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| Peak 3435 - Tucson Mtns, AZ | |
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| | Peak 3435 - Tucson Mtns, AZ | | | |
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Peak 3435 - Tucson Mtns, AZ
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| Hiking | 5.47 Miles |
1,368 AEG |
| | Hiking | 5.47 Miles | 5 Hrs 42 Mns | | 1.30 mph |
| 1,368 ft AEG | 1 Hour 30 Mns Break | | | |
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| no linked trail guides |
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| no partners | | PEAK 2980 (1 of 3)
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This was my first hike of the day. To get there, I followed some maintained trails to a wash, followed a wash to an exit point, headed to a saddle, and then did a short scramble to the summit. There were a few class 3 moves but it was mostly class 1 & 2. From the top there were excellent views of the entire city. I did not see a registry here, but I decided to save my single jar for Peak 3435 if it needed one, and I found out it did.
PEAK 2855 (2 of 3)
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This was my 2nd hike of the day. To get there, I came down Peak 2980 from the Northeast. On the way down to the low point, which was a saddle, I could see a rock outcropping on the lower West end of the ridgeline below this peak. It was not high up and I decided to head directly for it. When I got over there I found 2 cairns, one leading up and one top of this outcropping. From here, I found either a hiking trail or animal trails which headed Northeast and then South toward the summit. From the top of this peak, there was excellent views of Tucson and also the nearby Striped peak to the West, which I hiked a year ago or more.
PEAK 3435 (3 of 3)
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Peak 3435 was by far the more difficult peak of the 3 I did today and I did it last. I put the total distance and AEG on this trip report.
After doing my 2nd summit of the day, Peak 2855, I hiked West until I reached a wash. Then, I took the Northern branch of the wash which headed West. I continued in the wash for around 0.6 miles until it looked messier. At this point it was easier to get out of the wash and do an open Country hike toward the saddle which was West of Peak 3435.
I came up to this saddle from the North after doing an open Country hike through natural desert. On the way up I found pieces of trail, which could have been old hiker trails or animal trails. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. Near the saddle, there were a few places where I needed to use my hands but overall the rock was pretty stable. After getting to the saddle, I climbed up a rock formation that involved some class 3 climbing to get down it. There was a way to go around it, but after climbing it, I felt like it was OK to proceed on the down climb. After climbing down I stayed on the ridgeline and continued left of the rock formation. There was a faint trail here that I was able to use to get just about all of the rest of the way. At the summit, I had great views of the whole city and some of the custom homes below. Looking West I could see Trail's End peak with the antennas. I did not find a registry here but had a jar with me so I started a new registry, add Michael A's name who is the only other known hiker. I built a rock barrier so that the jar is shielded well from the sun.
From the summit, looking down the North side about 50 vertical feet, I thought I saw my first rattlesnake of the season. It appeared to be coiled up and not moving. On my hike down, I walked over toward it and discovered that it was not a snake at all, but it was an old black/white/gray camo hiking hat. The brim appeared to be nibbled a bit by packrats, but aside from that, everything else looked fine. The hat was easy to hike to on the way down to the highest saddle East of the summit.
On the way down Peak 3435, I decided to go down the South side since it was the more direct way to get back to the road where I parked. The terrain was made up of crumbly slippery rock which was very slow going. To make it even worse there were areas of teddy bear cholla scattered around. I had to squeeze between a few of these on sleep slopes and be careful not to step on any 'land mines' along the way. It took me about 40 minutes to go about 1/4 mile on this extremely crumbly terrain. After that, the slope got much better, the terrain wasn't as slippery and the next 0.2 miles only took about 10 minutes. Apparently, I ran into a good trail which I thought might happen. This trail headed East but did a lot of winding to get around obstacles. I took this trail about 0.5 miles and it crossed the original North/South wash, I made a right turn, and got all the way back to the parking area.
In one of the washes, I found an arrow that was stuck inside of a saguaro cactus about 10 or 12 feet up. Most likely it was just a hunter who missed his target. I only know of 2 saguaros with "embedded" arrows in the entire Tucson metro area. One is not far from the Yetman trailand the other is here. I'm sure that more instances exist.
Stats:
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Distance (round trip): 5.47 miles
AEG: 1,368 feet
Strava moving time: 2 hrs 56 mins
Strava elapsed time: 5 hrs 42 mins
Driving Directions:
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From Tucson and all points North of Camino del Cerro
Take I-10 East
Use the right lane to take exit 252 toward El Camino Del Cerro/Ruthrauff Rd, continue for 0.3 mi
Use the right lane to merge onto I-10 Frontage Rd, continue for 0.1 mi
Turn right onto W El Camino Del Cerro, continue for 0.7 mi
Turn left onto N Silverbell Rd, continue for 1.2 mi
Turn right onto W Sweetwater Dr, continue for 1.9 mi
Continue straight onto N Camino De Oeste, continue for 2.1 mi
Turn right onto W Trails End Rd, continue for 1.3 mi
Destination will be on the right
This location is very close to:
Corrections Dept. Officer Training Center
5601 W Trails End Rd, Tucson, AZ 85745
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From South of Camino Del Cerro or Grant, exit I-10 at Speedway Blvd.
Take I-10 West
Use the right 2 lanes to take exit 257 toward Speedway Boulevard, continue 0.3 mi
Use the left 2 lanes to turn left onto W Speedway Blvd
Pass by AutoZone Auto Parts (on the left in 1.1 mi), continue for 4.8 mi
Turn right onto N Camino De Oeste, continue for 0.4 mi
Turn left onto W Trails End Rd, continue for 1.3 mi
Destination will be on the right |
| _____________________
Michael Williams
IT Professional
Rocky Point Vacation Rentals
Ocean Front Condo in Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico
www.beachfrontmexico.us
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