Ragged Top and Wolcott Peak in Ironwood Forest National Monument, AZ

Hike Ragged Top and Wolcott Peak Ironwood Forest National Monument, AZ

Class 3 5.6 miles 1900 gain 2-4 hrs Loop Apr 2, 2024
Effort
Beauty
Personality
Solitude

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Ragged Top is an impressive silhouette when viewed from Interstate 10, a volcanic icon poking out on the horizon amidst a sea of saguaro cacti. Matt decided to drive from Phoenix to meet me for this short outing, always an excellent friend always willing to put in the effort to hang. The road to the trailhead is in great condition until this southern turn-off here (32.46760, -111.47479), where a Crossover SUV or better is required due to large lumps in the road.

Ragged Top, and its shorter neighbor Wolcott Peak which we'd be hiking to after, towered above. We started up an old road toward Ragged Top's base, which faded away shortly after. Although we located some semblance of a social or animal trail at times, the majority of the initial ascent was a steep side-hill on brushy terrain. The goal was to wrap around to the peak's west side where we could slip into a major gully that ultimately led us to its west ridge. This gully is hard to miss, and you can see the entire route up from below it. Aside from some Class 2+ boulders to scramble over, it's just a steep hike with some loose rock.

Once at the saddle on the west ridge, the scramble became more fun since we were out of the dirty gully and instead touching solid rock for the remainder of the ascent. Nothing exceeded Class 2+/3, though toward the top, you could get into trouble if you get off-route. We found the going straightforward enough, honestly a bit underwhelmed after having high expectations for this peak. The views were okay, though there really aren't many peaks nearby so it was mostly open desert with tiny-looking saguaros dotting the landscape.

We backtracked to the saddle we'd come up, deciding to descend to the south to form a loop. After being funneled through a weakness separating sheer faces, we received a view of Wolcott Peak ahead. Descending on the loose volcanic slope, we picked our way down to tamer terrain below. I got stuck with more cholla than I'd like to admit, caught up in conversation with Matt. There are some small cliff bands to be aware of that need to be avoided, but route-finding isn't the difficult part here; it's avoiding clusters of cacti and prickly plants.

A bit of side-hilling and we made it to the western base of Wolcott Peak, starting up the initially tame slope. We found the ascent of this summit more interesting than Ragged Top, despite its smaller stature. Extended slabs offered some Class 2/3 scrambling, rock outcroppings added some small puzzles to work around, and the summit view toward Ragged Top was very neat. We backtracked to the saddle and picked up a good trail back to the trailhead.

PEAKS ON HIKE
Elevation (ft) / Prominence (ft)
Peaks on hike
Elevation
Prominence
1
Ragged Top
3907 ft
1347 rise
2
Wolcott Peak
3327 ft
507 rise

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Looking up at Ragged Top from below.
Looking up at Ragged Top from below.
A social trail for a short time.
A social trail for a short time.
Mostly we just side-hilled along the slope.
Mostly we just side-hilled along the slope.
On the west side of Ragged Top, we headed up this gully.
On the west side of Ragged Top, we headed up this gully.
Up the gully.
Up the gully.
Class 2/2+.
Class 2/2+.
Light scrambling up the gully.
Light scrambling up the gully.
Image 7 from gallery
Progress up the gully.
Progress up the gully.
View back down at our progress.
View back down at our progress.
Nearing the head of the gully.
Nearing the head of the gully.
At the saddle at the head of the gully, view back down.
At the saddle at the head of the gully, view back down.
Now going east toward the summit.
Now going east toward the summit.
Class 2 much of the way up.
Class 2 much of the way up.
View back down toward the saddle.
View back down toward the saddle.
Class 3 higher up.
Class 3 higher up.
Matt navigating Class 2/3 terrain.
Matt navigating Class 2/3 terrain.
A jumble higher up, but not too hard to navigate.
A jumble higher up, but not too hard to navigate.
View back down as we near the summit.
View back down as we near the summit.
We backtracked to the saddle and dropped north.
We backtracked to the saddle and dropped north.
Funneled between two faces.
Funneled between two faces.
View back toward the descent through the two faces.
View back toward the descent through the two faces.
Descending toward Wolcott Peak, seen center.
Descending toward Wolcott Peak, seen center.
Navigating prickly terrain toward Wolcott Peak.
Navigating prickly terrain toward Wolcott Peak.
Nearing the base of Wolcott Peak.
Nearing the base of Wolcott Peak.
Some fun Class 2/3 scrambling up to its summit.
Some fun Class 2/3 scrambling up to its summit.
Navigating around some obstacles.
Navigating around some obstacles.
An optional Class 3 headwall.
An optional Class 3 headwall.
Wolcott Peak summit, view toward Ragged Top.
Wolcott Peak summit, view toward Ragged Top.
From the saddle we picked up a nice trail.
From the saddle we picked up a nice trail.
View back up toward Ragged Top as we reach the trailhead.
View back up toward Ragged Top as we reach the trailhead.

Hire me or show me some love!

Hire/refer me as a web developer or send me a few bucks if you find my site useful. I’m not sponsored, so all fees are out-of-pocket and my time preparing trip reports is unpaid. I really appreciate it!