Rocks, ruins and excellent views.

CHOLLA MOUNTAIN LOOP

McDowell Sonoran Preserve

The Ampitheater

Strewn with relics of an early 20th-century ranching operation, the flat, sandy acreage of North Scottsdale's McDowell Sonoran Preserve is besieged by an arc of rough-edged peaks. The weathered rock mounds rise abruptly as skyscrapers in molded cones and awkward heaps of mixed stone scattered like wayward gendarmes on a spent battlefield.  Noteworthy among these peaks is Cholla Mountain.  A brand new trail with two scenic viewpoints circles the north-south-running ridge. At the south end is a little place called The   

Cathedral Rock

Amphitheater--a bend of beveled granite showcasing a feature presentation of Verde River Valley views.To the northeast, grottos within the impossible-to-miss stony bastion of Cathedral Rock frame saguaro-studded views of Sonoran Desert bluffs and basins.

Cathedral Rock

HIKE DIRECTIONS:

Maps at the trailhead detail numerous ways to hike around Cholla Mountain.  Here's what we did:

Hike north on Brown’s Ranch Road to the Corral Trail junction. Go right and hike to Dry Gulch Trail. Follow Dry Gulch to Cholla Mtn Loop Trail. Hike the loop and retrace your steps back to the parking lot. 

LENGTH: 7.7-mile loop

RATING: moderate

ELEVATION: 2710' - 2855'

FACILITIES: water, restrooms, bike racks, horse trailer parking, maps

GETTING THERE:

Brown's Ranch Trailhead, 30301 N. Alma School Pkwy. Scottsdale 85262

From Loop 101 in Scottsdale, take the Pima/Princess exit 36, travel 6.5 miles north on Pima to Dynamite Road.  Turn right and continue 2.7 miles to Alma School, turn left and drive 1 mile to the trailhead.

McDowell Sonoran Preserve MAP:

http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/Assets/Northern+Preserve+Map.pdf

McDowell Sonoran Conservancy

http://mcdowellsonoran.org/#sthash.6vOglBRO.dpbs

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