Overview

The Grand Circle Trail is an 11.6-mile loop that starts at the Visitor Center and roughly parallels the Scenic Loop Road. From the Visitor Center, the trail runs up along the base of the Calico Hills to Sandstone Quarry, cuts out across the desert to White Rock Spring, the highpoint on the loop trail, then follows the White Rock Loop trail down towards Willow Springs, finally turning off and heading back down along Red Rock Wash to the Visitor Center. The trail passes red sandstone crags and rock art, all the while traversing open desert with grand vistas in all directions. Parts of the trail aren't laid out as well as one might wish, but the trail makes for a good winter workout in the desert.

Presented here are details of the Grand Circle Loop Trail from the Scenic Loop Road crossing to the Visitor Center Trailhead. For an overview of the entire trail, see Grand Circle Overview.

Link to map.

Link to BLM Georeference PDF map file.

Watch Out

Other than the standard warnings about hiking in the desert, ...this hike is fairly safe, even for kids, but there are some short, steep scrambles through rocky areas near the Calico II parking area. Always be extra careful when you get high enough to fall and hurt yourself. Most of this trail is relatively well groomed, relatively free of rocks, and makes for easy walking. Be careful crossing the paved roads.

While hiking, please respect the land and the other people out there, and try to Leave No Trace of your passage. Also, even though this is a short hike, be sure to bring what you need of the 10 Essentials.

The Hike

Road Crossing to Visitor Center -- 3.6 miles

From the Scenic Loop Road crossing (Wpt. 21), the trail runs southeast down a low ridge where the vegetation is dominated by blackbrush, cliff rose, Mojave yucca, and banana yucca. From here to the Visitor Center, the trail runs down an old dirt road. Early on, the trail parallels the Scenic Loop Road, but shortly after passing a use-trail to the Ice Box Canyon Trailhead, the trail angles away from the road staying on a low ridge of higher ground.

As the trail descends the bajada, the vegetation becomes more typical of Mojave Desert Scrub, with creosote bush becoming the dominant species. The views are spectacular with the Red Rock Cliffs to the west, the Calico Hills to the east, and if hikers turn around, the La Madre Mountain Range spreads across the northern horizon.

The trail finally runs out on a flat ridge between Red Rock Wash on the right and White Rock Wash on the left, then drops fairly steeply off the left toe of the ridge into White Rock Wash (Wpt. 22).

The trail turns east across White Rock Wash, which is about 350 yards wide at this point. There are some scraggly desert willow growing in the wash, which tells you that there is water down there somewhere. Parts of the trail are washed out by the several wash-lets, but it is easy to follow the route across the wash and up onto higher ground on the other side (Wpt. 23).

The trail continues east, following the old road, then bends to run southeast across the desert flats. After some distance, hikers encounter an interpretive sign to the left of the trail that seems out of place. The sign is about erosion, and it ends by warning hikers to avoid washes when storms threaten. This out-of-place sign was erected along the Moenkopi Trail, which at the time, came down the wash just behind the sign such that hikers came down the wash, read the sign, and walked back across the wash to finish the trail. I guess the BLM took their own advice and moved the trail so that hikers could always avoid the wash!

Continuing on the Grand Circle Trail, the trail crosses a broad gravel wash and shortly arrives at a trail junction with the Moenkopi Trail (Wpt. 24). This is where the trail comes down from Moenkopi Hill on the way back to the Visitor Center.

Continuing southeast on the Grand Circle Loop Trail, the old road runs towards the visitor center, which comes into view in this area. A bit farther along, the Grand Circle Loop Trail reaches another trail junction (Wpt. 03), which closes the loop for the Grand Circle Loop Trail. This is where outbound hikers turned right to head north at the start of the Grand Circle Loop Trail.

Beyond the trail junction, the Grand Circle Loop Trail leaves the old road (Wpt. 02) to the left and heads up the low hill to the Visitor Center Trailhead (Wpt. 01) to end the hike.