When you hear about Arizona’s summer, you are probably thinking that people are melting, the heat is unbearable and everyone is looking for an opportunity to escape the valley..It is somehow true, However, we often forget that life thrives in the middle of the driest lands (I like using this sentence :D)
How to get to Mount Baldy Wilderness?
The drive from Metro Phoenix takes about 4 hours and as usual I rely on google maps to guide me. Search for “Mount Baldy Wilderness” this will take you to a town called Greer.
Don’t mix Mount Baldy in Eastern Arizona with Mount Baldy in California. Just throwing it there (I punched the wrong destination on my Uber app many times and this is just a reminder if you are like me :D)
You want to aim for the East Baldy Trailhead. This is where you will park your car and this is where you will end up.
Mount Baldy loop
To keep it simple and easy, the Loop is divided into three sections:
- The Crossover Trail (From TH to X)
- East Baldy Trail (ET)
- The Mountain (M)
- West Baldy Trail (WT)
The Crossover Trail
You are starting from the Trailhead of East baldy. Make sure you take time to read instructions and educate yourself about what to do and what to avoid in the White Mountains Wilderness. Sign in by writing your name and start date in the book registry. This is how you’ll be found/rescued or helped if needed.
Once you start walking, you will notice two signs one goes to the right and the other one to the left. Follow the trail that goes to the right. That’s the Crossover Trail or the connector. This trail will take you through meadows and beautiful water sources of the little Colorado river and goes all the way up to where I marked (X) on the map above .
West Baldy Trail
At point (X) the trail will merge with West Baldy trail and goes all the way up to mount baldy. This is where you will start gaining more elevation as you approach the summit
The Mountain
(M) point on the map is where Mount Baldy is located. Now, you need to keep in mind that the real Mount Baldy (The real summit) is not accessible for hikers/backpackers as it is located in the Indian tribe’s land. Instead there is a pseudo summit or fake summit that you can enjoy a beautiful view from and that’s what you should be aiming for.
East Baldy trail
Once off of the mountain, you need to take the East Baldy Trail (ET) all the way to the trailhead. This section of the trail has impressive tall rock formations and view points that offer a spectacular view of big lakes and trees.
Where to camp?
This is How I planned my trip and you can use it as a guideline and make adjustments where needed.
DAY 1
We drove from Metro Phoenix to the trailhead and started hiking around 1 pm. We hiked through the crossover and camped in the third water crossing on the West baldy trail (3.5 miles before the summit)
I believe this to be a perfect campground as it is near a water source, has a reasonable elevation and not exposed.
There are campgrounds even before the third crossing if you prefer.
DAY 2
We started our summit climb around 7 am to Mount Baldy, going through lush forests and a LOT of fallen trees. We were off of the mountain by noon. In this particular season, the recommendation is to start heading down at 11 am to avoid thunderstorms. Who wants those?
Why is it called Mount Baldy?
The summit of Mount Baldy stands at an elevations of 11,409 feet (3,477 m), and rises above the tree line. The summit is left bare of vegetation, bald enough to be named Mount Baldy.
The first name of the mountain was Mount Thomas and later became Mount Baldy. The name Mount Thomas was assigned to a nearby peak instead.
Why is Mount Baldy a sacred Mountain?
This land is home for the White Mountain Apache trail for thousands of years. Their customs and traditions make from the Mountain a sacred place for spiritual practices Get to know the White Mountain Apache Tribe
Is it possible to enter the real summit?
The real mountain is not open to the public and entrance is not only disrespectful but prohibited by the law. However, I read reviews of hikers who managed to obtain a written permit/ authorization to enter the land. This person said that they contacted the tribe by sending an email explaining the reason why they want to visit and the leaders approved of it.
I have not tried this myself but I will in the future. Learning about other cultures and traditions is a bug penchant of mine.
Bottom point, if you don’t have a written permit, be respectful and enjoy the view from the pseudo summit 🙂
What to pack?
Pack based on how the weather looks like. I backpacked this loop late July 2019. During this time the temperature ranges between 40-60 Degrees and chances of rain are very high. In a Nutshell for a one night backpacking trip you will need the following:
- Hiking poles
- Sleeping bag (20 Degrees to be on the safe side)
- Bed roll
- A tent or a hammock (Let me know in a comment if you are a tent or Hammock type of person)
- Rain tart
- Rain Gaiters (They are very helpful especially in a rainy day to keep your socks and shoes dry)
- Rain poncho
- Backpack rain cover
- Emergency blanket
- Enough water
- Stove and cooking utensils
- Food
- Fire starter
- Hygienic kit
- Sunscreen
- Hat
- Bug spray
Check my gear list from backpacking the Inca trail in Peru. Not all items might apply but your list will vary regardless based on the time of the year and your preferences.
Is water available on Mount Baldy?
Unlike any other mountain in Arizona, Mount Baldy produces many rivers and streams. The mountain contains the headwaters of the Little Colorado River and Salt River. You will have a lot of opportunities to refill.
I recommend using the map on this website to keep track of water sources https://hikearizona.com/decoder.php?ZTN=797
And if you are wondering, I packed 4 litters of water with me and I believe it to be a reasonable quantity.
Where to find the crashed airplane?
As you might have heard, a military airplane crashed back in 1942 in Mount Baldy Wilderness. The airplane was returning to Davis-Monthan from a navigational training flight with ten men onboard.
There are still remains of the airplane on East Baldy trail. On your way down from the mountain, a little more than a mile in the East baldy trail you will be able to spot it on the right side of the trail. It is clearly visible, just keep an eye on it.
Wildlife in Mount Baldy Wilderness?
Vegetation
The number of trees in Mount Baldy is unlike anything that I have ever seen. I also noticed a LOT of fallen and broken trees. When I asked around a local explained to me that it is caused by heart rot: a fungal disease that causes the decay of wood at the center of the trunk and branches.
There are also a lot of wild flowers attracting bees and some other flies.
Animals
As far as animals go, a chipmunk tried to steal our trailmix bag,. We also saw the bird in the picture below (I don’t know what it is called, if you know please enlighten me and leave a comment 🙂 )
Other than that, elk and deer are active in the area. Oh, did I forget talking about bears? Yep it is bear country and a few people saw some black bears before. As I don’t have experience backpacking in bear country I was making enough noise, clapping and singing and all that comes in between. If you are uncomfortable in bear country, carrying bear spray is probably not a bad idea.
On another note, a local told me that Mexican grey wolves were introduced to the area and that he spotted couple of them.
How to use AllTrails maps?
We used the AllTrails map to find our way around this loop.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OsCWVcF8Hk&t=2s
It looks like a female Blue Grouse,also just to let you know i was on top of Mt Baldy in 1966.
That’s awesome 👏 it’s such a nice hike