move them somewhere cooler and lower their body temperature with cool cloths or a cool bath. Do not give fluids.
The single most important distinction: confusion, slurred speech, and hot dry skin are heat stroke signs, not heat exhaustion. That is a 911 call, not a water break.
Rattlesnakes
The city's own trail descriptions for Camelback and the other preserves note that venomous rattlesnakes are regularly encountered. Give any snake a wide berth and do not try to move, handle, or photograph it up close. If someone is bitten, the Arizona Poison and Drug Information Center's guidance is short: relax and move as little as possible, remove tight clothing, shoes, or jewelry from the bitten limb, and go to the nearest medical facility immediately -- call 911 if you cannot get there fast. Do not use ice or electricity, do not use constricting bands, a tourniquet, or suction devices (extractors do not remove meaningful venom and can worsen tissue damage), do not cut the wound, do not give alcohol or medication, do not wait to see whether symptoms develop, and do not try to catch the snake.
Monsoon storms and flash flooding
The NWS monsoon season is a fixed window: June 15 through September 30. Storms build fast on afternoons that started clear, which on an exposed ridgeline means lightning with nowhere to shelter, and in a wash means flash flooding. Get off high, exposed terrain and out of washes when a storm builds. Driving to or from a trailhead, never enter a flooded wash or a barricaded road: under Arizona's “Stupid Motorist Law,” A.R.S. § 28-910, a driver who goes around a barricade onto a flooded roadway and then has to be rescued is liable for the cost of that emergency response, up to $2,000 per incident -- and their insurance may lawfully refuse to cover it.