Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
best places to see trogons. The birds nest here from April to August and head as far
south as Costa Rica in the fall and winter. The male's striking red, white, and green
plumage is unmistakable, and it is only one of many species that make a bird-watch-
ing expedition to the canyon a memorable event.
Another sign at this intersection points out the Old Baldy Trail, which makes a
hairpin bend to the left and climbs steadily but gently, swinging around from north-
east to southeast and following the right (west) side of the Madera Creek valley. Once,
when Audrey and I hiked up this trail, we saw a black bear browsing in that valley,
about a hundred feet below. We quietly kept climbing and it ignored us, but we fin-
ished that day with a great story to tell.
There are no especially difficult or remarkable stretches on the 2.5-mile climb
from the trailhead to Josephine Saddle, at 7,080 feet. The lower parts traverse mixed
deciduous oak forests with the occasional conifer, but when you reach Josephine
Saddle evergreens begin to dominate. The trail, climbing steadily with occasional
flattish sections, is mainly comfortably earthen with a few roots and rocks. You'll
glimpse Mount Wrightson to the southeast and east, but mostly you'll enjoy forest
hiking.
At Josephine Saddle stands a rustic memorial cross to three teenage
boys—members of Boy Scout Troop 249, who were caught by an unseasonably early
winter storm on November 15, 1958, and died of hypothermia. Passing hikers and
Scouts leave tributes, and the memorial looks slightly different from month to month.
Six trails meet at Josephine Saddle, and there are several signs to sort them out.
section heading left (northeast) on the trail signed for Mount Wrightson. About 40
yards beyond the Boy Scout cross, the trail forks, and you go left to climb a couple of
switchbacks. There are good views of the observatories on Mount Hopkins just south
of west and the distinctively triangular peak of Pete Mountain to the northwest. About
0.2 mile above Josephine Saddle, the Super Trail goes off to the right and Old Baldy
Trail goes more or less straight east and then swings north. It's 4.2 miles to Mount
Wrightson via the Super Trail or 2.7 miles via Old Baldy.
As the trail climbs, views open to the northwest of the town of Green Valley, with
a metallic-blue lake, the result of a mining operation, behind it. Soon after, the trail
becomes rockier, the gradient increases, and you begin switchbacking through thin-
