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Arizona hiking club pros recommend their favorite Arizona hikes, off the beaten path

Apex 48 Club, a new outdoor adventure group on Facebook, recommends their favorite Arizona hikes.

PHOENIX — Editor's note: The above video aired during a previous broadcast.

It’s National Take A Hike Day, and the weather is perfect this time of year to enjoy Arizona’s great outdoors.

Apex 48 Club is a new outdoor group on Facebook with more than 600 members. Jesse Munoz and Shawnnessey Peterson are the creators of the Apex 48 Club. They named the group after a summit or apex, related to hiking, and then added 48 because Arizona is state 48. 

The pair listed their favorite hikes for different kinds of goals, including:

RELATED: Surprise man found alive after going missing in Grand Canyon

The Facebook group takes members off the beaten path and opens their eyes to new scenic journeys across our state. Members of the group can see pictures, videos and Arizona insights for some hikes they may not have heard otherwise. 

“It’s fun to go hiking with Jesse because he’s been doing it so long," Shawnnessey said. "He can explain to you certain things about the area you’re in.”

For Jesse, the hiking is even healing. He's a veteran and plans to take more veterans on trails with him in Arizona.

“I would like to get some veterans out and do some really good hikes I think they would really enjoy, so I have some in mind," he said.

Another Valley hiking expert, Arnie Fonseca Jr., is helping people stay active in a different way. Fonseca is a fitness expert and encourages anyone to start with what their comfortable with outside, whether that's hiking more novice trails or taking a simple walk around the neighborhood. 

Fonseca also recently accomplished a big goal for himself. He said he finished an R2R2R2R2R (R5) at the Grand Canyon. That's about 85 miles of hiking and 22,000 feet of climbing in total, all unsupported at 62-years-old.

RELATED: Police: Camelback Mountain hiker who died was with off-duty officer, neither of them brought water

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