Juniper Mesa 2025

Juniper Mesa Wilderness is a rugged area and a bit off the beaten path. Getting to the trailhead is a challenge because the signage on the road isn’t great and there are a few spots along the trail where you can get lost. If lost, just head for the mesa and you eventually come to a fence line that the trail follows.

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Don’t expect to find many hikers on the trail; we were there on a Saturday and only met two other hikers.

The trail begins off County Road 125, but you can’t see the sign till after you turn, and if you blink you’ll miss it, as it is weathered and shot-up. Shortly after the sign you’ll pass by the Walnut Creek Center for Education and Research, about seven miles from the trailhead.

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Those who find their way there and are able to stay on the trail will find it well worthwhile for the trees: huge alligator junipers. I’ve been on many trails with entertaining alligator junipers, but not any with the multitude of big junipers that the Oaks and Willows Trail in the Juniper Mesa Wilderness offers. One forested area had such large specimens that it was like being in an enchanted forest in a Harry Potter movie.

There is a good variety of other trees along the Oaks and Willows Trail as well. Pinyon pine and Utah juniper dominate the southern slopes of the mesa, while Ponderosa pine and alligator juniper are more prevalent on the northern slopes. Some of the big junipers are a thousand years old. There many kinds of oaks, but here willows are pretty sparse, making one wonder how the trail was named.

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Oaks and Willows is one of Arizona Highways’ top 52 day hikes, with the lush forest as the biggest reason.

The trail begins at the north fork of dry Walnut Creek on the George Wood Canyon Trail. You’ll soon come to the junction with the Bull Springs Trail and the Oaks and Willow Trail. Once you reach the fence line you drop down into George Woods Canyon, and the rest of the trail is mostly forested, with some downed logs as good places to rest, snack and lunch.

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Much has changed since I was on this trail a few years back. Last time the wilderness sign was standing erect and in typical good shape. This time the years and weather had taken its toll on the sign, and it had fallen off. Someone had put it back up, but it was dangling. I was able to hold the sign before putting it back up a bit more firmly.

Just like the years had its impact on the sign, it also has taken my hiking ability down a few notches. Last time I was here I hiked the 11.5 miles; this time I only did about five miles round-trip.

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Part of it was my hiking shape. Part of it was losing the trail for a bit, and part of it was I was with videographer Kyle Ward, shooting video for our next episode of Preserving Arizona Wilderness. Shooting video means frequent stops for video and audio.

On our shorter hike we climbed from 5,600 to 6,400 feet, most of it out in the open; thankfully it was a cool, windy, cloudy day.

The Oaks and Willow Trail tops out at 7,702 feet, offering lots of wildlife and vegetation along the way. The geology is also diverse, with limestone, sandstone, granite and basalt.

The 7,406-acre Juniper Mesa Wilderness was established in 1984 and is managed as part of the Prescott National Forest. The mesa is about an hour's drive northwest of Prescott in the Juniper Mountains.

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This remoteness means you are more likely to see the local wildlife, which includes wild turkey, bear, elk, mule deer, bobcat, coyote, gray fox, badger and Abert's squirrel.

Steep canyons cut through the mesa. Views to the south and east include Apache Creek Wilderness and parts of the Granite Mountain, Woodchute, and Sycamore Canyon wilderness areas.

The vegetation includes mountain mahogany, skunkbush and manzanita. There’s plenty of cactus to avoid here as well.

It’s a birder’s paradise, with hawks, golden eagles, yellow-billed cuckoos, songbirds and bats. Keep your eyes peeled for snakes, too — Mexican garter snakes are common here, and rattlesnakes are not out of the question.