Cave Creek Regional Park

During my visit to Phoenix, AZ, I was impressed by the Maricopa County trail system. One of my favorite parks was Cave Creek Regional Park. Here, there are eight named trails that link together, allowing you to pick and choose where in the park you would like to visit. Bikes and dogs are more than welcome in this park. The park’s located in the Sonoran Desert, a beautiful region dominated by various cacti species. However, like anywhere else in the desert, you must watch for rattlesnakes along the trail. Give them plenty of room, and they’ll leave you alone. Speaking of room, the Cave Creek Regional Park offers over 2,900 acres to recreate in; here is a list of my favorite routes in this park:

Clay Mine Trail

Clay Mine Trail

This trail runs approximately 2.5 miles, offering a great view of the park and the hills and cacti surrounding the park. This is the most relaxed hike in Cave Creek Regional Park. As a bonus, there is an abandoned mine at the end of this trail. Keep outside the gate and respect the cacti along the trail, the infamous “Teddy Bear” cactus is plentiful in the Cave Creek Regional Park. One encounter with this cacti will leave lasting memories of removing the horrible pods covered in needles that attach themselves to you as you hike down the trail. My dog Kairos accidentally brushed up against one of these cacti, and it took a great deal of effort to remove the spiny pod from his foot, as well as the dozens of needles on his tongue, face, and feet.

Go John Trail

Rattlesnake on Go John Trail

The Go John Trail was one of my favorite trails in the Cave Creek Recreational Park because the wildlife seemed more abundant on this trail. This is the only trail in the park that allowed me to see deer and a rattlesnake, so hike this 6-mile loop if you want to see more of the fauna associated with the Sonoran Desert. The trail does have a few small hills, but it’s still an easy day hike.

Slate Trail to Go John Trail Loop

The Dreaded Teddy Bear Cholla

If you only have a couple of hours and want to see the diversity that Cave Creek Regional Park offers, hike this trail. It’s only 4 miles long, leading you through some of the more remote trails in the park. There are fossils to be seen in the slate outcroppings, beautiful quartz crystals shining in the mid-day sun, and an interesting guide to the flora of the Sonoran Desert. Among those is the most infamous– the teddy bear cholla.

Slate Trail to Go John Trail Loop – Cave Creek Regional Park

Slate Trail to Go John Trail

Cave Creek Regional Park has plenty of trails that can combine into a myriad of options. One popular loop that isn’t as long as the nearby Go John Trail is the Slate Trail to Go John Trail Loop. This hike is only 3.8 miles long and offers beautiful views of northern Phoenix as well as the Superstition Mountains. A side benefit to hiking this trail is that if you’re not from Arizona and don’t have all of the cactus names memorized (other than the famous saguaro, of course) this trail has informative plaques near the major types of cacti in the park. Leaving the parking lot via the west trail marked Slate Trail, this quick loop begins.

Slate on Slate Trail

This trail has a few hills, but nothing more than a couple of hundred feet of elevation. You can easily see why this is named Slate Trail– large pieces of jagged slate stick out of the ground at random spots on the trail. Other than the geology, you’ll feel the difference hiking up closer to the top of the hills where you can feel the cool wind, and then roasting in the valleys below. The first turn on this loop is Quartz Trail, at .8 miles. Turn left (north) at the well-signed intersection.

Slate Trail to Go John Trail Intersection

Quartz Trail brings more hills to this hike. Slate Trail is pretty flat, but Quartz Trail makes the hike interesting. Look at the sides of the trail as you walk by to see fossils preserved in slate, shiny quartz, and the occasional piece of petrified wood. Don’t disturb these specimens, though; it is specifically forbidden to remove any rocks, plants, or historical artifacts from the park. Hiking up to the highest point on the Quartz Trail, you will see an intersection onto Go John Trail. Turn left (east) at this junction.

Saguaro Cacti are Tall!

Taking Go John Trail down this last leg will go by quicker than you’d think. Although the section is nearly a mile long, the downhill course of the trail speeds up your pace. Take the time to stop and enjoy the view at least a couple more times along this trail. After .9 miles from Quartz Trail, Jasper Trail appears on the left. Turn left (south) at this well-signed intersection.

The Dreaded Teddy Bear Cholla

Jasper Trail is the shortest trail in the park at a quarter-mile. I can’t help but wonder why this trail even has a name. In any event, Jasper Trail runs back to the Slate Trail, where you will turn right (west). After another short quarter of a mile, you will see the parking lot where you started. This is the second shortest hike that I’ve traveled on in the Cave Creek Regional Park, but it’s still neat. The scenery is amazing, and this section of the park isn’t nearly as busy as the Clay Mine or Go John trails.

Directions to the Slate Trail Trailhead

Enter Cave Creek Regional Park (37019 N Lava Ln, Cave Creek, AZ 85331), pay your $8 entrance fee, and drive past the horse stables to the well-signed Slate Trail Trailhead.

Map to the Slate Trail Trailhead