Scottsdale’s best piece of infrastructure is a flood-control ditch. The Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt runs roughly eleven miles of continuous, paved, car-free path from Shea Boulevard down to Tempe Town Lake, stitched together by grass parks, lagoons, and — critically — underpasses at almost every major crossing.
The route
Start at Cochise Park up north, or anywhere along the chain: Chaparral Park (the lake with the fishing regulars), Camelback Park, Eldorado, Vista del Camino, and on south until the path hands you off to Tempe’s lake loop. The wash grade is nearly flat; this is a cruise, not a workout, unless you make it one.
The cut-throughs that matter
The whole value of the Greenbelt is never touching a crosswalk button:
- Every major east-west road from McDonald down to McKellips passes overhead. Follow the path as it dips into the wash at each crossing rather than surfacing to street level — the underpass entrances are occasionally unsigned and easy to blow past the first time.
- Chaparral and Camelback are the two crossings where new riders end up at surface streets by mistake. Stay low, hug the wash centerline, and trust the pavement.
- After a monsoon storm, underpasses can hold water or silt for a day. The one at Indian School is the usual offender; surface streets are the correct detour, not a splash test.
Refuel stops
The path passes close to Old Town around Camelback, which puts coffee a two-minute detour away. Vista del Camino has water and shade ramadas at the halfway mark.
Timing
Summer riding is a 5:00–8:00 AM sport, full stop. In season, weekday mornings are empty; weekend mornings add joggers, dog leashes, and rental scooters — ride accordingly.