Pronghorn Drive

Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, Southern Arizona

Some of Arizona’s roads are deceptively named. Take Rural Road in the Phoenix area, for example. If you’ve driven it in the past half-century or so, you know there’s no longer anything rural about it. But Pronghorn Drive isn’t one of those roads. It’s a scenic 10-mile loop at Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge in Southern Arizona, and it offers a chance to see its namesake ungulates, plus rare birds, rolling grasslands and an iconic peak.

Ironwood Forest

Ironwood Forest National Monument, Tucson

Desert ironwoods aren’t as iconic as saguaros, but the trees — officially known as Olneya tesota — are the unsung heroes of much of the Sonoran Desert. They can live for centuries in the scorching heat, they provide valuable shade for young saguaros and other desert flora, and their wood is among the hardest and densest in the world — hence the name.

Harquahala Mountain

Harquahala Mountains, near Wickenburg

The average 5-year-old, it’s been said, asks about 400 questions per day. But you can double that number by taking your child up Harquahala Mountain. I learn this when my son, Westley, comes along on my Arizona Highways assignment. As we tackle this rugged, challenging 10.5-mile drive, I hear queries that include: “How much farther?” “Is it always going to be this bumpy?” and “What if we get a flat tire?”

Lupton to Chinle

Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Navajo Nation

The Navajo Nation is big. Really big. At more than 27,000 square miles, it’s the largest of all tribal lands in the United States, and it includes parts of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. Since it’s such a big place, traveling through it often requires a lot of driving, and the 102-mile trip from Lupton to Chinle is no exception. But don’t be intimidated: You can do most of this drive at highway speeds, and the dramatic views and culture along the way are worth the extra miles on your odometer.

Moqui Stage Station

Kaibab National Forest, Tusayan

Unless you’re a time traveler or a re-enactor, your experience with stagecoaches is probably limited to films such as 3:10 to Yuma. But before trains came along, stagecoaches were a popular method of travel in the American West, and the history of Territorial Arizona is full of them. You’ll find a bit of that history at the end of this 19.4-mile drive south of the Grand Canyon, but the scenery along the way is worth the trip, too.

Blue Range Loop

Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests, Alpine

"It’s not how you start; it’s how you finish.” That’s the mantra of gym teachers and campaign consultants everywhere, but it also can apply to scenic drives. Take the Blue Range Loop, a 49-mile jaunt that starts and ends in the idyllic White Mountains town of Alpine. The first leg of the loop is dotted with reminders of the worst wildfire in Arizona’s recorded history. But beyond that are pristine forest and riparian areas, plus expansive views of one of the most remote and unspoiled places in the Southwest.

Ash Fork to Williams

Kaibab National Forest, Williams

Before there was the smooth, straight blacktop of Interstate 40 to ferry auto travelers across Northern Arizona, there was Route 66. And before Route 66, there was a little-known route called the National Old Trails Road. This coast-to-coast highway was established in 1912 to encourage auto touring, and it stretched for some 3,000 miles, from the East Coast to California.

Williamson Valley Road

Prescott to Seligman

In many parts of the country, strip malls and subdivisions have crept into rural areas that contain treasured remnants of the past. Williamson Valley Road offers a journey in the opposite direction — through once-bustling frontier communities far from the nearest big-box store. On its winding 70-mile path from Prescott to Seligman, the road takes you back to Arizona’s rowdy Territorial days. The spectacular scenery and hiking trails along the way are gravy.

Forest Road 618

Coconino National Forest, Verde Valley

For most travelers, Interstate 17’s Exit 298 means the red rocks, aura readers and turquoise jewelers of Sedona. That’s what you’ll encounter if you head northwest from the freeway on State Route 179. To the southeast, though, you’ll find Forest Road 618, a leisurely back road that winds through Arizona prehistory and spectacular scenery on the way south toward Camp Verde.

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