Loop hike on the Littleleaf trail in San Tan Regional park in Arizona.
In the winter holiday months, it's typical to get first time visitors to the deserts of Phoenix. If you're looking for a good, easy hike to take them to, I'd recommend the Littleleaf trail loop in the San Tan regional park.
This trail is a nice introduction to hiking in the deserts of Arizona. After paying the $6 fee, start at the well signed trailhead. Start along the signed and easy to follow littleleaf trail. You'll see all the sonoran desert cacti here, including Saguaro, barrel, and cholla. The trail is easy to follow as you'll hike 0.7 miles to the junction with the Goldmine trail (Jct 1L on the map). Turn left at this well signed trail junction onto the Goldmine trail. From here, the trail widens, but it's still easy to follow. You'll follow this trail 0.6 miles as it returns to the start of the hike and parking area (don't forget to make a left turn at signed junction JCT2L on the map).
Link to San Tan Regional Park website: http://www.maricopa.gov/parks/santan/
