If you've ever daydreamed about lying naked 'neath a clear, blue sky, this hike's for you. While the strenuous jaunt is not an "official" Bureau of Land Management/Tonto National Forest route, it's the best trek we've come across in our many years of meandering through the Valley and surrounding areas. One of the main reasons is the solitude. Unlike the more heavily trampled trails in the Supes ? Peralta, Hieroglyphic, Black Mesa, Dutchman's ? the 12-mile round trip to Black Top Mesa is for loners. No one ever goes there. Beautiful. The trip starts at the First Water trailhead, which is located on the north side of the preserve, off the Apache Trail east of Apache Junction. From there, you'll encounter a multitude of micro-environments, from the humid, almost jungle-like environs of the Weeping Rock region to a rubble-filled riparian area to the hardpan flats of the low desert and then up to the flat-top summit of Black Top itself ? an otherworldly domain of craggy volcanic boulders, oddball vegetation, and absolute seclusion. Go ahead, whip 'em off; who'll know?