The White Tank Mountain Regional Park is a large

regional park A regional park is an area of land preserved on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, recreational use or other reason, and under the administration of a form of local government. Definition A regional park can be a special park distri ...

located in west-central

Maricopa County, Arizona Maricopa County is in the south-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 4,420,568, making it the state's most populous county, and List of the most populous counties in the ...

. Encompassing of desert and mountain landscape, it is the largest regional park in the county. The bulk of the

White Tank Mountains The White Tank Mountains are a mountain range in central Arizona. The mountains are on the western periphery of the Phoenix metropolitan area, primarily flanked by the suburban cities of Buckeye to the southwest, and Surprise to the northeast. ...

range is located within the park's boundaries.

Activities

The developed portion of the park provides a number of outdoor recreational activities. Ramadas (generally shaded tables), picnic areas and campgrounds are available and often used for informal gathering places. Several of the campground areas are available for RV access and are semi-developed, including picnic tables, barbecue grills and restroom facilities equipped with showers. The park is better renowned for its extensive network of

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

trails. Nearly of hiking trails wind through the terrain in the park, ranging in difficulty from a simple walk to moderately challenging. The most commonly used is the Waterfall trail, a walk that culminates in a narrow canyon featuring a seasonal waterfall. Bicycling and horseback riding are permitted on many of the trails. In addition to the network of hiking trails, the competitive track is designed for "high speeds, challenging one's skills, and racing". Clear weather typical of the desert environment combined with darker skies due to the semirural setting provide for stargazing and amateur

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

opportunities. The park hosts an organized stargazing event at various dates through the year. A number of other organized events take place regularly during the year, including interpretive nature hikes, guided health walks, and youth-oriented events.

White Tank Library and Nature Center

Opened in 2010 and located at the park's entrance, the White Tank Library and Nature Center is housed in a 29,000-square-foot LEED-certified building. The library features a large viewing area of the park. The nature center includes live native reptiles, an information center, and a gift shop. Nature education programs are offered for children, families, and adults.

Environment and history

The park encompasses a large swath of desert and mountain environment and doubles as a

natural preserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

. The majority of the park is undeveloped wilderness prohibiting motorized vehicles except on existing roads. Hiking throughout the majority of the park is also restricted to marked trails. Some

hunting Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, horn/antler, ...

is permitted within the park boundaries, but subject to restriction. A number of local, indigenous species inhabit the park and are often spotted by park visitors, such as

mule deer The mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus'') is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which are large like those of the mule. Two subspecies of mule deer are grouped into the black-tailed deer. Unlike the related whi ...

coyotes The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecological nich ...

, and

javelina A peccary (also javelina or skunk pig) is a medium-sized, pig-like hoofed mammal of the family Tayassuidae (New World pigs). They are found throughout Central and South America, Trinidad in the Caribbean, and in the southwestern area of North ...

s, as well as several species of small rodents, and more rarely,

mountain lions The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. ...

. A number of bird species are also common, including the

roadrunner The roadrunners (genus ''Geococcyx''), also known as chaparral birds or chaparral cocks, are two species of fast-running ground cuckoos with long tails and crests. They are found in the southwestern and south-central United States and Mexico, us ...

and the

cactus wren The cactus wren (''Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus'') is a species of wren endemic to the deserts of the southwestern United States and northern and central Mexico. It is the state bird of Arizona, and the largest wren in the United States. ...

, the official state bird of Arizona. Being in the desert, the park is also home to many species of reptiles, as well. Guided hikes offered by the park service offer visitors an excellent opportunity to learn about and view the native

flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous (ecology), indigenous) native plant, native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is ''funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as ''Biota (ecology ...

. Although normally dry, the area is subject to sudden and sometimes severe

flash flooding A flash flood is a rapid flooding of low-lying areas: washes, rivers, dry lakes and depressions. It may be caused by heavy rain associated with a severe thunderstorm, hurricane, or tropical storm, or by meltwater from ice or snow flowing ov ...

in the narrow

canyons A canyon (from ; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), or gorge, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tendency to cu ...

that run through the mountains, particularly during thunderstorms common in the late summer. While this creates a potential hazard situation, the appearance of temporary waterfalls in the rugged terrain is a seasonal attraction to park visitors.

Hohokam civilization

The mountains are also home to a number of archaeological sites, with 11 having been identified within the park boundaries, including seven Hohokam villages that were occupied between 500 and 1100 CE. The Black Rock Trail provides access to the remnants of one of these villages, although the remnants are not well preserved and often overlooked by casual visitors. More readily apparent are a number of

petroglyphs A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

scattered throughout the park. Most are of Hohokam origin, but some may have been created nearly 10,000 years ago, by Meso-Indians. Park visitors are encouraged to photograph petroglyphs or other archaeological remains, but park regulations prohibit touching or otherwise disturbing them. Image:Spiderweb petroglyph on the Waterfall Trail in the White Tank Mountains, Arizonia.jpg Image:Chipping petroglyph on Waterfall Trail in the White Tank Mountains.jpg Image:Minor petroglyph.jpg Image:07 white tank mountain.jpg

Urban sprawl encroachment

The White Tank Regional Park is located on the western fringe of the

Phoenix metropolitan area The Phoenix Metropolitan Area – also the Valley of the Sun, the Salt River Valley, or Metro Phoenix (known by most locals simply as “the Valley”) – is the largest metropolitan area in the Southwestern United States, centered on the city ...

, and abuts the rapidly growing suburbs of Buckeye and Surprise. The rapid growth of these cities along with plans by various developers to construct large residential developments in the park's proximity has alarmed some

environmentalists An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with and/or advocates for the protection of the environment. An environmentalist can be considered a supporter of the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that se ...

and park officials worried that the human impact may disrupt the area's

ecology Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overl ...

. Surprise is adjacent to the park's north and east borders; in response to the environmental concerns, city planners have identified the White Tank Mountains and the adjoining desert environment's preservation as one of the most critical planning issues in their general plan. To that end, the plan includes a

greenbelt A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges, which h ...

"buffer" between residential development and the park. Critics respond that the park will still suffer the effects of being isolated from surrounding areas, becoming in effect an ecological island.

References

External links

White Tank Mountain Regional Park homepage
*
TrailDEX
– Interactive Trail Map
White Tank Library & Nature Center
{{Coord, 33.5882664, -112.548349, display=title Petroglyphs in Arizona Parks in Maricopa County, Arizona Regional parks in the United States Parks in Arizona Nature centers in Arizona Hohokam rock art sites Protected areas of the Sonoran Desert Protected areas of Maricopa County, Arizona