Trip report
Apr 8, 2025 — Carr Peak is the second-highest summit in the Huachuca Mountains, just behind the ultra-prominent Miller Peak. It’s neighbored by Pat Scott Peak and Ramsey Peak, both notable bumps along the range crest. A maintained trail system runs through these mountains, so planning a route to reach a few in a satisfying loop wasn’t difficult. Christian and I began at the Carr Peak Trailhead, which was accessible to cars with decent tires. The road was in good shape overall, though it was a little steep and rocky at times. I’d say passenger cars should use extreme caution. Signs warn “4×4 only,” but that seemed like overkill.
Originally, I was pretty set on starting from within the Ramsey Canyon Preserve to begin the loop from the base of the mountain range since the hike would have felt more complete to me this way. Plus, it would’ve been nice to see some flowing water within the reportedly lush and beautiful canyon. Unfortunately, the Preserve is closed on certain days of the week, and this happened to be one of them. In hindsight, I think the early-season altitude got to me by the end of the day anyway, so the additional 1,400 vertical feet might have been a bit much. Or maybe I’m just saying that now to make myself feel better about missing out on seeing the Preserve.
From Ramsey Vista Campground, we set out using the Carr Peak Trail (#107), with Carr Peak already visible above. The trail climbed steadily, winding through a few short forested sections that offered some early shade. The views were already excellent in all directions, and I even caught a glimpse of Ramsey Peak’s impressive cliff face in the distance, still to come much later. The trail wrapped around Carr Peak’s southeast slope before beginning the final climb to the summit.
We took the Carr Peak Trail until reaching its junction with the Crest Trail (#103), which the popular Arizona Trail overlaps for a stretch. Christian had his eyes set on Miller Peak, but since I’d already done it, we parted ways here. I continued alone to the north, descending a few switchbacks toward Bear Saddle. Most of the Crest Trail was under tree cover until the base of Pat Scott Peak. A short social trail led me up to its summit, where Ramsey Peak came into full view.
It seems the Crest Trail is no longer maintained farther north, likely because it soon enters Fort Huachuca. In fact, the route to Ramsey Peak requires hugging the military land divider for most of its length. The trail’s tread began to fade due to lack of maintenance, but it started off easy enough. With just a few undulations along the ridgeline, I made decent progress until a saddle to the west of Ramsey Peak. Here, I reached a fence line marking the boundary with military property. The route became much less obvious, with no clear social trail claiming to be the best option. Sometimes a promising trail would veer into thick brush or require annoying side-hilling. Generally, I recommend staying a bit below the rim, where the side-hilling avoids most of the brush.
To descend, I backtracked to the Pat Scott Trail (#123) and followed it down, with Ramsey’s towering cliffs visible for much of the way. The trail had nice switchbacks and even a trickle of water in the creek below. After a substantial amount of descent, I briefly joined the Hamburg Trail, then turned off onto the Comfort Springs Trail (#109) for a reasonable hike back up to Ramsey Vista Campground.