South Mountain playground sprawls above the Valley

With more than 16,000 acres, South Mountain Park in Phoenix is the largest municipal park in the country. It's easy to take the park for granted, but that would be a mistake. There's plenty to do in this Sonoran Desert playground. You could spend days, even weeks, exploring the park and not see it all.

The mountainous terrain is home to javelina, quail, coyotes and many other desert creatures. It's an exceptional place to see wildflowers in the spring, and a fun place to ride horses, hike or mountain-bike any time.

Ride

See the desert on horseback. Ponderosa Stables offers trail rides by the hour or by the day. All one-hour rides are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Rides of two, three, four and eight hours are available by reservation. Lunch rides, featuring hamburger and hot-dog cookouts, are popular. Rides longer than an hour require a two-rider minimum and some riding ability. Ponderosa also offers hayrides. 10215 S. Central Ave. 602-268-1261, arizona-horses.com.

Hike

South Mountain has more than 50 miles of trails. The longest is the National, a 15.5-mile route that will take you all day to cover and requires most hikers to arrange for transportation at the end. Hike a shorter stretch of the trail, if you prefer. The 1-mile Kiwanis Trail and the 1.4-mile Ranger Trail can be reached from the Central Avenue entrance. Both uphill treks provide good scenery and a workout. Even though summer is over, the heat can still sneak up on you. Take plenty of water.

Eat

Los Dos Molinos has been serving New Mexican-style entrees for years. It uses chiles from Hatch, N.M., which make many of the dishes extremely hot. The salsa will rock your world. Try the red- or green-chile burros, the shredded-beef tacos and the enchiladas. 8684 S. Central Ave. (There also are three other locations in Phoenix, Mesa and Springerville.) 602-243-9113 or www.losdosmolinosaz .com.