Trail HeadTrail Terroir
Distill a “sense of place” into a single word and it shakes out as terroir, a mot français used to describe the regional environmental elements and conditions that affect crops like wine grapes.
Distill a “sense of place” into a single word and it shakes out as terroir, a mot français used to describe the regional environmental elements and conditions that affect crops like wine grapes.
Arizona hiking already has enough challenges – heat, lack of water, cacti, critters, crowds – to foil many without strong constitutions. Now try adding a layer of red tape. While most of the best hikes in the state are on BLM or Forest Service land, requiring nothing but shoes and a smile to get in, a few really extraordinary journeys lay tucked behind the gates of bureaucracy. A good hiker should know how to climb over obstacles. Here’s an insider’s guide to five of them.
The challenging yet approachable path seamlessly melds easy alpine traipses with aggressive climbing.
Arizona Sisters are hard to ignore. Adorned with distinctive white markings and orange wing tips, the eye-catching butterflies are familiar sights in oak woodlands.
Fancy a high-season hike? Here are four of our favorite nature-centric trails – one for each corner of the Valley.
Share your Arizona trail adventures on our monthly hiking page.
“The whole beauty of Luke5 is what was previously limited for people with disabilities and mobility challenges gets taken out of the equation.”
In The Hike Book Volume 4: Climate Climbs, PHOENIX hiking guru Mare Czinar rounds up the best hikes for each month of the year. Bookmark these treks rich in fall color.
The 25-mile Grand Canyon rim-to-rim trek is a grueling and rewarding feat for any hiker.
Since its inception in 2023, the grassroots, all-volunteer group has made big inroads in restoring the ravaged trails.
Located in the hilly space between the Salt River and the Usery Mountains in Mesa, the Hawes Trail System is about to get an upgrade.
Having a canine companion along on hikes enriches the experience on both ends of the leash.
Fancy a high-season hike? PHOENIX magazine hiking guru Mare Czinar has a weather-appropriate trail recommendation just for you.
Overgrown, fire-singed and poorly signed, the trail would be beyond salvation, but for the brave few who are determined to resurrect the route from obscurity.