Desert Enclave Preserve & Easement

Desert Enclave Preserve is tucked away on a gravel road that dead ends at Cave Creek. In the early spring the wash sparkles with run-off from the rains. The 15-acre preserve was donated to DFLT in 1998 by Mark Stapp and Jean Naef.

The property, on the eastern border of Cave Creek Regional Park, provides a natural access to water for wildlife that ranges over the area’s rugged canyons. Native plants, nourishment for hungry herbivores, thrive here as the terrain spreads out to form the creek’s floodplain.

Horseback, hiking and biking trails are available and are maintained by Land Trust volunteers. From the trails, visitors can enjoy this pristine section of Cave Creek Wash, marvel at the mesquites that crowd its banks, listen to the various calls of Gambel’s quail and dove, and with luck, catch glimpse of a deer taking a drink from the stream.

Desert Enclave Conservation Easement encompasses 2.84 acres along Cave Creek Wash and is adjacent to the preserve. Though the land is protected forever, it is privately owned and not open to the public. Please respect the property owner's privacy and keep on the public trails.