A Return to Picacho Peak

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It’s just over a 90 mile drive from WestWorld in Scottsdale to Picacho Peak State Park for our next 4 nights. It’s a familiar place for us. We have stayed both in the park and in a private campground half a mile away. We generally have not stayed in the same place multiple times but we do enjoy the park and had the issue of a serious cold front coming thru the area so the idea of boondocking in a casino parking lot just wasn’t that appealing. When we were looking for a place to stay, we lucked into a site being available at the state park for the exact nights we would want to stay. The sites are electric only and they are having potable water issues so we needed to come in with enough water to last for our short stop. (Good thing we read the confirmation email!) But having electric should allow us to be more comfortable on those expected nights below freezing.

Picacho Peak is so named for the prominent peak on the south side of Interstate 10 that rises to nearly 3400 feet or about 1500 feet above the surrounding terrain between Casa Grande and Tucson. While it’s tall, there is actually a taller mountain just a mile or two on the north side of I-10. Newman Peak is over 1000 feet taller than Picacho Peak but it is part of a much larger mountain cluster and so it is much less distinctive. If the weather cooperates, Picacho Peak will be seen for twenty or more miles whether you’re heading east or west along I-10. It’s odd shape acts like a beacon for travelers along the interstate. We made it without incident, got set up and waited for the temperature to start to drop.

Our Site with Picacho Peak in Background

There isn’t a ton of hiking in Picacho Peak so we figured we would head out or first full day to explore elsewhere. We knew there was a nice mountain biking area at Tortolita Preserve and we were considering a return to check it out. But while investigating that area again, I noticed a large number of hiking trails just to the north of the Preserve. We identified the Alamo Springs Trail as a likely candidate for us. At 6 miles and about 1000 feet of elevation, it sounded ideal. It’s only a 32 mile drive but it wasn’t perfectly clear where the trailhead parking was. The area was a rather fancy and exclusive looking place. The parking area seemed to be near the Ritz-Carlton at Dove Mountain. We turned down a side road and got to a gated community with a large guard station. We figured we had taken a wrong turn, but the guard came out and was quite nice giving us directions to the parking lot that was only 1/2 a mile away. We geared up with our Camelbacks and lunch for a good hike. As we were studying the trail map at the start, a man walked up and started to talk with us. We was part of the Marana Parks crew that also does trail maintenance on the trails in this area. He gave us all sorts of good insights to the trails and what to expect.

Part of Ritz-Carlton

We started out and walked up a wash that goes right by what we assume to be part of the Ritz-Carlton.  Looks like a nice place in a beautiful setting. The Wild Burro Trail is fairly easy to start - either going up the wash or on a trail adjacent to it. There are several other trails, but they are well marked. The wash wasn’t so sandy to make hiking difficult. At the 1.8 mile point, we follow the Alamo Springs Spur trail. This is where we start to pick up some elevation. It’s a rocky trail but not so bad as to be treacherous. There were several geocaches along the way to distract us from the hike. One of them took us off the trail and up another wash a few hundred feet. After finding the cache, we decided it was a great lunch spot.

Lots of Saguaros

Well Marked Trails

Neat Boulder

At the far end of our loop, we were in Tortolita Mountain Park. There were even more trails and geocaches in this area. The Ridgeline Trail looked like it would be a really good trail with great views but it would add another 7 miles or so to the hike. We couldn’t figure out an easy way to get to these other trails since that park is rather remote without other entrance points.

When we get back to the Wild Burro Trail, there was an old well and other remnants from a former ranch. The views were nice from up here but it was time to head back down to the parking area. A mile or so before parking, we ran into the intersection with the Lower Javelina Trail. We opted to take this one to the south of the wash with the hopes of getting to another geocache but found it went up the hill much further than we were intending and other than a good workout, it really didn’t add joy to the hike and didn’t get us to the geocache either. With the multiple detours, our 6 mile hike turned out to be 8 miles but was quite enjoyable.

Old Dried Up Well

Looking Down Wash

Old Building Along Trail

Many Armed Saguaro

The temperature had dropped over night and we awoke to a chilly but sunny morning. We opted to do the one trail in the state park we hadn’t actually accomplished yet. There are two ways to get to the top of Picacho Peak. The Sunset Vista Trail comes up along the backside of the peak from a parking area at the far west end of the park. It is a 5.4 mile round trip hike with 1600 feet of elevation. We had tackled this one when we were here two years ago. The other trail comes up from the front of the peak. The Hunter Trail is only 2.7 miles round trip but gains 2000 feet. It might be clear why we had done the other option last time. Both trails intersect about a third of a mile from the actual peak. Since the Hunter trail is on the north side of the peak, it will be in shade pretty much the whole way up. With the cold weather and the shade, overheating won’t be an issue.

View from Short Distance Up Hunter Trail

The climb starts immediately from the parking area. It really gets the blood flowing quickly. We aren’t in a hurry, so we stop frequently to take in the impressive views that come into view well before the climb is over.  This is one of those hikes where it is really difficult to see where the trail will be taking us. There really doesn’t seem to be a plausible path up. There is what appears to be a sheer cliff that the trail will follow next to before reaching a saddle point. It’s only 0.8 mile to the saddle but we have gained 1100 feet in elevation making it a 26% average grade!

On the Way Up to Saddle Point

View at Saddle Point

Looking Down as Trail Continues

Once at the saddle point, we are back in the sunlight and can see to the other side of the peak. There is a bench here and Chris decides this is her stopping point. She gives me an hour to continue on and return. The next section of the trail actually drops 400 feet in two tenths of a mile for a 37% grade. The good news is there are plenty of cables mounted on metal posts to help with the steep descent. The bad news is needing to lose this much elevation to get around to the backside of the peak. It is slow going but I eventually get around and intersect with the Sunset Vista Trail. Only a third mile more to go but about 550 more feet to climb. I knew this stretch of the hike was the most challenging. There are lots of sections with cables to reduce the chances of falling off the side of the cliffs. I realized that I wouldn’t have nearly the time needed to make it up to the peak and back to the saddle point where Chris was waiting so I opted to turn back. Here is the link to the blog post from the time I actually made it to the top. It was one of my most memorable hikes.

Well Anchored Cables

Steps Need Some Work

Another Steep Section

Great View Near Intersection With Sunset Vista Trail

It was a slight challenge to climb back up the 400 feet to the saddle point. I definitely needed to use the cables to pull myself up and assist the legs. At least I can now say I have hiked all the trails in Picacho Peak State Park. The hike back down wasn’t too bad. Some sections have cables that we didn’t need to get up, but were helpful going down. We had a reason for cutting this hike short. There was entertainment in the park this afternoon and Chris wanted to see it. We went back to the rig to chance out of our damp clothes and bundle up for the event.

Climbing

And More Climbing

Pretty Skies on Hike Down from Saddle Point

Marty Davis is a musician that plays guitar and sings cowboy songs. I wasn’t sure what to expect since I’m not sure I could even name a cowboy song. He was setting up in a very small amphitheater area in the park. The park ranger had started a small generator in order for Marty to use his small sound system. The backdrop was very striking with a small peak behind him and Picacho Peak to the side.  He was rather entertaining. He sang about a dozen songs and there were one or two I had heard before. Many of the other visitors though seemed to know plenty of the songs and would sing along with him. It was rather cold sitting in the shade as the sun started to set but was still fun.

Marty Davis

Singing in the Cold Weather

Not a Bad Venue!

With two major hikes in our first two days here, we needed a break from physical activities. We headed into Casa Grande to check out the library, update apps and maybe upload a blog post. We found this library to have the fastest wi-fi we have come across in our travels. All our tasks seemed to finish quickly. When we returned, the weather was a bit warmer so I went for a short bike ride. A dirt road out of the campground loop led to the main frontage road along the interstate. The only trick was lifting the bike over a locked gate that was positioned over a cattle guard. There wasn’t much traffic on the road although it was rather noisy being right next to I-10. It was a short stop at Picacho Peak but a fun one. Our next stop is another Arizona State Park but one we haven’t visited before - Patagonia State Park, south of Tucson near the Mexican border.