Did this hike right after finishing Camelback Mountain this morning. I drove past the Mesquite TH lot and ended parking at the one at the end of the road, added a short half-mile on the Freedom Trail/302 each way. So warm and sunny, a little breezy, perfect day. Trail decently crowded, took me about two hours to finish. When I was driving away around 11:30am all parking spots were full at every lot, crazy for a weekday. If I lived in Phoenix, I would hike this every week! Spectacular view of Camelback Mtn. too! I found the USGS marker at the top.

If I had more time I would have done the Freedom Trail/302 loop too, but I was trying for a hat-trick and started driving to Quartz Peak… Hit a long delay for an accident cleanup on I-10, never-ending construction delays on Cotton Ln, and then the dirt road portion of W Riggs Rd takes forever so I turned around rather than committing to finishing in the dark. I'll have to come back for it. The dirt road to the Quartz Peak TH is Subaru-able for at least the first three miles, just very slow going (10-20mph). Saw some people camping along the dirt road, and a roadrunner.