Geronimo's Call is the final of Highline's three roughly equal segments, clocking in at 22.9 miles with 2,092 feet of climbing and 2,831 feet of descending when ridden east to west. As the last section to carry you toward the Pine trailhead, it's also the one that runs concurrently with the Arizona Trail. That AZT overlap matters: Geronimo's Call was the first segment of the Highline to be rerouted, and consequently the singletrack here is the most burned-in of the three sections, making for a fantastic ride. Where other segments can feel a touch grassy and in need of a few more tires, this stretch rides dialed and ready.
This third segment boasts two of the biggest climbs and descents of the entire trip. The first nets about 1,000 vertical feet of loss, immediately followed by an 800-foot climb spread over the next 6.8 miles, before a final 900-foot descent drops you down to finish at the Pine trailhead. Like the rest of Highline, the tread is largely sandy with sandstone rocks, and the difficulty holds to that solid Arizona intermediate/blue rating. But keep your eyes peeled for a couple of rocky features tucked into the segment — one of which might exceed the intermediate difficulty rating, though it's quite short and over quickly.
Riding concurrently with the AZT for much of its length, Geronimo's Call serves up the kind of well-established backcountry singletrack that reminds you why this trail is worth the trip. The burned-in tread, the punchy climbs, and the big descents combine into a satisfying finale to a multi-day epic. By the time you roll into the Pine trailhead, you'll have ridden some of the finest backcountry singletrack Arizona has to offer.
