Heliograph Peak

Coronado National Forest, AZ Southeastern Arizona + Tucson

Trip stats

Distance
3.4 mi
Net Gain
1,100 ft
Time
1-2 hrs
YDS Rating
Class 1
Route
Loop
Peaks
2

Ratings out of 10

Effort
2.1/10
Personality
4/10
Beauty
4/10
Solitude
3.1/10
What do these mean? →

Peaks on this hike

Summits listed in route order

  1. Eagle Rock
    9,360′ elevation · N/A prominence
  2. Heliograph Peak
    10,022′ elevation · 956′ prominence

Route map + Trailhead

Trailhead Coordinates

32.656330, -109.859930

The directions link below drops a pin on the trailhead coordinates and lets Google Maps pick the route. If the drive has rough roads or access issues that GPS nav might get wrong, I cover that in my trip report.

Get directions (opens Google Maps in a new tab)

Trip report

Jun 1, 2020 — Heliograph Peak is another Arizona 10,000 foot peak just south of Mount Graham. Matt and I decided we'd attempt the loop route, which includes following a trail to the summit and then heads down on a dirt road back to the trailhead. We knew it might be a bit of a bushwhack, but it ended up being a bit more than we were excited for. Regardless, I thought the trail was pretty enough to warrant the brush, though Matt might disagree with me.

The Shannon Camground was closed due to COVID, so the official trailhead was accessible only by walk-in. We parked at a small parking area just off the main road, I suppose what would be the official trailhead for the Heliograph Peak standard road walk. We headed past the Shannon Campground gate and to the back of the Shannon Campground where we located a trailhead kiosk and followed the Arcadia Trail. At first the trail was a great and inviting stroll with really amazing views to the east. Then we got some brush and eventually we lost the trail completely. The bushhacking wasn't bad, but our hopes were dashed since we were excited to be on a nice trail at the beginning. Eventually we found the trail again (I marked the crap area on my map attached) and followed it south as it followed along a stunning ridgeline. Most maps we looked at (including the official one posted at the trailhead) made the trail appear to continue south along the ridge and up to the summit, but to our surprise, there was no trail at all, but a cairned and well-defined enough trail continued directly west instead. We were baffled, but followed it anyway. The brush encroached enough to be annoying, but not enough for us to consider it awful. However, when the trail was 100 feet from the forest road, we left the trail and just got onto the road rather than suffer on a basically no longer existing trail – it just wasn't worth the extra effort. I marked this spot in pink on my attached map. The dirt road took us to the summit lookout tower, where we enjoyed some mediocre views before heading back down on the road.

I don't know that I'd recommend the trail at this point except for the first quarter mile or so.

Hire me or show some love!

Hire or refer me as a web developer, or send me a few bucks if you find my site useful. I'm not sponsored, so it's funded by yours truly. It also takes a ton of work to edit photos and write these reports. I really appreciate it!

Hire me PayPal Venmo Cash App

Photos

21 photos

  1. Trailhead within Shannon Campground. We started along the Arcadia Trail.
  2. Very nice trail at first!
  3. Really cool views to the east.
  4. Looking back along the Arcadia Trail, the Shannon Campground behind Matt somewhere.
  6. Entering a burned area as the trail winds along the slopes.
  7. Looking back again.
  8. The trail basically disappeared after a while.
  9. Somehow, we relocated the trail, which was only faint.
  10. The Arcadia Trail crests a minor ridge and continues southeast. The Heliograph Peak Trail heads south.
  11. Looking back toward the junction of the trails The route came up and over the ridge on the left.
  12. Continuing South, the slopes of Heliograph Peak visible in the center.
  13. Heliograph Peak ahead somewhere.
  14. The trail turns west and continues slowly ascending.
  15. The trail is mostly okay, but definitely brushy. At a certain point, we were sick of it and dropped down to the forest road (standard route) to get to Heliograph Peak, since it was right next to us.
  16. Along the standard road walk to Heliograph Peak.
  17. Looking back, Mount Graham visible above Matt's head.
  18. Heliograph Peak summit ahead.
  19. Heliograph Peak summit, view north toward Mount Graham.
  20. Heliograph Peak summit, view east.
  21. Heading back down on the standard road walk. Although I didn't enjoy the bushwhacking, in some ways it was a lot more fun than just walking a dumb road.

Photo 1 of 1

Hire me or show some love!

Hire or refer me as a web developer, or send me a few bucks if you find my site useful. I'm not sponsored, so it's funded by yours truly. It also takes a ton of work to edit photos and write these reports. I really appreciate it!

Hire me PayPal Venmo Cash App
GPX track

Heliograph Peak GPX route and driving track

The complete GPX track is available to download, so you can load the route straight into your navigation app or device. The trip report, route info, photos and planning details stay free.

Add to cart View cart