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| Peak 4679 Dripping Springs, AZ | |
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| | Peak 4679 Dripping Springs, AZ | | | |
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Peak 4679 Dripping Springs, AZ
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| Hiking | 4.54 Miles |
1,110 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.54 Miles | 4 Hrs 1 Min | | 1.69 mph |
| 1,110 ft AEG | 1 Hour 20 Mns Break | | | |
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| no linked trail guides |
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none
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| no partners | | Note: The topo map shows Peak 4676, but the true Lidar elevation is 4679.
We arrived around 11 am and parked. There was an old mining shack near where we parked. The old shack was in bad condition, without any doors or windows and we could see inside. We were not sure what the old shack was used for but it looked like something of historic value.
We started out heading up one of the mining roads and on the left side of the road was another old building with a door. This building was probably used to store supplies such as dynamite, etc. After we walked a total of 0.3 miles we noticed there was a higher road above us that we could get to by taking the left branch. We took the left branch thinking that we want to go higher up. After a while, the road seemed to end after we hiked a total of 0.60 miles. We decided to keep going in a straight line, merged into the main road which was below us and take it up to the saddle.
After hiking a total of 0.86 miles we reached a road junction and decided to turn left. The road continued West and then North. After hiking a total of 1.4 miles, it was Noon and we were ready for lunch. On the left side of the road we found some flat rocks that made a good place to sit down. We took about a 30 minute break here, and then continued along the road. After another 0.2 miles, we reached another road junction and realized we needed to turn left to get to the summit. The road ended not long after making this turn and this is where we started our open Country hike. We had most of the elevation done at this point, but we needed to hike another 0.5 miles to get to the summit. Along this last 0.5 miles, there were some rocky areas that we were able to hike around and even a few class 3 areas that we decided to climb. There were ways to hike around most of these class 3 areas, which we ended up doing on the way down.
Eventually we got to the high point and found a jar registry on the North side of some large rocks. We were only the 6th group of hikers to sign the registry in the last 30 years! It was hard to believe how few hikers hike this one.
At the summit, we had a good view of Tam O'Shanter peak which has 20 feet walls all the way around it, but there is a class 4 way to climb up if you are a confident climber. See my trip report for Tam O'Shanter for more. We also saw an area to the North of the summit with 3 or 4 towers of rock, but it involved some class 3 climbing to get there. It basically was a hoodoo that was possible to climb from the South side.
On the way down, we decided to take the Eastern loop road which looped around and connected back to the same roads we were on before. But, on these roads, we did some old mining holes. We went into one mining hole using our headlamps, found some wooden supports/beams and were able to continue for about 200 feet before seeing a dead end. We probably walked past 5 or 6 mining holes but we only walked into one of them. Maybe if we had more time we would have explored more.
Flowers seen (in Feb): poppies, wallflower, green-stem paper-flower, Southwestern mock vervain, plains blackfoot, common fiddleneck, Dichelostemma capitatum, Shrubby deervetch, desert paintbrush, desert marigold.
We continued down to our vehicles and finished the hike around 3 pm. This was one of the easier 1K prominence peaks I have hiked.
Stats:
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Distance (round trip): 4.54 miles
AEG: 1,110 feet
Strava moving time: 2 hrs 20 mins
Strava elapsed time: 4 hrs 1 min
Driving Directions:
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(high clearance required, 4x4 recommended)
From Tucson, take Oracle rd / AZ-77 North.
You will continue past Catalina, Oracle, Mammoth, and Dudleyville.
When you get to Winkelman, turn left and continue on AZ-177.
Continue for 3.5 miles and turn right on an unmarked gravel road.
Continue on rocky road for 4.68 miles. The road is pretty rocky and it took me about 30 minutes to drive.
In the last mile or so, you will pass a gate that seems to be open during the daytime.
The road gets a little worse in the last mile.
If you have only high clearance you can park off the road before the gate and walk the last part of the road.
But, my friend Brian made it using a non-4x4 jeep with good tires. |
| _____________________
Michael Williams
IT Professional
Rocky Point Vacation Rentals
Ocean Front Condo in Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico
www.beachfrontmexico.us
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