Arizona’s Apache Trail Offers Canyons, Desert Lakes and Ghost Towns Along One Scenic Highway: Here’s what to know

State Route 88 departs from the edge of Apache Junction and cuts directly into the Superstition Mountains, tracing the Salt River corridor through Tonto National Forest. Towering saguaros flank the route on both sides as the road winds past a series of desert reservoirs, delivering canyon vistas, distant mesas and rugged desert hillsides around every bend. The paved portion is suitable for any standard vehicle, yet the landscape feels far more remote and untamed than the smooth asphalt suggests. The route connects a ghost town, a storied state park, dramatic lakeside cliffs and a tiny historic settlement before the pavement finally surrenders to dirt.

The road’s origins trace back to Native peoples who traveled the mountain corridor between desert lowlands and higher elevation terrain long before European settlement. In the early twentieth century, construction workers converted that ancient path into a wagon road for hauling supplies to build Roosevelt Dam, which was completed in 1911. The route was renamed the Apache Trail shortly after, honoring the Apache people associated with the Superstition Mountains. Original stonework and hand-cut drainage channels are still visible along certain sections. Just outside Apache Junction, the old gold rush settlement of Goldfield marks the boundary between suburban development and open desert — once past it, the city disappears and the cactus takes over. From there, the 320-acre Lost Dutchman State Park unfolds beneath the jagged Superstition peaks, named for the legend of a hidden gold mine somewhere in the range. Trails extend from the valley floor into the Superstition Wilderness, and after a wet winter the foothills bloom with wildflowers each spring. Hiking options range from the moderate 2.4-mile Treasure Loop Trail to the grueling Siphon Draw Trail, which ascends toward the Flatiron formation. Mountain bikers have a four-mile singletrack loop, and mule deer, javelina, coyotes and jackrabbits are regularly spotted along the trail edges. Beyond the park, the road tightens into sharp hairpin turns before dropping toward Canyon Lake, formed when Mormon Flat Dam was built in 1925. The smallest of the Salt River reservoirs, its narrow channel squeezed between sheer cliff walls makes it the most visually striking. Desert bighorn sheep occasionally appear on the rock faces above the lake, and wild horses have been spotted grazing near the shoreline. Further along sits Tortilla Flat, a settlement dating to around 1904 that once served as a stagecoach stop. With a current population of six, its weathered wooden buildings preserve an Old West character that most Arizona towns abandoned long ago. A few miles past Tortilla Flat, the pavement ends entirely, giving way to a more remote and rugged desert landscape where prickly pear, towering agave, distant mesas and open wilderness stretch to the horizon.

Water and desert sharing the same frame is unusual for this part of Arizona, and it makes the whole route feel like two landscapes pressed together.

Drivers can access State Route 88 by heading east from Phoenix on US 60 to Apache Junction, then exiting at Idaho Road and turning north. The paved section runs from Apache Junction to just beyond Tortilla Flat near milepost 213 and presents no difficulty for ordinary passenger cars. Spring offers the most pleasant conditions, with mild temperatures and the possibility of wildflower blooms, while summer heat regularly exceeds 100 degrees. Travelers should note that SR 88 is currently closed between Fish Creek Vista at milepost 222 and the Roosevelt Dam access road at milepost 240.3 due to storm-damage repairs. Current road conditions are available at az511.gov.