Granite Trail Paloma RP, AZ

Overview
The Paloma Regional Preserve is a new park that opened in October 2020. 3 THs allow access to 11 newly created or “adopted” trails that make up the preserve. Two of the trailheads are located on the west side, originating from Paloma Park and the third trailhead is located on the east side from Sonoran Mountain Ranch Park (SMRP). Paloma Park has multiple amenities, including a dog park (actually 2, one for big dogs and one for small), baseball fields, a splash park, fishing, picnic tables, pickleball courts, bathrooms, and drinking fountains. The amenities are not as extensive at Sonoran Mountain Ranch Park. They do include a basketball court, playground, picnic tables, a nice open field, bathrooms, and a drinking fountain.


Hike
The Granite Trail is an interior trail so some additional hiking is required. Though this trail can be accessed from any of the trailheads the SMRP provides the best access for this trail. The TH is located just to the northwest of the open field. The trailhead has a nice bench area as well as a comprehensive map of the preserve trails. To reach the Granite Trail hike in 0.2 miles on the MUP A Trail.Much of this preserve is dominated by flood plains that encompass most of the park to the north. There is little to no elevation for many of the trails. The Granite Trail takes off to the west and is unique in that it immediately weaves into some low-lying hills. The elevation is not extreme, about 30 feet in total, but the views are decent, especially to the north and the nearby landscape is some of the best the park has to offer.

About 0.4 miles in you start to leave the hills behind and as you do so you pass by some large granite stones that give the trail its name. At 0.47 this single track turns sharply to the south and joins a broader track, wide enough for 2-3 people. This trail will do a couple of arcing curves as it goes south before crossing a wash at 0.71 and then intersecting with multiple roads at 0.73. The Granite Trail is signed and continues south through this convergence of roads, becoming even more road-like as it does so. The trail climbs a slight rise and at 0.86 comes to a “T” in the trail. Once again there is a signed marker and the trail turns west as it follows the road gently down from the rise. It is interesting to note how a single path is being created within the road as users help define a narrower track. Around 1.08 miles the trail reaches a signed “Y” and the trail gradually curves to the south. At 1.11 the trail crosses what appears to be a concrete wash. It’s not, but it looks like someone dumped a pile of wet concrete and let it dry in the sun. As the trail heads south it will slowly gain in elevation. There will be some taller hills in the foreground and off to the west you’ll get a glimpse of New River Dam. This is a structure that is not readily visible from much of the park. As the trail climbs it alternates between a single and duo path and is strikingly defined by the whiteness of the path amid a field of black metamorphic rocks. The trail ends abruptly at the top of the rise when it junctures with the New River Trail. This ending is somewhat unexpected as the trail signs indicate that the Granite Trail is 1.7 miles long and my Garmin has the trail ending at 1.41 miles.

At this point, you have a couple of options. You can return the way you came for about a 3.5-mile hike or you can take any number of use-trails/roads that run rampant through the preserve creating a loop of your own choosing. Be aware that signage out there is minimal and that for every signed trail, there are 3 trails/roads that are not. The landscape is flat, so if you do create your own loop, identify a landmark and use that as your reference mark as you “loop” through the preserve.

Synopsis
The Granite Trail is one of the more enjoyable trails in the preserve, but that is primarily because of how it starts. The single track that winds through the hills is a nice addition to the trail system. But unfortunately, this only lasts for 0.5 miles before piggybacking on several roads as it travels south and west through the park. There are some decent views to the north, primarily in the beginning when hiking through the hills and then again towards the end. The loop options are extensive, but almost all involve roads which add little to the hiking experience. If you are looking for a low-impact, in-and-out trail, this might be the trail for you.

2024-08-13 mt98dew