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| Peak 4976 4403 4403 (other) 4483, AZ | |
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| | Peak 4976 4403 4403 (other) 4483, AZ | | | |
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Peak 4976 4403 4403 (other) 4483, AZ
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| Hiking | 11.03 Miles |
2,194 AEG |
| | Hiking | 11.03 Miles | 8 Hrs 30 Mns | | 1.30 mph |
| 2,194 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Note: This hike was a difficult one that involved a large portion of off-trail hiking with a lot of brush.
Thanks to Michael A. for joining me on this hike. It would not have been very pleasant to do this hike solo because of the bushwhack, route finding, etc. Michael A. and I did a total of 4 summits along our route. All of these summits were conveniently along the route we chose, however, it wasn't an easy route. Our route coming down was the better of the routes but involves some very steep class 2+ getting to the summit and that is not for every hiker.
These are the 4 summits that we made it to along our route:
1st summit - Peak 4403
2nd summit - another Peak 4403 (different peak)
3rd summit - Peak 4976 (the main peak for this hike)
4th summit - Peak 4483 on the way down the steep Northwest ridgeline
We were glad that we decided to park outside the gate on Old Spanish trail because as we found out that gate closes every day either at 4 pm or dusk, and seems to be only accessible by private owners or park employees. If we had parked somewhere beyond the gate, I'm not sure if there's an exit somewhere without a locked gate. It definitely is not obvious to someone who is not familiar with the area that they could be "trapped inside". It does seem like a ridiculous concept to block people out from accessing the Arizona trail, especially, which passes through this area. Furthermore, if there are campers or picnickers that need to get back to Tucson, or exit the camping areas for an emergency, how is it possible? I think it would be much better if the gates were used for specific property owners rather than the park itself. I never heard of campers being locked into an area, even after dark.
Anyway, because we had to park so far away it made the hike longer than we planned on it being. We started off by walking a few hundred feet SE on Old Spanish trail, then South on Colossal Cave Rd. After hiking a total of 1/3 mile we saw the entrance to the picnic area, so we turned and kept walking on the road. This area was blocked off to vehicle access as construction was being done. We saw a road grader and the road was in excellent shape. After walking a total of 1.1 miles we saw the intersection of the Arizona trail. It would have been great if we could have parked somewhere in this area, but because of the construction we could not.
After hiking a total of 1.75 miles, we arrived at the La Selvilla picnic area. Somewhere in here was where we planned on getting up on the ridgeline to go toward Peak 4976. We found ourselves in a wash and the brush was so thick along the wash that we were forced to continue further North. On the topo map we saw that there was a wash junction ahead that continued East. We stayed South of the canyon and got up onto the ridgeline heading East. The brush was thick in areas but we found it possible to weave around most of it, continuing up the ridgeline. Our next goal was to get to the saddle South of Peak 4403. On the topo map we noticed there were actually TWO distinct peaks that both were marked with elevations of 4403. This was a bit unusual, especially with peaks so close to one another.
Looking North at the ridgeline North of the canyon, we though we may have been better off over there because it appeared to be less brushy, at least from where we were looking from. There also appeared to be some natural formations on the ridgeline to the North that appeared to look like a flat road. We were pretty sure it was not a road and that the formations were natural. We were not aware of any mining that occurred in this area.
We continued up the ridgeline weaving around brush like ocotillo, agave, prickly pear, creosote and other typical desert brush. On the way to the saddle we picked up an old animal trail that got us there, although there were parts of the trail that were eroded away it seemed. Once at the saddle, we looked up at Peak 4403 and decided it would be easier to hike a curved route to it, first hiking NE up to the ridgeline and then West to the summit. Along the way, we hiked over a lot of limestone rock which was razor sharp. It was OK to walk on and you didn't want to even tough it with your hands for fear of getting cut. There were a few steep places where we needed to carefully use our hands for balance. From the top of Peak 4403 we could look West and see the summit of Peak 4282 which is the peak above Colossal Caves. We couldn't help but think there must be some other hidden caves in that area and maybe even where we were.
After summiting Peak 4403 we stopped for a break and then continued East along the ridgeline to the other Peak 4403. The ridgeline was very rocky and full of limestone and obstacles that we needed to go around. It was about 1 mile to get from the first Peak 4403 to the other Peak 4403 and that took us a little over an hour going at a normal hiking pace. From here we were looking up at the summit. We had another 600 feet of elevation to do to get there. We saw a land bridge up ahead that took us closer to Peak 4976. The best route appeared to be to hike up above some rock formations and hang a left when it flattened out more and then follow the ridgeline to the summit. At the summit we found an old registry in a rock pile. We found probably 20+ names over a 30 year period with the oldest registry entry being from 1995.
From the top we had some nice views of the Rincons, including Rincon peak, Wrong Mt South, Wrong Mt, Valley of the Moon, etc. Someday I may want to hike "the Wrong Wrong", the "Right Wrong", and whatever wrongs there are up there, but probably just ONCE, as it would be a very long hike without a trail. We looked North and saw a very steep ridgeline going down but it looked do-able. There was a long flat ridge down below and then we knew there was a road near an old ranch that we could take all the way back to the road we were on earlier that morning. We decided to take the steep ridgeline and just take our time going down. It turned out to be better than we expected, and there was even an old hiker's trail or use trail that we were able to follow to get down to the flatter area. When the terrain flattened out, we saw an old barbed wire fence that we stayed left of. Although the grade flattened out, there was still a lot of shindagger to step over along with other sharp desert brush. We found some cattle trails and kept following the ridgeline over to Peak 4483. At this point, I had less than 1 quart of water left and knew I would finish it well before this hike was over. That was OK cause it was already getting late in the day and I believe it was already after 5 pm at this point.
We followed a ridgeline West and had to zig-zag through a lot of ocotillo, prickly pear, and other desert brush. At times we were surprised at how thick the brush was, even reaching a few dead-ends during our descent. It was obvious that cattle has not grazed in this area for years. Once the grazing stops the brush just gets thicker and thicker, making the hiking more tedious. We took the ridgeline all the way down into a sandy canyon, just a few hundred feet South of Posta Quemada Canyon and then took a break. I finished the last ounce of water I had. We knew that from here we had less than 1 mile to go to get to the abandoned ranch area and the old road at the ranch. Once in the main canyon, we were able to make better time although there were some sections of brush that we needed to duck under or go around. At least we could make better time here than on the rocky and brushy ridgelines.
We saw a metal structure up ahead that had a huge bird's nest in it. When we got closer we could see more metal parts of the windmill that were on the ground. This windmill either fell apart due to age/lack of maintenance, or was purposely taken down, for whatever reason. We found an overgrown path that led us from the windmill area up to the road. Once on the road we were able to make better time. Even though the road was not used in a long time, it was graded pretty well for it's age. We took the road over to the abandoned ranch and got there before dark, with enough time to get many photos. There was a main stone house that was boarded up, along with a separate structure that could have been used as a large patio or entertainment area. All of the structures were boarded up. Maybe 30 minutes later, on the walk out, we met a property owner named Enrique near the picnic area who told us that the ranch had probably been abandoned since around the 1960's.
We followed the road all the way back to where we parked and it ended up being a long 11 mile hike by the time we were done! About 5 miles were on decent roads and the remaining 6 miles were off trail and quite slow going at times.
Stats:
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Distance (round trip): 11.03 miles
AEG: 2,194 feet
Strava moving time: 5 hrs 44 mins
Strava elapsed time: 9 hrs 54 mins
Driving Directions:
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First of all if you think you will be out past 4 pm, it's better to park outside the gate which is just Southeast of where we parked on Old Spanish trail. If you get stuck inside the gate, I don't know if there's way out, but you can try to exit by going South and then West on Colossal Cave road.
From anywhere in Tucson, take I-10 East toward Wentworth Rd. Wentworth road is on the far Southeast side of Tucson.
From highway I-10, Take exit 279 for Wentworth Rd.
Turn left onto S Wentworth Rd, continue for 0.2 mi.
Note: Wentworth Rd runs into Colossal Cave Rd.
Continue onto E Colossal Cave Rd, continue for 1.8 mi.
Turn right to stay on E Colossal Cave Rd, continue for 2.2 mi.
Note: Colossal Cave Rd turns into Pistol Hill Rd.
Continue onto S Pistol Hill Rd, continue for 2.0 mi.
Turn right onto E Old Spanish Trail, continue for 0.9 mi.
DO NOT enter gate. Park Northwest of the gate on the shoulder of the road to avoid getting locked inside the gate.
If you pass through the open gate, do a U-turn, exit the gate and park on the shoulder of the road.
Good place to park: 32.067322, -110.638501 |
| _____________________
Michael Williams
IT Professional
Rocky Point Vacation Rentals
Ocean Front Condo in Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico
www.beachfrontmexico.us
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