This week’s hiking lesson: The $6 entrance fee to see the Wind Cave Trail at Usery Mountain Recreation Area is totally worth it. The 1.6-mile trail is fairly easy; it’s the most popular hike in the area. There are few rough spots where you have to navigate over some big…
The hunt is on.Last week, four Arizona State Parks posters of Kartchner Caverns, Alamo Lake, Lost Dutchman, and Slide Rock were placed at various Light Rail stations from Phoenix to Tempe. If you find all four and submit your own digital photos of the the posters at the stations (example…
The first Arizona Warrior Dash concluded on Sunday with live music, beer in plastic cups, and muddy, muddy masses. Here are a few things we learned from the 3.4-mile run. Noted for next year: 1. The obstacles are no joke. Some of the obstacles were pretty easy, but some were pretty…
On Friday night, ASU will host its last Astronomy Open House of the year with views of Saturn through rooftop telescopes. You know that means — cool, free date night. The telescopes will be set up from 8 to 10 p.m.on the Bateman Physical Sciences H-Wing on the Tempe Campus…
Phoenix’s South Mountain is known for its extensive trail system; even if you start at the same place every time you go hiking, you can end up taking five different trails to the top. The mountain’s Desert Foothills Trailhead provides an easy start — a wide, paved, flat surface. But…
The Lost Camp Loop is a hell of a hike. It’s longish (at 5 miles), climbs and descends steeply, has multiple opportunities to get lost, and is home to bees … lots of bees.The trail takes you close, but doesn’t actually lead to the ruins of Lost Camp, a mysterious…
Thrasher Magazine, a monthly eye-candy publication for professional and amateur skateboarders, published a photo essay this morning that features some of the best spots in Phoenix. The series, titled Shred Lobster, doesn’t include addresses or buildings, but local board nuts should be able to recognize a few of the rails,…
It’s hard to pay for hiking, but sometimes it’s unavoidable (and totally worth it). Such is the case with Cave Creek Recreation Area, home to a number of moderate to easy trails, picnic areas, campgrounds, a nature center, and a ton of plants and animals…
Finding Hawes Trail on Mesa’s Usery Mountain is sort of like going to a speakeasy; someone has to tell you just where to park and exactly where the entrance is because there aren’t any signs. Once you find the way (with the help of our directions after the jump), you’ll…
As spring makes a quick appearance in Arizona, the days for camping and hiking are perfect (and numbered). Luckily, there are tons of places just outside of the Valley where you can take advantage of the natural beauty, gorgeous weather, and off-the-beaten path hikes, including Oak Flats…
Pinnacle Peak trail is for tourists — the well-manicured trail is lined with an almost unnatural variety of desert plant species, which are all labeled, and is heavily traveled by people … in jeans. (Note: If you can hike in jeans, you’re not really hiking.) The trail head features a…
Want to see the Supermoon this weekend? Look up. On Saturday, March 19, the moon’s expected to be about 350,000 kilometers from the Earth, — the closest in 18 years, according to NASA. And while the moon’s distance change is marginal, a “Supermoon” falling on a full-moon night has only…
Phoenix’s Japanese Friendship Garden, at 1125 North Third Avenue, is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. today. Garden docents say there are no gatherings or benefits currently planned following the earthquake and tsunami in Japan this morning, but note that the public is more than welcome to stop by…
I didn’t make it to the end of South Mountain’s Alta Trail on Sunday. I wasn’t sick. I wasn’t even tired. I was bored. There’s nothing particularly wrong with Alta Trail. The 4.5-mile trail meanders along the desert floor and then up and over some of the smallish peaks of…
The McDowell Mountains may be in the middle of the city, but when you’re at the top, you can still soak in a good dose of landscape and seclusion. The mountain’s Sunrise Trail is one of the more popular trails and cuts through the south area of the range. The…
Sven Slab on the north side of the McDowell Mountains is one of the most popular granite rock climbs in Arizona. It’s also good for beginners (and good thing because while I’ve been indoor climbing for about five months, the mountains and I will agree — I’m still a newbie)…
South Mountain is a unique hiking area because of its variety of trail lengths, difficulty and sheer number of options. Both beginners and seasoned hikers can find something to satisfy their getting-outdoors urge. Mormon Trail is one of those happy medium trails. It’s difficult at some parts and climbs pretty…
In case you haven’t walked outside today or seen any of the social media streams dedicated to pictures of frozen things in Phoenix, the City has kindly made it official: It’s freezing. The National Weather Service issued a low temperature warning today, as temperatures in the metro Phoenix area are…
There is a beacon along the south edge of Phoenix that calls to the world’s cyclists. It is constantly blinking — an infinite reminder to visit its miles of trails and roads that deliver pleasure and punishment in equal doses, sometimes simultaneously. It is there. Seriously. Look.South Mountain Park and…
In today’s edition of “You know you live in Phoenix when …” Here’s a tiny white piece of crap proof: It’s snowing. A few of our Twitter friends have been tweeting their own snow photos (above and after the jump). For an up-to-date, pretty funny conversation about the snow, follow…
As we’re rounding out 2010, we can’t help but reminisce about some of our fave Phoenix places. And, as a hiker, this writer thought it only appropriate to express her appreciation for one of her most beloved trails in the timeless gift of a love letter.To My Beloved Piestewa,The first…
You can put away the fake fangs and I (heart) Edward T-shirts — we’re talking astronomy, not the latest vampire fantasy installment. Tonight (and tomorrow morning, depending on your time zone) marks Winter Solstice and the year’s second lunar eclipse. It’s the year’s second lunar eclipse and the first total…
