Home to the Lake Pleasant Regional Park, Peoria is considered to be the true oasis of the desert. Peoria is located in the northwest of downtown Phoenix which is about a 30 minutes drive. There are about 23,000 acres of area that consists of two marinas and is a popular spot for fishing, water skiing, kayaking, boating, camping, and other water activities that even include scuba diving. Residents and visitors can enjoy more than 60 miles of area where one can go biking, horseback riding, and hiking along its scenic trails. Peoria has a landscape that is bounded by mountains and the majestic Saguaro cactus that can only be found in the sands of the Sonoran desert. The city is bordered by thousands of these human-like cacti that can be found in the highways and back roads.