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| Sombrero Butte Galiuros, AZ | |
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| | Sombrero Butte Galiuros, AZ | | | |
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Sombrero Butte Galiuros, AZ
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| Hiking | 5.80 Miles |
1,836 AEG |
| | Hiking | 5.80 Miles | 5 Hrs 34 Mns | | 1.43 mph |
| 1,836 ft AEG | 1 Hour 30 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | I knew this would be a long drive so Brian C and I got an early start. We drove up Hwy 77 going toward Mammoth and then started the long drive down the dirt roads to get out to the Sombrero Butte area. See more info about the drive under 'Driving directions'.
We parked at the saddle North of the Sombrero Butte ruins and walked down the gravel road to the ruins area. Make sure you take the road going down the slope as there is another road heading Southeast from the saddle. At the bottom we didn't notice any ruins but felt like it would be better to do the hike first and check out the ruins later on the way back.
After about 0.4 miles, the road gets worse and there is a wash crossing. We walked the road up and after hiking a total of 0.75 miles we found a campsite. This site would be great if you can get there. But, camping near the ruins is fine also and easier to drive to. At the campsite we found a trail continuing South. We were able to follow that until we have hiked a total of about 1 mile. After that there were several options. We also saw a whole network of trails in this area that must have been made by the animals in this area. We looked up at the cliffs and could see a few notches that look incredibly steep. There was a part of the butte we could not see yet. We decided to continue up at any angle and across so we could get a better view of where we would hike. We ended up crossing a few small washes and climbing higher up toward the cliffs. It gets pretty steep up high but really nothing above class 2. There were a few places where I needed to use my hands for extra stability. We found the correct notch and decided to take a short water/snack break under a rock formation and near an old burned tree stump which may have been an oak or juniper.
After the break, we looked up and knew we didn't have far to go. We did the steep hike up and the grade lessened as we got on top of the butte. From the far North area of the butte to the far South area of the butte, according to the map, it was about 1 mile long. We continued toward the high point which was closed to the South end. Along the way, we found some use trails which could have been old hiker trails or animal trails possibly. At the high point there was a large rock structure. I looked for a while and didn't see a registry in the rock pile but I happened to have a jar and a few pages so I started a new registry. After doing a quick writeup, Brian found a metal container with a registry in it that was 100 feet North of the rock pile. Seems like this may have blown out. The pages inside were wet somehow, even though it seemed like the metal box was sealed pretty well. We signed both registries, and made a place for them on the rock structure, covering both with rocks. Hopefully this registry will last and so get wet.
We decided to explore the summit a bit before heading out. We found 2 old tires with reflectors on them. Then we found another reflector on a machete stuck in the ground. The 3 reflectors seemed to make a triangle pattern. We suspected helicopters may land here but why? Then, we thought it might be a popular spot for hang gliders or base jumpers. That's something I would never consider doing! After exploring the butte, we were concerned a little about running out of daylight, so we started heading down taking approximately the same route that we took going up. Going down the steep section, we found a trail to our right which helped us a little in the beginning, but as we got lower, the dirt trail seemed to slippery and we decided it was better and safer to just stay on the rocks. We stopped for a break again as the same place we took a break at on the way up. Then, we continued down. Our route going down was similar to our route going up. It's hard to tell which one was better. But, the entire hike there really wasn't much brush to deal with. The terrain was mostly open. I only saw a small amount of catclaw bush in the upper part of the canyon.
Near the last 1/4 mile of our hike we stopped to check out the Sombrero ruins. There wasn't much there, just an old foundation, and set of concrete steps. People put metal objects that they found in the area on the steps. We found some old nails, bottle caps, wire, bullet casings, and some other old pieces of metal. After exploring the ruins, we walked back to where we parked, then drove back down to the ruins area to camp since it was a great place to camp, we knew it was BLM land, and there were fire rings there which indicated people camped there before. The hike to Sombrero butte was fantastic overall!
From the ruins area, looking up at the North end of the butte, we saw a cave that was about 800 vertical feet up. We decided to check it out in the morning after camping. From down below you can see a dark spot but you can't tell how deep the cave is. After hiking up we could see that the cave was basically just a big hole in the rock that was at most only 20 foot deep, 20 feet wide and 20 feet tall. Anyway, it was a great unique location to explore and we got some great photos.
Our entire hike was on a combination of AZ state trust and BLM land. Originally I thought that some of the butte was on private property, but it doesn't appear to be the case. It turns out that the cliffs to the West of the butte are on private property. Probably to be used for the mining operation if needed.
Note: GPS route includes drive & hike in 2 different tracks. The saddle is a good place to park at 32.7297 -110.48431. A good place to camp in this area is at the Sombrero Butte ruins. We found dispersed camp sites & fire rings here on BLM land: 32.72596 -110.482139.
Stats:
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Round trip distance: 5.8 miles
AEG: 1836 feet
Strava moving time: 3 hrs 5 mins
Strava elapsed time: 5 hrs 34 mins
Driving directions:
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A capable 4x4 vehicle is HIGHLY recommended.
The drive to our starting point took us 2 hours BUT we stopped to take photos along the road, stopped also at the wooden bridge to explore & take photos, and needed to do a little bit of route finding because there are a lot of mining roads out there and it's easy to make a wrong turn.
We made it with a 2005 Chevy Colorado 4x4 (1st gen) and a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee with non-functional 4x4 mode.
The total drive from Mammoth was 14.4 miles.
A high clearance (non-4x4) vehicle should be able to make it 11.16 miles. There is an old wooden bridge in that area that was previously used for the mining operation. The wooden bridge is, in no way, part of the driving route! It's the very rocky road to the East of that area, at around 11.5 miles in that was, in our opinion, the hardest part of the drive. I bottomed out my Chevy Colorado here but only slightly. I was able to make it going SLOWLY and with my good 4x4 skills. There are areas of this drive that were a bit scary because you are NEAR the edge of a cliff, but there was sufficient room. It wasn't anything like any of those documentaries you see from the Himalayas!
See the driving route portion of my GPS route. I added a few way points with notes to help.
Here are the old boring text-based directions:
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Take AZ-77 North from Oracle toward Mammoth
Turn right on S Main St. and set your odometer to zero.
...continue for 2/3 mile.
Turn right on E Copper Creek Rd.
Shortly after that, we saw a sign that said the road was closed.
Damn, we drove all this way!!
Then, we saw a guy driving West towards us. We asked him if it's OK to proceed. He said yes.
Glad we took his advice. The drive was fine except for a few rocky areas.
There were a few tiny streams to cross but nothing to worry about and these water crossings were many miles out.
My guess is the road may have been closed at some point during/after monsoon season when the San Pedro river has more water. We didn't see any water in the road in Feb 2026.
But of course take caution when there are periods of rain.
...stay on Copper Creek rd heading East
1.4 miles: You will pass a shooting range on your left. After this the road crosses through a few washes. They were all dry when I was there.
2.35 miles: nice dispersed camping area on right on AZ state trust land
2.6 miles: another dispersed camping area on right on AZ state trust land
5.7 miles: cattle guard
7.5 miles: possible camp spot on left
7.95 miles: enter private land
8.5 miles: junction with Rug Road, stay straight
9.2 miles: enter BLM land, continue straight/left
10.3 miles: stay right at junction
10.7 miles: stay straight
11.2 miles: old historic wooden bridge on left
11.5 miles: road gets rocky here (need capable 4x4!)
11.8 miles: stay straight / right
12.1 miles: stay left
12.75 miles: turn right
12.8 miles: turn left
after this stay straight on Bunker Hill Mine rd.
near the very end of the drive you will stay left and reach a saddle.
You can park at the saddle or drive down to the ruins and park there.
The drive to the ruins is not any worse than what you have already done.
You can park and camp at the Sombrero Butte ruins area since it is BLM land.
We camped there after hiking Sombrero Butte. The forecast said it would be something like 49 F but my thermometer measured as low as 39 F overnight.
It was quite a bit colder than we expected but we made it OK! |
| _____________________
Michael Williams
IT Professional
Rocky Point Vacation Rentals
Ocean Front Condo in Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico
www.beachfrontmexico.us
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