Peoria, AZ

Enduro’s in the Big Horns

Located Northwest of Phoenix, Peoria, AZ is home to various housing developments that back up to the infamous Big Horn Mountains. The newly constructed suburban sprawl makes its way into the draws and canyons of the ridges and provides easy access to UTV’s, ATV’s, and Enduro Bikes. Nine miles from our basecamp on open roads (No, Arizona really doesn’t care if bikes or UTV’s move to dirt locations on open roads) we crossed a gravel patch and into a construction zone that eventually opened into various recreational trails. From there you can take any of the unmarked trails all the way to the Grand Canyon. As we ripped through the desert, we encountered lots of wildlife to include burros, coyotes, hawks, rabbits, and the occasional dairy cow (as the land is free range to farmers). Almost 20 types of native cactus grow all over the ridges. I personally fell into at least two types of cactus on my adventures. The barbs are extremely sharp and have no problem going through riding jerseys, pants, and riding boots. Needless to say, I had no issue dropping money on protective gear I bought from the local cycle gear.