North Mountain

Overview

Difficulty: Easy Class 1 Walk-up
Distance: 1.6 Miles round-trip
Elevation Gain: 614 feet

Formely used as a camping area for Indian School students and topped with radio transmission towers, is North Mountain. Probably not the most sought after summit of peakbaggers. I list it though because it is one of the easily accessible mountains within Phoenix, AZ and is a member of the Phoenix Mountain Preserve.
This is a very easy climb with some pretty good views of the other Phoenix Mountains. Including Piestewa Peak, and neighboring Shaw Butte. It also has a great view of the downtown Phoenix skyline, as do most of the Phoenix Mountains. Trail conditions vary from an easy paved road to the summit, to rocky, mildly steep grades.

Getting There

From Interstate 17

Take the Thunderbird Road exit (#210). Follow Thunderbird Rd. East for about 3 miles until you reach 7th Street. Once you reach 7th Street turn right (South) and follow it until you reach Peoria Avenue. Once you reach Peoria Ave., turn right into the North Mountain Recreation Area. Go right, into the Maricopa picnic area. The trailhead will be to the right.

Red Tape

Dogs must be on a leash
No Glass containers
Trail closes at sunset
Do not remove anything from the trail

When to climb

October through April is probably the best time of year to climb, due to Summer temperatures exceeding 110 degrees. Beware if hiking in the summer of the monsoons and lightning storms.

What to bring

I would bring at least a liter of water
Sunglasses
Sunblock
Good hiking shoes
Camera

Weather Conditions

Click the Satellite picture for a video loop of current weather

Images

View North Mountain Image Gallery - 10 Images