We did the Four Springs Trail today. Drive about 25 miles on I-19 and take the exit for Continental. Take plenty of water and food. You'll know you're on the pipeline trail because there is 2" galvanized pipe on the side of the trail. Along the way, I saw Turkey, Mule Deer, various lizards and a Tarantula. This loop is a total of 12 miles long if you don’t visit the Mt. Both trails are accessed from the Madera Canyon trailhead. Hiking Beyond Garibaldi Lake Black Tusk. Directions: From Tucson drive south on I-10 until you reach the I-19 exit. A shout out to the trio I had lunch with on the summit from the Southern Arizona Hiking Club...good input on other area peaks and thank you for your trail maintenance work. My hiking companion and I found this to be pretty easy, and there were lovely views of Madera Canyon below us and the Santa Rita's to our East. This is a glorious hike stating from Madera Canyon which is filled with Arizona Live Oaks, Junipers, and in this monsoon season yellow columbines that nod in the breeze. Web Map Links Definitely a hard one to fit in one day. Your email address will not be published. From there the trail climbs steeply for a half mile. Drive southeast on this paved road following the signs to the Santa Rita Lodge and Madera Canyon. Watch for a brown sign for Madera Canyon Recreation Area and exit on Continental Road. Wrightson Hiking trail in Madera Canyon, Arizona (United States). Hike to the top and you'll be rewarded with a 360-degree view from the highest point between Tucson and Mexico. It was an 8 hour hike. His docile female The Arizona Trail is routed through Kentucky Camp. Given this fact, you are sure to encounter a beautiful array of wildflowers, butterflies, birds, and reptiles on your hike. With a small creek, hiking trails, and seclusion from other campers this location seems more like back country then car camping...PHOTOS/ MATT NAGER Wrightson. Great trail! The hike begins at Madera Canyon Trailhead located at the end of Madera Canyon Road, accessed from the White House Canyon Road which begins in Green Valley, Arizona. So, as you can see, IMHO, Mt Wrightson IS THE BEST HIKE IN ARIZONA. On Saturday, September 10, 2016 I was able to spend the day hiking and playing radio, and I had more fun than I even imagined. Unlike its massive northern neighbor Mount Lemmon, Wrightson has a distinct rocky peak (as a matter of fact, it was named Mount Baldy at one time for this very reason) that offers arguably the best panorama in the region. 10.8 miles r/t summit elevation 9,453' elevation change 4,033' I need to get caught up on the posts and do better about writing them. The hike up Mount Wrightson is forested and full of ecological diversity, in contrast to the parched Sonoran Desert valleys that surround it. Humphries and Harquahala Peak as my favorite hike in Arizona. Mount Wrightson via Old Baldy Trail is a 11.4 mile heavily trafficked out and back trail located near Green Valley, Arizona that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as difficult. Make sure to go in a group of 3 or more, read the trail head for list of essential equipment, and have a great time! The first time we summited McCleary Peak which involved bushwacking through prickly undergrowth, but I got cut up and it wasn't worth it since the views from Shovel Saddle are just as good. On Nov. 15, 1958, six Boy Scouts from Tucson started out on a day hike from Madera Canyon to Mount Baldy, now known as Mount Wrightson, in the Santa Rita Mountains. Both sections of dirt climb through beautiful country - remote in the case of FR 143 and popular in the case of Box Canyon. The Crest Trail leads both to the summit of Mt. Source: Instagram. This is an almost 15 mile round trip hike. Ask dolomoto about Madera Canyon. Wrightson … Until you reach Josephine Saddle, you are hiking on west facing slopes and Mount Wrightson is big enough to block the sun for most of the morning. My Dad and I hiked Mt. The "Super Trail" loop around Mt. I would rate it as difficult. This would be a great training hike for the Grand Canyon, though. Both hikes are within the Mount Wrightson Wilderness. Mount Wrightson. This is a wonderful loop around Mt Wrightson with two sections of dirt road and two sections of paved road. I started out taking Old Baldy trail up to the saddle, and then took Super. Its a popular place for hiking, camping and … It has been a couple weeks ago. Mt Wrightson being the highest summit in close to Tucson, I opted for it. The Pipeline/Kent Spring intersection is a good area to spot and/or hear the Elegant Trogon, best between April and June (although we heard one in the distance today). Dean was feeling puny at this point and didn’t feel up to the hike. Mt Wrightson hike When we bought our house in Tucson while we were still full-timing in the Airstream, I explained to everyone that we never intended to spend summers here. This trail goes by Josephine Saddle, Bellows Spring, Old Baldy, Baldy Saddle, and Baldy Spring. The saddle is a prime resting point with fallen logs and rocks for … Directions to Mount Wrightson and Hiking Basics. We value your privacy and do not share your personal information. It’s the tallest peak in the Tucson area and a very rewarding hike with an incline grade that I believe is very manageable. This trail can end in a few places, though my preference is to stop at either the Amphitheater Parking Area or Mt. If you continue on the trail, you will arrive at Armour Spring, and, past that, to Florida Saddle and the Crest Trail which heads back to Baldy Saddle. Thanks to his dad and the Boy Scouts, he was able to spend a lot of time hiking at an early age. This junction marks the end of Four Springs Trail. His docile female Wrightson – Hiking Tucson’s Loftiest Summit. Monsoon has been kind here, so a lot of the plants that tend to narrow Super trail a bit were weighed down by ice and snow and hung over the trail even more. The summit offers outstanding views of southern Arizona and Sonora, Mexico. There are occasional sightings of black bear in the Santa Ritas and mountain lions are known to inhabit the area as well. There … The summit itself offered some amazing 360 views of southern Arizona and parts of Mexico, but unfortunately when we went it was literally swarming with ladybugs and flies, with quite a few bees present as well. It had been a long drive from Washington, a tough hike for Pinal County, and then a windy noisy night on top of Mt. Looser near the peak. If you're not pressed for time, I highly recomend going up via Super; the views were phenomenal, and at a couple spots we saw some hummingbirds flying around. To the left is the Bog Spring loop. A male alpine goat that had been terrorizing hikers in the Mt. Wrightson from Madera Canyon Santa Rita Mountains. Wrightson and along the Santa Rita Crest to Florida Saddle where you can turn east again on Cave Canyon Trail #149 to Cave Canyon Road and back to Gardner Canyon Road via the short and appropriately named Cave Gardner Cutoff Trail #10. Wrightson Wilderness Area was killed last weekend by an officer from the U.S. Forest Service. Wrightson (9,453ft/2,881m) in the Santa Rita range. Date of experience: October 2017. Mt Wrightson Hike and SOTA Activation My interest in the Summits On The Air program continues to grow, and as a result I've become fascinated with the idea of hiking some of the local area peaks in Southern Arizona. Wrightson. Mount Wrightson is most often hiked from Madera Canyon, North of the summit. Wrightson, but the description is of the Four Springs Trail hike to the junction of the Crest Trail. I had plenty of layers, though, so it wasn't too terrible. everything was very gradual up and down. Mount Wrightson has a very pleasing and classic profile in this view from nearby Mount Ian (2013-12-06). I "rediscovered" your blog thanks to a tweet from Natrice. Click here for larger-size photo. The sight on the top is excellent! This is a 10.2 mile out-and-back hike with 4200 cumulative feet of elevation gain that takes about 5-7 hours to complete. Review of Madera Canyon. Needless to say, if you were hiking Mt. These are two totally different hikes and should be under separate titles. Mount Wrightson (2.881 m). An in-depth view of what it's like to arrive and hike Mt. At 9,456 feet, Mount Wrightson is the tallest peak in the Santa Rita Mountains and Tucson, Arizona region. I told her you are a true Renaissance Man! You can always turn back and there are plenty of places to rest given time. From I-19, take exit 63 and follow signs for Madera Canyon. Mount Wrightson is One of Tucson’s Highest Peaks. Lemmon we headed back down to Tucson and then south to Madera Canyon and the trailhead for Mt. Lots of fun and great views. My hiking companion and I found this to be pretty easy, and there were lovely views of Madera Canyon below us and the Santa Rita's to our East. Wrightson Wilderness Area over the past week was killed over the weekend by an officer from … Madera Canyon and the Santa Rita Mountains are situated on a sky island, a designation given to isolated mountain ranges that are separated from each other by desert lowlands. The spirit of the Boy Scouts lives on at Mt. Mount Wrightson is most often hiked from Madera Canyon, North of the summit. Hiking in Tucson – 5 Awesome Adventures Part 1 – Mt. Hike Summary. It was beautiful up there! Total distance, around 8 miles. Car camping off Gardner Canyon Road near Mt. That was sad. Mt Wrightson hike When we bought our house in Tucson while we were still full-timing in the Airstream, I explained to everyone that we never intended to spend summers here. Watch for the Pipeline Trail coming off the left at a steep uphill angle. You can hike to the top of Mount Wrightson year round however the best times to hike is in the Spring and Fall. Watch for a brown sign for Madera Canyon Recreation Area and exit on Continental Road. The start point listed in the description is good for the Bog Spring/Kent Spring Loop but a better starting point for the Four Springs Trail is the Super Trail from the parking lot at the top of the road. Reviewed August 6, 2013 . Lemmon. 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