My only regret with South Mountain Park is that I didn't spend more time here. We wanted to kick off the hiking in Phoenix with going somewhere close by. We decided to spend a brief afternoon at South Mountain.
My initial reaction is that you can spend hours and days here if you plan out your path. That's the exact thing we didn't do. We chose a trail and decided to go for a while and then turn around and come back.
The trail we were on is very much a neighborhood trail. Here I am with my plenty of water and ready to go. Meanwhile... here are the teenagers coming off the mountain dressed in all black, loud music blasting, and with only a small bottle of water! I'm honestly surprised that more people don't die every year while hiking/backpacking. People just don't realize how crucial having water is.
Based on the trail we were on, I'd label these trails as easy to moderate. They weren't necessarily hard but you can definitely get a workout here. Steady climbs followed by flat areas followed by slight declines. Repeat. If you plan to tackle Camelback while in Phoenix(and you should), then South Mountain is a good warm-up.
Some of the trails weren't clearly marked but once on the trails, they're high-traffic areas so you shouldn't get lost. On the way up the mountain, you can turn around and see most of the city. In the distance, you can also see Camelback.
There's not much more to say about South Mountain. The next time I'm in Phoenix, I'll certainly visit South Mountain again but I won't waste days there. The main issue with South Mountain has to be the people. I prefer not to have that many people around when I'm hiking. People are gross and one of the top reasons I hike/backpack/spend time in nature is to get away from them.