Hike Guide to the Broadway Cave in Apache Junction, Arizona

Deep in the Superstition Mountains outside of Phoenix, Arizona, you’ll find the Broadway Cave. A cave formed in the side of the mountain that you can hike to and explore the inside of!

Me standing at the broadway cave at the top of the broadway cave trail in Apache Junction, Arizona. I am standing off to the right of the photo with the sun shining bright in the sky on top of me. Around the edges of the photo you can see the cave showing you that the picture is taken inside the cave. The cave is made of all rock and there is gravel and small rock that make up the ground I'm standing on. The sky is blue and slowly turning to a golden/ orange color from the evening sun.

After living in Phoenix for 2 years, this became one of my favorite hikes in the area. It leads you through a beautiful forest of the native Saguaro cacti, and up to the mountainside where you can walk into a large cave.

This hike will really give you a feel for the remote areas of the Sonoran Desert if you are just visiting the area.

Here you can see the brown rock forming a cave. There is rocks making a circular shape where you can dive further into the cave. Outside of the rock cave you can see clear blue sky.

This is a lesser known trail that is sure to impress anyone. If this interests you, keep on reading!

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Where is the Broadway Cave?

You will find the Broadway Cave in the side of the Superstition Mountains which are on the eastern side of Phoenix. The closest town to this trail is Apache Junction.

Tips Before Going

  • Wear sturdy hiking boots
  • Wear sunscreen or a hat for sun protection
  • Have a map of the trail with you to avoid wandering onto a different trail
  • Have at least 2L of water per person
  • Do not attempt to hike this trail between the months of June-September

Broadway Cave Trail Info

  • 4 miles round trip
  • 900 feet total elevation gain
  • Rocky terrain and moderate rock scrambling required
  • Expect this hike to take 2-2.5 hours

Getting to the Broadway Cave Trailhead

The trailhead is located in a neighborhood at the end of E Broadway Ave with limited parking.

As you’re driving into the neighborhood and arrive to the trailhead, you will see a small pull off “parking lot” on your left.

There is only enough room for about 7 or 8 cars. Luckily we didn’t have any problem finding a spot on a Monday evening.

You can click here to pull up the trail on AllTrails. This is how I found the directions to the trailhead.

A photo taken from the start of the broadway cave trail in Apache Junction, Arizona. You can clearly make out the Superstition mountains in the background. They are brown and have rugged edges along the slope and the top of the mountain. There are several bright green Saguaro cacti in the foreground in front of the mountain range. All over the ground there are prickly pear cacti growing in between all the sections desert grass on the ground. The sky is bright blue with a few wispy clouds.

Beginning the Broadway Cave Hike

The hike starts out relatively easy, just an easy walk through desert. You will even be able to see the cave in the mountain from all the way back at the trailhead!

The arrow below points to Broadway Cave, where the trail ends. Looks far, but it’s really not that bad.

A photo taken from the beginning of the broadway cave trail in apache junction, Arizona. In the background there is a big mountain range called the superstition mountains. It has rugged edges and a rugged top. There is a small red arrow drawn on to the photo in the center pointing to a small hole in the mountain which is the cave that the hike goes to. In the foreground there are a lot of dead looking desert plants and a forest of Saguaro cacti. You can see a few particularly tall cacti that tower over the other ones. The sky is bright blue with a few wispy clouds.

As you hike you will be slowly and gradually increasing in elevation. It isn’t too noticeable, yet at least.

The trail is made up completely of rocks so those hiking boots will come in handy. There is no shade here, it’s just you, the sun, the mountain, and the Saguaros. So take in the views, and enjoy the journey.

This picture is from about a half mile into the broadway cave hike in Apache Junction, Arizona. In this photo you can see the cave up closer than the last photo. It looks like just a small black hole in the mountain. Hundreds of tall, bright green Saguaros can be seen here in front of the mountain.

The entire hike I was amazed by the impressive Saguaro forest at the base of the mountains. They are such impressive plants, and if you’re only visiting Phoenix, this is a great trail to get to know the landscape of the Sonoran Desert!

Fireplace Detour

After hiking for about 1.5 miles, you will come across a fork in the road. You can either go straight or make a right.

The path to the right will lead you up to the cave, and the path straight ahead of you will take you to what is known as the fireplace chimney.

Here you will find the remains of what once was a working fireplace and chimney. Unfortunately, now there is a lot of graffiti and trash on the fireplace.

Here you can see the fireplace chimney in the center of the photo which is built from bricks plastered together making a short round chimney shape. Around the fireplace there are Saguaros scattered around the desert with the tall, rugged, and brown mountains in the background. The sky is bright blue with very few small wispy clouds.

You will clearly be able to see the stack of bricks plastered together to form a chimney shape with a large base at the bottom big enough to fit a few logs to burn. 

To get to the fireplace it is only a 0.4 mile (0.2 miles each way) detour from the main trail. I think it’s worth it to check out, and it doesn’t take much extra time.

I always love to see old remains of structures that were used years and years before my time.

A beautiful photo of the Saguaro forest taken on the broadway cave trail in Apache Junction, Arizona. The sun is creating backlight in this photo by making all the Saguaros look shaded and dark. The foreground is full of brown desert grass and the cacti are shooting up from the ground and into the sky. A lot of them have arms coming out of their bases as well. They look like silhouettes against the bright blue sky. Small mountains can also be seen in the distance. The clouds are cumulus clouds and covering a large portion of the sky.

Hiking to the Broadway Cave

After hiking back from the fireplace, we came upon the fork in the trail once more, and this time we turned left to head up to the cave.

Now I’m not going to sugarcoat it, the hike up to the cave is challenging. It’s made up of rocks and has a very steep incline. It’s easy to slip so you have to be careful with your foot placement.

At times it can be difficult to see which way the trail is. It’s nice to have AllTrails pulled up to help decipher which way the trail goes.

My boyfriend is standing to the right of the picture hiking up the steep mountain to get to the cave at the top. To the left of him there is a steep cliff drop off down the mountain. You can really see how far up off the ground we are from how far away the ground and cacti are. You can also see the town of Apache Junction/ Mesa in the distance. It looks like a bunch of little white buildings. The sky is mostly blue but turning golden from the setting sun. There are small cumulus clouds scattering the sky. Distant mountains can be seen at the horizon.

The hike from the fork to the cave is only 0.3 miles one way, but it honestly feels much longer just because of how strenuous and steep it is. This section alone is about a 500 foot elevation gain!

It will definitely get your heartrate up. I promise once you get to the top and see the view from the Broadway Cave, it’ll all be worth it! 

A close up picture of the cave on the broadway cave trail in Apache Junction, Arizona. The mountain is the main object in this photo and its brown and looks rugged around all its edges. There is a medium sized opening in the mountain which is the cave that we are hiking too. It looks like a big dark hole in the mountain. There are a few dry desert plants growing in the rocks in the foreground. The sky above the mountain is pale blue because the sun had already set.

Once you get to the top, feel free to explore the cave. There is a part of the cave that goes deeper about 10-15 feet back.

A picture taken from deeper inside the cave on the broadway cave trail in Apache Junction, Arizona. This picture shows how much deeper the cave goes to. It looks like a small round but tall dark hole that is big enough for a child to fit in standing up all the way but not an adult. Around the dark entrance to the deeper part of the cave, there are tan colored rocks all around it. They look rugged and have a lot of texture.

It used to go further but it got filled in with rocks a long time ago. However, the cave is still a really cool place to hangout for awhile and have a snack break.

It’s wonderful to get a break from the sun in a nice and cool shelter naturally built into the mountain.

This is taken from the deeper part of the cave but towards the light at the entrance of the cave. There is a packed down pathway on the ground starting from where this picture was taken and leading all the way to the entrance of the cave. You can see light from the sun shining in lighting up the entire cave. The light gives different dimensions to the rocks and it highlights how textured and rugged they are. Some of the rocks on the walls look white and some look dark brown.

You get an amazing view of the Saguaro forest down below, the distant mountains and the nearest cities of Apache Junction and Mesa.

Watching the Sunset at the Broadway Cave

We ended up staying here to watch the sunset and it was a phenomenal place to watch it. 

If you do decide to watch the sunset here, I recommend coming down from the cave before it gets too dark. Again, it’s only 0.3 miles back down to the main trail, but you really have to be cautious going down.

In the left corner of the picture you can see the ceiling and wall of the cave which is made of rock that looks dark from the lack of light. You can see the cave floor at the bottom of the photo and it has some dry desert plants growing from it on the edge of the mountain. The sun is setting in the background and is filling the sky with golden and orange in place of the blue sky. There are cumulus clouds in front of the sun and scattered across the sky. Below the sun you can see the town of Apache Junction/ Mesa which just look like a bunch of white little buildings.

Coming down from here in the dark would be extremely difficult. We left probably 15 minutes after the sun hit the horizon, and we still had plenty of daylight to get down this tricky section.

We did have to use our phone flashlights for the last mile of the hike because it was completely dark at that point, so if you do this trail during sunset make sure to have enough phone battery or bring some other kind of light source. 

Overall, I really enjoyed this hike and I would definitely consider it one of the best hikes in the Apache Junction and Mesa area. The challenge is worth the reward.

I hope if you decide to hike to the Broadway Cave, now you know better what to expect on this trek. Thank you for reading!

Need More Arizona Hiking Inspiration? Check Out My Other Posts!

Soul Summit Travel

Soul Summit Travel

Hi! I'm Anna, the human behind Soul Summit Travel. My mission is to make travel more accessible so everyone can experience the joys of connecting deeper with our Earth.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through these links at no extra cost to you. Some content may also be sponsored. I only recommend products and services that I personally use and believe will add value to my readers.

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About the Author

Hi! I'm Anna, a US-based travel blogger with a passion for discovering the most beautiful corners of our planet.

Through this blog, I aim to make travel more budget-friendly and accessible to everyone.

Here you'll find road trip itineraries, hiking guides, and unique destinations across the US and beyond.

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