Tumamoc Hill is the ultimate urban hiking trail. We hiked it about a half dozen times during our two-month stay in Tucson, Arizona. That is saying something because when we visit new cities, it’s rare that we do things multiple times.

Here’s what you need to know.

It’s a Great Work-Out.

Located just across from St. Mary’s Hospital on the west side of Tucson, Tumamoc Hill is a 700+ foot climb on a paved trail includes grades up to 18%. The trail is about 1.6 miles up (about 3.2 miles total), and we huffed and puffed and huffed our way to the top.

The first few switch-backs were easier than the rest. The grade got higher the higher we went. The number of hikers thinned out a little with the climb as well.

Our first time out, the hike took us about 1.5 hours (both up and down), mostly because we were taking photos along the way. Our fastest time was a little under an hour.

People with all sorts of fitness levels and ages on the trail. We only saw a couple of folks trying to run up Tumamoc Hill though. Based on my Google search, a triathlete from Colorado named Ben Hoffman completed the hike to the top in just 10 minutes and 49 seconds!
Pro tip: Going down is easier than going up :-).

View of downtown Tucscon from Tumamoc Hill. And, we were not even at the summit yet!

It’s Got Amazing Views.

Just a few hundred yards into the hike, we started having amazing views of the city and surrounding mountains. Of course, the best views are at the summit. We could see the Santa Ritas to the south, Rincons to the east, and the Santa Catalinas to the northeast, and the Torolitas to the north. Next to Tumamoc Hill is Sentinel Peak, more popularly known as the “A” Mountain, and we could see hikers doing that climb as well.

The up-close views of Tumamoc Hill are spectacular as well. Along the path, we encountered clusters of Saguaro cactus, barrel and prickly pear cactus, palo verde trees, creosote bushes, ocotillo, and other colorful vegetation growing near jagged lava boulders. We also spotted mule deer, lizards, and road runners on a few of our hikes.

Desert Laboratory - Tumamoc Hill in Tuscon Arizona

We learned something.

Tumamoc Hill is owned by the University of Arizona, and the road provides access to the University’s Desert Laboratory. Research as been going on there for over a century. In addition, Steward Observatory maintains a small telescope near the summit. None of those buildings are open to the public though.

About a dozen placards in both English and Spanish describe some of the animals that call the trail home – Sonoran bumblebees, phainopepla, coyotes, javalinas, black-tailed rattlesnakes, canyon wrens, and regal horned lizards. The latter is the hill’s namesake as one sign explains:

“Before there was a Tucson someone looked out over this landscape and saw the mesa on which you now walk. It was flattened against the earth like a giant horned lizard. And so our hill was named Tumamoc – regal horned lizard in the language of the Tohono O’odam.”

For those (like me) who want to take a deeper dive about Tumamoc Hill, the University has a very informative historical timeline and audio tour on its website. The tour is also available for download to your phone.

Even better, on one Saturday hike, we met up with a Tumamoc Hill steward who was able to answer lots of question about Tumamoc Hill.

The University is planning to make create Tumamoc Gardens near the base of the hill. The design is supposed to be a “resilience” garden that will include hands-on participation in how to live in the desert in a hotter and drier future.

It's Busy.

Open from 4 am to 10 pm, the trail was well-utilized during our visits. We hiked Tumamoc Hill at various times – early morning, late afternoon, cloudy day, weekdays, and weekends. While there were certainly busier times, we encountered a lot of people each time. The trail is long enough that there is usually pretty good separation between hikers, even on the busier weekends. We never felt like there were too many people on the trail.

The hike is a favorite of the locals and tourists. On the weekends, we saw volunteers gathering signatures for local ballot initiatives, vendors selling walking sticks and water, and tents featuring local artists.

What to Bring and What NOT to Bring.

Tumamoc Hill is designated for walkers (and the occasional runners), although authorized vehicles affiliated with the University of Arizona may use the road. We saw only two vehicles on the road during our hikes.

Dogs, skateboards, and bikes are not permitted.

We encountered a few brave hikers with strollers too. Pushing a stroller up the hill is an achievement itself, but I think that holding on to a stroller going DOWN is more technically challenging.

I recommend that bringing:

Comfortable shoes with good treads. There are some downhill parts where I was thankful for good shoe treads to stop some of my momentum. Some folks zig-zag the steep parts on the way down slow down their momentum.
Water bottle. There’s a water refilling station at the mid-point of the hike.
Camera. While most people use just their phones, we brought our camcorder one day so that we could zoom in on our RV park and other Tucson landmarks. Drones are not permitted unless approved by the University of Arizona in accordance with its policies.

A bench on Tumamoc Hill provides a view of the back side of Sentinal Peak (the “A” Mountain) in Tuscon Arizona.

Parking is a Challenge.

Parking is sometimes challenging because Tumamoc Hill is so popular. There is a parking lot just east of the trail entrance, but it is hard to find a spot there. Most people just park along Anklam Road, and visitors may need to hike several blocks before getting to the base of Tumamoc Hill. Hikers should NOT park in the parking lots of Saint Mary's Hospital or the medical offices along Anklam Road because those are for hospital employees and hospital visitors.

Parking may be a pain, but at least for us, the whole point of Tumamoc Hill was great exercise with amazing views. Just think of the walk to and from the car as the warm-up and cool-down.

We FINALLY Think We Know How to Pronounce “Tumamoc.”

Ta-MOM-ock. Too-MAM-ick. Tuma-Mock. Tuh-mah-OC. Hmmmm.

We vote for Too-Ma-MOCK. What do you think?

Tumamoc Hill - Our Best Hike in Tuscon, Arizona