SAHC Archives – Page 2 of 2 – GlassMountains Trip Reports

Whetstone Mountains, Arizona, March 2018

March 14, 2018 by Paul McClellan 2 Comments

On Wednesday, March 7, I joined the Southern Arizona Hiking Club on a climb of Apache Peak and French Joe Peak in the Whetstone Mountains southeast of Tucson. Apache Peak is the 29th most prominent peak in Arizona with 2886 feet of topographic prominence and 7711 feet of elevation. French Joe Peak lies nearby to the south of Apache Peak.

I last attempted Apache Peak in December 2016. Then I drove in by myself until the road erosion and steep grade convinced me to park several miles short of the end of the road. I hiked from there to near the end of the road and climbed up the WSW ridge through knee-high grass to a rocky point to consider my situation. By then it was late afternoon, I was running low on energy, and I thought that the risks were too high to continue. After returning to my Jeep I drove out in the dark. I noted on the road hike how the brush closed in on the road and one quite steep drop into and out of a wash promised some excitement when I returned someday.

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Turtle Mountain, Arizona, February 2018

February 9, 2018 by Paul McClellan Leave a Comment

On February 7 I joined the Southern Arizona Hiking Club on a climb of Turtle Mountain Highpoint northeast of Safford. Turtle Mountain is the 73rd most prominent peak in Arizona with 2004 feet of topographic prominence and 7004 feet of elevation. There were a total of 8 hikers on this outing and it was my second co-lead for the Southern Arizona Hiking Club.

Turtle Mountain from our parking spot below the west side

The Drive In

The drive into the Turtle Springs trailhead was long and challenging, requiring a capable vehicle with high clearance, 4WD, and lockers. I led the way in my Jeep Rubicon with the outing leader, Gary Fabiano, riding in John Ohm’s 4-Runner. They were to flash their lights if I did not correctly make the turns at junctions.

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Sawtooth Mountains, Arizona, February 2018

February 6, 2018 by Paul McClellan 2 Comments

Last Saturday, February 3, I joined the Southern Arizona Hiking Club in the Sawtooth Mountains southwest of Arizona City. This is a small range of steep peaks, visible to the west from I-10 between Picacho and Casa Grande north of Tucson.

Peak 2614 from our parking spot. The route followed the cliffs around the right side.

Our goal was to climb two peaks, Peak 2614 and Peak 2630, both within the Ironwood Forest National Monument. Peak 2630 is the highpoint of the Sawtooth Mountains with 1020 feet of topographic prominence. We drove in on a dusty road and parked at an elevation of only 1740 feet, nearly 1200 feet lower than Linda’s and my home in Tucson.

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Reiley Peak, Arizona, January 2018

February 2, 2018 by Paul McClellan Leave a Comment

January 31 I joined the Southern Arizona Hiking Club on a climb of Reiley Peak in the Winchester Mountains northwest of Willcox. Reiley Peak is the 50th most prominent peak in Arizona with 2320 feet of topographic prominence and 7640 feet of elevation.

View of Reiley Peak from low on the northwest ridge

Eric Kassan and I attempted to drive in to the “trailhead” for Reiley Peak last February, but we were stopped by very poor road conditions. Eric and I expected that on our next attempt we might have to park several miles short of the trailhead and backpack in to a base camp for the climb. We hoped to time the attempt when treatable water was available.

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