Desert Crest Loop (Happy Valley/Jomax), starting from Pima Rd & Happy Valley Rd.
A sister climb to Reatta Pass, I call this 700 ft climb Desert Crest because it passes by the Estates at Desert Crest development, and well, it is in a sense a desert crest, as it tops out along a ridge located at the northern remnants of the McDowell Mountains. Alternate names for this climb might be “the top of Happy Valley” or “the Jomax climb.”
Like Reatta Pass, I’ve started this climb at the corner of Pima Rd and Happy Valley Rd in northern Scottsdale. When you reach Alma School Rd, instead of turning north to Reatta Pass, continue east/southeast on along Happy Valley Rd. Here you’ll find a gentle 2% climb past Troon Village, as the road squeezes through a pass between two mountains, and turns north along 115th St. As you cruise north, you’ll pass by the new development known as Sereno Canyon, on your right, and you’ll eventually connect with Jomax Rd, (which has 3-6% grades – a nice climb on its own) which you can then zoom down to meet up with Alma School Rd again. From there, you can go north and finish the last portion of Reatta Pass, as I’ve shown in the map and profile above, or you can go south back to Happy Valley Rd.
Like the Reatta Pass climb, it’s easy to make a loop, climbing Happy Valley Rd, over Desert Crest, north to Jomax, down Jomax, up Reatta Pass, down Dynamite Blvd, and then down Pima Rd back to Happy Valley Rd. I’ve personally never done more than one of these loops at a time. Hmmm…
I first discovered this climb last year, when on an outing to Reatta Pass I thought, as I reached Alma School Rd, “I wonder what happens if I keep going.” Not more than a few years ago, Happy Valley Rd didn’t go through, or at the very least, turned into a gravel road – at least that’s how I remember it. I fully expected the route to dead-end, and was quite surprised to find that it kept going, eventually turning north onto a fairly new (last 2 years?) road, complete with bike lanes (115th St.)
This is a great climb to add to your arsenal. It has no steep grades, but as you might already know, you can make any hill tougher just by riding up faster. There are scenic views all the way — especially once you near the top along 115th St – and the traffic is light. There are bike lanes part of the way.