Free and Easy In Fountain Hills
The spring breezes across the Sonoran Desert are soft and welcoming, scented by the new blooms on the Creosote, Palo Verde, Brittle Bush, and dozens of budding wildflowers. If you are lucky enough to live in the Fountain Hills area, there are dozens of ways to celebrate Spring in the Hills.
Visit Goldfield Ranch
Goldfield Ranch is a rustic residential area just a few minutes beyond the eastern border of Fountain Hills. It sits on the eastern slopes of the lower Verde River Basin right off State Highway 87 (Beeline Hwy) just north of the Fort McDowell Casino. It is completely surrounded by the Tonto National Forest, and although the roads are unpaved, they are well maintained, and in the spring the entire area is carpeted with wildflowers. If you have friends or family who has mobility problems, this is the perfect way to drive through the wildflower bounty of the Sonoran Desert highlands.
Because the climate and topography of Arizona is so diverse, we have a stunning of flowers to enjoy from February through July. The “Go Wild for Flowers” site will show you what is blooming and where, with beautiful photos depicting the variety of flowers blooming in our region. McDowell Mountain Park, between Fountain Hills and Rio Verde is ablaze with poppies and desert lupine…small fee per car, or you can just pull off the road and enjoy the sights.
https://www.facebook.com/GoWildforFlowers/
Hike the Overlook Trail
Few sights in the world rival sunrise over the mountains in Fountain Hills. The overlook trail is a short, medium-level hike that provides a stunning view of the sunrise with a glance back to the peach and purple highlights shimmering across Town Lake. The trail is good for families with small children as the slope is gentle, and there are benches along the way to stop and admire the vistas.
The trail starts across the street from the east parking lot of the Town Lake park, and is marked with a sign designating the trail head. Wear tennis or closed toe shoes, as the trail is dusty and at some places rocky. The views are breathtaking and give an accurate perspective of how Fountain Hills is laid out before you.
The.Sonoran.Life.Style 