Camelback Phoenix: Breathtaking Guided Mountain Ascent

My trek was warm but this trail was in the shadow of Camelback Mountain during the morning so it wasn’t bad at all. My tour guide, Curtis, was positive, pleasant, and well prepared for anything I might need. Clearly a knowledgeable & experienced hiker. We made great time but he would have gone any pace I needed. He checked in often to see how I was feeling and dealing with the demands of this challenging hike. Guys, it IS challenging. However, I loved it and the views are amazing!

I had an amazing experience on this hike! I was in Phoenix for work and arrived a day early so I could explore a bit on my own. I decided to book this guided hike solo, and I’m so glad I did. The description of the hike was completely accurate — it’s definitely strenuous and a real challenge, especially as you get higher up. It truly took my breath away (in more ways than one!). That said, it was incredibly rewarding. My guide, Doug, was absolutely fantastic. He was encouraging, patient, and supportive the entire way up — especially when I started to get tired toward the steeper sections. While you don’t technically need a guide to hike Camelback, having Doug there made a huge difference. He helped me feel confident navigating some of the trickier climbs, and I honestly don’t think I would have made it to the top without him. Doug was also a wealth of knowledge — not just about the trail, but about Phoenix in general. He was easy to talk to and made the entire experience fun and engaging. Reaching the summit and seeing the breathtaking views was the highlight of my trip. Doug even took tons of photos with his own camera, so I now have incredible memories captured from the top. The snacks he brought were a very welcome bonus, too! If you enjoy hiking and are looking for a rewarding challenge, I highly recommend this experience. It was absolutely worth the money and one of the best parts of my visit to Phoenix.

Curtis was an excellent guide on our trek to the summit of Camelback Mountain. Curtis provided excellent instruction along with food, water and gloves for our hike. As novices for this type of hike, Curtis was indispensable and provided us with instruction during our ascending and descending of Camelback Mountain. Curtis made the hike really enjoyable. Matt and Laura F.

We used this tour company to climb Camelback Mountain (2/21). Mike Hopkins was our guide. He was outstanding. It was worthwhile to get all the pictures he captured as precious memories. A part of me wonders if we would have turned back without his help. This is NOT an easy climb. Mike is an incredible athlete who runs ultramarathons. Rest assured, if one of us twisted an ankle he would have thrown you over his shoulder and carried you down all the while explaining the different types of rocks during the descent. We appreciated all the history, geography and pointers during the climb. Finally, sorry we went to the wrong start location.

I had such an amazing experience with Mike Hopkins as my guide! He was extremely knowledgeable and kept encouraging me as we climbed Camelback. i had no idea what I was getting myself into lol but he was so patient and kind and funny too! & took AMAZING PHOTOS!

We had a great experience hiking with Doug! We made it to the top with his support and knowledge and had some awesome photo ops along the way. Also learned a lot about the area and hiking. Would 10/10 recommend this hike with this company!

Mike was an amazinggggg guide! Super fun and just such a great spirit! Happy I had him to cheer me in when i wanted to quit (which was numerous times lol)

our hike with mike h. was great! he was very knowledgeable and very conversational. he also took so many amazing photos for us so we could focus on the hike and enjoy the views. we were able to move up the time of our hike to see the sunrise and it was 100% worth it. mike also gave us other recommendations of things to do in the area while in town. would definitely book with mad desert trekking again, can’t wait to come back!

The hike was incredible, difficult but worth it. Our guide Doug and a young lady (I’m so sorry I’m terrible with names) were awesome. Doug was a wealth of information and had so many fun facts about Arizona. If you’re up for challenge and some adventure you’ll love this tour. Ask for Doug 😊

It is a challenging adventure with an excellent and absolutely knowledgeable guide. Matt told me so many things about Camelback Mountain's history as well as the surrounding Phoenix metropolitan area.