If you love mountain biking and want to help make mountain biking a more equitable sport, consider joining our team as a Lead Coach! Gear Girls coaches serve as instructors and role models for the next generation of young women riders. Coaching with us is an opportunity to share your skillset, positively influence girls’ lives in your community, and combine […]
Read moreViewOn Magazine (May 10, 2021) by Karen Monsen The Triple Crown of Hiking includes the Appalachian Trail (3,193 miles), Pacific Crest Trail (2,653 miles), and Continental Divide Trail (3,100 miles). The much shorter Arizona Trail (817 miles) offers stunning views, spectacular night skies, hiking, biking, equestrian, and volunteering opportunities. Plans for an Arizona Trail (AZT) began in the 1980s when […]
Read moreThe Transylvania Times (May 10, 2021) by Jacob Myers After a series of national park closures last year due to the COVID-19 epidemic, Transylvania County native Jacob Myers shelved his long-awaited Appalachian Trail thru-hike once reaching the Great Smoky Mountains. While discouraged, Myers pivoted to another long-distance effort in the great American Wilderness: The Arizona Trail. Spanning a length of approximately 800 […]
Read moreCollege Times (April 29, 2021) Tempe-based artist/musician Joey Gutos released his video “Everything (That I Need),” for Arbor Day to honor the source of the song’s inspiration – Arizona’s extraordinary and diverse natural environments. When Gutos first independently released the song on Arbor Day, April 24th, 2020, he vowed that he would plant a tree for every 1,000 streams the […]
Read moreKJZZ (April 26, 2021) by Michel Marizco There’s arguably no more divisive infrastructure project in the U.S. right now than this border wall I’m standing in the shadow of. I’m here with Kate Scott of the Madrean Archipelago wildlife center in Arizona’s Cochise County. We’re in the Pajarito Mountains west of Nogales where most of the work stopped on the […]
Read moreCanadian Trail Running (April 20, 2021) by Ben Snider-McGrath Washington state’s Joe McConaughy recently completed a nearly two-week-long run along the Arizona Trail, running close to 1,300 kilometres right through the state from border to border. McConaughy’s final time of 13 days, three hours set the fastest known time (FKT) on the Arizona Trail, beating the previous record by almost three […]
Read moreOutside Online (April 20, 2021) by Megan Michelson With pandemic-fueled use on the rise, it’s a good thing trail builders have been busy opening new pathways for you to hike, run, and bike Last year the American Hiking Society reported a 200 percent increase in trail usage in U.S. cities than in 2019. It seems Americans are letting off their pandemic stress […]
Read moreWe are excited to share the latest Arizona Trail Commemorative Mug! Handmade by Deneen Pottery, this fourth mug in the series features a scene of Grand Canyon National Park from the South Kaibab Trail portion of the Arizona National Scenic Trail, complete with a pair of California condors. These robust vessels are finished with a colored glaze inspired by the […]
Read moreDemotiX (April 12, 2021) by Biljana Denic Camping is one of the most enjoyable activities that you can do. One of the best ways to experience camping is by putting all of your camping gear in a backpack and hiking into the backcountry! This is known as backpacking. Backpacking connects us to the pioneer spirit that embodied many of the settlers […]
Read morei Run Far (April 9, 2021) by Meghan Hicks In March and April of 2021, Joe McConaughy aka Stringbean set a new men’s supported fastest known time (FKT) of 13 days, 3 hours, and 21 minutes on the Arizona Trail, which spans the state of Arizona north-to-south over the course of 800-ish miles of desert and mountains. The previous record of 15 […]
Read moreGear Junkie (April 12, 2021) by Mary Murphy With trails like these, something always goes wrong. Luckily, the Stringbean pushed through an ankle injury and miles of snow to complete the Arizona Trail in record time. Last week, accomplished thru-hiker Joe McConaughy (trail name “Stringbean”) finished his latest FKT attempt, running nearly 800 miles. He started south of Tucson, Ariz., up […]
Read moreAZ Family (April 12, 2021) by Nick King Every year, a couple of hundred ambitious hikers tackle the entire length of the Arizona Trail, which traverses 800 miles through the state, from Mexico to Utah. This year, that includes a Valley professional athlete. “I’m a little nervous, but honestly just excited as hell,” says Ryan Lay, in a video he […]
Read moreBackpacker (April 13, 2021) by Mary Beth “Mouse” Skylis What does hiking 800 miles in less than two weeks do to your body? Ultrarunner and FKT holder Joe McConaughy hit the Arizona Trail to find out. Thru-hiking a long trail is one of the harshest tests of endurance out there. Doing it in record time, like Joe “Stringbean” McConaughy did […]
Read morePR Newswire (April 14, 2021) In mid-2020, Instagram model Ona Artist’s partner of 12 years was diagnosed with a rare, aggressive form of cancer and given a 50% chance of survival. Then when his intensive chemotherapy regimen made him unable to work and the medical bills started piling up, she knew she had to do something. So, she joined OnlyFans. Now […]
Read moreThe Native American Law Student Association (NALSA) at the University of Arizona invites you to join them in exploring the Arizona Trail during the month of April while also recognizing the ancestral lands upon which we hike, run, pedal and ride. To participate in this wellness challenge and cultural education initiative, post a photo from your AZT adventure on Instagram, […]
Read moreBikepacking.com (April 1, 2021) by Logan Watts Yesterday evening at 9:22 local time, 35 year-old Timon Fish from Albuquerque, NM crossed the Picket Post Trailhead to finish the ~280-mile AZT 300 course. Timon started at 6:30 AM on Monday giving him a finish time of 38h 52m (1d 14h 52m) and besting the former record held by Kurt Refsnider by […]
Read moreSignals (April 5, 2021) The 300-acre McMillan Mesa Natural Area is one of the last intact native grasslands within the city of Flagstaff and provides habitat for deer, prairie dogs, American kestrels, and other fauna. To preserve the native grassland, the city of Flagstaff’s Open Space Program will work with partners to remove invasive trees, starting on April 7, 2021. […]
Read moreWANE-TV (March 25, 2021) by Fernie Ortiz Rescue crews plucked a woman from the rugged Huachuca Mountains of southeastern Arizona after she broke a leg while hiking alone, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release. The Cochise County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team requested air support to get the woman to safety after she became stranded on […]
Read moreArizona Daily Sun (Mach 23, 2021) by Adrian Skabelund After a decade, a new windfarm appears to be moving forward on an area about 30 miles north of Flagstaff. The project, by the Florida-based company NextEra Energy Resources, hopes to bring about 61 wind turbines and between 400 and 600 acres of solar panels, as well as a battery storage […]
Read moreYour support is needed to help us reach our fundraising goal this Spring to support construction of the Temporal Gulch Reroute Project. Please DONATE securely online today! Our goal is to raise enough money between March 22 – April 3 to sustain the next phase of trail construction. This project will remove the AZT from 17 miles of paved and […]
Read moreCanadian Broadcasting Corporation News Radio (March 19, 2021) by Carol Off As It Happens talks with Arizona Trail Association Executive Director about the recent border wall construction and its impacts to the Arizona National Scenic Trail. Listen to the news broadcast here.
Read moreNew York Times en Español (16 de marzo de 2021) Por Simon Romero y Zolan Kanno-Youngs La prisa para construirlo duró hasta el último día del mandato del expresidente. El esfuerzo dejó secciones raras e incompletas de una barrera cuyo destino está ahora en manos del presidente Biden. Durante mucho tiempo, los excursionistas que completaban el Sendero de Arizona, una ruta de 1287 kilómetros que […]
Read moreAfter the hottest, driest year on record, precipitation has finally returned to Arizona, blanketing much of the state with rain and snow over the past week. As hundreds of individuals make their journey north on the Arizona Trail, this surprise springtime weather will be a blessing — replenishing natural water sources, sustaining wildlife, and giving every plant clinging to life […]
Read moreNew York Times (March 16, 2021) by Simon Romero and Zolan Kanno-Youngs A last-minute rush to build lasted through Donald J. Trump’s last day in office. The effort left odd, partially completed sections of a barrier whose fate President Biden must now determine. The sweeping view of undefiled wilderness on the border with Mexico long rewarded hikers who completed the Arizona Trail, […]
Read moreTravel Awaits (March 12, 2021) by Cindy Barks Equal parts outdoor hotspot and artsy Western outpost, Patagonia, Arizona, packs an improbable number of fun attractions into its community of fewer than 900 people. Located about 18 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border, charming Patagonia is among the communities known as Sky Islands (Sonoita, Elgin, and Patagonia) for their relatively high elevation and […]
Read moreValdosta Daily Times (March 12, 2021) KB Home today announced the grand opening of Silver Ridge, a new, gated community of single-family homes in Rocking K, one of Tucson’s most highly anticipated master plans. Silver Ridge at Rocking K, nestled in the picturesque foothills of the Rincon Mountains, is located within the community of Vail, southeast of downtown Tucson. The […]
Read moreThe Fence Post (March 2021) by Matthew Nelson Hiking, biking or horseback riding along the Arizona National Scenic Trail (AZT) has always been a challenge. Through deserts, canyons, mountains and forests, the AZT climbs and descends over 110,000 feet in 800 miles between Mexico and Utah. Ask anyone who has completed the entire trail— either all at once or one […]
Read moreThe Grand Canyon Protection Act passed the U.S House of Representatives today! This important conservation legislation would protect the Arizona Trail from dangerous uranium mining north and south of Grand Canyon National Park. Thank you, Congressman Raul Grijalva, and all Representatives who voted in favor of the Act (Gallego, Kirkpatrick, O’Halleran, Stanton). Now, it’s on to the Senate. Please encourage your […]
Read moreFor our last outing, we wanted to celebrate. Over the winter season of After School on the AZT, participants collectively hiked and cross country skied 104 miles; each spent 18 hours learning and adventuring outdoors; visited 6 unique sections of the Arizona Trail; and engaged in numerous outdoor skills and ecology-based lessons. Immeasurable, but perhaps even more important this season, […]
Read moreBackpacking Routes (February 23, 2021) by Hugh Owen Seven months after the southernmost mile of the Arizona Trail (AZT) was closed because of border wall construction, open trenches, unstable soil from blasting, and abandoned construction areas continue to make the trail unsafe for hikers. The AZT (also the Yaqui Ridge Trail) from the Joe’s Canyon Trail junction south to Border Monument 102 […]
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