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Desperado Loop

Easy/Intermediate Easy/Intermediate
 4.6 (66)
  1. Areas
  2. AZ
  3. …Southern Arizona and Tucson
  4. …Tucson
  5. Sweetwater Preserve
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“A nice, non-technical, flowing section, great for a warm-up or an awesome finish to a longer ride. ”

Jason Wild
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3.6

Miles

5.8

KM
Singletrack

2,561' 781 m

High

2,405' 733 m

Low

231' 70 m

Up

175' 53 m

Down

2%

Avg Grade (1°)

7%

Max Grade (4°)

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Not Allowed

Family Friendly Not too technical so it's a great beginner section that gets you into the nice desert area.

Description

This loop is a nice way to add more miles to the counterclockwise Sweetwater Trail System featured ride on the way back to the parking lot.

This loop trail is a faster, more flowing section with topography for pumps. This trail unfortunately skips some of the fun but adds a little more technical downhill than what Wildflower Ridge Trail provides. It descends towards the apex of the loop and climbs back to the parking lot ridge.

Contacts

Local Club: Sonoran Desert Mountain Bicyclists

Land Manager: Pima County - Natural Resources, Parks and Recreation

Shared By:

Jason Wild with improvements by Britt Adams and 1 other
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  4.6 from 66 votes

#1

in Sweetwater Preserve

#89

Overall
  4.6 from 66 votes
5 Star
68%
4 Star
27%
3 Star
3%
2 Star
2%
1 Star
0%
Trail Rankings

#1

in Sweetwater Preserve

#5

in Arizona

#89

Overall
58 Views Last Month
4,301 Since Aug 5, 2016
Easy/Intermediate Easy/Intermediate
40%
26%
31%
0%
2%
2%
Add a Photo

Photos

Zippin' down the line
Feb 14, 2021 near Flowing…, AZ
Enjoy a taste of riding among the giant saguaros on narrow singletrack.
Feb 14, 2017 near Flowing…, AZ
Take a lap on the Desperado Loop to experience fun, flowy singletrack.
Feb 17, 2017 near Flowing…, AZ
Zippin' down the trail #3
Feb 14, 2021 near Flowing…, AZ
Zippin' down the trail #2
Feb 14, 2021 near Flowing…, AZ
A desperado on Desperado.
Apr 5, 2020 near Flowing…, AZ

4 Comments

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Weather

Current Trail Conditions

All Clear 17 days ago
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Check-Ins

Sep 6, 2025
af voltron
This is the fourth time I've ridden Desperado Loop with my kids. My youngest(9) has a tough time on some of the sections, but we have always made i… 4mi
Mar 27, 2024
Matt Hage
Fun ride with my 7yo son 3.6mi
Jan 10, 2024
Michael Genau
Jun 8, 2023
Courtney Payne
Dec 24, 2022
Mountain Park
3.6mi — 0h 45m
Feb 24, 2022
mike kelly
3 loops desperado, wildflower, oxbow, night hawk. Please yield to other users our continued access might depend on it. 12mi
Feb 22, 2022
Andy Hubble
Always dig this ride, but a little crowded today 4mi — 32h 20m
Jan 21, 2022
Rock On
lots of hikers with dogs

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