Best places to free hike in Arizona?
Arizona is a large state with a varied topography and diverse landscapes. This makes it is hard for one person to experience them all, to know all of them, and to know the great places to free hike within them.So let's share our favorites here. Be as specific as you like. You can just mention a general area if you do not want to divulge your 'secret' spot or you can give detailed access information. But do share something about where you go and what attracts you to that area or to that specific spot or trail.
Please limit each post to just one place. So if you have 5 places to share, then make 5 posts. This way each location will have it's own separate entry within this topic.
I look forward to reading about everyone's favorite Arizona free hiking spots!
One of my favorite places to free hike is the Big Horn Mountains Wilderness Area. It located about one hour west of the western edge of the Phoenix metro area out past Tonopah north of the I-10. It federal land and is managed by the BLM(Bureau of Land Management):https://www.wilderness.net/NWPS/wildView?WID=40
What I like about theBig Horn Mountains Wilderness Area is that the desert floor is flat enough and the vegetation is sparse enough to allow hiking and exploring. Despite being flat and open it places, there are mountains, hills, desert washes, and jumbles of granite boulders that make the area visually stimulating. After a few trips to the wilderness area I discovered an particular area of granite boulders that looks like a huge rock garden. So over the years I have returned to this spot time after time:https://www.truenudists.com/members/pictures/view.php?id=58691077
Access to the theBig Horn Mountains Wilderness Area including the above, generally requires a high clearance 2 wheel drive vehicle and an experienced driver. Personally, I use a 4 wheel drive. However, the southwest corner of the wilderness area can be accessed by 2 wheel drive vehicles.