West Wing Mountain Loop

Nice after work hike. It got dark around 6pm. Moon was full. Hiked by moonlight. Awesome.

12/10...with the Warrior Women

11-23-19 4 Peaks Challenge!

Pat, Carl and I made it up and around the Westwing Trail prior to rain that is forecasted. Trail was in good condition. Down the road, we may return to a few spots with McLeods.

First part of trail is through a neighborhood. Not a lot of people on the trail. Signage is a little confusing. Some nice views from the top

I recommend this trail to an advanced hiker. it is rated Moderate but I found it to be Hard. we did get off trail intentionally, trying to get a view of Paloma park. Tough climb at times. loose rock and dried vegetation much going up or down a challenge.

Performed minor trail maintenance and it is ready for the 4PeakChallenge!

It starts on residential property so be sure to park across the street at the playground! Really lovely trail with lots of options based on how difficult you wanna go. Very rocky and relatively steep on some parts so wear good shoes and watch where you step. Parts of the trail offer shade. I went at sunrise, and had a really lovely morning. I went on a weekday and I never ran into another hiker.

Great trail when we could follow the markers. Lost it at about 60% complete. Eventual used phone gps to get out. Otherwise, we really enjoyed it. Got in some pretty aggressive spots at times, but not sure we were on the trail at that time.

We were actually in search of the Sunrise Mountain Trail and couldn’t find it, so based on where we were a stranger directed us to this trail. As the comments state there a A LOT of loose rocks, so if you don’t have great ankles this would not be your trail. Hiking boots would be best suited instead of lower profile shoes. The views were great and we got a great workout! Legs were definitely a little sore the next day. We look forward to doing it again.

I hike this trail every so often. The only thing I don’t like about this trail is how rocky the first 1/2 mile or so is starting at the trailhead (not the park). It’s loose and on an incline so watch your step. Otherwise this is a really nice hike with some great views towards the North. If you’re doing the full loop, ignore the “difficult/less difficult” signs...you’ll be doing it all anyway!

An enjoyably rough trail the whole way... If you're looking for flat terrain, look elsewhere. You'll be either climbing or descending the whole way. Plenty rocky, but the good kind of rock that your shoes actually stick to. It was my last of the Peoria "wing mountain" area hikes to take on and it might just be my favorite. Could do without the neighborhood portion of the trail.

It was a good morning outing with my dog! We ended up being the only ones out there so it was really enjoyable! We live in west wing so it’s my gym!

I finally got around to uploading about 3 dozen HQ photos here (with some good color saturation) that i shot in mid-March 2019 to fully show off Peoria AZ's beautiful West Wing Mtn trail-hiking area the way it deserves to be seen. It's a real wonder-land here and most photos simply don't do it justice. (AllTrails has put my photos in reverse order from how i uploaded them. To get a better sense of how the hike unfolds, click on my name and go to my "Photos" section, and then click on West Wing Mountain file-directory and you'll get to see the photos in correct order.) I love all parts of the West Wing hiking region -- the north side of the loop trail, the south side, the west side (with that little unnamed craggy peak you can climb almost to the top), the middle area including the photogenic saddle area and the two trails east over to West Wing peak itself (the northern trail involves a bit of a scramble at one point, but not too difficult at all), and the east side of the park. There's also the very neglected gently-rising plateau east of the easternmost knolls. That and the northeastern knoll command some sweeping overlooks to the north and east. This eastern section and the northern lateral section of the loop trail up on the mountain are especially enchanting, with a far more "wild" feel to them, even if you can see the 303 loop fwy off in the distance. Btw, I've never seen another hiker out in that neglected eastern part of the preserve. When i visited there several times in March 2019 there were beautiful views to the east overlooking the wetland area just north of the New River Dam. It was like having our own North Peoria lake! That particular late afternoon i was also visited at close range by the big recreational hot-air balloons. (See a couple of photos i uploaded here at AllTrails) I agree with the hikers who advise using hiking poles and definitely good-grip hiking boots, especially if you want to climb the unnamed little peak on the west side of the preserve or if you want to scramble up to that rocky "perch" on the north side of the loop trail to the north of West Wing Mtn peak. For your info, it can get very windy up there on a windy day because of the long valley formation below to the north. Enjoy the photos i uploaded and i hope you get to go see it for yourself. I definitely would recommend NOT being out there on a hot day but wait for the cooler season and preferably after fall-winter rains have everything looking very green.

I love this hike! It’s rocky and steep, yet amazingly beautiful!! It’s definitely not for the beginner hiker nor for those with knee and heart trouble. Use common sense when hiking this trail. Don’t rely 100% on the gps, nor 100% on the signs. Neither are clearly marked nor accurate, which are the reasons I only gave it 4 stars. Go at your own pace, and enjoy the sites. If you are able to make it all the way to the top, you’ll be rewarded with a birds eye view of the area! Please make sure you park in the trailhead parking lot... It’s rude to congest the nice neighborhood when there is a designated spot down the street.

Pretty hike with beautiful views. It would be nicer if the trail wasn’t so rocky.

Moderately difficult trail with great views at the top. Pack water!

love this trail. rocky and secluded.

First time on this trail. I usually walk sunrise mountain loop that starts at same location in West Wing Park but I found out today I like this loop better. Once you get through the first 1/2 mile of residential the fun part begins. Do your self a favor and take the difficult path, the views and switch backs are worth it. Also, 1/2 way through loop there’s a sign to branch off and take summit path, nice 360 view.

A nice trail with multiple little mountains to get different beautiful views. I suggest taking the difficult trail for those who've hiked before but aren't quite experienced. I'd do this trail again.