Coronado National Forest · Arizona

Old Baldy

4.1 mi of trail, end to end · native material surface · trail No. 372 · trail class 3 · typical grade 10-12% · tread 18-24 inches wide · hiking

Trailhead Mount Wrightson Picnic Area and Trailhead Drive there

Mount Wrightson Picnic Area and Trailhead the Forest Service's write-up

<div>Day-use: $8 per vehicle</div> <div>Weekly: $10 per vehicle</div> <a href="https://www.recreation.gov/sitepass/74388">Buy a pass online</a>, or purchase a pass on-site with cash or check. Proof of payment, or a valid Coronado National Forest Annual Pass or Interagency (America the Beautiful) Pass, including the Annual, Senior, Access, or Military Pass, must be displayed on the driver&#39;s side of the vehicle dashboard. <a href="https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/coronado/passes-permits/recreation">Learn more about accepted passes.</a> · season Year-round to

Mount Wrightson Picnic
Photo: US Forest Service

Mount Wrightson Picnic Area is located at the end of Madera Canyon Road , as far into this area of beautiful scenery and plentiful wildlife as you can drive. Tables and fire grills are scattered in the shade of a stand of silverleaf and Arizona white oaks. Views stretch up Mount Wrightson to the top of the Santa Ritas and down Madera Canyon to the Santa Cruz Valley and the community of Green Valley. Four of the most popular trails in the Santa Ritas start right at the Mount Wrightson Picnic Area. Two designated National Recreation Trails, Old Baldy National Recreation Trail #372 and the Super Trail #134 , both of which lead to the top of Mount Wrightson, begin their mountain climbing journey from the left of the two parking areas. So does the Very Steep/Vault Mine Trail , which lives up to its name by scaling the north slope of Mount Hopkins, another of the Santa Rita’s highest peaks. A lot less taxing but no less interesting is the Madera Nature Trail , which leads from the picnic area down Madera Canyon, providing great views and excellent wildlife watching along the way. There is more notable birding and a good place to relax in a shady streamside setting up-canyon from the picnic area, along the higher reaches of sycamore-lined Madera Creek.

Restrictions All pets must be on a leash. Day use only; no overnight camping.

Accessibility <p>Some picnic sites are wheelchair accessible.</p>

This trailhead on fs.usda.gov

Every trail in Coronado National Forest

Other trails from the Mount Wrightson Picnic Area and Trailhead

All 392 trails in Coronado National ForestFind a trailForest on fs.usda.gov

About this trail's facts

The lines are the US Forest Service's National Forest System trails layer (public domain), read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end, and the class, surface, grade and tread width are the forest's own entries where it publishes them - a forest that publishes the centreline alone has none. The trailheads and the points along the way are the Service's recreation points, and the write-ups its own recarea text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the forest's own site before you go.