Best Place to Hike

Telegraph Pass has been voted Yuma's Best Place to Hike.

But you've got to be in pretty good condition to hike the steep and winding trail, said Lori Stofft, director of marketing for The Sun, who has hiked it.

She believes the trail was voted Yuma's Best "because it tones your butt well ... I should do it more often."

And while the toes of your boots may be the only thing you'll see on the way up as you concentrate on your next step, there are "nice, multiple views" of Dome Valley, Yuma Valley, the Muggins Mountains and of the rest of the Gila Mountains straight south, she said.

"The descent is harrowing because it's so steep, but the view is great," she said.

The "trail" is actually a paved vehicle road that leads to a communications site at the top.

"The road is primarily there for access to the communications site, and it's not meant to be a recreational trail," said Aaron Curtis, outdoor recreation planner with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Yuma.

"If people do want to go on it, they need to proceed with extreme caution."

Not only is the road very steep, there are also numerous blind curves, so drivers might not necessarily see you coming, he warned. Or if a vehicle loses its brakes, that would be a problem for the driver as well as the hiker, he said.

The BLM is going to use the Yuma's Best vote as a point of discussion as to what will be done with the "trail" in the future," he said. One possibility is to develop an actual hiking trail that runs parallel to the road, he added.

For more information, the BLM can be reached at 317-3200.