Cave Creek, Arizona
Things to do.
Parks, museums, family days and nights out in Cave Creek, plus the Valley icons a short drive away. Something for tonight and something for the weekend.
Outdoors
Spur Cross Rd
Spur Cross Ranch Conservation Area
2,154 acres of canyon and plateau trails, with saguaros out there over 400 years old. The Spur Cross Trail loop runs about 3.6 miles.
N Cave Creek Rd
Cave Creek Regional Park
2,922 acres with more than 11 miles of trails open to hikers, mountain bikes and horses, plus a campground.
Easy St
Carefree Desert Gardens
Winding paths through desert planting in the middle of town, and the backdrop for most of Carefree's seasonal events.
Carefree
Black Mountain
The dark peak both towns sit under. The summit trail is short, steep and worth it for the Valley view at the top.
Rancho Manana Blvd
Rancho Manana Golf Club
Desert golf routed through the boulders, with Tonto Bar and Grill in the old adobe ranch house at the turn.
Spur Cross Rd
Arizona Horseback Adventures
Guided rides out of Spur Cross Rd. This is still horse country, and the easiest way to prove it.
About 20 miles east on Cave Creek Road
Bartlett Lake
A reservoir on the Verde River behind a 1939 dam, with boating, waterskiing, swimming, fishing and camping at the end of the drive out of town.
About 20 miles north of Carefree
Cave Creek Trailhead at Seven Springs
A day-use trailhead up Forest Road 24 with an easy walk along the creek and good bird watching in the riparian corridor. The last nine miles are gravel.
Carefree Desert Gardens
Carefree Yoga
Recurring outdoor yoga sessions in the Carefree Desert Gardens. Check the current class calendar and registration details before going.
Carefree Desert Gardens
Qigong and Tai Chi in the Gardens
Recurring qigong and tai chi sessions in the Carefree Desert Gardens, presented as all-ages practices for balance, strength and calm.
Carefree
Rackensack Canyon Tours
A Carefree recreational operator offering Jeep and helicopter tours on private land within Tonto National Forest.
Phoenix / Around the Valley
Camelback Mountain
The Valley's signature summit hike, 2,704 feet over the Sonoran Desert.
North Valley / Around the Valley
Lake Pleasant Regional Park
The Valley's big blue playground: boating, kayaking and desert coves up north.
Arts & culture
Skyline Dr
Cave Creek Museum
Art and artifacts from the Native American, mining, ranching and pioneer history of the Desert Foothills. Open October through May.
Sundial Circle
The Carefree Sundial
One of the largest sundials in the country. The dial stands 35 feet up, points at the North Star, and still tells the time by shadow.
Mustang Circle
Cave Creek BBQ School
Someone will teach you to smoke a brisket properly. In this town that is a life skill.
Stagecoach Village
Sonoran Arts League Center for the Arts
A nonprofit studio running painting, ceramics and fused glass workshops, open studio sessions, and free classes for veterans and first responders.
Cave Creek, Carefree and north Scottsdale
Hidden in the Hills Artist Studio Tour
A free self-guided tour over two November weekends that walks you into working artists' private studios, where you can buy straight from them.
Papago Park / Around the Valley
Desert Botanical Garden
50,000 desert plants and rotating shows like the Chihuly glass. Free the 2nd Tuesday monthly.
Phoenix / Around the Valley
Musical Instrument Museum
4,000+ instruments from every country on earth, routinely called the Valley's best museum.
Family fun
Vermeersch Rd
Desert Awareness Park
A small, shaded park built to teach you what you are actually looking at out here.
Cave Creek
Cave Creek Trail Rides
Trail rides for people who have never been on a horse and would like to change that.
Schoolhouse Rd
Desert Foothills Library
An independent community library with a full events calendar, not a branch of anything.
Cave Creek Rd
Frontier Town
A recreated old western main street that has been here more than 50 years, with a gallows, a boot hill, a row of small shops and a barbecue joint at the end.
Cave Creek Rd
Saturday drive-in movie at Big Earl's
A free old-fashioned drive-in movie every Saturday night outside the 1930s gas station Big Earl's lives in, with the retro candy shop right next door.
Carefree Desert Gardens
Kiwanis Splash Pad
A free splash pad in the heart of Carefree, currently listed by the town tourism site as open for the summer.
Carefree Desert Gardens
Carefree Playground
A garden play area with climbing structures, monkey bars, crawl spaces, a Gila monster slide and a little free library.
Papago Park / Around the Valley
Phoenix Zoo
Arizona's beloved nonprofit zoo, wild since 1962.
Downtown Phoenix / Around the Valley
Arizona Science Center
Hands-on STEM, a planetarium and a five-story screen downtown.
Nightlife & events
Cave Creek Rd
Bull riding at the Buffalo Chip
Real bull riding Wednesday and Friday nights, live music five nights a week, and free line dance lessons Tuesday and Sunday at 7.
Cave Creek Memorial Arena
Cave Creek Rodeo Days
The town's own arena hosts Cave Creek Rodeo Days along with the Turquoise Circuit Finals Rodeo and the Jessie Pettigrew Memorial Rodeo.
Stagecoach Village
Taste of Cave Creek
A two-evening food festival where dozens of local restaurants sell samples alongside a beer garden and live music in the gazebo.
Hours and prices change. Confirm with each spot before you head out. Looking for a bite after? Where to eat in Cave Creek.
Never wonder what to do.
The Cave Creek weekly rounds up what is happening, what is new and what is worth your weekend. Every Friday morning.
