The Town of Fountain Hills gives you two ways to finish its Hiking Challenge this year. You can complete any six hikes from the official list, or you can log hikes that add up to at least 35 miles. Both earn the same entry for the same prize. They are not the same amount of hiking. Take the six shortest routes on the 2026 route sheet and the total comes to about 10.5 miles, less than a third of the mileage option.
The challenge starts Monday, November 2. The Town calls it the November Hiking Challenge, so the choice you make this weekend sets which trailheads you'll be parking at for the next month.
Six hikes can add up to about ten and a half miles
The 2026 list has 18 routes. They run from the Fountain Hills Desert Botanical Garden and Fountain Park out to the Fountain Hills McDowell Mountain Preserve, Dixie Mine, and point-to-point hikes ending at the Golden Eagle or Sunrise trailheads. Here are the six shortest:
- Fountain Hills Desert Botanical Garden Trail: 1.0 mile, easy, starting at 11300 N Fountain Hills Blvd. The route sheet points out the dam built in 1941 as a watering hole for P-Bar Ranch cattle.
- Overlook Trail: 1.0 mile, easy to moderate, from Adero Canyon Trailhead.
- Andrews-Kinsey to the McDowell Sonoran Preserve border: 1.8 miles, moderate, from Adero Canyon.
- Lake Overlook Trail: 2 miles, easy, above the north side of Fountain Park. One trailhead is on Panorama Drive between Vista Del Lago and Diamante Drive, and the other is on Panorama just east of Saguaro Boulevard.
- Western Trail: 2.3 miles, rated difficult, from Adero Canyon.
- North Leg Trail: 2.4 miles, moderate, from Adero Canyon.
The Western Trail is the one catch. It is short, but it carries the list's top difficulty rating. If you'd like six easier outings, swap in Mesquite Hollow Trail to the Mesquite tree, a moderate 2.6 miles from Adero Canyon. That puts the six-hike total near 10.8 miles.
Four of those six start from the same parking lot at Adero Canyon Trailhead, 14800 N Eagle Ridge Dr. Sonoran Conservancy of Fountain Hills volunteer Trailhead Hosts are there on weekend mornings to answer questions about the routes.
Thirty-five miles means Adero Canyon's long routes
Most of the mileage on the list comes from nine routes that run four miles or longer:
| Route | Miles | Rating | Starts at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ridgeline Trail | 4.0 | Moderately difficult | Adero Canyon |
| Mesquite Hollow and Sonoran Trail Loop | 4.2 | Moderately difficult | Adero Canyon |
| Adero Canyon to Golden Eagle Trailhead, one way | 4.9 | Moderately difficult | Adero Canyon |
| Dixie Mine Trail | 5.0 | Moderate | Golden Eagle, $5 park fee |
| Adero Canyon to Sunrise Trailhead, one way | 5.0 | Moderately difficult | Adero Canyon |
| Sonoran Trail Loop, Full | 5.6 | Moderately difficult | Adero Canyon |
| Andrews-Kinsey Trail to the Hitching Post | 5.9 | Moderately difficult | Adero Canyon |
| Golden Eagle to Adero Canyon and back | 9.7 | Difficult | Golden Eagle, $5 park fee |
| Adero Canyon to Sunrise and back | 9.9 | Difficult | Adero Canyon |
Golden Eagle Trailhead is at 14425 E Golden Eagle Blvd. The two one-way routes need a car dropped at the far end or someone to pick you up. That makes them a two-car morning, and you'll want to plan it ahead.
The out-and-backs decide how many trips 35 miles takes. Pair the two near-10-mile routes with Andrews-Kinsey to the Hitching Post and the full Sonoran Trail Loop. Then add the Lake Overlook Trail with its Fountain Lake loop, which is 3.2 miles, and the 1.0-mile Desert Botanical Garden trail. That comes to 35.3 miles in exactly six hikes, so the same set clears both finish lines. Leave out the two out-and-backs, and the seven routes between four and six miles add up to 34.6. You'd need an eighth hike to get past 35.
So the mileage option comes down to one question. Do you want two long mornings on the McDowell ridgelines, or a steady run of five-mile outings? The six-hike option leaves the long routes as an extra.
The route sheet asks for at least 2 liters of water, salty snacks, a charged phone and shoes with grippy soles. It also suggests hiking poles, because trail surfaces can be uneven and slippery.
The Conservancy's November calendar matches most of the short list
You don't have to plan the six-hike version alone. The Sonoran Conservancy of Fountain Hills runs free guided hikes. Its fall programs have limited spots, and you pre-register through the Town. Hikes that count toward the challenge need their own registration, separate from the $15 challenge sign-up. The Town's challenge page calls the November guided hikes "perfect for conquering the Fountain Hills Hiking Challenge."
Here is how the SCFH November schedule lines up with trails on the list:
- Monday, Nov. 2: Kickoff hike on the Lake Overlook Trail, 2 miles. SCFH says this hike is included in the 2026 challenge.
- Thursday, Nov. 5: Mesquite Hollow Loop from Adero Canyon, 5.1 miles, moderately difficult, 8 to 11 a.m.
- Saturday, Nov. 7: Exploring Among Saguaros, the easy 1-mile Desert Botanical Garden trail, 9 to 10:30 a.m.
- Tuesday, Nov. 10: North Leg Trail, 2.5 miles, moderate, 7:30 to 9:30 a.m.
- Wednesday, Nov. 11: Bring Your Kids to Hike Day on the 1-mile Overlook Trail, 9 to 10:30 a.m.
- Friday, Nov. 13: Andrews-Kinsey to the Hitching Post, 5.8 miles, moderately difficult, 8 a.m. to noon.
- Monday, Nov. 16: Ridgeline Loop, 4.5 miles, moderately difficult, 8 to 11:30 a.m.
The Conservancy's posted distances are a little different from the route sheet's. Mesquite Hollow and Ridgeline are the clearest examples, so check each listing against the trail it covers. Even so, six guided dates fall between November 2 and November 13. Someone who signs up for each one could reach the six-hike mark in under two weeks, with volunteer leaders on every hike. Those same seven outings add up to about 22 miles. The free calendar alone still leaves the mileage option short.
The listings ask hikers to leave dogs at home.
November 13 is a hike day and a festival day
The sixth guided date runs into something else. The Fountain Festival of Fine Arts & Crafts takes over downtown November 13 through 15. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The festival's visitor page lists road closures on Saguaro Boulevard from E Palisades Boulevard, on Parkview Avenue from N Saguaro Boulevard, and on Verde River Road from E Parkview Avenue. The festival reported more than 100,000 visitors at its last event.
The Andrews-Kinsey hike starts at 8 a.m. and runs until noon, so it ends two hours after the festival opens. Check your drive between Eagle Ridge Drive and home against the closure map before Friday morning. That goes double if you plan to walk the festival afterward. The festival site estimates the event area at about 2.5 miles round trip, which is more walking on legs that just did 5.8 miles.
If you'd rather keep festival weekend free, move the long Adero Canyon routes earlier in the month. The Monday, November 16 Ridgeline Loop is the next guided long hike after the festival.
Getting signed up before Monday
Registration runs through the Town's recreation catalog, where the 2026 challenge is listed at $15. Every registered participant gets a commemorative T-shirt. You can pick it up at the kickoff, and after 11 a.m. on November 2 it's available at Town Hall, 16705 E Avenue of the Fountains, Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The kickoff is at Fountain Park's Kiwanis Ramada near the Splash Pad. Coffee and cookies start at 8 a.m., and you don't need to register for that part. The guided Lake Overlook hike leaves at 9 a.m. and does require pre-registration. The Town also describes the morning as a chance to meet Trailblazers, Trailhead Hosts, Stewards and members of the Fountain Hills Desert Botanical Garden, and to hear what's planned for the 2026-2027 season.
Finishing either way enters you to win a $50 gift card and Fountain Hills swag. To enter, share your hiking photos by tagging @FountainHillsRec on Instagram or @fhparksandrec on Facebook, or by emailing the Town. Last year's challenge ran November 1 to 30, according to the Fountain Hills Times.
Movie in the Park was postponed from October 10 because of weather. It now runs from 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday, November 6, at Four Peaks Park, with Toy Story 5 on the screen, the Fountain Hills Times reported. Bring a blanket or chairs.
If the challenge has you thinking about how much your daily routine depends on which side of Fountain Hills you live on, close to Adero Canyon, near the fountain, or somewhere in between, I'm happy to talk it through. Mark Palacio has spent years helping East Valley households weigh exactly that kind of everyday fit. Let's Connect.
