Picacho Peak: warm winter getaway

The prominent landmark Picacho Peak rises majestically 1,500 feet above the Sonoran Desert floor. The state park offers a quick weekend getaway for Arizonans or tourists visiting Phoenix and Tuscon. Families can enjoy the campground amenities and nature trails, while experienced hikers can tick the challenging Picacho Peak Trail off their life lists.

Photographers should plan a trip here in March to catch the annual spring wildflower bloom. History buffs should also plan to visit during March to witness the Civil War reenactment, which draws hundreds of spectators each year.

This bizarre-looking remnant of 2 million years-old lava flows is often overlooked by drivers making the trip between Arizona's two major cities. That's a shame. Picacho - Spanish for Peak - was mentioned in the logs of Father Kino and other explorers, the Butterfield Overland Stage route passed through carrying mail and passengers, and the westernmost battle of the Civil War was fought on its rugged basaltic slopes.

A Brief History...

Picacho Peak was often used as a landmark by early explorers. During the 17th century, dedicated Jesuit priest Father Kino mentioned Picacho Peak in records of his journeys into Arizona, and in 1775, the DeAnza Expeditions passed by the Peak. In 1846, the Mormon Battalion, on their way to California to fight in the war with Mexico, constructed a wagon road through Picacho Pass. The forty-niners traveled the same road on their way to California, and in 1858, mail and passengers traveled this route via the Butterfield Overland Stage. This route is now used by the Transcontinental Railroad.

The most significant Civil War battle in Arizona took place near Picacho Peak on April 15, 1862, when an advance detachment of Union forces from California attacked a Confederate scouting party. The battle lasted for 1-1/2 hours, and three Union soldiers were killed. Every March, "The Civil War in the Southwest" comes alive again as over two hundred re-enactors converge on Picacho Peak on foot and horseback. Visitors enjoy viewing exciting mock battles that took place in Arizona and New Mexico during the Civil War. Also on display at the March reenactment are recreated military camps and living history demonstrations.

- taken from the Picacho Peak State Park website (see below for link)

Hunter Trail

The trail to the top of Picacho Peak is one of the most unusual, challenging and spectacular I've ever seen, and a must-do. Hunter