Arizona Legislature may help make life a little easier on the 800-mile Arizona Trail

By Ron Dungan
Published: Wednesday, February 23, 2022 - 5:58pm
Updated: Thursday, February 24, 2022 - 9:27am

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 Arizona Trail
Ron Dungan/KJZZ
The Arizona Trail runs about 800 miles from Mexico to the Utah border.

The Arizona Trail runs about 800 miles from Mexico to the Utah border, and the Legislature may make the process of hiking it a little more pleasant.

The trail has an abundance of scenery, but it can be short on water and hard to reach in places.

The Legislature has helped with funding in the past but limited its support to trail construction.

House Bill 2789 would allow for the financing of things such as water sources, signs and better public access.

Matthew Nelson, executive director of the Arizona Trail Association, said that the Legislature has not contributed a lot of money to the trail over the years, but lawmakers on both sides of the isle have been supportive.

“My experience has always been that the Arizona Trail is this very, you know, nonpartisan, non-contentious issue, that whether it’s funding related or this bill, it’s something that’s really brought people together,” he said.

House Speaker Rusty Bowers is one of the sponsors of the bill, which passed the House Appropriations Committee last week.

arizona trail marker in Flagstaff
Stina Sieg/KJZZ
Arizona Trail marker in Flagstaff.

Environment