Hiking Heroes
In a young city only recently carved out of the desert in the Great American West, some early pioneers will stand out in the lore…
Lizard Peek Trail (Picnic Table Mountain Trail)
Lizard Peek Trail (Picnic Table Mountain Trail)
Overview
Enjoy a snack on a picnic table at the top of Lizard Peek trail with a 360° panoramic view of the Lake Havasu area from an elevation of 1,370 feet above sea level. Look for the 80-foot-long lizard geoglyph below on your way up.
This trail was established in 1982 by Tim O'Connor and the Leaping Lizard Tribe who hand-carried the table to the top and built up the grade all the way along with Army shovels. Tim also developed the huge rock lizard visible from the top of Lizard Peek Trail.
Details
Rating: 3.0Trailhead Location: SARA Park
GPS Coordinates: 34.443703, -114.264920
Trail Length: 4 hours
Difficulty: Strenuous, with climbing, long steep slopes (600 ft elevation change)
Time to Trailhead: 15 minutes
Time Commitment: 3-4 hrs
Vehicle: Car
Directions to Trailhead:
Drive south on Hwy 95 to McCulloch Blvd (mile post 177). Turn right and travel ¾ mile to the parking lot in SARA Park on the right (elev 860 ft).
Trail Route Instructions:
- Go through the gate and walk down into the wash (yellow trail). Shortly after the .4 mile marker is a dark round rock on the left, 5 feet in diameter, and a bushy Palo Verde tree on the right. (Behind the tree is a short path to the Red Rock Grotto.)
- Continuing down the main wash about 60 feet is a big rock on the right (elev 765 ft). Behind it, the trail leads up the mountain to a saddle (elev 1190 ft). Start up the trail. (Look for a short spur trail to the right if you would like to see the lizard geoglyph up close.)
- As you continue up the trail, there is one difficult section which requires climbing up over a couple of ledges (elev 1120 ft).
- At the saddle, go left up a steep trail to the picnic table above (elev 1370 ft).
- Return down the switchbacks on the other side of the table, cross over a low rock wall, and continue left down the mountain on the main trail until it forks.
- The left fork goes down the hill to the yellow trail not far from where you started up.
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