Phoenix in July
 

I am travelling to Phoenix from Virginia in late July for a conference. I plan to rent a hybrid and take some rides in the evening, and possibly stay a few extra days and do some camping/hiking/biking in the Tonto National Forest area. I have only driven through Arizona so am excited by the opportunity to get outside and explore but am afraid the July heat may be prohibitive.

Is it foolish for a reasonably healthy 42 yo to try to ride in Phoenix in July in the evening? Any suggestions for cool places in Tonto (or anywhere within a couple of hours drive) for camping, hiking and maybe some intermediate trail biking?

Here's a link to the official AZ Bike Map
MAG|Bikeways

And the Strava Heatmap is a great way to find routes the locals use.
http://labs.strava.com/heatmap/#12/-...5300/gray/bike

Depending on where you're staying in Phoenix and how long your bike rides are, you might have the same success with the GRID bike share system as you would with renting a commuter.
gridbikes.com

You'll be fine riding in the evening or the morning. The times you usually want to skip are from 2pm-5pm which is the hottest part of our day. It's still going to be hot when you're riding, but it's not that bad - there's always a breeze on the bike and as long as you're drinking water and staying hydrated, you shouldn't have any issue.

Just east of Phoenix is the Coon's Bluff campground on the Salt River, known for it's wild horses. It's a free campground with just bathroom facilities and water and a lot of people use it to push off from while tubing down the river, so it can be a bit trashy, or it can be super nice. We camped there in March and the place was empty. We were right on the water. There are tons of hiking trails in the area and mountain biking nearby as well.
Tonto National Forest - Coon Bluff
Coon Bluff Campground on the Salt River

Unfortunately, I haven't done much camping near Phoenix, so I'm not much help. Sedona is only a couple hours away from Phoenix though, and I'd say that would be worth the drive if you haven't been.

Good advice above with regards to bicycling Phoenix in July. As for camping I would not camp in Tonto in July as it is likely to be pretty hot and uncomfortable. If you can take the time, I would drive to Flagstaff or Williams, pretty country and pleasant weather.

Thank you both for the replies. That Grid share program looks pretty cool!

Very early morning rides are preferable to evening as it's a little cooler at daylight, but as Ed says both are doable. Camping below 6000 ft elevation will likely be uncomfortably warm. Good luck!

Thanks for the elevation tip! I knew up was good but not how far. It looks like the Flagstaff/Williams/Sedona area is my best bet for camping.

Another place to look for camping I forgot to mention before is Happy Jack which is about 2 to 2.5 hours from Phoenix. It is more isolated but will be cool and pleasant.

We had a friend with a cabin up near Happy Jack...it was such a great place! You don't even feel like you're in AZ anymore, it's like some mountain town in Colorado or something. It's a bit more in the middle of nowhere than the others, but is totally worth it.

I always recommend Jerome as another cool place to go. It's a bit south of Sedona so it's not that cool, but still about 10-20 degrees cooler than the valley and it's a really nice hippy/artist/wine town.

I wouldn't count out the Payson/Forest Lakes area either. And during this time of the year, it is normal for the area to get mid-afternoon rain. Usually about 10-15min of gentle rain to help knock some of the heat down. I try to go camp on the Rim at least twice a month during the summer.