Difficult Hiking Treks

Extensive off trail hiking over rough terrain. Length less than 15 miles with hiking time less than 12 hours. Route finding skills will be honed and basic rock-bouldering techniques will be used.

Geronimo Cave Trail
Rated 3.5
6.0 miles (6 hours)
Elevation = +2000 ft.
Most people are amazed at the views offered by this trail. But remember, you get out of it what you put into it. This is a tough day hike with significant use of hands to get over obstacles and an occasional butt slide. You are going where few have tread and the trail, which is obscure in sections, will sharpen your route finding skills. Get on board and come with us to our destination - Geronimo's Cave, an old hide-out, next to impossible for the U.S. Calvary to get to.


Bluff Spring Loop
Rated 3.5
9.1 miles (7 hours)
Elevation = +1500 ft.
Check out the distance - gotta keep movin. With the option to do this clockwise or counter clockwise, either way you will have to deal with Cardiac Hill - forget the stress test - this will test your fitness. Continue on through beautiful canyons, with almost certainty of water. Watch for frogs and turtles, yes in the desert, as we enjoy the skyline view of Weaver's Needle, evidence of mining activity, Bluff Spring Mountain, Bluff Spring, and Miner's Needle. A pleasant return over the foothills completes this epic journey where many people believe the Lost Dutchman accessed these mountains.


First Water to Canyon Lake
Rated 3.5
8.2 miles (7 hours)
Elevation = +2000 ft.
Offering a little of everything and a lot of the best of what the Superstition's have to offer. This hike was rated by Back Packer Magazine as one of Arizona's top 10 hikes in 2005. On this hike you will enjoy seeing Indian Petroglyphs, the Indian Paint Mine, Battleship Mountain, Weaver's Needle, 2nd Water Spring, and rewarded with panoramic views of Canyon Lake at the end.


Dacite Super Loop
Rated 4.0
7.0 miles (6 hours)
Elevation = +2000 ft.
Starting out on a well-established trail which quickly becomes a straight up climb to the saddle at West Boulder Canyon. Bring gloves and wear long pants. Enjoy the views of Barley Basin as we bushwhack off trail among the hoodoos and eventually view Weaver's Needle from above. Now we will take the seemingly impossible descent down and through the hoodoos to Fremont Saddle and return to the trail head with sheer wonder as to how we did that as you gaze back up at the terrain.


Peralta to First Water
Rated 3.5
11.2 miles (8 hours)
Elevation = +1300 ft.
This trans-wilderness hike will thrill you with the views and imagine the history of the area as we pass historical camp sites of some of the Superstition's greatest legends. You will gaze up at Weaver's Needle as we pass by wondering if anyone has ever been up there. Take another look - you might see someone up there! Highlights include Black Top Mountain, Palomino Mountain, Aylors Camp, Aylors Arch (a natural arch), Boulder Canyon and return via the Dutchman Trail.


Peralta to Canyon Lake
Rated 4.0
16.1 miles (12 hours)
Elevation = +2600 ft.
That's a lot of water to carry for the day! We can't count on water on the trail but there will be plenty at the end, like a mirage after spending the day in the heart of the Superstition's. In the desert you'll climb out of LaBarge Canyon and are rewarded with panoramic views of Canyon Lake. Another trans-wilderness hike, and conducted as a shuttle hike this should fulfill your need to hike until your next visit to Arizona!


Haunted Canyon
Rated 3.5
7.8 miles (6 hours)
Elevation = +2000 ft.
A wonderful hike at higher elevation demonstrating a different type of vegetation, we will be hiking along and sometimes through a creek. Bring extra socks, perhaps water shoes. The beauty of the area and serenity will make you unaware of the gradual, steady climb as you proceed through a narrow canyon. Perhaps you will have time to stop and sign in at an old ranchers cabin in the middle of nowhere. A long, steady climb will bring us out to the upper trail head of this shuttle hike.


Paradise Trail
Rated 3.5
8.0 miles (5 hours)
Elevation = +2100 ft.
You won 'won't even know you're in Arizona. The region has rich beach soil and tress. A nice warm weather hike that starts out in the shade. Eventually you climb out of it and begin to spot cactus again, but not Saguaros. Seldom used - don't expect to see anyone else on this hike. A snack by Paradise Spring is where you really begin to realize the solitude this hike offers. Was that a bear I heard?


Flat Iron
Rated 4.5
5.4 miles (6 hours)
Elevation = +3300 ft.
The Stairway to Heaven. A difficult hike you can view the Flat Iron from many points in the Valley. On the western face it appears to be the tallest part of the mountain range, and it will feel like it on your ascent. Unrelenting, the climb starts at the trail head, and as you huff and puff up the Siphon Draw and the Bowling Alley, you will think it can't get much tougher. Look ahead and you'll be convinced there is no way to get there from here. At this point you are entering nature's stair master. Up, up and away to the top of the most spectacular views and awesome drop-offs available in the Valley of the Sun. Truly a personal reward you will reflect on the rest of your hike. Not for wanna bees - be in good shape to ask for this hike. Bring gloves and wear long pants, and prepare to carry your food and water essential to enjoy this phenomenal hike.

Superstition Ridgeline
Rated 5.0
14.5 miles (10-11 hours)
Elevation = +5000 ft.
Very difficult - many compare the difficulty to completing a Ruin to Ruin hike at the Grand Canyon in a single day. Not a summer hike, you will need to carry 6 liters plus in liquids, add food and consider training for this one. Think of it as a goal, a graduation to aim for. Very seldom done except in parts, we can also do half trips to acclimate the hiker to the rigors needed to accomplish this one. Once on the Ridgeline you are rewarded with 360 views the entire trip. There is no shade, no protection from the elements so you have to be prepared. Need help - good luck as we are on our own and must be self-reliant. A life accomplishment which can only be done at certain times of the year when there is enough daylight and it's not too warm.


 

 

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