Greer--Butler Canyon Nature Trail

Greer--Butler Canyon Nature Trail

Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests Greer, Arizona 85927

Official Website

Tips for Birding

Hike the short trail looking for woodpeckers and breeding songbirds, including Red-faced Warbler. East Fork Rd itself can be worth walking as well.

Breeding warblers include Red-faced, Virginia, Grace’s, MacGillivray’s, and Olive. Band-tailed Pigeons and Clark’s Nutcrackers are often seen flying overhead, while Dusky Grouse and Northern Goshawk skulk in the forest. Look also for several species of woodpeckers, American Dipper, Dusky Flycatcher, and others. Magnificent Hummingbird has been reported from area feeders in years past.

About this Location

From the Eagar stoplight, travel west on AZ-260 for 9.6 miles to AZ-373. Turn left (south) on AZ-373 for 4 miles. Turn left on County Road 1121 and the trailhead parking is on the right.

The Butler Canyon Trail is a self-guided nature trail with numbered stations beside the trail. These stations correspond to descriptions in a pamphlet which is available at a sign-in station at the trailhead. Please return the pamphlet after you’ve finished with it so that others may use it. Interpretative lectures and walks are conducted here during the summer by a Forest Service Naturalist. Schedules are posted at Hoyer campground and at the Springerville Ranger Station

This cool, verdant canyon has long been a favorite with tourists. It is particularly popular with seniors and families with young children because of the level grade of the trail and the interpretative stations. Its location in Greer makes it a convenient spot for the many visitors to this picturesque community. The trail travels up Butler Canyon for about one-half mile, then crosses a small stream before looping back.

Butler Canyon was named for Jacob Butler, who settled here in the late 1880s with his nineteen children. Aquatic plants grow along the stream, which is shaded by alders and willows. Aspen, pine, spruce, and fir line the canyon and provide nests for the many birds who make their home here. If you start your hike early enough, you may see wild turkeys, deer, and coyotes as they come down canyon for a drink.

Content from Official Website and Northern Arizona Audubon Society