Pinnacle Peak (Arizona)
Encyclopedia
Pinnacle Peak is a granite
summit
located in Scottsdale, Arizona
. The peak rises 600 feet from the valley floor, coming to an elevation of feet. It is located within the 150-acre Pinnacle Peak Park, operated by the City of Scottsdale Park District. Part of the Sonoran Desert
, the park is home to a variety of flora
and fauna
, including saguaro
cacti and gila monster
s. Hikers utilize a 1.75 mile trail to explore the area, though rock climbing
is needed to reach the summit.
for hunting and food gathering. Later, settlers began to use the area for ranching and mining
, with homes gradually being built within sight of Pinnacle Peak.
Pinnacle Peak and its surrounding area were became a part of the Arizona State Trust Land. In the 1980s, the area was annexed
into Scottsdale and was established as a 185-acre park. In 1994, 35 acres were sold to a housing developer
in exchange for the funding and construction of the park's main trail. After being closed for six years due to the development, the park reopened on April 20, 2002.
leads visitors around the peak. As it is not a loop trail, hikers need to return the way they came, making for a 3.5 mile round trip hike. The park has provided benches along the trail along with mileage
and informational signs. The trail utilizes many switchbacks
; the elevation at the trailhead is 2,570 feet, with the lowest point at 2,366 feet, and the highest point measuring 2,889 feet. Half a mile from the trail head, the trail opens up to a scenic look-out called "Grandview."
. According to the Scottsdale Park District, the 150 acre park "is an ideal habitat
for a variety of native plants such as saguaros, cholla cactus, creosote plant
s, and for creatures such as bobcat
s, gila monster
s and western diamondback rattlesnakes."
Mammals spotted on Pinnacle Peak include woodrats, mountain lions, coyote
s, grey foxes, mule deer
, rock squirrel
s, javelina, and desert cottontail
. Reptiles recorded on the peak include gila monster
s, desert tortoise
, chuckwalla
, desert spiny lizard
s, and a variety of snakes, including western diamondback rattlesnakes
, black-tailed rattlesnakes, gopher snakes, common kingsnakes, coral snake
s, and coachwhips.
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
summit
Summit (topography)
In topography, a summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. Mathematically, a summit is a local maximum in elevation...
located in Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale is a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, adjacent to Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2010 the population of the city was 217,385...
. The peak rises 600 feet from the valley floor, coming to an elevation of feet. It is located within the 150-acre Pinnacle Peak Park, operated by the City of Scottsdale Park District. Part of the Sonoran Desert
Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert is a North American desert which straddles part of the United States-Mexico border and covers large parts of the U.S. states of Arizona and California and the northwest Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur. It is one of the largest and hottest...
, the park is home to a variety of flora
Flora
Flora is the plant life occurring in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring or indigenous—native plant life. The corresponding term for animals is fauna.-Etymology:...
and fauna
Fauna
Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...
, including saguaro
Saguaro
The saguaro is a large, tree-sized cactus species in the monotypic genus Carnegiea. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in the U.S. state of Arizona, the Mexican state of Sonora, a small part of Baja California in the San Felipe Desert and an extremely small area of California, U.S...
cacti and gila monster
Gila monster
The Gila monster is a species of venomous lizard native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexican state of Sonora...
s. Hikers utilize a 1.75 mile trail to explore the area, though rock climbing
Rock climbing
Rock climbing also lightly called 'The Gravity Game', is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a pre-defined route without falling...
is needed to reach the summit.
History
The area around Pinnacle Peak was used by the HohokamHohokam
Hohokam is one of the four major prehistoric archaeological Oasisamerica traditions of what is now the American Southwest. Many local residents put the accent on the first syllable . Variant spellings in current, official usage include Hobokam, Huhugam and Huhukam...
for hunting and food gathering. Later, settlers began to use the area for ranching and mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
, with homes gradually being built within sight of Pinnacle Peak.
Pinnacle Peak and its surrounding area were became a part of the Arizona State Trust Land. In the 1980s, the area was annexed
Annexation
Annexation is the de jure incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity . Usually, it is implied that the territory and population being annexed is the smaller, more peripheral, and weaker of the two merging entities, barring physical size...
into Scottsdale and was established as a 185-acre park. In 1994, 35 acres were sold to a housing developer
Real estate development
Real estate development, or Property Development, is a multifaceted business, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of improved land or parcels to others...
in exchange for the funding and construction of the park's main trail. After being closed for six years due to the development, the park reopened on April 20, 2002.
Trail
A 1.75 mile trailTrail
A trail is a path with a rough beaten or dirt/stone surface used for travel. Trails may be for use only by walkers and in some places are the main access route to remote settlements...
leads visitors around the peak. As it is not a loop trail, hikers need to return the way they came, making for a 3.5 mile round trip hike. The park has provided benches along the trail along with mileage
Mileage
-Motor Vehicles:* Fuel economy in automobiles * Distance travelled as measured by an odometer...
and informational signs. The trail utilizes many switchbacks
Hairpin turn
A hairpin turn , named for its resemblance to a hairpin/bobby pin, is a bend in a road with a very acute inner angle, making it necessary for an oncoming vehicle to turn almost 180° to continue on the road. Such turns in ramps and trails may be called switchbacks in American English, by analogy...
; the elevation at the trailhead is 2,570 feet, with the lowest point at 2,366 feet, and the highest point measuring 2,889 feet. Half a mile from the trail head, the trail opens up to a scenic look-out called "Grandview."
Wildlife
Pinnacle Peak is home to a diverse variety of wildlifeWildlife
Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants, animals and other organisms. Domesticating wild plant and animal species for human benefit has occurred many times all over the planet, and has a major impact on the environment, both positive and negative....
. According to the Scottsdale Park District, the 150 acre park "is an ideal habitat
Habitat (ecology)
A habitat is an ecological or environmental area that is inhabited by a particular species of animal, plant or other type of organism...
for a variety of native plants such as saguaros, cholla cactus, creosote plant
Creosote bush
Larrea tridentata is known as Creosote bush as a plant, chaparral as a medicinal herb, and as "gobernadora" in Mexico, Spanish for "governess," due to its ability for inhibiting the growth of nearby plants to have more water. In Sonora, it is more commonly called "hediondilla." It is a flowering...
s, and for creatures such as bobcat
Bobcat
The bobcat is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, appearing during the Irvingtonian stage of around 1.8 million years ago . With twelve recognized subspecies, it ranges from southern Canada to northern Mexico, including most of the continental United States...
s, gila monster
Gila monster
The Gila monster is a species of venomous lizard native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexican state of Sonora...
s and western diamondback rattlesnakes."
Mammals spotted on Pinnacle Peak include woodrats, mountain lions, coyote
Coyote
The coyote , also known as the American jackal or the prairie wolf, is a species of canine found throughout North and Central America, ranging from Panama in the south, north through Mexico, the United States and Canada...
s, grey foxes, mule deer
Mule Deer
The mule deer is a deer indigenous to western North America. The Mule Deer gets its name from its large mule-like ears. There are believed to be several subspecies, including the black-tailed deer...
, rock squirrel
Rock Squirrel
The rock squirrel is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is found in Mexico and the United States. It is 43–53 cm long.-External links:**...
s, javelina, and desert cottontail
Desert Cottontail
The Desert Cottontail , also known as Audubon's Cottontail, is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae....
. Reptiles recorded on the peak include gila monster
Gila monster
The Gila monster is a species of venomous lizard native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexican state of Sonora...
s, desert tortoise
Desert Tortoise
The desert tortoise is a species of tortoise native to the Mojave desert and Sonoran desert of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. They can be located in western Arizona, southeastern California, southern Nevada, and southwestern Utah. The species name agassizii is in honor of...
, chuckwalla
Chuckwalla
Chuckwallas are large lizards found primarily in arid regions of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Some are found on coastal islands...
, desert spiny lizard
Sceloporus magister
Sceloporus magister, also known as the desert spiny lizard, is a reptile of the family Phrynosomatidae, which is native to the Chihuahuan Desert and the Sonoran Desert.-Geographic range:...
s, and a variety of snakes, including western diamondback rattlesnakes
Crotalus atrox
Crotalus atrox, the "western diamondback rattlesnake", is a venomous rattlesnake species found in the United States and Mexico. It is likely responsible for the majority of snakebite fatalities in northern Mexico and the second greatest number in the USA after C. adamanteus. No subspecies are...
, black-tailed rattlesnakes, gopher snakes, common kingsnakes, coral snake
Coral snake
The coral snakes are a large group of elapid snakes that can be subdivided into two distinct groups, Old World coral snakes and New World coral snakes...
s, and coachwhips.
See also
- Scottsdale, ArizonaScottsdale, ArizonaScottsdale is a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, adjacent to Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2010 the population of the city was 217,385...