Four Peaks Mountain

Four Peaks Mountains. 3-12-2010- Four Peaks at 7,657ft. in altitude is a prominent landmark on the eastern skyline of Mesa and Phoenix, part of the Mazatzal Mountains. It is located in the Tonto National Forest 40 miles east of Phoenix, in the 60,740 acre Four Peaks Wilderness Area. On occasion in the winter months the Peaks can be found snow capped offering the Valley of the Sun a beautiful view, and the peaks are also the highest point in Maricopa County.

The truck was fueled,food and water was prepped, dogs were loaded and we headed out Beeline Highway (Highway 87), to the Four Peaks Highway. Once there you begin an 19 mile drive up to the Peaks. At the beginning the road is a smooth gravel road but as you progress it narrows and becomes quit rugged in spots, rocky, loose soil and a few water crossings depending on the time of year. We crossed running water in five spots on this trip with the snow melting fast.
The designated driver, me! As Sheri didn't want any part of driving the ole Dodge up the mountain.
This is an eastern view of the mountain as the road up is not a direct route, but it offers you many awesome views of the area. A side note The Four Peaks Wilderness Area contains one of the largest concentrations of Black Bears in Arizona.
After 19 miles of rugged road the boys were glad to be out of the truck! And ready to start hiking!
Sheri and the boys starting out on the Four Peaks Trail an out and back trail covering 8 miles.

The kid in me is still there, if I see a big rock I have to get on top of it!
The name Four Peaks is a reference to four distinct peaks of a north to south ridge forming the mountain summit. The northern most peak, (seen here) is named Brown's Peak and is the tallest at 7,657 ft. the remaining summits are unnamed and from north to south are 7,642 ft., 7,575 ft., and 7,624 ft. in altitude.
Rest time and snack and water break before we head back to the truck.
The dogs don't look to enthused about getting back into the truck yet, they liked the cool air and just being outdoors. From the Lone Pine Saddle parking area we decided to take the 10 mile route down to Highway 188 to Roosevelt Lake. This road down on the east side is maintained as there is a communication tower about 2 miles down from the top and they need year round access.
We encountered several quads, UTV's and jeeps on the way down. Passing was much easier an this road versus the west side.
Looking down on a portion of Roosevelt Lake from the eastern end. The lake is at 100% capacity which is very good as this is a major source of water for the Valley of the Sun. In December I was quail hunting on the eastern side of the lake and that area is now under water!
The Roosevelt Lake Bridge. When you cross over the bridge from the eastern end you can take a right to the dam and Highway 88 that will take you past Apache Lake, Tortilla Flats, Canyon Lake, the Superstition Mountains and in to Apache Junction. We opted to continue on Highway 188 to Highway 60 taking us through Globe, Miami and Superior that would return us to the Valley.
This is the back side of Roosevelt Dam. Originally it was all large stone blocks cut by Italian stone masons. When the dam was renovated and raised, the stone is now all encased in concrete.
Water was being released in anticipation of continued snow melt from the White Mountains, the Mogollon Rim as well as what snow had fallen on Four Peaks through the winter months.
This large Saguaro cactus caught my eye as we started to head back up to the top of the dam. The retaining wall you see below it supports the road and its about 40 ft. tall, so I'm guessing this is one grand daddy Saguaro!

8 hrs. and 172 miles later we arrived home with two very tired dogs and hungry belly's, so time to unload and eat some dinner!

Thanks for sharing this day with us!

God Bless, Sly