Wild Horse Trail
Length: 3 miles
Descriptors: Scenic, Singletrack, Horses, Flow, Mostly Buff, Light Tech
Access: Bush Highway, Twisted Sister, Maricopa Trail, Usery Pass Rd, NRA Pit
Options: Out n Backs from NRA Pit or Twisted Sister and Mine Trail A great connector between Hawes and Pass Mountain.
The skinny: Wild Horse is fast becoming it’s own trail system with the addition of High Horse and Horse Tale trails offering up alternative routes and extra miles. It’s fast and flowy. Let the good times roll!
I’ve been riding Wild Horse since the early 2000s when it was primitive, super skinny, and rogue. Well off the beaten path of Hawes, rides would soak in the serenity sublime singletrack… Fast forward 20 years and Wild Horse has been incorporated into the Maricopa Trail as a connector between South Mountain and User Mountain Park. With official recognition has come many more riders, runners and hikers to enjoy the views.
Maricopa Trail Map of Wild Horse segment.
Wild Horse is a gradual, steady, desert climb from Twisted Sister to Usery Pass road. Ironically, the Wild Horse singletrack is tame. You can leave your technical skills in your CamelBak, and enjoy the mild climb through the desert. Wild Horses got its name from the Brombies that roam the area. If you’re lucky you’ll cross paths with them.
For the endurance XR rider, Wild Horse makes a nice segway to Pass Mountain and Usery Mountain Regional Park from Hawes.
Great Map! I’d like to add that an extention of the Wild Horse Trail (WHT) leads past the NRA pit and continues south to near the Bulldog Canyon Parking lot on the East side of Usery Pass Rd. Parking at the lot there and starting on the WHT, which begins across the street, is a good place to start a ride. Trying to stay on the WHT thru the NRA area is difficult but easier when starting from the BDC parking lot, which is very close to Usery Pass.
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