The Arizona Trail begins at the Coronado National Memorial near the Mexican border and heads north through a procession of mountain ranges that reads like a geography lesson: the Huachucas, the Santa Ritas, the Rincons, the Santa Catalinas north of Tucson. Beyond the desert valleys, the trail climbs into the Mazatzal Mountains and ascends the Mogollon Rim north of Payson, crossing from low desert into the pine forests of northern Arizona. The San Francisco Peaks mark the high point before the trail descends across the Coconino Plateau and drops into the Grand Canyon. It climbs out the other side and terminates on the Kaibab Plateau near the Utah border. The trail is divided into 43 passages across its southern, central, and northern sections, each with its own character and challenges.

The Arizona Trail was not carved from scratch. Shewalter and his allies stitched it together from preexisting trails, connecting fragments across federal, state, and private land into a continuous route. In 1994, the Arizona Trail Association incorporated as a nonprofit to coordinate the enormous volunteer effort required to map the route, identify water sources, build missing trail segments, and maintain the whole system. The organization marshaled hikers, equestrians, and mountain bikers who shared the vision of a single trail traversing the state. On March 30, 2009, Congress designated the Arizona Trail as a National Scenic Trail through the Omnibus Public Land Management Act, placing it in the same category as the Appalachian and Pacific Crest trails.

Completing the Arizona Trail earns you a copper belt buckle, a fitting reward in a state built on copper mining. The trail community recognizes finishers of all kinds: thru-hikers who walk the entire route in a single push, segment hikers who piece it together over years, speed-record ultrarunners, horseback riders, mountain bikers, and the rare "yo-yo" who hikes the trail in one direction and immediately turns around to do it again. The trail is designed as a primitive route for non-motorized travel, and that simplicity is part of its appeal. Some sections are open to mountain bikes; others pass through wilderness areas where bikes are prohibited. Preferred cycling routes have been developed to maintain the spirit of a National Scenic Trail while accommodating riders.

The Arizona Trail passes through more ecological diversity than almost any trail in North America. Hikers climb from cactus-studded Sonoran lowlands through oak woodlands, ponderosa pine forests, and spruce-fir stands near the highest peaks. That diversity also means hazards. Summer heat bakes the southern passages, venomous snakes patrol the rocky stretches, and water sources can be separated by long dry miles. The trail is unsuitable for most dogs, and pack goats, sometimes used as hiking companions, are prohibited in areas where bighorn sheep live to prevent disease transmission. The Grand Canyon passages offer the trail's most dramatic scenery, with views from the Kaibab Plateau stretching across one of the world's great geological spectacles. It is the centerpiece of the route and the reason Shewalter's dream captured so many imaginations.