Midlife Crisis and National Loop

Route Description for Midlife Crisis and National Loop

Using the Midlife Crisis Trail and National Trail, this hike gets you up into the hills of Phoenix’s South Mountain Preserve for impressive sightlines over the city below and of the mountains around you. This hike is a great workout, which is a nice way of saying there’s some scrambling involved. Hike it as-is or use the connecting routes near the top of the trail for extensions if you’ve still got gas in the tank.

The hands-on sections on this hike may be too difficult for children and dogs to get through. While the route is technically dog-friendly, consider choosing another hike if you’ve got young kids or dogs in tow.

From the trailhead, the route climbs a short set of switchbacks as you ascend Midlife Crisis Trail. This trail traverses over the top of the ridge. Once you near the end of the ridge, stay right at 4 junctions as you loop onto National Trail. You’ll descend over the other side of the canyon, hiking down through steep switchbacks to end the hike on a more relaxed, gradual descent to the trailhead.