Rincon Mountain Wilderness

The 38,590-acre Rincon Mountain Wilderness wraps around three sides of Saguaro National Park and the Saguaro Wilderness in the Rincon Mountains just east of Tucson. Elevations here vary from about 3,880' to 7,325' (Rincon Peak in Saguaro National Park tops out at 8,482'). The lower areas are rolling, rocky hills covered with cactus and desert grasses while the upper reaches are steep hillsides and wild rock outcroppings rising above deep canyons, and covered with juniper, oak and pinon.

There are several maintained trails in the Rincon Mountain Wilderness that most folks reach by following other trails that lead in from across the Saguaro Wilderness. However, the higher you go in the Rincons, the more the terrain makes hiking hard and horseback travel impossible. The eastern side of Rincon Mountain Wilderness is accessible via 2 trails that lead in off the Mescal Road (which becomes FR 35), an unpaved road (usually passable by 2WD vehicles) through Mescal and Happy Valley (get off the I-10 east of Tucson at exit 297 and go north 16 miles to the trailheads).

USGS Quads: Happy Valley, Piety Hill, Rincon Peak, Galleta Flat West, Soza Canyon.