Wild Burro Canyon: The Tortolita Trails That Start Inside Dove Mountain
Hiking from Marana's Wild Burro Trailhead into Tortolita Mountain Park: the gate, free parking, the Wild Burro–Alamo Springs loop, and free guided hikes.
The main trailhead for roughly 29 miles of Tortolita Mountain trails sits at the end of a resort road in Marana. Here is how to get through the gate and which loop to start with.
To reach one of the best desert canyons on the northwest side, you drive toward a luxury resort and tell the person at the guard station you are there to hike. The Wild Burro Trailhead sits at 14810 North Secret Springs Drive in Marana, on the road that also serves the Ritz-Carlton at Dove Mountain, and the station stands just before the lot. Tell the staff you are there for the trails, not the hotel, and continue to a free parking lot with room for 50 or more cars. From there the trail heads into Pima County's Tortolita Mountain Park.
- 3,100
- Acres in Pima County's Tortolita Mountain Park
- ~29 mi
- Trails in the Tortolita Mountain trail system
- 2004
- Year construction of the trail system began
- Nov. 21
- Next free town-led guided hike from Wild Burro, 8 to 11 a.m.
A Trail System Stitched Across Four Kinds of Land
The Tortolitas are a low range on the northern edges of Marana and Oro Valley, topping out at 4,696 feet. Three canyons, Cochie, Wild Burro and Ruelas, cut through the range's southwest end, and that is the ground the trails cover. Pima County describes the trail system as a cooperative project of the Town of Marana, the county and the Arizona State Land Department, with construction starting in 2004 and expansion still under way.
The trails run across easements on private, town, county and state land, which is why the mileage depends on who is counting. The regional system has about 29 miles of trail. Marana's separate 2,400-acre Tortolita Preserve, reached from its own trailhead at 6250 West Moore Road, adds about nine more, and the Dove Mountain Community Trail runs about seven miles along Dove Mountain Boulevard. The county's 3,100-acre park makes up the northern and eastern ends. The trails are open to hiking, trail running, horseback riding and mountain biking, and Marana allows dogs on its trails on a leash.
Getting There
Arizona Highways gives the drive from Tucson this way: Interstate 10 west to Tangerine Road, then 4.9 miles east to Dove Mountain Boulevard. Turn left, follow the boulevard 4.5 miles to a roundabout, bear right toward the resort, and the trailhead is on the right after 0.8 miles. The last stretch winds past a long series of side streets, so trust the mileage over the scenery.
How Long Is the Wild Burro–Alamo Springs Loop?
The standard first hike combines the Wild Burro Trail up the canyon with the Alamo Springs Trail back along the ridge. Arizona Highways rates it moderate at about 7.1 miles, between 2,806 and 3,855 feet of elevation; American Southwest measures it at 7.6 miles with about 1,070 feet of total climbing. A spur trail back to Wild Burro shortens it by a couple of miles.
The Wild Burro Trail follows the canyon upstream for about 3.2 miles. Low in the canyon it is a sandy wash between low cliffs, lined with saguaros, chain fruit cholla, ocotillo, ironwood, agave, sotol and jojoba. The trail climbs nearly 400 feet to get around a dry waterfall, then about 200 more later. Past the junction with the Lower Javelina Trail it passes a couple of ruined stone cabins from a ranch established at the start of the 20th century. Higher up, the canyon opens into a wide, grassy basin ringed by low hills, with fewer cacti.
Just upstream of the second junction with the Alamo Springs Trail, a short narrows runs through whitish marble, with a seasonal spring above it. Seasonal means it may be dry. The return on Alamo Springs climbs about 400 feet to a ridge of loose small stones, with steep bends, wash crossings and a few sheer drops, which slows most people down. Two interpretive benches along the way cover the area's birds and its rocks. Arizona Highways also points out a rock formation hikers call "Machu Picchu" for how much it looks like a built stone wall, and counts about 31 crested saguaros in the preserve.
As for the name: Arizona Highways traces it to pack burros that got away from miners working the area. Horses are allowed on select trails, Wild Burro among them, so expect to share the canyon floor.
Going With a Guide
The Town of Marana runs a free fall series of guided hikes in the Tortolitas, led by the town's Natural Resources team and the Pima County Chapter of the Arizona Master Naturalists. The remaining dates are Saturday, November 21, and Saturday, December 19, 2026, each from 8 to 11 a.m., meeting at the Wild Burro Trailhead. The town's registration listing titles the November outing "Petroglyphs." Registration is online through Marana's recreation site, and hikers under 16 must be registered with a responsible adult.
For something gentler, Marana Parks and Recreation also lists Sonoran Desert Education Hikes from the same trailhead on Thursday mornings through December 3: about two hours and two to three miles with little elevation gain. On Thursday, November 19, a Pima County naturalist leads a $5 Tortolita Preserve Nature Trek for ages 12 and up; its listing gives two different meeting addresses, so confirm the location when you register.
The town's guided-hike listings say what to bring, and it applies to any day out here: at least two liters of water per person, a snack, sun protection, real hiking shoes or boots, and poles if you use them. There are no restrooms or water stations on the trail, and pets are not allowed on the guided hikes, though service animals are.
What a Trailhead Inside the Gates Means for Dove Mountain Owners
Dove Mountain is a master-planned community in the Town of Marana with about 3,500 homes, arranged in gated enclaves around golf courses and the resort, with the Tortolitas rising directly behind it. The Highlands at Dove Mountain, a guard-gated enclave of semi-custom and custom homes, has its own page on this site. For someone living here, the county's main listed trailhead for the park is a short drive across the community rather than a trip across town, and the Dove Mountain Community Trail along the boulevard is part of the same network.
The other side of that is traffic. The trailhead's only approach is Dove Mountain Boulevard and the resort road, so hikers, riders and guided-hike groups heading for the trails share those roads with residents and resort guests. And because the trail system crosses private land on easements, a buyer looking at a lot that backs onto open space should read the recorded plat and the title report for any trail or access easement, and ask the community association what its rules say about that edge.
For what homes in Dove Mountain cost and how the area has changed, see this site's Dove Mountain page.
Before You Set Out
Start early, since the Alamo Springs return runs along an open ridge. Tell the guard station you are hiking, park in the free lot, carry more water than you think you need, and plan on the loop taking longer than its mileage suggests. Marana Parks and Recreation takes questions at 520-382-1950 or marana.parks@maranaaz.gov.
Sources
Pima County — "Tortolita Mountain Park" — https://www.pima.gov/1242/Tortolita-Mountain-Park — accessed October 31, 2026
Town of Marana — "Trails" — https://www.maranaaz.gov/departments/parks-recreation/trails — accessed October 31, 2026
Town of Marana — "Guided Hikes in the Tortolitas" — https://www.maranaaz.gov/Calendar-Entries/Guided-Hikes-in-the-Tortolitas — accessed October 31, 2026
Active.com (Marana Parks and Recreation listing) — "Guided Hikes in the Tortolitas 2026" — https://www.active.com/marana-az/hiking/classes/guided-hikes-in-the-tortolitas-2026-110070805 — accessed October 31, 2026
Active.com (Marana Parks and Recreation listing) — "Sonoran Desert Education Hikes 2026" — https://www.active.com/marana-az/walking/classes/sonoran-desert-education-hikes-2026-110070637 — accessed October 31, 2026
Active.com (Marana Parks and Recreation listing) — "Tortolita Preserve Nature Trek 2026" — https://www.active.com/tucson-az/walking/classes/tortolita-preserve-nature-trek-2026-110312691 — accessed October 31, 2026
Arizona Highways — "Wild Burro-Alamo Springs Loop" — https://arizonahighways.com/wild-burro-alamo-springs-loop — accessed October 31, 2026
American Southwest — "Wild Burro and Alamo Springs Trails, Tortolita Mountains" — https://www.americansouthwest.net/arizona/tortolita-mountains/wild-burro-alamo-springs-trails.html — accessed October 31, 2026
Wikipedia — "Tortolita Mountains" — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tortolita_Mountains — accessed October 31, 2026
Trail distances, dates and registration details are as published by the sources above and can change; confirm with Marana Parks and Recreation before you go. Community details are from this site's Dove Mountain and The Highlands at Dove Mountain pages. This post is for informational purposes only and is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase real estate.
Topics
- Things to Do
- Dove Mountain
- Marana
- Tortolita Mountains
- Hiking
- Wild Burro Trail
- Tortolita Mountain Park
- Outdoor Recreation