Route Editor
Route Scout
Don't fence me out by AZLOT69 Heading towards the trailhead from Rt. 60 near Exit 196 you get the first clear view of Little Four Peaks in the foreground of Four Peaks. Approaching on Rt. 88/Apache Trail heading NE, Little Four Peaks looms larger in the foreground view. Stop at the entrance to the Lost Dutchman State Park to capture the best look at their common profiles. On this classic sunny day we are lucky to have Little Four Peaks silhouetted by fresh snow cover on Four Peaks. Leaving the State Park concentrate on the location of Little Four Peaks (LFP). It's profile will change as you drive through the switchbacks and it disappears from view at Mile Post 204 as you move to it's West. The trailhead is 1/4 mile past Mile Post 205 at a blocked dirt road on the right. Park by the road. The hike starts by following the dirt road 200 yds to a cairn where the road heads to the right and we head off to the left (ENE). You are in a makeshift target practice range, head toward the tan cliffs directly in front of you. There is no trail, this is a bushwhack but I did it in short pants. Warm weather would have you be cautious of snakes. Work your way up this wash towards the right. This wash is the headwaters of Willow Creek. There is no need to reach this cliff as the trail moves East towards the saddle with large boulders towards your right. At this saddle you have a wonderful vista of First Water Creek which had flowing water on this day, Weaver's Needle and behind you Fountain Hills. Continue by moving to the ESE towards the center of the peak and the Superstition Wilderness fence line and through the gunsight saddle. Follow the fence line and head to the ridge ahead of you, You may pick up some cairns as you head towards the ramp to the right. Continue gaining altitude while working your way around this next peak to the west and around to the south. At this point start towards the peak. This peak is actually marked "2980" on the topographic maps . Bag the peak and sign in at the register which is in a small bottle easily found. The view here is a great 360 degree panorama which includes Weavers Needle, Battleship Mountain, Black Top Mesa, First Water Creek, Four Peaks, the Goldfields, Castle Dome, the Ridgeline, Black Top Mountain, Canyon Lake, Government Wells, Flat Iron, Apache Junction, Hackberry Spring, First Water trailhead, the Santans, South Mountain and the McDowell Mountains. To the south now only about one hundred yards is Little Four Peaks that sits at a similar elevation. You only lose slight elevation as you depart 2980 and head for LFP. Climb Little Four Peaks by moving SE though the saddle of the first peak. Each of the four peaks are progressively more vertical. Complete the loop by retracing back to the saddle between "2980" and LFP's first peak. Depart towards the NNE towards three saguaros that have arms. To the left of them are a couple of saguaros without arms. Go between them staying on the left side of the wash. The wash turns a slight right, stay with it moving in and out of the wash on the left side to avoid vegetation. This brings you to the dirt road traveled on at the trailhead and to your car. A great short excursion offering a nice over view of the Superstitions with moderate exertion. Check out the Official Route and Triplogs. Leave No Trace and +Add a Triplog after your hike to support this local community.
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WARNING! Hiking and outdoor related sports can be dangerous. Be responsible and prepare for the trip. Study the area you are entering and plan accordingly. Dress for the current and unexpected weather changes. Take plenty of water. Never go alone. Make an itinerary with your plan(s), route(s), destination(s) and expected return time. Give your itinerary to trusted family and/or friends.
Most recent Triplog Reviews
Little Four Peaks
42° from Phoenix to Apache Junction. Got to AJ too soon for store to be open to buy the jacket I forgot. All the way down to 37° at the trailhead. Brrr. Luckily the sun had worked its way around the Little Four Peaks by 0900, and I had an extra shirt, so temps ended up being perfect. We hiked counter-clockwise, basically along the official route. The first summit required a short, but rather slippery, scramble. Kelly went first, then Larry, then I took a slightly alternate route, which my sticky 5-10s had no problem handling. The next summit was no problem from the first. Meanwhile, Jack had gone up the main summit (the one with the log), so we took some pix of him waving at us. 
Larry then hiked back towards Jack, while Kelly did some hairy (to me) rock climbing to a third summit in our group. 
I stuck around just in case. 
Eventually we all ended up on the high point. I was the only one with a summit brew! 
I did not realize the heart rocks were on this hike, so that was our next stop. (Kelly was understanding enough to take a picture of me kissing one so I could send it to my wife in Houston. 
) Jack and I had a break, and I ate some vinegar chips 
while Kelly and Larry went up another summit. It was not a big deal, we just didn't feel like it. 
We then headed down canyon, crossed the highway, then explored up a raggedy jeep trail, checking out some stuff tibber had explored. Afterwards, we drank beer at the Blue Bird while Kelly raced home to post photos. 
All in all, a good little training hike for Pam's New Year trip up Roblas Butte.
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Hike Video / Summit Panorama: https://youtu.be/fe ... Wa7A
Larry then hiked back towards Jack, while Kelly did some hairy (to me) rock climbing to a third summit in our group. I stuck around just in case. Eventually we all ended up on the high point. I was the only one with a summit brew! I did not realize the heart rocks were on this hike, so that was our next stop. (Kelly was understanding enough to take a picture of me kissing one so I could send it to my wife in Houston. ) Jack and I had a break, and I ate some vinegar chips while Kelly and Larry went up another summit. It was not a big deal, we just didn't feel like it. We then headed down canyon, crossed the highway, then explored up a raggedy jeep trail, checking out some stuff tibber had explored. Afterwards, we drank beer at the Blue Bird while Kelly raced home to post photos.
All in all, a good little training hike for Pam's New Year trip up Roblas Butte.
-----
Hike Video / Summit Panorama: https://youtu.be/fe ... Wa7A
2015-12-13 kingsnake
Little Four Peaks
Two weeks ago I hiked parts of the Little Four Peaks trail system but, due to time constraints, never did make it to the highest peak. Kelly (trekkin gecko) has had this on her hit list for some time now so she and Angela (tibber) wanted me to do it again with them. Angela had a family emergency and had to cancel but Kelly convinced Preston (kingsnake) and Larry (Oregon Hiker) to come along and hit the major peaks.
Start time was a cool 9:00 but the steep slope had us shedding layers in no time. We opted to to the posted route CCW and head right up to the peaks. Once we got to the rock climbing section of the upper portions I bailed and photographed the three of them as they hit the peaks. The outer peak was a rock climb that was right up Kelly's level, but not to the liking of Preston and Larry, so they stayed back as Kelly did a solo rock climb. I went ahead and hit the summit.
The views from the summit are second to none in this part of the Superstitions. It's fantastic to stand in one spot and do a 360 just taking in the views from all compass points. Four Peaks (the big one) was whitish from the previous day's rain/snow and had a layer of clouds lingering just below the peaks. The Superstitions were cloaked in a layer of haze, also from the previous weather, so were not very photogenic. The Willows and Cottonwoods down in First Water Creek are finally turning to shades of yellow for a late autumn showing. Although we couldn't see it, Saguaro Lake was visible only as a fog bank beyond the Goldfield Mountains, while Canyon Lake shimmered in the late morning sunlight.
The four of us stayed on the summit for a long time admiring the scenery all around us and identifying the various mountains that were showing off. The more distant mountains to the North were covered with a new layer of snow on their peaks and stood out against the darker base layers. We toured around the upper peaks as Kelly and Larry ascended another of the lesser peaks, then we headed back to the parking lot. The day was still young so we opted to hit a 4X4 trail (1817) that showed as Apache Gap on the map.
It was a relief to be off the steep slopes and walking a Jeep trail through some scenic portions of the Goldfield Mountains. We followed the trail to it's end then did some exploring around for future hikes in the area. Kelly had to head back home so the three of us stopped at the Bluebird Mine Store to cool our heels and enjoy a cold beverage It was a pleasure to get out again with Larry, Preston and Kelly for a fun day with lots of scenery on some little used trails.
.
Foliage
The Willows and Cottonwoods down in First Water Creek are finally beginning to come into their Autumn colors.
Start time was a cool 9:00 but the steep slope had us shedding layers in no time. We opted to to the posted route CCW and head right up to the peaks. Once we got to the rock climbing section of the upper portions I bailed and photographed the three of them as they hit the peaks. The outer peak was a rock climb that was right up Kelly's level, but not to the liking of Preston and Larry, so they stayed back as Kelly did a solo rock climb. I went ahead and hit the summit.
The views from the summit are second to none in this part of the Superstitions. It's fantastic to stand in one spot and do a 360 just taking in the views from all compass points. Four Peaks (the big one) was whitish from the previous day's rain/snow and had a layer of clouds lingering just below the peaks. The Superstitions were cloaked in a layer of haze, also from the previous weather, so were not very photogenic. The Willows and Cottonwoods down in First Water Creek are finally turning to shades of yellow for a late autumn showing. Although we couldn't see it, Saguaro Lake was visible only as a fog bank beyond the Goldfield Mountains, while Canyon Lake shimmered in the late morning sunlight.
The four of us stayed on the summit for a long time admiring the scenery all around us and identifying the various mountains that were showing off. The more distant mountains to the North were covered with a new layer of snow on their peaks and stood out against the darker base layers. We toured around the upper peaks as Kelly and Larry ascended another of the lesser peaks, then we headed back to the parking lot. The day was still young so we opted to hit a 4X4 trail (1817) that showed as Apache Gap on the map.
It was a relief to be off the steep slopes and walking a Jeep trail through some scenic portions of the Goldfield Mountains. We followed the trail to it's end then did some exploring around for future hikes in the area. Kelly had to head back home so the three of us stopped at the Bluebird Mine Store to cool our heels and enjoy a cold beverage
It was a pleasure to get out again with Larry, Preston and Kelly for a fun day with lots of scenery on some little used trails.
.
Foliage
The Willows and Cottonwoods down in First Water Creek are finally beginning to come into their Autumn colors.
2015-12-13 AZLumberjack
Little Four Peaks
when i saw that jack had been up near little four peaks recently, angela, jack and i planned a hike for today
unfortunately angela could not come along, but we were joined by larry and preston
we followed the official track backwards, hitting the little ones first
larry and preston made it up to the first two, but weren't feeling the scramble on the third
it wasn't bad at all going up, the only difficulty being wet shoes and decreased traction
the downclimb took a little care
after hitting the highest point, looked like another little peak to the south
chose not make the time and effort commitment to this one
in looking at all the posted tracks, it looks like i covered the same ground, so i'm not sure exactly how many we
all got up
hit the highest point, so i'm happy
dropped back down to the saddle and we all went up 2980(?), with jack already there
wonderful views from the high points, of four peaks, the superstitions, mazatzals, and goldfields
snow on four peaks and the mazzies
signed the summit register, then headed down
larry and i hit a couple other little peaks, then took a different wash down, eventually meeting up with preston and jack
went through the target practice area and back to the vehicles
since the hike was only two miles, we hiked up a jeep road across the way
again hit a few high points and enjoyed good views
i'm sure the boys had a cold one at the bluebird mine store, but I had to head back home (as I now get to work every day until Christmas)
thanks for the hike, guys
nice to get out for something new and different and actually do some exploring with good company
i don't do enough of that
this year i wanted to summit a dozen new peaks
could count this as eleven (the highest of lfp) and twelve (2980), but might just count it as my 11th
should have more time after christmas
unfortunately angela could not come along, but we were joined by larry and preston
we followed the official track backwards, hitting the little ones first
larry and preston made it up to the first two, but weren't feeling the scramble on the third
it wasn't bad at all going up, the only difficulty being wet shoes and decreased traction
the downclimb took a little care
after hitting the highest point, looked like another little peak to the south
chose not make the time and effort commitment to this one
in looking at all the posted tracks, it looks like i covered the same ground, so i'm not sure exactly how many we
all got up
hit the highest point, so i'm happy
dropped back down to the saddle and we all went up 2980(?), with jack already there
wonderful views from the high points, of four peaks, the superstitions, mazatzals, and goldfields
snow on four peaks and the mazzies
signed the summit register, then headed down
larry and i hit a couple other little peaks, then took a different wash down, eventually meeting up with preston and jack
went through the target practice area and back to the vehicles
since the hike was only two miles, we hiked up a jeep road across the way
again hit a few high points and enjoyed good views
i'm sure the boys had a cold one at the bluebird mine store, but I had to head back home (as I now get to work every day until Christmas)
thanks for the hike, guys
nice to get out for something new and different and actually do some exploring with good company
i don't do enough of that
this year i wanted to summit a dozen new peaks
could count this as eleven (the highest of lfp) and twelve (2980), but might just count it as my 11th
should have more time after christmas
2015-12-13 trekkin_gecko
Little Four Peaks
Many hikers out there are well aware of the scenic range known as "Four Peaks", but did you know there's also a smaller range known as "Little Four Peaks"? Little Four Peaks lies along the East side of the Apache Trail at mile marker 205 (approx). If you pause at the turnoff for LDSP or First Water Road and look at Four Peaks in the distance, you will notice Little Four Peaks just down the road.... and the peaks almost perfectly align
I was just out exploring the area looking for some scenic shots of First Water Canyon this afternoon in the range known as "Little Four Peaks", so I hiked an old Jeep road to a trashed out shooting range where all trails end From here on, you're on your own and at the mercy of you're route finding and bushwhacking skills. The slopes are steep with a couple of deeply gouged out washes and lots of loose rocks 
but finally I reached a saddle between two of the peaks and was blown away by the outstanding views of the Western Superstition Mountain Range 
Few observation points within the area offer better views. From this single vantage point you can see First Water Creek at the bottom of the canyon, the massif above Hackberry Spring, Hackberry Mesa, Garden Valley, Black Mesa, Malapais Mountain, part of the Superstition Ridgeline and, of course, Weavers Needle.
This area is not frequented by many hikers so there are no designated trails to follow, although cairns are everywhere, and does involve lots of bushwhacking and some climbing to get to the four summits. I did manage to summit on one of the lesser peaks but time was getting late so I'm going to have to save the rest for another trip. There were no other hikers encountered but, since you're so close to the Apache Trail, lots of traffic noise 
to interrupt an otherwise pleasant experience.
As a sidenote to the hike, I encountered a barbed wire fenceline that stretched between two of the peaks.... I wondered, what the heck is a fenceline doing way up here
On my way home, I stopped at the Bluebird Mine Store and, while enjoying a refreshing cool one, asked Lewis Ruiz about that fence. He told me that many years ago, when he was employed by John Cox (Rancher), they installed that fence to isolate the livestock from the Superstition Wilderness. The fencing material was hauled up by a pack mule and Lewis showed me the home-made 40 lb driving tool to hammer in the fence posts that still solidly stand..... I'm impressed 
I was just out exploring the area looking for some scenic shots of First Water Canyon this afternoon in the range known as "Little Four Peaks", so I hiked an old Jeep road to a trashed out shooting range where all trails end
From here on, you're on your own and at the mercy of you're route finding and bushwhacking skills. The slopes are steep with a couple of deeply gouged out washes and lots of loose rocks but finally I reached a saddle between two of the peaks and was blown away by the outstanding views of the Western Superstition Mountain Range Few observation points within the area offer better views. From this single vantage point you can see First Water Creek at the bottom of the canyon, the massif above Hackberry Spring, Hackberry Mesa, Garden Valley, Black Mesa, Malapais Mountain, part of the Superstition Ridgeline and, of course, Weavers Needle.
This area is not frequented by many hikers so there are no designated trails to follow, although cairns are everywhere, and does involve lots of bushwhacking and some climbing to get to the four summits. I did manage to summit on one of the lesser peaks but time was getting late so I'm going to have to save the rest for another trip. There were no other hikers encountered
but, since you're so close to the Apache Trail, lots of traffic noise to interrupt an otherwise pleasant experience.
As a sidenote to the hike, I encountered a barbed wire fenceline that stretched between two of the peaks.... I wondered, what the heck is a fenceline doing way up here
On my way home, I stopped at the Bluebird Mine Store and, while enjoying a refreshing cool one, asked Lewis Ruiz about that fence. He told me that many years ago, when he was employed by John Cox (Rancher), they installed that fence to isolate the livestock from the Superstition Wilderness. The fencing material was hauled up by a pack mule and Lewis showed me the home-made 40 lb driving tool to hammer in the fence posts that still solidly stand..... I'm impressed 2015-12-05 AZLumberjack
Little Four Peaks
We arrived around 8:45AM at the TH parking lot and grabbed our garbage bags to walk southeast up the old road leading to the LFP hike. We spent an hour cleaning up various debris, most of it the result of target shooting. To read more about the clean-up results etc, read the event posting http://hikearizona.com/dex2/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4715. What I liked is that we only took an hour, did our hike, came back and then took the trash to John's pickup.
John had done this route a couple times so it was pretty easy finding our way around. There is NO trail so you are just trying to find the easiest and straightest route up. You are rewarded rather quickly when you come to the first saddle and have some sweeping views of the Superstitions to the South and the Goldfields to the North with First Water below.
From there you make your way on the south side of the mountain so that you can come around on the west side of Summit Peak (where the register is). Once on top of this, the 360 is "WOW"
. You can see two areas of Canyon Lake along with mountains far, far away in EVERY direction. Jim was with us so between he and John, they could help identify a lot of what we saw including the slightly snow-covered Four Peaks, a little bit of the Sierra Ancha, most of the Superstitions (incl Battleship Mtn, Geronimo's Head, Weavers Needle, the Flat Iron, Malapais, Hackberry Spring area, Garden Valley, La Barge Canyon, Black Top Mesa), a lot of the Mazatals, the McDowell Mtns, among others.
I'm not so sure on my desc of the four peaks of the LFP but here goes: Next we headed west to the LFP #2 (I call it the big Northern LFP) bypassing #1 (the little Northern LFP) to the North. We climbed our way up; Jim was designated to do the "Wendy". To get to the next peaks you hike down thru a cholla filled saddle and then up before climbing down to another littler saddle. Now getting to the next two peaks would be a little tricky as you are presented with a shelf to overcome right out of the gate. John climbed up LFP #3 (I call it the middle LFP) like it was nothing, performed the requisite "Wendy" and then came down seeing if anyone wanted to join him.
As I was thinking "maybe not", Jim and Linda decided not to but then I said to myself, "well, as long as I'm up here I better go for it". so with John's guidance up I went. This is really the hardest ascent of all the peaks here. Next we headed down on the east side so that we could get to LFP #4 (I call it the Southern LFP). You do need to be careful as it can be a bit slippery with the loose rock. And for this descent you do have to manuever around a century plant but that was the only tricky area of this. John had taken the spear of the plant and made an arrow the last time he was here and it was still there.
Getting up the last peak is not too hard. I really never have a problem crawling, I mean climbing, up the Peaks, it's the coming down that makes me nervous but this really wasn't too bad; especially having John there as he seems pretty nimble at this. But now of course, we have to take the exact same route back
.
It was funny to see Jim after he had made his way up Peak #3. I guess he was worried about us and decided he better come take a look. It's too bad he tried after we had completed the other peak because technically he mastered the hardest of the 3. However, getting down was a bit of an adventure but once again with John's guidance, we both got down without a nervous moment.
Next we headed back down (north) so that we could complete the last leg of the "Grandmother" lode by walking out on Peak #1. There were lots of downed Desert Foothill Palo Verde trees. At this point we had only seen about 1/2 dozen downed saguaros. We were quite surprised to see these trees uprooted as well.
Last we had to get back to the trash. There is NO trail so you need to stay close and high to the mountain on your south (walking east). Eventually you will see the wash/drainage area to your north along with a little hill of reddish rock. Here the actual grandparents of our group did their "Wendy". It is around this area that you can start descending north back to the trailhead, or in our case, back to the trash
. You will want to cross the drainage so that you are walking on the east side of it. You will end up crossing it one more time as it ends up in front of you again. And then you are about 10 minutes from the road.
All in all, another great day in the outskirts of the Supes, the incredibly awesome Goldfield Mountains. It was totally cool to meet another HAZer, Jim, who took the lead on the last part of our hike. And as always, I had a great time with Linda and John. They make hiking so much fun. One last comment, the lichen was so very irridescent today; especially at the top of the Peaks.
John had done this route a couple times so it was pretty easy finding our way around. There is NO trail so you are just trying to find the easiest and straightest route up. You are rewarded rather quickly when you come to the first saddle and have some sweeping views of the Superstitions to the South and the Goldfields to the North with First Water below.
From there you make your way on the south side of the mountain so that you can come around on the west side of Summit Peak (where the register is). Once on top of this, the 360 is "WOW"
. You can see two areas of Canyon Lake along with mountains far, far away in EVERY direction. Jim was with us so between he and John, they could help identify a lot of what we saw including the slightly snow-covered Four Peaks, a little bit of the Sierra Ancha, most of the Superstitions (incl Battleship Mtn, Geronimo's Head, Weavers Needle, the Flat Iron, Malapais, Hackberry Spring area, Garden Valley, La Barge Canyon, Black Top Mesa), a lot of the Mazatals, the McDowell Mtns, among others.
I'm not so sure on my desc of the four peaks of the LFP but here goes: Next we headed west to the LFP #2 (I call it the big Northern LFP) bypassing #1 (the little Northern LFP) to the North. We climbed our way up; Jim was designated to do the "Wendy". To get to the next peaks you hike down thru a cholla filled saddle and then up before climbing down to another littler saddle. Now getting to the next two peaks would be a little tricky as you are presented with a shelf to overcome right out of the gate. John climbed up LFP #3 (I call it the middle LFP) like it was nothing, performed the requisite "Wendy" and then came down seeing if anyone wanted to join him.
As I was thinking "maybe not", Jim and Linda decided not to but then I said to myself, "well, as long as I'm up here I better go for it". so with John's guidance up I went. This is really the hardest ascent of all the peaks here. Next we headed down on the east side so that we could get to LFP #4 (I call it the Southern LFP). You do need to be careful as it can be a bit slippery with the loose rock. And for this descent you do have to manuever around a century plant but that was the only tricky area of this. John had taken the spear of the plant and made an arrow the last time he was here and it was still there.
Getting up the last peak is not too hard. I really never have a problem crawling, I mean climbing, up the Peaks, it's the coming down that makes me nervous but this really wasn't too bad; especially having John there as he seems pretty nimble at this. But now of course, we have to take the exact same route back
.
It was funny to see Jim after he had made his way up Peak #3. I guess he was worried about us and decided he better come take a look. It's too bad he tried after we had completed the other peak because technically he mastered the hardest of the 3. However, getting down was a bit of an adventure but once again with John's guidance, we both got down without a nervous moment.
Next we headed back down (north) so that we could complete the last leg of the "Grandmother" lode by walking out on Peak #1. There were lots of downed Desert Foothill Palo Verde trees. At this point we had only seen about 1/2 dozen downed saguaros. We were quite surprised to see these trees uprooted as well.
Last we had to get back to the trash. There is NO trail so you need to stay close and high to the mountain on your south (walking east). Eventually you will see the wash/drainage area to your north along with a little hill of reddish rock. Here the actual grandparents of our group did their "Wendy". It is around this area that you can start descending north back to the trailhead, or in our case, back to the trash
. You will want to cross the drainage so that you are walking on the east side of it. You will end up crossing it one more time as it ends up in front of you again. And then you are about 10 minutes from the road.
All in all, another great day in the outskirts of the Supes, the incredibly awesome Goldfield Mountains. It was totally cool to meet another HAZer, Jim, who took the lead on the last part of our hike. And as always, I had a great time with Linda and John. They make hiking so much fun. One last comment, the lichen was so very irridescent today; especially at the top of the Peaks.
2010-01-30 tibber
Little Four Peaks
Just had to hit this hike up as i've done those other 4 peaks a few times. Made my way up until the road ended and then took the wash up which led right to the first peak, although I had to look around because I didn't know I was on the summit. Signed the log and made my way onto the other peaks. Didn't take long at all, but there are some monster drop offs that I liked looking down. Nice rock formations in the area and a great view of the Superstitions.
2009-05-09 desert_boonie
