granite mountain trail 261

To begin with, stop by the Chamber of Commerce at 117 W. Goodwin Street (just south of the courthouse) and pick up a "City of Prescott Trails and Outdoor recreation map" for $1.00 if you don't already have one. It is one of the best, easy to read maps of the area. The map dispenser at the site was empty and we wandered around semi-lost. We also wasted about 30 minutes following incorrect directions to the Granite Basin Recreation Area that we had got online and printed out. From town, take Iron Springs Rd northwest for 3 miles, turn right on Granite Basin road and follow 3.5 miles one of several parking areas. Parking fees are free on Wednesday, but $5.00 all other days. Granite Mountain Trail, when we found it, was a lovely trail following a creek with great pine cover. We only followed it about a mile or mile and a half because we had spent a lot of time walking around trying to find a trail. This is an excellent one, but starts getting steep about 1.5 miles out. Great place to hike, and there is a very small lake there with a boat launching area. We will be going back soon..

Intermediate level hike --not easy in some parts, not difficult in others. We hiked with friends at the latter part of April, a great time to go--comfortable temperatures. We counted about 18 different varieties of wildflowers, and saw a few small animals and birds.Probably the most interesting part of the trek was seeing petroglyphs (in two places). One of these is right next to the trail, the other viewable down a small side trail. It is good someone knowledgeable was with us; we who were just visiting, would never have found it on our own.

I have always loved hiking and being in the nature as much as possible so once a friend of mine suggest us to go to Granite Mountain Trail 261, all I could do was to say “hell yes” and pack my backpack. The whole walk took a bit under three hours. Luckily for us, the weather was really pleasant – not too warm, not too cold, so we could fully enjoy everything this trail had to offer. And it was truly rich. Rich in several breathtaking views (my camera is full with pics from the trail now!) and of course the diversity of the nature there is really amazing. Now I can say for sure – if you are interested in exploring wildlife and nature – this is a great spot to visit. Will take my family and other friends the next time!

It's a trail, rocky not a smooth path and a climb but well worth it and the vista is worth the trek. Wear appropriate shoes/hiking boots and consider a hiking pole

Granite Mountain recreation area suffered a major fire early in this past summer. The 19 firefighters who lost their lives in the Yarnell fire, fought this fire successfully and saved many houses in the American Ranch area. The first section of the hike is relatively flat and easy, but after you pass the junction with trail 39 it starts up a series of switchbacks that are much steeper. We got a late start and could only go half way to the top, but it is such a nice trail that we will make it a point to go again and get started before noon and possibly even have lunch on top.