Trip report
Apr 1, 2016 — Window Peak is one of the big peaks within the Santa Catalina Mountains outside Tucson, AZ. Its got some of the best views, plus a gorgeous natural arch. I set out along the Ventana Canyon Trail (Trail #98), introducing typical Sonoran Desert fare lower down, lots of saguaros and rocky cliffs on both sides. A few miles in the trail begins to ascend the west bank of the canyon and offers some excellent views south. It continues north within the canyon, leading almost to its head. From below you can see "The Window" hanging out along the ridge. As the trail ascends from the drainage and heads to the northwest ridge of Window Peak, it passes a junction with the Finger Rock Trail, continues west to Mount Kimball. Past this junction, the Ventana Canyon Trail becomes the The Esperero Trail as it ascends to the ridge,
Once along the ridge, the trail eases up for a bit as it wraps around rock outcroppings and directly to "The Window" itself, which serves as a delightful viewpoint to the west side of the Santa Catalinas. The trail continues along the base of some cliffs as it makes its way to Window Peak, approaching the summit from the southeast side. Nearly reaching the summit itself, the trail sort of ends where some short Class 3 scrambling is required to gain the summit block. Huge square boulders create a little maze for locating the true high point.