Name: Desert Classic
Rating: 4.0

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Family Friendly Makes a decent introduction to Phoenix mountain biking

Overview

Also known as DC, the "classic" in the name means it's good, but it also means it's crowded! This trail is without a doubt the easiest and least technical ride in South Mountain Park. Crossing the many small washes that run down from the mountain adds some interest and fun without much difficulty. For the more daring rider, there are a fair number of optional jumps and drops as well. Remember to bring plenty of water, especially during the summer!

Need to Know

This is a busy trail. Expect to share it with plenty of other riders as well as hikers and runners. The Pima Canyon trailhead has maps, water, restrooms, and ample parking but it does fill up on weekends.

Description

From the east parking lot, go south, keeping the mountain on your right. You'll see the Desert Classic Trail leave from a map kiosk just after you leave the parking lot. Stay left as you go by the Marcos De Niza Trail and follow the signs as you continue around the mountain toward the TV towers. From this point, the DC Trail meanders along hardpack and through sandy washes before reaching its end in a junction with the Telegraph Pass Trail. Go any distance along the DC until you are satisfied, then turn around and enjoy it all in the opposite direction.

Contacts

Land Manager: City of Phoenix - Trails and Desert Preserves

Shared By:

Henry Braun

Full Details

Trail Ratings

4.0 from 117 votes

#1

in South Mountain Park/Preserve

#178

Overall

4.0 from 117 votes

5 Star		27%
4 Star		54%
3 Star		15%
2 Star		3%
1 Star		2%

Recommended Route Rankings

#1

in South Mountain Park/Pr…

#12

in Arizona

#178

Overall

325 Views Last Month

43,208 Since Apr 20, 2013

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Photos

Jun 26, 2015 near Guadalupe, AZ

Dec 25, 2014 near Guadalupe, AZ

A brilliant sunset behind petroglyph rocks.

May 11, 2017 near Guadalupe, AZ

Jul 31, 2016 near Guadalupe, AZ

Mar 3, 2015 near Guadalupe, AZ

Climbing out of the wash on Desert Classic

Dec 25, 2014 near Guadalupe, AZ

14 Comments

Weather

Current Trail Conditions

All Clear 5 days ago

Update Conditions See History

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Check-Ins

Jan 19, 2025

Matt B

Out and back with a few detours to explore other connecting trails. 17.8mi — 2h 05m

Jan 2, 2025

Matt B

17.5mi — 1h 35m

Nov 6, 2024

Geoffrey Burch

10mi — 1h 02m

Oct 20, 2024

Atsuko Ohtake

May 5, 2024

Pete Krebill

Hard. Fun.

May 5, 2024

Bridget B

Fun! I found it a good challenge for a beginner who is trying to improve their skill.

Sep 17, 2023

Nick Stamos

First real mountain bike ride. Definitely pushed my limits

Aug 26, 2023

Alan Streit

6mi

Jun 23, 2023

Jim Glaab Sr

Mar 22, 2023

Todd C

Mar 8, 2023

Will Day

17.8mi — 2h 15m

Feb 4, 2023

Lou Hibbard

c, With Al , want to go back and link clean 17.5mi

Jan 29, 2023

Jeff Q

Jan 14, 2023

Will Day

6.2mi — 0h 47m

Dec 26, 2022

Jim Glaab Sr

Oct 28, 2022

David Radeka

Oct 2, 2022

Dave Smith

May 28, 2022

Steven Herr

if you want a featureless, dusty, 30 mile xc out and back, then this is your ticket

Apr 11, 2022

Randy Lujan

Feb 10, 2022

Patrick Moroney

Jan 8, 2022

Mountain Park

8mi — 2h 00m

Dec 20, 2021

Janessa Vazquez

Dec 4, 2021

Jamey Mossengren

Only did like half of it.

Nov 26, 2021

Mike Plansker

11mi

Nov 20, 2021

Eric Brower

Oct 30, 2021

Eric Brower

Jul 6, 2021

Walter Gay

Only half, turned back in the heat

Apr 18, 2021

Monte Mountain

busy 14.8mi — 1h 47m

Apr 18, 2021

Stijn J

Fun 3.6mi — 0h 35m

Feb 24, 2021

Robert Monchamp

Feb 14, 2021

Ken Steele

Feb 5, 2021

Lisa Munsch

Very good trail with lots of up and down. About 2.5 hours mostly rideable. Out and back. You ride around a treatment plant. I turned around early t… 19mi

Jan 29, 2021

Mike Schen

Dec 30, 2020

zaq

Dec 12, 2020

Daniel Richardson

Nov 23, 2020

Daniel Richardson

Nov 10, 2020

Billy H

Good

Nov 8, 2020

Chris O'Connor

Oct 28, 2020

Dennis Ferrel

Oct 28, 2020

Charles Yang

17.5mi — 2h 15m

Oct 11, 2020

Tony Burns

Fun classic cross-country singletrack. Crowded trail. Lots of hikers. 16.4mi — 2h 13m

Sep 28, 2020

Brelice Glenn

My first time on this trail on a Monday afternoon. Started at the lot and went to marker 2.17 and back to the lot. Saw one other biker and a hiker. 2.2mi — 0h 45m

Sep 14, 2020

Matthew Ballard

8mi

May 16, 2020

Geoff Gascoigne

5.5mi

Apr 25, 2020

Julien Frolov

easy section, mostly flat. hit secret trail after making it a small loop 1.2mi

Feb 23, 2020

Charlie Heaton

17.5mi — 12h 54m

Jan 16, 2020

Liz Hamann

Jan 5, 2020

Jim Young

Dec 30, 2019

James Bishop

Fun trail but not 7th best in Arizona by any means.

Dec 12, 2019

Grant Koby

Nov 9, 2019

Eric Harrill

17.5mi

Oct 23, 2019

Jiri Sir

Oct 15, 2019

Marco Di Prima

Oct 9, 2019

Kody Crawford

Oct 3, 2019

Chad Miller

Jul 21, 2019

Nick Bultman

Sharp, hot, easy, a few dips and falls, no jumps and barely any downhill. Good for beginners who are new to riding and want to learn balance. 6mi — 0h 40m

Jun 30, 2019

Matthew Stauffer

It was a great fun trial form the top so it was mostly down hill and there was some really good rock jumps but overall it was a good beginning trial 3mi

Jun 15, 2019

Dylan Eggebrecht

9.7mi — 1h 00m

Apr 14, 2019

Anon Ymous

Started down the path. Easier ride, fun with limited views. 6mi

Apr 3, 2019

Stephanie Rabideau

4mi

Mar 28, 2019

Jason Trimble

Mar 23, 2019

John Welch

1st ride with Chloe 3mi

Mar 15, 2019

Matthew Huck

First time on a trail with the new bikes. 4.6mi

Mar 8, 2019

Meryl Kruskopf

Rode my Surly CrossCheck, twas a bit rougher then I was hoping. 95% rideable overall but only 15% fun and flowy for a rigid with 41mm tires 17.5mi — 3h 10m

Jan 30, 2019

Kyle Brown

Jan 26, 2019

Steven Spicka

15.5mi

Jan 20, 2019

Bill Moore

Jan 12, 2019

Paul Chavez

11mi

Dec 16, 2018

Joy Bessy

14.9mi

Dec 3, 2018

Alejandro Rodriguez

Nov 25, 2018

Joni Rhyan

Nov 19, 2018

Russell Lucchi

Nov 18, 2018

Robert Frick

Nov 5, 2018

Erix Loya

Oct 31, 2018

Brian McAtee

Oct 28, 2018

Monte Mountain

This is not a beginner trail. more like a blue trail with a few knarly hike a bike sections. Totally worth riding. several good flowy down hill sec… 17.5mi

Oct 20, 2018

Jared Fisher

3.9mi

Oct 14, 2018

Jeffrey Zeldin

didn't finish last mile because of a very wet wash, gotta go back!

Oct 6, 2018

Mark Joseph Yabut

Sep 27, 2018

Andrew Robinson

Sep 22, 2018

Jason Price

first venture in, so only went a couple miles in. 3mi

Sep 1, 2018

Paul Chavez

1st trail ever. Way beyond my ability, but I completed it from beginning to end. Thanks to Joe at Global Bikes Chandler for recommending Fuze Comp… 17.5mi

Aug 4, 2018

Cameron PHX

Jul 29, 2018

Cameron PHX

May 12, 2018

Christopher Luger

Great ride, lots of fun.

Apr 13, 2018

Ivan Ankrom

Nice trail. Wish I could have rode longer. Had to back track to look for my gloves I lost, had them in my water cage and started riding off. 8.3mi — 2h 00m

Mar 29, 2018

Mike Kortas

18mi

Mar 26, 2018

Kobbler R

Great introduction ride to the terrain in the area and a lot of fun sections. Also rose as a family. My 9yo son managed it in 20” tires. 8.9mi

Mar 25, 2018

Rudy Navarro

Mar 19, 2018

Jeffrey Chandler

17mi

Mar 18, 2018

Daniel LeClaire

Mar 17, 2018

SB Shrestha

Mar 3, 2018

Matthew Vane

Great trail. Helicopter route loop is tough climb but worth it 13mi

Feb 23, 2018

Leah Adams

14mi

Jan 17, 2018

Igal Kogan

7.2mi

Jan 14, 2018

Clint Penick

10mi

Dec 30, 2017

Marcus Heggestad

Dec 12, 2017

Brian Pickart

11mi

Dec 4, 2017

Igal Kogan

Nov 24, 2017

Shawn Chen

Nov 24, 2017

Ruth Cañamar

Nov 22, 2017

Aaron Johnson

As busy as advertised. More rocks than I anticipated, but there was several sections that had nice flow. 19.2mi — 2h 39m

Nov 18, 2017

David Draper

Nov 2, 2017

Dan McClure

18mi — 2h 10m

Nov 1, 2017

Patrick Gumabon

Oct 31, 2017

Robson Grubba

Aug 20, 2017

Peter Clark

Jul 9, 2017

Jason Parrish

Jul 4, 2017

J Grizz

17.5mi

Jun 7, 2017

Eric Ochoa

May 13, 2017

Doug Mann

22mi — 2h 00m

May 12, 2017

Kevin Tyson

Apr 24, 2017

Mike Skiest

17.5mi

Apr 14, 2017

Al S

6mi — 1h 30m

Apr 11, 2017

Brian Smith

Mar 29, 2017

Drury Hall

Mar 27, 2017

Donald Riddle

Trail in good condition. Not really an app or downhill ride. The trail undulates pretty much most of the time and skirts the edge of the mountains.... 13.2mi

Mar 21, 2017

Darren Schiffer

13.3mi

Mar 20, 2017

Dale M

Mar 11, 2017

John Fitz

I was really feeling it today after the past 2 days. day 3 was fun. rolling. and will definitely be back. get there early. 15.5mi

Mar 11, 2017

John Speidell

Mar 9, 2017

Patrick White

Solid trail. The amount of washes was annoying but the trail had a good bit of everything. Great for beginners and intermediate riders 11.1mi — 1h 35m

Mar 4, 2017

Max L

D.C. To secret trail 13.6mi

Mar 1, 2017

Max L

Avg speed 8.9 on specialized fuse expert. 7mi

Mar 1, 2017

Luis Felix

Feb 24, 2017

Cj Procyk

Feb 24, 2017

Santi Karnam

Feb 13, 2017

Cj Procyk

Feb 4, 2017

Elias Galindo

16.2mi

Feb 1, 2017

Cj Procyk

Jan 28, 2017

Kym Nikolle

Jan 16, 2017

Dalton Meyers

Jan 11, 2017

Chris Klein

17.5mi

Jan 2, 2017

Jason Thompson

Dec 20, 2016

Coach Don Williams

20.5mi

Dec 18, 2016

Michael Branning

8.7mi

Dec 3, 2016

Seth Escobedo

Dec 3, 2016

Scott Shroll

For some of us, this is our gym. Ridden here often and on weekends -DC means Darn Crowded. Get here early on known holidays as parking fills up. 16.5mi — 1h 39m

Nov 6, 2016

Nabor Rios

Desert classic

Nov 4, 2016

Daniel Pompa Jr

Nov 3, 2016

Mira Word

Nov 2, 2016

Chris Vesley

Oct 13, 2016

chris gorogias

Sep 24, 2016

Cody Sorells

Sep 24, 2016

Dalton Meyers

Sep 17, 2016

Dalton Meyers

Sep 10, 2016

Dalton Meyers

Sep 8, 2016

Gavin Møar

6.7mi

Aug 27, 2016

Lee Timlick

I expected it to be boring based upon the rating but the washes and some of the sections were a lot of fun. 17mi

Jul 19, 2016

Jeff Finch

Stopped to help a rider with a flat and no tube or air. 13.8mi — 1h 38m

Jul 2, 2016

Mark Chiappetta

May 22, 2016

Mark Chiappetta

May 21, 2016

Mark Chiappetta

Apr 17, 2016

Ryan Rebennack

Challenging for noobs like me. Quite rocky and amount of traffic can be stop and go, but a great trail. West is more technical 6.6mi

Apr 10, 2016

Seth Mason

Apr 8, 2016

Will Baird

Feb 11, 2016

Khuff Huff

Jan 24, 2016

Ryan Rebennack

make sure to get on at right spot...all the way left of parking 7.2mi

Dec 9, 2015

Rem Hawes

Nov 7, 2015

Jorden Whicker

Very busy. 11.7mi — 1h 03m

Oct 21, 2015

Jordan Willcox

3h 00m

Oct 12, 2015

John Hook

Sep 27, 2015

Jorden Whicker

Great desert ride however there are a LOT of hikers and other bikers. 12.2mi — 1h 01m

Aug 6, 2015

Mike Fata

2.7 miles in, 2.7 miles out

Jul 12, 2015

Matt.Velt Veltkamp

Jul 5, 2015

Richard Ferguson

Jun 4, 2015

Richard Ferguson

Jun 2, 2015

Richard Ferguson

Jun 2, 2015

william Ferguson

Mar 6, 2015

Matthew Argabright

White Tank Mountains 8.9mi — 2h 30m

Mar 3, 2015

Armando Lozano

Jan 25, 2015

Graeme Cousins

11.5mi

Jan 19, 2015

Joshua Stephenson

A lot of fun riding the trail for the first time.

Jan 1, 2015

Linda Rhomberg

7.5mi

Dec 14, 2014

Pablo Kempler

Nov 3, 2014

Patrick Hall

Sep 23, 2006

Doug Schletz

Aug 10, 2005

Doug Schletz

25.4mi — 2h 20m

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Desert Classic

“The chillest trail in South Mountain, and fun for everyone ”

17.5

28.2

50%

1,573' 479 m

1,345' 410 m

881' 268 m

881' 269 m

2%

9%

Toolbox

Know This Trail?

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Allowed

Features Flow · Views

Family Friendly Makes a decent introduction to Phoenix mountain biking

Overview

Need to Know

Description

Contacts

Shared By:

Trail Ratings

#1

#178

#1

#12

#178

Photos

14 Comments

Comment Type:

Weather

Current Trail Conditions

Check-Ins

Nearby Recommended Routes

East National Loop

Bursera Loop

Reach 11 Long Loop

TT & Windgate - Double Bypass

San Tan Mountain Regional Park

Sonoran Preserve Figure 8

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