North Mingus Mountain Loop Trail

This is a particularly attractive trail with many small pockets of aspen and other deciduous trees on the north face of Mingus Mountain. Most of the trail is above 7,000 feet, offering some nice views of Jerome and the Verde Valley. Yesterday, I hiked the 4.3 mile loop.

Mingus Mountain is a large Mesa south of Jerome in the Prescott National Forest, and is in a part of Arizona called the Transition Zone. This part of the State lies between the Sonoran low desert to the south and the higher Colorado Plateau to the north. Here, at an elevation of about 7,800 feet, cacti, yuccas, and agaves grow in an open forest of ponderosa pines.