Praying Hands via Treasure Loop

Begin your hike in the Cholla parking lot, and start Treasure Loop Trail (this is the north side of the loop, heading east).  Once you get to the base of the main cliffs, and the trail starts to veer to the right, this is where you branch off.  Instead of veering right, go straight and off to the left, heading towards Praying Hands (it’s a rock structure that actually looks like two praying hands).

Since this is not an official portion of the trail, you’ll see lots of paths.  Whichever route you take, just keep the “saddle” as your main focal point.  The hike gets quite a bit more steep, with lots of scrambling and loose rocks.  So make sure you have nice hiking boots and be very careful. 

Once you reach this top you will have a great spot stop and have a snack, or lunch if you packed it!  I typically take about 30 minutes to relax and just enjoy the quiet solitude.  I’ve done this hike 20+ times and very rarely encounter any other people on this section. 

You can continue on down the trail, but note that there is a section where you have to jump a pretty sketchy ravine, and since I solo hike, I choose that as my stopping point 😊

You might also catch rock climbers on Praying Hands, which is fun to stop and watch.

Always remember to bring lots of water, and practice LNT principles!