Porcupine–Desert Tents, 4 sights is a 1.9-mile out-and-back in Papago Park near Marlborough Park, AZ. The route passes Oryx and Porcupine before reaching Desert Tents at the turnaround, 1 miles in. It is mostly level, with 145 ft of elevation gain. It scores 0/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: paved and peopled.
Elevation
0 mi1,227 – 1,309 ft2.7 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Unnamed 33.44070, -111.94030
Nearest town Marlborough Park, AZ
Directions
AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com
Porcupine–Desert Tents, 4 sights
1.9 mi · ▲ 145 ft · 42 min
Elevation 1,228–1,310 ft
Out & Back · Papago Park
Trailhead: 33.44070, -111.94030
Weather Sep 5: Overcast, high 104°F / low 83° · precip 3% · wind 7 mph · sunrise 6:05 AM · sunset 6:51 PM
Transit-accessible: Curry Rd & Mill Av stop 411 m from the trailhead · Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start at the trailhead, heading N.
- 0.1 miBear right, heading NE.
- 450 ftTurn left, heading W.
- 50 ftTurn left, heading W.
- 50 ftTurn right, heading W.
- 50 ftContinue straight onto Crosscut Canal Multi-use Path, heading W.
- 200 ftBear right, heading N.
- 0.1 miTurn left, heading N.
- 50 ftBear left, heading N.
- 150 ftSharp right, heading N.
- 250 ftContinue straight onto Zoo Staff Only, heading NW.
- 250 ftBear left, heading N.
- 0.2 miPass Oryx.
- 100 ftTurn right onto Desert Discovery Zoo Trail, heading NW.
- 350 ftBear left, heading NW.
- 0.1 miPass Desert Tents.
- 50 ftSharp left, heading S.
- 100 ftReach Porcupine, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 100 ftSharp right, heading SW.
- 0.2 miTurn left onto Zoo Staff Only, heading W.
- 450 ftTurn right, heading S.
- 0.2 miBear right, heading NW.
- 450 ftSharp left, heading SE.
- 150 ftBear right, heading NE.
- 50 ftTurn right onto Crosscut Canal Multi-use Path, heading NE.
- 50 ftTurn left, heading NE.
- 0.2 miTurn left, heading SE.
- 50 ftTurn right, heading SE.
- 50 ftTurn right, heading SE.
- 500 ftBear left, heading SE.
- 250 ftArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
33% dirt26% sand10% paved6% gravel25% unspecified
Weather
OvercastTemperature 104°F83°
Feels like90°Precip3%Wind7 mphUV8Humidity30%
Rained 0.1″ 5 days ago
Hourly temperature
105°80°
Sunrise 6:05 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PM9 PMSunset 6:51 PM
Sun
105°80°
Mon
104°94°
Tue
106°93°
Wed
103°90°
25%
Thu
105°89°
20%
Fri
99°84°
19%
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 0.1 mi in (~2 min). Leave by 6:28 PM for the 6:51 PM sunset. Back at your car by 7:08 PM — 8 min before dark. Car visible from the viewpoint
Good to know
- Transit-accessible: Curry Rd & Mill Av stop 411 m from the trailhead
- Parking lot at the trailhead
More from this trailhead
- Hole in the Rock–The Hole in the Rock, 3 sights 1.7 mi · ▲ 215 ft
- Mandrill–Rhino, 5 sights 1.9 mi · ▲ 173 ft
- Crosscut Canal Multi-use Path 2.2 mi · ▲ 286 ft
- Papago Ponds & Nature Trail 2.4 mi · ▲ 170 ft
- Tempe Town Lake–Indian Bend Canal, 4 lakes 3.1 mi · ▲ 173 ft
- Papago Buttes & Papago Ponds via Double Butte Loop 3.7 mi · ▲ 338 ft
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