Hey Rich, thanks for hitting me up and I apologize for the late response. After a bit more research and some serious soul searching concerning the kind of riding I'd like to do, I think I'm going to switch to doing the Coconino trail. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but everything of the AZT between Phoenix and Tucson I looked up left me with the impression that it was a lot of rough terrain and hike a bike. I like technical trail as much as anybody, but I don't want to push my bike for 50+ miles either.

The Coconino seems to jump on the AZT for around 30 to 40 miles then dips southwest towards Sedona. All of that area is landscape I've always loved about Arizona and the Coconino seems to be in the heart of it. All the articles seem to be great concerning the type of riding one encounters out there and I'm ready for the challenge.

With that being said, I'm certainly down for riding buddies. I'll be out in AZ from October 27th through November 5th, so I have a pretty decent window of riding time. If anybody knows anything about Coconino or wants to tag along for any sections (especially if you know what you're doing), I'd welcome the company.

Well, in that case, anybody have some more specific advice for a good route between the Phoenix and Tucson segments of the trail? I was planning on starting out at the trailhead just south of the superstition mountains, but I'm a bit lost as to what's actually rideable and how much will be hike a bike.

Awesome. I'm doing some route adjustments and am looking at doing phoenix to Tucson and back probably. I'm aware it starts to cool down a fair bit in late October once you get into the Flagstaff area. My dates are approximately October 26th through the first few days of November.

I should of mentioned that. I plan on starting from south to north, however I am open to route alterations or any bright ideas for a 300 to 400 mile section to ride!

Aloha,

I'm in the planning process of doing the first half of AZT in late October/Early November. I will probably stop close to Phoenix, as my family lives there and I will be flying out from there.

I'm on the lookout for a potential riding buddy, advice, stories or anything you'd like to share concerning the trail. From everything I've read, I'm a touch confused about some of the routes and a little anxious about attempting to fly it solo. This will be my first long distance bike packing trip, and basically, I don't want to die.

So hit me up if you have anything to offer, or if you plan on riding it yourself during that time period.

I'll be 30 by the time I'm out there, and this is sort of a first step into a much larger world or bike exploration. I'm certainly no newbie when it comes to bikes. I've been riding forever, am a relatively skilled mountain biker and a trained bike mechanic. However, travel logistics are a weak point of mine, so having a bit of reference and advice would be a really big help.