Dart Route descriptions
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Mike Sturgill
Jan 12, 2026, 10:26:35 AMJan 12
to AZR Teams
Hello Rouleurs!
I have listed 8 routes as possible starting points for the Dart Pop on its web PAGE. You are free to choose, or ignore, any of these routes. I put them together so that riders unfamiliar with the area would have a starting point for a route, if they choose. Since there is now a discussion going on regarding route selection, I thought I'd give everyone a brief description of each of these routes.
Highlands Tour (3750'): HERE
The Cave Creek and Carefree Highlands are a gem of an area to ride. The elevation there is roughly 1000' higher than Phoenix. Those areas butt up against the mountains and this route does a lot of up-and-down. If you look closely, you'll see that the route is extremely circuitous. This is intentional. When out of town riders visit, this is the route I like to take them on so that they can see the desert beauty. Many of the climbs are challenging. We have a Permanent similar to this route and there are an insane number of controls! But, if you're verifying with a GPS track, then you just need to follow your track and enjoy the scenery! If you enjoy climbing, this is your route.
Whistlin' Dixie Plus (2000'): HERE
This route has 2 distinct loops. The first loops to the west side of town taking in some quiet residential streets. The west & east feeder roads have bike lanes, but can be trafficky, depending on the time of day. This loop is flat as a pancake. The second loop heads north to Carefree. This route rides by the actual hills, but does take riders on what we call "The Lowlands" route thru Carefree. You will get to see some of the beauty while zipping down the gentle descent there. The route tends downhill from there. There are no climbs to fear on this route.
Fountain Hills Loop (3240'): HERE
This route samples some of the more popular areas that we ride locally - Cave Creek, Legend Trail, Nine Mile Hill (down), Rio Verde and Fountain Hills. This route has a moderate amount of climbing with the steepest sections being in Fountain (and nothing but) Hills. As you descend 9 mile hill, you're afforded some spectacular views of Four Peaks and the mountains east of The Valley. McDowell Mountain Rd is one of our "bicycle highways" with hundreds of cyclist riding it during weekend. It is also where mountain bikers get to McDowell Mtn Park with nearly endless trails. Most of the climbing is gentle, but there are some steep climbs to get your attention.
McDowell Circumvention (3490'): HERE
This route does exactly what it's name implies, it circumvents the McDowell Mountains. It is similar to the Fountain Hills Loop (FHL) described above, but goes mostly in the opposite direction of FHL. On the bike, it looks and feels quite different from FHL, but the ride description is nearly the same. This route does go right by the 4th tallest Fountain in the US. If you're lucky, you will be there when it goes off, 15 minutes every hour. The climbs are generally more gentle in this direction, however.
New River Loop (1780'): HERE
This is a large flat-ish loop that rides thru the "town" of New River. RWGPS reports 1800' of climbing, but I don't know where that comes from. There's no climbing to speak of on this route. The southerly area after New River rides along the New River wash and the Skunk Creek wash to get back to the finish.
Humboldt Mountain (5615'): HERE
This route is nearly identical to the Humboldt route offered on Monday of Rouleur week. For those who would like to experience this climb and a bit of hard packed dirt, but can't stay around thru Monday, here's your chance. This is definitely a climber's route. There is a gentle climb all the way to Cave Creek. From there, it gets a bit steeper but still quite steady (4%). Once you reach the Desert Highlands, you get into true desert climbs. They start short and steep and culminate with the 7 mile climb to the microwave tower at the summit of mile high Humboldt Mountain. You do get rewarded with spectacular 360 degree views. The best view of Horseshoe Reservoir is from this vantage point. After your photos are all taken, get ready for an e-Ticket descent! The 13% grades will test your brakes and your nerves. After you retrace the steep rollers, you will gradually descend all the way back to the finish.
North Valley Dart (2000'): HERE
This route is also nearly identical to the North Valley 125k being offered as one of the Rouleur routes on Feb 12th (my sister's birthday 🙂). There is a description of this route already in the web. If you're riding on Thursday, then you'll get to do the route again for your Dart. I suggest that if you're riding the Rouleur 125k, you skip this one.
Carefree Dart (3800'): HERE
This is an extended version of the EOP 100k route offered on Wed of Rouleur week. The route description may be found there. This extended route does ride the Sonoran Desert Parkway. It currently has (seemingly endless) construction going on and this may be more enjoyable ridden in the reverse direction.
I have listed 8 routes as possible starting points for the Dart Pop on its web PAGE. You are free to choose, or ignore, any of these routes. I put them together so that riders unfamiliar with the area would have a starting point for a route, if they choose. Since there is now a discussion going on regarding route selection, I thought I'd give everyone a brief description of each of these routes.
- All of these routes start/finish in the same location.
- All of the routes have an available 25km / 2 hour control listed.
- Some routes already have additional control locations listed, some do not. It is the riders' responsibility to finalize any route that they choose, including these.
- Routes may be used by more than one team. This is not ideal, but is allowed under the rules. If multiple teams choose the same route, their start times will be staggered because different teams are not allowed to ride together.
- Most of the "climbs" that you see on the RWGPS profiles are gentle 1-3% kinds of inclines. I call out exceptions to this in the descriptions below.
Highlands Tour (3750'): HERE
The Cave Creek and Carefree Highlands are a gem of an area to ride. The elevation there is roughly 1000' higher than Phoenix. Those areas butt up against the mountains and this route does a lot of up-and-down. If you look closely, you'll see that the route is extremely circuitous. This is intentional. When out of town riders visit, this is the route I like to take them on so that they can see the desert beauty. Many of the climbs are challenging. We have a Permanent similar to this route and there are an insane number of controls! But, if you're verifying with a GPS track, then you just need to follow your track and enjoy the scenery! If you enjoy climbing, this is your route.
Whistlin' Dixie Plus (2000'): HERE
This route has 2 distinct loops. The first loops to the west side of town taking in some quiet residential streets. The west & east feeder roads have bike lanes, but can be trafficky, depending on the time of day. This loop is flat as a pancake. The second loop heads north to Carefree. This route rides by the actual hills, but does take riders on what we call "The Lowlands" route thru Carefree. You will get to see some of the beauty while zipping down the gentle descent there. The route tends downhill from there. There are no climbs to fear on this route.
Fountain Hills Loop (3240'): HERE
This route samples some of the more popular areas that we ride locally - Cave Creek, Legend Trail, Nine Mile Hill (down), Rio Verde and Fountain Hills. This route has a moderate amount of climbing with the steepest sections being in Fountain (and nothing but) Hills. As you descend 9 mile hill, you're afforded some spectacular views of Four Peaks and the mountains east of The Valley. McDowell Mountain Rd is one of our "bicycle highways" with hundreds of cyclist riding it during weekend. It is also where mountain bikers get to McDowell Mtn Park with nearly endless trails. Most of the climbing is gentle, but there are some steep climbs to get your attention.
McDowell Circumvention (3490'): HERE
This route does exactly what it's name implies, it circumvents the McDowell Mountains. It is similar to the Fountain Hills Loop (FHL) described above, but goes mostly in the opposite direction of FHL. On the bike, it looks and feels quite different from FHL, but the ride description is nearly the same. This route does go right by the 4th tallest Fountain in the US. If you're lucky, you will be there when it goes off, 15 minutes every hour. The climbs are generally more gentle in this direction, however.
New River Loop (1780'): HERE
This is a large flat-ish loop that rides thru the "town" of New River. RWGPS reports 1800' of climbing, but I don't know where that comes from. There's no climbing to speak of on this route. The southerly area after New River rides along the New River wash and the Skunk Creek wash to get back to the finish.
Humboldt Mountain (5615'): HERE
This route is nearly identical to the Humboldt route offered on Monday of Rouleur week. For those who would like to experience this climb and a bit of hard packed dirt, but can't stay around thru Monday, here's your chance. This is definitely a climber's route. There is a gentle climb all the way to Cave Creek. From there, it gets a bit steeper but still quite steady (4%). Once you reach the Desert Highlands, you get into true desert climbs. They start short and steep and culminate with the 7 mile climb to the microwave tower at the summit of mile high Humboldt Mountain. You do get rewarded with spectacular 360 degree views. The best view of Horseshoe Reservoir is from this vantage point. After your photos are all taken, get ready for an e-Ticket descent! The 13% grades will test your brakes and your nerves. After you retrace the steep rollers, you will gradually descend all the way back to the finish.
North Valley Dart (2000'): HERE
This route is also nearly identical to the North Valley 125k being offered as one of the Rouleur routes on Feb 12th (my sister's birthday 🙂). There is a description of this route already in the web. If you're riding on Thursday, then you'll get to do the route again for your Dart. I suggest that if you're riding the Rouleur 125k, you skip this one.
Carefree Dart (3800'): HERE
This is an extended version of the EOP 100k route offered on Wed of Rouleur week. The route description may be found there. This extended route does ride the Sonoran Desert Parkway. It currently has (seemingly endless) construction going on and this may be more enjoyable ridden in the reverse direction.
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