Venture into the lush desert and mountains surrounding Scottsdale and Phoenix, Arizona, on a half-day guided hiking tour with Cliff Creek Outfitters. Learn all about the unique flora, fauna, geology, and history from knowledgeable, professional guides. Each hiking tour is about 2 hours in duration. Tours can be made private for an additional fee otherwise you will be grouped with like-minded adventurers during your guided hike. Contact our office for groups under 3 people or to check other hiking locations.
This hike was just the right distance and right amount of time for my family. The scenery was fantastic, and our guide, Steve, was very helpful and knowledgable, and made sure we stayed hydrated and comfortable.
Had a great hike with Ken, a very knowledgeable and experienced guide with a wealth of knowledge of the local flora and fauna. Hike itself was moderate in distance and elevation, about 5 miles in under 3 hrs. Highly recommend.
My mom and I had an absolute blast with our wonderful guide, Jim. He thoughtfully tailored the hike to our abilities, checking in with us throughout, and shared his extensive knowledge of desert flora/fauna and indigenous and Arizona history. He provided and carried multiple bottles of water and snacks for us and answered all our questions with stories and fun facts. I can’t recommend this company highly enough for a family-friendly experience introducing you to views, stories, and history of the gorgeous Sonora Desert and McDowell Mountains. Thank you, Jim!!
My tour guide, Larry, was incredibly insightful and knowledgeable about the history and landscape of the Sonoran Desert. I learned so much throughout the experience—it was both educational and enjoyable
Excellent trip . Kathy was knowledgeable and interesting. Snacks and water were nice extras. Easy hike and great views from the top.
Our small family (teen to adult) enjoyed a great hike with Ed. He correctly determined which trail would be a little challenging but also within reach given our varying fitness levels. He clearly loves sharing the desert with others, and had a lot of knowledge about the area and the flora and fauna. He also knew the where to take great pictures. Having Ed as our guide made this a stress-free experience!
Booked this tour for myself and two teenage daughters. So glad we did. Denny, our guide for the day, made the 4 mile hike (2 miles each way) so enjoyable with his knowledge of the area, plants and history. Much more fun than doing it on our own. And he carried all the water and snacks which was a plus and much appreciated.
We enjoyed the hike on the McDowell preserve. Our tour guide Bob was great and knowledge! He allowed us to pace ourselves and had snacks/water. I would definitely do again!
Bob was amazing! Great time. Was longer than expected- plan to be hiking for 3 hours. Great views. Bob had ice cold water and snacks for us which was such a nice touch.
Hiking tour through the desert 🏜 with my daughter. Learning more information about desert 🌵 life in Arizona.
We truly enjoyed our hike through this beautiful urban nature preserve. Armando led our group, accompanied by Patrick. Both were accommodating to our various fitness levels and made sure the hike worked for everyone. We appreciated the knowledge they shared along the way. The snacks were a great bonus for keeping the kids motivated.
Steve was excellent and showed us many plants etc. we even encountered a rattlesnake. It was a wonderful experience
Bob was an excellent guide and we learned so much about the desert life. It was fantastic! It was like being in an outdoor museum!
The entire hike was great, conversation with the guide ( terrible with names)views, trail and all. I will definitely recommend to friends
Kathy was a great tour guide. She gave us history had Trivia and made the hike so much more enjoyable!
What a great day! Our guide, Charles,was the best. It was like spending the day with an old friend. An extremely knowledgeable and informative old friend. Wouldn't hesitate to sign up for another tour. Thanks!
The guided hiking tour was awesome! Our tour guide, Denny was great, knowledgeable and made sure we took breaks for water and snacks.
Really like this outfit - tour guides are great. We also did the stand-up paddle boarding the day before. Our guide, Phil, took us on a 3 mile hike in the McDowell Mountain Preserve and gave us a lot of information on local flora and fauna. Would recommend highly!
I've done many hikes with AOA and they've all been absolutely amazing. The guides are professional, knowledgeable, outgoing and experts on desert flora and fauna. I'm not much of a tour person, but if I'm going to do it, I'm doing it with AOA!
My family of 5 did a guided hike at the Sonoran Preserve with Denny this week and it was fantastic!! What made it even better was that we were the only ones in the hiking group. He was very informative about everything within the preserve and kept us motivated by asking engaging questions. He made sure we were well hydrated and had us stop to have an energy snack. We loved how personable Denny was with each of us. He’s just wonderful and we were extremely happy to be able to start out our Arizona trip with such a great experience. Thank you Denny for making our hike a memorable one. It was a good workout but at the same time relaxing if that makes sense.
My husband & I booked this tour run by Arizona Outdoor Adventures and loved it!! Steve was our guide & was so knowledgeable, accommodating & kept us at a good pace. We learned a great deal about the desert, its plant & animal life, its history, and while it was a pretty warm day, Steve made sure we had breaks & stayed hydrated. It was exactly what we hoped for during our visit to Scottsdale. We would highly recommend this tour, especially if Steve is leading it!
We had two private half day rides, one for our son, an intermediate rider, and one for my husband and me (beginners). Both experiences were excellent. Linda and Larry were both fantastic guides that I would recommend to anyone and request in the future. They were personable, professional and fun to be with. Linda gave our son a workout, covering 20 miles of single track that morning! Larry taught my husband and me the basics and took us on trails that started very easy and worked up to trails that challenged us without getting over our heads. We learned all about the Sonoran desert, took plenty of pictures and learned a good bit about mountain biking. Even learning to bike, we covered just over 11 miles. We saw much more than we could have just taking a hike. If you are visiting Phoenix/Scottsdale, spending a morning biking with AOA is a must.
Monday through Friday 9 am to 7 pm EST
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