Until a couple of years ago, online trip reports about the two main trails cutting through the 34,400-acre Table Top Mountain Wilderness area detailed nothing but the pleasures of hiking in the rugged, cactus-filled terrain located 20 miles or so south of Maricopa. These days, it's more common to hear warnings about the federal preserve. "I'd be very careful," a ranger with the Bureau of Land Management's field office tells us (you can call them at the number listed above) when we inquire about a planned trip to wilderness within the now-infamous Vekol Valley, south of Interstate 8. Not only do signs warn outdoors enthusiasts that they're entering an area rife with human- and drug-smuggling activity, but earlier this year, the BLM completed work on a 1.3-mile "Normandy-style" vehicle barrier between the Table Top Wilderness and the northern edge of the Tohono O'odham reservation. Many illegal immigrants and their guides filter through the BLM land every year, often using the distinct Table Top Mountain as a navigational guide. Gun battles are not uncommon. No hikers have been messed with — yet. We're holding off on the summit trail hike until we find a small herd of fellow risk-takers willing to accompany us.