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| Cabeza Prieta Benchmark, AZ | |
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| | Cabeza Prieta Benchmark, AZ | | | |
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Cabeza Prieta Benchmark, AZ
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| Hiking | 13.10 Miles |
1,930 AEG |
| | Hiking | 13.10 Miles | 7 Hrs 45 Mns | | 1.69 mph |
| 1,930 ft AEG | | | | |
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| partners | | It's been a busy winter, but Ken and I managed to find the time to get back down to the Cabeza Prieta this season before the heat deterred any possible treks. We barely got it done in time, as highs are supposed to push into the low 90s in a few days. Eric joined us, his first time on the Barry Goldwater/Cabeza. After topping out Cabeza Prieta Peak last year, we had talked about coming back for the Cabeza Prieta BM, which is the highest point in the range.
The roads all the way until the end of F12 on the Goldwater West were in great condition and hardly tested Ken's Jeep. We parked at the end of the road shortly after 8 a.m. Sun was warming up the morning nicely, and no breeze. A couple miles of road walking across the flats led us to the mouth of the prevalent drainage running NW-SE just beneath CPBM. We turned up the wide drainage and hiked generally up the wash towards the peak. The canyon is wide, and the going was pretty easy, save for some steep side-gullies coming in from the rugged terrain above. After about 3 miles, we found a prominent drainage that cut through the rugged mountainside, looking like it would put us near the top. Figuring we could solve rest of the puzzle from the drainage's top, we headed up. Upon reaching the main ridge of the range, we were greeted with a nice breeze and incredible views south. We turned left on the ridge, making our way along the spine until...we saw the peak a ways off with a larger drainage between it and us. Ken mentioned this was the drainage he actually wanted - oops on my part! We found a way to traverse over and down into it with only minimal downclimbing. Game (back) on! Up the "correct" drainage now to a small saddle right beneath the peak. Then fun scrambling with alcoves everywhere up to the big view. Could see the Sea of Cortez faintly on the horizon, and not a road or building to be seen nearby. The summit register was originally placed in 1965, still in decent shape, and had about 20 entries. We added our names and enjoyed some locally-brewed IPAs, lounging for nearly an hour.
On the descent, we simply stayed in the drainage just off the summit. Much nicer going than our ascent drainage. The breeze even picked up for the way out. Back to the Jeep around 4 pm, where we set off towards the Copper Mountains to find a campsite in a little nicer area. Great day on the Cabeza, as always. |
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