Maricopa: Nature and Trails in the Wider County

From Maricopa, you can reach the eastern side of the Sonoran Desert National Monument. In Maricopa County, regional parks and nature preserves cover more than 120,000 acres of the Sonoran Desert. For planning your trip, two scales are useful: the monument accessible from Maricopa and the county’s extensive parklands and natural landscapes.

Open Spaces and Water in Maricopa County

Camping is possible in nearly all parks in the Maricopa County regional park system. This makes camping a widely available option, but not one that applies to every park. The offerings at Lake Pleasant Regional Park make this especially clear: the park covers 10,000 acres of water and has more than 100 miles of shoreline. It also has two boat ramps.

The campgrounds at Lake Pleasant Regional Park have 148 sites for RVs and tents. Primitive sites are not included in this number.

Trails Through Diverse Landscapes

Maricopa County’s regional trail system includes more than 300 miles of existing trails that circle the county. The Maricopa Trail offers cyclists, walkers, and horseback riders opportunities for non-motorized recreation away from roads. It connects all of Maricopa County’s regional parks and passes through 15 distinct communities. This countywide perspective differs from the trails in individual parks: McDowell Mountain Regional Park has more than 40 miles of mountain biking trails.

The parks’ scale also provides a useful point of reference. White Tank Mountain Regional Park covers nearly 30,000 acres and is the largest regional park in Maricopa County. Its name comes from depressions in the white granite of the White Tank Mountains: flash floods have carved them into the rock, and they are called “tanks.” Usery Mountain Regional Park is a different size: it covers 3,648 acres and borders Tonto National Forest. At Wind Cave in Usery Mountain, water seeping from the ceiling allows Rock Daisy colonies to grow, hanging down from above.

Riverside Woodlands and History

Hassayampa River Preserve represents another type of landscape. Along its riparian corridor, 280 bird species live, breed, or migrate. Self-guided trails pass through river bottoms and the floodplain, as well as through cottonwood-willow and mesquite forests. The described trail setting in this river bottomland is therefore quite different from the desert landscapes of the large regional parks.

Spur Cross Ranch Conservation Area also features archaeological sites and remnants of early mining and ranching.

Discover More Destinations

Litchfield Park, Tolleson, Glendale, Peoria, Sun City, Goodyear, Mesa, Phoenix, Paradise Valley, Maricopa, Scottsdale, Fountain Hills, Tempe, Carefree, Rio Verde, Fort McDowell, Sun Lakes, Chandler, Cave Creek, Gilbert, Avondale, Gila Bend, Youngtown, Wickenburg, Surprise, New River, Buckeye

For the main travel overview: Arizona.