HikeArizona.COM

One word for you:
Galiuros



Well, maybe that is a bit flippant. The Galiuro Mountains east of you are an incredible area rich in history, resources and get very low-use. Look them up on this site and maybe get a Forest Service map for the area. Probably a bit of a drive for day use, but if you live in the area maybe you can schmooze some of the ranchers over whose land you could drive to shorten the access. Good luck!

Redfield Canyon (probably named after an ancestor of the above hiker ;) ) is in the Galiuros. Also, you can drive up Redington Pass and access the Rincons and the Catalinas there. Back side of both big mtn ranges, the Rincons and the Catalinas, are very close to Cascabel. Many jeep roads lead up the canyons. Beuhman Canyon is one. Heading up toward San Manuel, there is the Peppersauce area. The Arizona Trail goes down over by there, near American Flag Ranch.

Get the FS map and the topos, and start following up canyons. A lot of of good off-trail hiking is literally right outside your door. You don't need trails.

I lived out there for five years... the hiking is all about the washes, either heading east or west. There is a great deal to be discovered, though to score the mountains you will have to put in some impressive mileage. Over night efforts with a light pack are better.

You can hike east over to the Nature Conservancy property... an interesting trek. West up and into the Rincons.

There are hot springs to discover at a variety of areas... Are they still talking about routing a major road across from Benson? Cascabel was always a hidden gem. Nice area.

I always enjoyed that song "Rock the Cascabel, Rock the Cascabel"

@Joe