Peralta Canyon

 

The hike up from the Peralta Trailhead to Fremont Saddle along the Peralta Trail (listed as trail #102 in many Superstition Mountains guidebooks) is one of those spectacular hikes that make you feel like you are being enveloped in the canyon walls. This hike always takes longer than I anticipate, probably because I'm making so many photo stops along the way. This photo above here is looking mostly eastward (and a little northward), stopping midway up the trail and capturing where we just hiked up from; I think it gives you an idea of how dramatic the canyon is along this trail. Peralta Trail can be very crowded. So as a tip, I recommend starting out in the early afternoon; that way, you will be passing people coming down the hill rather than going up with them, and more than likely, the hikers coming down the hill will give you the right of way since you will be huffing and puffing up the hill. If you are forced to be the one to stop and let them pass, then consider it a welcome break from the 1400 foot ascent! Although the elevation gain may seem steep, there are a series of switchbacks making the hike more manageable. The other benefit to getting a late start on this hike is that you are hiking in a northwest direction with high cliffs to your left on the way up. If you time this hike correctly, then the sun will be behind the high cliffs giving you a break from the blinding Arizona rays. The above photo also shows some of that afternoon shade (keep in mind that I am turning around and photographing where I just came up from so the shaded high cliffs are displayed on the right in this photo.) Just be careful with this afternoon hiking technique because you will undoubtedly spend lots of time photographing Weaver's Needle from Fremont Saddle, especially if you capture the Needle in the late afternoon with the sun setting and the colorful sky around this massive butte, and you could wind up hiking back down the trail in the dark! This has also happened to me so remember to carry a headlamp or flashlight in your pack. As another tip, don't be put off by the dirt section of the road to the trailhead; it is quite passable without a 4-wheel drive vehicle. From metro Phoenix, take US 60 east through Gold Canyon and turn left (north) on Peralta Road. Follow the road 7 miles to the trailhead parking lot. There are a few other parking lots prior to the Peralta Trailhead lot, but you are looking for the one that is clearly marked with the Tonto Forest signage and at the end of the road.

Length: 5 miles total, up and back
Elevation gain: 1400 feet
Time it took us: 4 hours with a long meal break at the top and lots of photo stops
Dogs okay: Yes
Fees: none