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PERALTA REGIONAL PARK
Trail users spoke. Park developers listened.
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| Peralta Regional Park will open Jan. 12, 2023 |
The footprint of Peralta Regional Park isn’t visible from the access road. That was the idea.
The master plan for the Pinal County Park that’s scheduled to open to the public on January 12, 2023, leaned heavily into stakeholder input that advocated for a minimally disruptive footprint and preservation of the natural landscape.
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| Park is located just outside Tonto National Forest |
“The less development, the better,” says Kent Taylor, Director Pinal County Open Space and Trails of input received from stakeholders.
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| Kent Taylor, Director Pinal County Open Space and Trails |
Pre-construction feedback from government agencies, and trail users like bikers, hikers, and equestrians, helped ensure that park planners thought of everything.
“A couple of things that we never considered came out of our conversations with stakeholders,” Taylor said. “First was an idea for stargazing which we incorporated into the plans with a trail and stargazing node.
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| Trail to the Stargazing Node |
Second, the potential for rock climbing came up and that will be addressed in the park’s future phase two planning.”
The park offers a primitive, pristine and safe outdoor experience.
Occupying a natural pocket of Upper Sonoran Desert at the edge of the Superstition Mountains and Tonto National Forest a few miles north of U.S. 60 near Gold Canyon, the site is a unique outdoor recreation hub that straddles the gap between an amenity-rich park and bare bones backcountry experience.
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| A drive-up tent camping site |
Roads are dirt and picnic, and camping sites are simple and designed with profiles and colors that blend into the landscape. There’s no electricity or water.
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| Hike-in backpacking campsites are bare bones. |
“The park is 500-acres, but only 22 acres were disturbed for construction,” Taylor said. “We used existing dirt roads where possible and didn’t want to over develop.” Extra care was taken to preserve the native vegetation and soils as well. “We harvested 100 saguaros during construction. Eighty of those were replanted in the park and another 20 were given to Tonto National Forest to use in forest restoration projects. Disturbed ground was restored and planted with native seeds."
It's located near popular recreation hubs.While the park is new, the surrounding desert has long been a popular destination for outdoor recreation. The park sits just a few clicks down Peralta Road (Forest Road 77) from the Lost Goldmine Trail, Carney Springs Trailhead, and the Peralta trailhead--a busy jumping off point for the Peralta Canyon, Dutchmans and Bluff Spring trails in the Superstition Wilderness.
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| Stargazing node, under construction on Dec. 16. |
It’s not glamping (No glamorous hot showers here, kids.)
Camping in the park embraces the low-impact theme. “Glamping” it’s not. There are no RV accommodations or cabins. Only tents are allowed. There are two types of tent camping opportunities to appeal to those in search of an authentic roughin’ it style experience with the comfort of being within a managed space with a nearby site host and rangers in case of an emergency. The choices are simple or primitive. Traditional “car camping” sites are drive-up clearings with a picnic table and fire pit. Hike-in backpacking sites are accessed from non-motorized trails and are no more than small clearings where pack-hanger posts are the only luxury afforded. Neither have electricity, water, or trash service so campers must pack in what they need and pack out all waste.
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| The Desperado Trail in Peralta Regional Park |
All camp and picnic sites have easy access to 9 miles of non-motorized trails and a quarter-mile barrier-free interpretive walking path. “Even in a compact space we were able to build trails with good diversity from easy to difficult.” Taylor says.
Except for the Desperado and North Star Trails, which have some difficult sections, park trails are rated moderate and link up nicely for creating loop options.
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| Barrier-free interpretive trail has educational signs |
The stargazing node will be a big draw.
The park’s shiny penny is its stargazing node. Equal parts vortex, sanctuary and educational launch pad, the tiny gathering place is tucked into a natural bowl-like amphitheater with big sky views. The science-centered node features a circular siting area with directional posts and room for telescopes.
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| The park was built with minimal environmental disruption |
A short trail leads to the cliff-bound site that flanks a tree-cluttered wash. It’s a beautiful little spot that oozes as much spirituality as it does science.
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| Picnic ramadas are designed to blend into the landscape |
While it's not yet designated an official International Dark-Sky Association location, certification work is on the agenda. Taylor, who has camped out in the area, says nights here are free of light pollution and extraneous sound. So stars, planets and galaxies will be really pop against the inky darkness.
“We anticipate a lot of interest in night sky viewing here as well as requests for weddings, which can be arranged by permit.”
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| Celestial events will shine at the Stargazing Node |
When asked if there’s going to be a prize for the first person to site a UFO, Taylor laughed.
“We hadn’t thought of that.”
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| Park map |
KEY PARK FEATURES:
• 9 miles of non-motorized trails that range in difficulty from barrier-free to challenging.
• Stargazing
• Car and tent camping sites
• Picnic ramadas
• Interpretive trail
• Equestrian staging area
• Waterless restrooms
PARK HOURS: dawn to 10 p.m. daily for day-use
FEES:
Day-use: $7 daily. Pay in advance online, or at park entrance by scanning a QR code or with exact change at the self-serve kiosk.
Camping & Picnicing:
Camping and picnic sites are first-come-first served but may also be reserved online.
Camping reservations: $10 per night
Picnic ramada reservations: $10 per day or $35 for group ramadas.
GETTING THERE:
From U.S.
60 in Gold Canyon, turn left at the Peralta Road (Forest Road 77) stoplight and
Peralta Trailhead sign just past milepost 204.
Follow Peralta Road 5 miles to the park entrance on the right. Peralta Road is maintained dirt suitable for all vehicles.
INFO:
Peralta Regional Park
https://www.pinal.gov/1204/Peralta-Regional-ParkInternational Dark-Sky Association
