Learn about the geology and streams of the Spur Cross region on an easy two-mile walk with nationally known earth science author and park docent Thomas McGuire. Visit an abandoned gold mine, Nutcracker Rock, and a Hohokam rock art site along Cottonwood Wash. Bring plenty of water and your natural curiosity. No dogs on this hike. [...]

Here at Atabey Outdoors, we are all about fun and exciting adventures but there are times we want to take a pause, take in what’s around us and pay attention to the spaces we are taking up. Our guest mentor will take Atabey Outdoors and its members on a healing journey that is not to [...]

Join Ranger Nikki on an easy walk to look for and identify our desert feathered friends and signs of their homes. Join Ranger Nikki for a 2-mile walk on easy trails near the Nature Center. Watch for birds and see if you can spot their homes camouflaged among the cacti and trees. Perhaps see a [...]

What makes a cactus a cactus? How can plants survive scorching temperatures? Can you eat Cactus? Get the answers to these questions on Ranger Evan’s Crazy for Cacti walk. This loop begins at the north end of the park. We will be hiking approximately 3 miles, with very little elevation change. Please bring plenty of [...]

Hike with Ranger Derik along Lake Pleasant as you learn about the common plants found in the Sonoran Desert. Click on program title for more details. We will be easy hiking 3.5 miles out and back on the Wild Burro Trail starting from the Wild Burro Day Use Area. The trailhead offers a bathroom as [...]

Join Ranger Nikki on an easy/moderate hike to look for cactus blooms and common spring pollinators – butterflies. Click on program title for more details. Join Ranger Nikki on a 3-mile easy/moderate hike to look for cactus blooms and common spring pollinators – butterflies. You can learn about the Parks Department butterfly monitoring initiative and receive [...]

An easy/moderate hike with Ranger Derik to take in the views along the Hassayampa River. Click program title for more details. We will hike from the Visitor Center down along the River Ramble Trail and up to Lykes Lookout for a 1.3-mile hike. The trail is gradual until the short but steep climb up Lykes [...]

Stop by the Nature Center to see a display of desert plants that have been used medicinally for hundreds of years. Stop by the Nature Center to see a display of desert plants that have been used medicinally for hundreds of years. Learn about common plants such as brittlebush, bursage, creosote and more that were [...]

Join Ranger Steve on a 2.5-mile easy-moderate hike to look for nocturnal wildlife. Click program title for more details. Join Ranger Steve on a 2.5-mile easy moderate hike to look for signs of nocturnal desert wildlife such as reptiles, bobcats, coyotes, bats, and others. Wear closed-toe shoes and bring water and a flashlight. MEETING LOCATION: [...]

Join Ranger Nikki on a 2-mile easy/moderate hike to look for cactus blooms and common spring pollinators – butterflies. You can learn about the MCPRD butterfly monitoring initiative and receive an identification handout to help with your own observations. The route includes Spur Cross and Metate Trails. Wear closed-toe shoes and bring water, a hat [...]

Invasive species are one of the biggest threats to our park’s ecosystem health. They outcompete native plants, decrease biodiversity, and increase wildfire occurrences, and magnitude. Desert Defenders is a citizen science program focused on mapping, and removing invasive species within the parks. The Invasive plant species have severely impacted our park's natural ecosystems and contributed [...]

Moderate hike with Ranger Derik to learn about the native Sonoran Desert plants and animals. Click on program title for more details. This will be a 4-mile hike through the foothills of the Estrella Mountains and learn about the native plants and animals that call the Sonoran Desert home. We will meet for the hike [...]

Stop by the Spur Cross Trailhead to see a display of desert plants that have been used medicinally for hundreds of years. Learn about common plants such as brittlebush, bursage, creosote and more that were used to ease various ailments from bug bites to toothaches. MEETING LOCATION: Main Trailhead at the map kiosk, covered seating [...]

Join Ranger Steve on an easy-moderate hike to look for nocturnal wildlife. Click program title for more details. Join Ranger Steve on a 2.5-mile easy-moderate hike from the Pemberton Trailhead down to Pemberton Pond to look for signs of nocturnal desert wildlife such as reptiles, bobcats, coyotes, bats, and others. Wear closed-toe shoes and bring [...]

Join experienced birder Joe Ford for a morning bird walk followed by a special presentation! Join experienced local birder Joe Ford for a morning bird walk on the park trails followed by a special presentation inside the Nature Center entitled "Bird Weirdness II." Please meet on the south patio of the Nature Center at 7am. [...]

Join Ranger Nikki on a 2.5-mile Earth Day stroll to learn about our fascinating Sonoran Desert. Click on program title for more details. Join Ranger Nikki on a 2.5-mile Earth Day stroll to explore our fascinating Sonoran Desert. Identify various plants and animals and learn how they survive in our extreme environment. The route includes [...]

Interpretive walk led by docents of the Friends of the San Pedro River. The San Pedro House, a 1930’s-era converted ranch house operating as a gift and bookstore, leads guided interpretive walks/hikes along the river and throughout the adjacent area, presents educational programs to schools and community groups, and assists the BLM in a variety [...]

We will be heading down the trail with the overnight crew to knock back the overgrowth and address erosion. However we'll only spend the day and then hike back out.     When/Where: Red Ridge trailhead   What to bring: -Long work pants or jeans (no shorts or yoga pants please) -Closed toe shoes/work boots -Long [...]

The Griffin Ranch is one of five being inducted into the Arizona Farming and Ranching Hall of Fame this year ! Join APC on April 22nd at Griffin Ranch in our effort to maintain and improve land owner relations and keep open access to public lands. In 1992 the Arizona Game and Fish Department initiated [...]

Hassayampa River Preserve Mesquite Festival. Discover all the “Tree of Life” has to offer at this free, family-friendly community event. Click program title for more details. Discover all the “Tree of Life” has to offer at this free, family-friendly community event. There will be cooking tips, food sampling, kids games, and information on the ecology, [...]

Nerdy For Birdies is a youth birdwatching club that was started in Phoenix, Arizona in 2019, by Rowyn Balman an avid teen birder. Sadly Rowyn and his sister passed away in a tragic car accident on November 7, 2022. Both he and his sister had a passion for the natural world and conservation. Rowyn fell [...]

Discover the world around you through play! Drop-in for a few minutes or for the whole two hours. Each weekend will be a different theme/activity. Family program for all ages. Free with Admission($19) or Membership.

Stop by the Nature Center to see Ranger Nikki’s display of desert cacti specimens. Click on program title for more details. Stop by the Nature Center to see a display of desert cacti specimens, including saguaro, barrel, hedgehog, pincushion and varieties of cholla; learn about efforts to catalog plant species in the County Parks using [...]

This Earth Day, join Ranger Steve to walk in the footsteps of the Ancient Hohokam and learn about their culture and their relationship with nature! Celebrate Earth Day and join Ranger Steve on a 3-mile easy-moderate hike on the Black Rock and Waterfall Trails as we search for signs of the ancient Hohokam Culture and [...]

Experience the magic of night trail running in the Sonoran Desert at the Sinister Night Trail Runs held on a rolling and runnable 9 kilometer loop at San Tan Mountain Regional Park. This is a perfect beginner night trail race with distances for all. Run past towering saguaro cactus under the night stars. This race [...]