Parking
Park at the Bonita Creek picnic area beside the loop.
Overview
About Bonita Creek Loop
Why go
- Flat, paved, and wheelchair accessible
- Good short walk for grassland birds and spring flowers
Heads up
- Only 0.2 mile; it stays around the picnic area
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Chiricahua map
Full mapElevation5,141–5,164 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
3 active Chiricahua alerts
- CautionRabies warning for wild animalsRabies has been detected in Southeast Arizona; do not approach, feed, or touch wild animals.Official details
- InfoVehicle and trailer limits on Bonita Canyon DriveCheck vehicle length before continuing past Faraway Ranch Parking; there is no large-vehicle turnaround farther up Bonita Canyon Drive. The road narrows and winds steeply up the mountain.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Chiricahua Tour Guide
Your drive to Bonita Creek Loop, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Chiricahua National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
Bonita Creek Picnic Area0:00 / 0:26
“You're coming up on Bonita Creek Picnic Area, a useful stop for lunch and an easy stretch of the legs. The level, paved loop is just a fifth of a mile and is wheelchair accessible.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Chiricahua Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Erickson Cemetery
- Faraway Ranch and Stafford Cabin
- Ranching by Touch
- A Jay Family at Work
- 26 audio storiesacross Chiricahua’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Black Bear, White-nosed Coati, White-tailed Deer, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 14 trails, 17 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Bonita Creek Loop
A short, accessible circuitBonita Creek Loop is a 0.
Bonita Creek Loop is a 0.2-mile paved circuit around the Bonita Creek picnic area, through open grassland beside the intermittent creek. It is level and wheelchair accessible; allow 15 to 30 minutes. This is an easy leg-stretcher and a good short birding walk, rather than a hike into the park's main rock-tower trails.
Grassland blooms and wildlifeLook for Apache plume and prickly poppy in spring and early summer.
Look for Apache plume and prickly poppy in spring and early summer. Grassland birds are a main reason to take this loop. Arizona whitetail deer are often seen in lower Bonita Canyon, though a deer sighting isn't guaranteed on this short circuit.
Start at the picnic areaThe loop begins at Bonita Creek picnic-area parking, where you'll also find picnic tables and…
The loop begins at Bonita Creek picnic-area parking, where you'll also find picnic tables and pit toilets. There is no drinking water here. Pets are allowed on the trail and must stay leashed.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Chiricahua
20 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
150 sightingsWhite-nosed CoatiMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
184 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
22 sightingsMojave RattlesnakeMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
16 sightingsWestern Diamond-backed RattlesnakeMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
12 sightingsRock RattlesnakeMost seen around 5 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Chiricahua. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
