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| | Hiking | | 5 Hrs | | 0.00 mph |
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| no partners | | We came north into the area between Woolsey and Signal wildernesses from the painted rock area on this moderate 4WD road.
We parked on Woolsey Wash Road more or less due east of Signal Mountain.
Our route loosely followed the gps track posted by fellow HAZers. 5 hours car to car at a steady pace. Basically, we were on a straight ahead route heading towards the yellow fins left side. As we got higher we worked saddles and ridges (photos) to get up to a point where we could see the slight rock gully on the left of the fin (photo). We then followed this gully along the base of the fin (photo). There is a nice little saddle at the upper end of the fin and from here you can see the ramp that leads up and to the left along the base of the summit block. This takes you past a conspicuous saguaro where we dropped our trekking poles. From here we headed up the southern ridge trending westward towards a large boulder (photo with finger). The route to this point was 2nd to light 3rd class. But the section above was semi-exposed 4th class for maybe 70 feet. From here we headed up a tight gully (photo) that helps limit the fall potential. At the top of this gully we exited left and found ourselves on an exposed ridge that we carefully traversed to the true summit at the north end of the ridge. Take note of this gully as you will need to descend here as well. Going down I spotted Nancy while we both faced the rock. Cholla index was low for this hike. Ginger the dog stayed back at the base of the summit block tied in by her harness. In retrospect, she could have sumitted but it would have made the last bit arduous. Not to mention short roping the dog takes attention away from personal safety.
The views from the summit are great. Saddle Mountain to the north, Eagle tail to the northwest, Woolsey to the southeast. There's a 10x10 flat area where a tower must have been. All in all, a great hike that can be done with a reasonable risk level. Be careful and you will see the effort matches the view! |
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