Shaw Butte Trail

To celebrate the long-awaited break in the weather, we stayed local for this trek, hitting Shaw Butte in Phoenix.

For a city hike, this little jaunt is not bad. You can’t escape the city at all, but you gain a slight sense of superiority as you head up the hill and leave the homes and roads below your heels.

The hike begins with a steady uphill climb. Wise hikers will take it one step at a time knowing that much more trail awaits atop the hill.

After the first hill, the trail evens out a bit. It’s actually a road used by utility vehicles to reach the cluster of towers on the mountaintop. Thus, it’s wide and mostly smooth. Distance one way is only about a mile.

Except for the first bit, and maybe a spot or two, the incline is slight. As you continue up, the city views grow longer. If the smog isn’t too thick, hikers with keen vision can spy Four Peaks from the top.

At the peak, near the base of the metal towers, the road forks. The trail to the left leads up the final short ascent to the towers. According to the maps, the right-hand fork leads down the other side and eventually winds back to the trailhead.

We decided to reverse course and follow the same path back to the parking lot.

To get to Shaw Butte, take Loop 101 to 19th Avenue. Turn south on 19th, east on Thunderbird and south on Central Avenue. The parking lot and trailhead are a few blocks down on Central.

Drinking fountains are available, but there are no restroom facilities. There is no charge to hike.

This hike was first featured December 2003 and revised February 2007.