GlassMountains Trip Reports

Exploring the backcountry and wilderness of the Western USA.

Trip Reports

Cochise Head, Arizona, April 2017

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On Saturday morning, April 22, I met Michael Berry at the entrance to the Chiricahua National Monument. From there we drove into the Monument and spent the rest of the day hiking and climbing Cochise Head in the northern Chiricahua Mountains.

Cochise Head from Massai Point, Chiricahua National Monument
Cochise Head from Massai Point, Chiricahua National Monument

Cochise Head is the 83rd most prominent peak in Arizona with 1913 feet of prominence and 8113 feet of elevation. It is located just north of the Chiricahua National Monument. I visited the monument the previous afternoon and observed Cochise Head from Massai Point.

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Arizona Hikes and Bikes, March 2014

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Linda and I spent several weeks in March of 2014 visiting Arizona for bicycling and hiking. This was our third Spring visiting Arizona and we were curious to see locations we had not previously visited. I enjoyed hiking several Arizona “prominence peaks”: Mount Ord, Pinal Peak, Mount Graham, and Chiricahua Peak. The only significant snow I encountered was on Mount Graham, and it was manageable. The weather was ideal for hiking and enjoying the scenery.

Our first camps in Arizona were near Sedona and at nearby Cottonwood State Park, where we first got on our bikes to explore around Cottonwood. After a few days we relocated March 13 to Payson which was our base for four days.

The next day we drove to a locked gate and hiked up Mount Ord just off Highway 87, a 2000 foot prominence peak in the Mazatzal Mountains. The weather on the summit was light and intermittent hail turning to drizzle with thunder in distance, but it was a pleasant hike with good views of the mountains and valleys south of Payson. We then visited Fountain Hills, near Mesa.

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