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| Oak Tree Canyon Ridgetop, AZ | |
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| | Oak Tree Canyon Ridgetop, AZ | | | |
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Oak Tree Canyon Ridgetop, AZ
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| Hiking | 4.00 Miles |
200 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.00 Miles | 1 Hour 15 Mns | | 3.20 mph |
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| 200 ft AEG | | | |
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| no partners | | After doing a Arizona Trail work event fixing the trail near the I-10 culvert, I drove south on HWY 83 to Oak Tree Canyon in the Santa Ritas. At Milepost 43.3, there is a pullout to the right with a gate that blocks a closed dirt road, FR4072. I parked here and climbed over the gate. I walked the road a little over a mile to access the Arizona Trail, which is marked with a white cairn and AZT carsonite posts. As the name suggests, there are wonderful, large oak trees in the area, which is at about 5100 ft. I took a right onto the AZT singletrack and hiked out to the ridgetop view just past a gate, less than a half a mile. I have a special soft spot for this area because this was the first piece of trail I ever helped build, over 2 years ago. This view is nice, but to get to the best spot, I took a left after the gate and picked up a well-trod trail used by people who leave trash with Spanish labels. This led to the top of the ridge, where I was able to soak in the wonderful view from the Rincons to Wrightson to the Huachucas to Mount Graham on this beautiful winter day. I hiked in with my camp chair and spent about 4 hours enjoying the views, writing in my journal, and reading the book I'd brought along. While this is a beautiful area, it also has darker undertones, as there is quite a bit of trash (mostly water bottles, but some clothes too) from drug smugglers and illegal immigrants. Last year, my AZT trailbuilding crew took 25 bags of trash out of here, so it's not as bad, but it's still there. I collected what trash I could carry and packed it out. Too bad, because as much as I love this area, I would not try to camp here alone again. The last time I tried that, right around dusk, three drug smugglers came out of the ravine below me. Thankfully, they didn't see me and I learned that it's not the kind of place where I should be after dark. During the day, though, the views are a sight to behold.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKPHsDTsq3s |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
