Tawa Trail
in Arizona
Tawa Point to Painted Desert Visitor Center 1.2 miles (1.9 km) one way Enjoy the tranquility of the grassland as the trail leads you from scenic Tawa Point to the Painted Desert Visitor Center. The Tawa Trail is a perfect place to stretch your legs after a long road trip. In Hopi ideology, Tawa refers to the Sun Spirit, the Creator of the World.
The Hopi are one of several current Native American groups who are connected to the rich, varied history of Petrified Forest. Groomed surface Elevation gain: 81 ft (24 m) Elevation loss: 28 ft (8.5 m) Accessibility information: Meets standards for outdoor developed areas. Typical grade 2.3% with grades up to 8.3% Typical cross slope: 2% Max cross slope: 5% Typical tread width: 60 in (152.4 cm) No obstacles
- States
- Arizona
- Trail type
- National Park trail
- Centroid nearest city
- Flagstaff, AZ · 106 mi · ~3.1 hr drive
- Centroid coords
- 35.0798°, -109.7836°
About Petrified Forest National Park
This trail is inside Petrified Forest National Park, a national park managed by the U.S. National Park Service. Conditions, road status, trail closures, and reservation requirements are published on the park's NPS page — check it before driving in, especially in winter or during major weather events.
Entrance fee: $25 per vehicle (verify current rate on the park page). An America the Beautiful annual pass ($80) covers entrance to all NPS units.
Official NPS trail page: https://www.nps.gov/places/tawa-trail.htm
Park homepage: https://www.nps.gov/pefo/index.htm
Plan your hike
Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.
Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.
When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.
If you've hiked Tawa Trail and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.
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Off the Beaten Path Billings Gap Overlook Route Stop 4
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Off the Beaten Path Billings Gap Overlook Route Stop 5
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Sources
Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.