10 Best Hiking Trails In Flagstaff According To The Locals

Written By: Gail Clifford | Published By: Travel Awaits | August 12, 2022

https://www.travelawaits.com/2791430/best-hikes-flagstaff-arizona/

Housesitting in Flagstaff, Arizona, two beautiful dogs and I got to hike and walk across the area with insider tips on the best places to go. First, at the end of the cul de sac, we hiked Mount Elden nearly every day. It was a bit steep to get to the top with two dogs on a leash, so I tried some of the other places too.

I’ve learned the best time to begin a hike in any of these locations is the morning. Be sure to take sufficient water and protein bars. As always, wear sunscreen, insect repellent, and a hat to protect you from the blazing sun at altitude.

1. Mount Elden

• Length: 2–6.3 miles; Plan 3 to 10 hours
• Elevation Change: 2,295 feet

At 9,295 feet elevation, Mount Elden, the 500,000-year-old dome volcano’s southeast face has been aptly described as “corduroy cast in stone” and a “staircase of petrified lava.” You have your choice of three trails (Fatman’s Loop, Little Elden Springs, and Mount Elden Loop) to explore these slopes or walk the more level surface of the Pipeline Trail Loop. 

The climb begins gradually enough for the first bit, then climbs steep and rough at the halfway mark. If you go further, to the Elden Lookout Trail, it’s steeper still, but coming down through the Gunsite Rocks and Fatman’s Gap isn’t nearly as rigorous, and you’ll enjoy the view along the Christmas Tree Trail. 

Take the time to look around as you go, or when you stop for a breather. You’ll pass through a forest of oak, pinon, ponderosa pine, fir, broad-leaf yucca, and a few huge, gnarled, alligator bark juniper aged more than 1,000 years. 

Because of the sunny eastern exposure, it’s usually snow free and remains open all winter. 

How to get to the Trailhead if you don’t live in the neighborhood: drive East on Route 66 and turn towards Page on Highway 89. The trailhead lot is on the left, just past McDonald’s.

Pro Tip: Take dogs if you have or can borrow them. They heard the coyote long before I spotted him.

2. Picture Canyon

• Length: 2 miles; Plan 2 hours

Less than 10 minutes from the house, Picture Canyon became my second favorite place for a walk. This totally easy, fairly level dirt path allows for strollers or wheelchairs and remains open year-round. Your reward for walking the distance? A petroglyph courtesy of the Walnut Canyon cliff dwellers. Anasazi pre-historic art dates back 1,000 years and depicts archers, turtles, deer, elk, bighorn sheep, birds, and geometric shapes.