Whenever I have out of town guest visiting they always ask to see the desert. As a life long Arizona resident I take these visitors on one of the first trails I ever hiked, the Hieroglyphics Trail in the Superstitions. This trail has changed over the many years in existence, and with the urban sprawl reaching to the base of the Superstitions it is some times difficult to find the old trailhead. There are some magnificent saguaros and picture perfect photos ops of the superstitions along the way.

After about 25 minutes you'll reach the official trail head of the Hieroglyphics Trail. The trail from this point climbs gradually through fields of saguaros, jumping cholla paloverde, creosote bush and other desert plants. As the trail rises to Hieroglyphics Canyon, the end of your destination, teddy bear chollas join the cacti present along the trail. There are wonderful views of Mesa and Apache Junction to the west and wilderness are to the east. It is at this point the trail levels out some and is great place to stop and take in the beauty of the desert. The trail continues and follows the drainage channel from the canyon and some spectacular views of the canyon and rock formations can be seen along the way. After some minor rocks to climb over you have reached the end of the trail and can view some remarkable Indian hieroglyphics. Beware though, some of the hieroglyphics have been recently etched by some modern day morons. After rains there will be pools of water in the rock areas. Every time I have been there water was present and it was polluted. On the return trip the views are just as great as the conversation about the hieroglyphics you've just seen. The total distance is about 1.8 miles from the official trail head. This is a great trail for winter visitors, visitors from back east, or anyone looking for a easy fun trail to hike in the beauty of the Superstition Mountains.