McKelligon Canyon

I absolutely love McKelligon Canyon! Especially since COVID! So the canyon is technically a city park. It's a two lane paved road, that leads up to an amphitheater! Normally, the amphitheater has shows, but of course that's all cancelled temporarily. At the top of the road, there are many covered picnic tables that persons like chilling out at. Also, the very top has entrances to Franklin Mountains, which is a state park, and has many hiking trails. This road, due to covid, is closed to all motorized traffic. That is amazing right now, because you can walk up and down and exercise without worrying about vehicle traffic. And honestly, that's what everyone uses it for. From Soldiers hiking up with their rucksacks, to joggers running, families pushing strollers, and dog owners (like me), taking there dogs out for a walk. You can (and we all do), still use this route for exercise even when it is open to vehicle traffic, but of course with it closed, it's much more enjoyable and safer. The road is a dead end of sorts. At the very top, it splits off and loops itself back around. So there is only one way up and one way down. If you walk the top loop twice, the entire trip will be 5.2 miles. If you walk the top loop once, the trip is 4.8 miles. From the start to the top, you climb 800ft in elevation. It's almost exactly 2.5 miles to the top at the loop, so that's 2.5 miles, 800ft elevation increase, dang near going straight up lol. Whether you're walking or jogging, it's definitely a workout. My dogs and I do this trek 1x every single week. It's open from 0630 - 2200 every day. Many Soldiers flood this area and conduct fitness training in the early early mornings during the week. And on the weekends, many fitness seeming persons flood this area as well. It's dog friendly, and they have doggie bags at the entrance. However, there are only about 3 trash cans along the route. Keep that in mind. And please pick up after your dogs

McKelligon Canyon is in the Franklin Mountains. It's a good place to hike, and there's a pretty cool theatre there where you can see both movies and concerts.This is a lovely place to enjoy the natural beauty in this area; it's almost magical after a rain.If you're lucky enough to visit after a rain, make a point of looking at the mountains and notice how they seem to change color :-)

We attended El Paso's 'Cool Canyon Nights' free concert evening. The Soul Sacrifice Soul local band of El Paso played and we really enjoyed their 'Santana' music I highly encourage all to support these Free events which will be ongoing weekly (each Thursday) until 2 Sept ( from what I understand). There's Food Trucks, Beer, Drinks and Good music!

McKelligon Canyon is definitely my favorite hike/running place in El Paso. They open at 0600 and if you are ready to run exactly at 0600 its PERFECT!!! I love the challenge and distance. The whole time all I think about is making it all the way up and once I do I turn around and it is mega satisfying. On the way up your cabs will burn and it will be harder to breathe. You will experience approximately starting at 3 and end at 5 thousand feet up in elevation. Some people hike it, ruck it, some run it, jug it, and on and off, some people bring strollers, and dogs. Whatever physical condition you are in its a great place to get an amazing workout. No official parking so you end up parking on the side of the road close to the entrance. If you have a jeep or a truck that would be best due to some rough terrain but not necessary. If it is very busy you do end up needing to park some blocks down. Restrooms are available near the gift shoo approximately 1.5 miles up. Picnic tables available on top.

For four miles and some more, you can escape the business of the city. Wether you walk or run from the entrance or just drive up for a picnic or a hike, it's definitely something to enjoy. The area is pet friendly, the roads are well paved with trash cans along the way. There are a few gazebos at the top that offer some shade. There is also a main building/office where they have bathrooms. Then there's the amphitheater, where they offer free movies. Not sure if they still have the dance show. Definitively something else to try in the area.

This is a great path for a beginner hiker or for some family time! The beginning of the path is pretty inclined making you think it will be like that the whole way up. Fear not! The path dips often giving your legs a little rest. There is a lot of traffic here on foot and by bike. It makes it feel like a safer option if you are wanting to get out on your own as well!

Safe and interesting place to walk/bike/run on a 5ish mile out and back road that's pretty close to downtown El Paso.

Nice, challenging hike that rewards you with amazing views. I will say, this hike is not for the faint-of-heart or weak-of-knee, as it is STEEP. My fiancé and I started off wearing light polar fleece layers, since we went on one of those cooler mornings a couple weeks ago; regardless, though, we ended up stripping down to just t-shirts and tank-tops because we were sweating when we got to the top! The summit provides a pretty cool look of a large section of the city, so the view definitely did not disappoint. There's even a long road leading up to the actual hike, if you're feeling really adventurous. My fiancé is in the Army, and they "like" to run this road sometimes. I put "like" in quotes, because, honestly, who actually likes running up a 2 or 3 mile hill?! But whether you decide to run, hike, or both, McKelligon is a great start to your Saturday morning!

McKelligon Canyon and I are in a love-hate relationship. We've been in this sort of limbo for ten years now and every time I think I've been to harsh and MKC is just doing what's best for me, best for us, it does something evil like put a hill with a thousand foot incline in my way. Love-hate. We're working on it.This is a competitive runners dream course because it's ridiculously difficult. Lot's of hills and inclines, absolutely no shade, low traffic, and beautiful views. If you run this route daily, you'll be ready for anything.But that's not all MKC is good for. People like to come up here to picnic, but be warned there is no grass or shade from trees. There are a couple of metal coverings that look outdated and rusted, but they'll do if you're just trying to grill up some eats before a run or hike.And hiking. Yeah, there's hiking. These trails are a little more traveled than what you find up at the Tom Mays Unit so you might find things like graffiti, but it's still a cool hike. And technically you can hike from MKC to the Tom Mays Unit... if you're crazy.But what I live for is the amphitheater! Free movies in the canyon! I love going to this in the summer-fall months. They have two or three different movies on the weekend and you guessed it, they're FREE! And they play good movies, some older, but most new ones that just came out on DVD. They do sell stuff at the concession stands which are just fine.MKC is great for the whole family. They're pet friendly. They host events and runs. There's usually always food available in some form (or you can bring your own). Oh and, once and a while the Humane Society or the Animal Rescue League (I'm not sure which) comes out there with dogs that you can both adopt or just take for a run. Those pooches need exercise too!

Beautiful place, excellent hiking trails. Always a great workout when we come here. I love the calm feeling you get in the evening when not a lot of people are there.