The Mountains of Arizona
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Gillespie Volcano • Peak 1353 • Peak 1227 Today's hiking adventure would be in the Arlington Plain, near the Gila River where it bends south toward Gila Bend, all this about 45 miles west of Phoenix. I was particularly interested in Gillespie Volcano, being an ancient shield volcano. Another unnamed peak rose to the south and I hoped to visit both on one long outing. The logistics looked friendly, and with an early start, I figured I'd be finished by late morning. I saw that Peak 1227, which lies north, looked like it had easy access, so I added it on to the agenda. Today was my Wednesday "half off" day between teaching. I was up before dawn and on the roads while dark, intending to beat the traffic into Phoenix. I was out the door at 5:20 a.m., and this worked fairly well. Traffic was heavy but it moved, and I was able to get through downtown Phoenix and out west without any slow-downs.
Date: March 4, 2026
• Elevation: 1,315 feet ✳
• Prominence: 301 feet
• Distance: 6.8 miles entire hike including Peak 1353
• Time: 2 hours, 40 minutes whole hike
• Gain: 535 feet (Gillespie Volcano only)
• Conditions: Cool and mild, sunny with some clouds
Arizona
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Main
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PB
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LoJ
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Lidar
I exited the interstate onto state route AZ-85, going south a few miles, then getting onto Old US-80 (the "Old" is now part of its official name). This relic highway runs along the Gila River through the farming towns of Arlington and Palo Verde.
Gillespie Volcano is a low shield vent the rises (in a manner of speaking) west of the Gila River, near the historic Gillespie Dam and Bridge. The highway runs along the river's edge and below the low bluffs at the north and east edges of this volcano. There are tell-tale black boulders on these bluff slopes. The volcano's profile is so gentle that it's easy to miss it entirely. It just looks like sloping desert plain.
I arrived to the Gillespie Bridge, and exited onto Enterprise Road just before the bridge itself. I pulled into a cleared area and took a few minutes to just relax and get my things in order. It was 6:20 a.m. now, and still a little too dark to begin hiking. The eastern sky was lighting up but sunrise was still about a half-hour away.
When things lit up a little more, I drove in on a pipeline-access road but not very far, just far enough to drop into a draw where I could stash my car out of sight. The road thereafter was much too rocky and rutted to trust my Subaru on it.
I was walking at 6:35 a.m., the sun still technically not risen, but by now with enough light to easily see my way. I walked up the road, which put me on top of the main body of this shield. The summit rose as a gentle bump to the southwest, about two miles distant.
A half-mile later, I went left on a cut-off track, which led me onto another track heading mostly south. This track runs a little east of the peak and I would follow it for the better part of a mile and a half. Any vehicle that can get past the rougher road below should be fine on this track. High clearance would be necessary, 4-wheel drive nice to have.
The walk went fast, the uphill barely noticeable. When I was roughly abeam of the peak, I found a spot where the fence (which ran alongside the track) was on its side, and I stepped over it. I then hiked up very lenient slopes toward the top. Brush was light and spread out. The black volcanoc boulders were small and spaced out, contrasting against the smaller, white-colored "gibber" rocks which formed a solid, uniform tread.
I aimed upward for a cliff, and when I surmounted a rise, I noticed the cliff was actually part of an unexpectedly dramatic summit knoll. From afar it appeared as a boring five-foot escarpment. The knoll was red-colored with smaller cliffs. As I hiked up the slope, it laid back nicely and I found a couple easy lanes to get up and over the small "cliff", which was about three feet tall.
The summit rocks were just a few feet farther, and I came upon them, all this about an hour after starting, roughly 2.6 miles of walking. By now the sun was up and it was looking to be a mild, slightly-warm day. Clouds to the east would block the sun for minutes at a time.
This was a surprisingly pretty summit, with big boulders and heaps. I walked around and tagged a couple, one big one being the obvious highpoint. I looked for a cairn and register, but found nothing. I had a register handy and stashed one here, within a cairn on top of the summit rock.
The views were fantastic, the sun still low enough to create interesting shadows and lighting effects. Woolsey Peak rose to the west, a multitude of Gila Bend Mountains to the south, and the Buckeye Hills to the northeast. I spent about ten minutes up here, there being some very nice sitting rocks to choose from.
This peak's prominence straddles the 300-foot threshold. Peakbagger gives 298 feet, Lists of John 301. I call it "close enough". This is with the new 1-meter Lidar data, which adds five feet to the summit elevation.
My next objective, Peak 1353, rose to the south, a more "traditional" looking peak as compared to what I was standing on now.
Elevation: 1,353 feet ✳
• Prominence: 399 feet
• Gain: 538 feet
• Conditions: No change, slightly warmer
PB
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LoJ
I descended off the volcano's south slopes and back to the track. I had to fit myself through two strands of sturdy barbed wire about 8 inches apart. I got through it after about two minutes of careful wiggling. Why are the barbs necessary?
I descended down the very gentle slope, aiming for Peak 1353. A little under a mile later, I was at the base of the peak. At the base, it seemed sensible to just bust straight up the slope in front of me. It was steep but open and it laid back well. The rocks here were granitic with that kibbly grus-type gravel everywhere. Brush wasn't a problem.
I essentially went up and slightly right, to catch a ridge, this being the main northwest ridge of the peak. On the ridge now, the rocks were more abundant, but they spaced apart nicely and formed steps. I never needed hands and was able to walk up most of this ridge by rock hopping.
This put me on top of the main ridge. The summit could be seen, a couple hundred yards away, about fifty feet higher. The terrain was wide open with lanes and easy rocks, and I was soon atop this peak, about a half-hour after leaving Gillespie Volcano's top.
This summit was also prettier than expected. Its summit is a heap of large boulders about waist high. I found a register bottle simply laying on the open ground, but underneath an overhang formed by the big rock. I signed in. Not too many names, but a few I recognized. The last people were here about three years ago. I placed the register back under the rock. I spent about ten minutes up here too. It was cloudier for the moment, but still mild and pleasant, temperatures in the high 60s.
For the descent, I followed the same ridges and slopes, making good time on the rocks. The sun came out and I got better images. I hiked back to the track, having to regain about 200 feet, before dropping all the and more back to my car.
The walk out took about an hour, and I was back to my car at about 9:25 a.m.. I had covered just under 7 miles with a little over a thousand feet of gain. I was pleasantly surprised how pretty the peaks and the area was. It was much more colorful than I would have ever expected.
It was not yet 10 a.m. and I was done here. I did not need to be back in town until early afternoon.
Elevation: 1,227 feet ✳
• Prominence: 354 feet
• Distance: 1.6 miles
• Time: 30 minutes
• Gain: 370 feet
• Conditions: Mild, sunnier
PB
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LoJ
I got back on Old US-80 and headed north a few miles. Peak 1227 (1225 on the map) is a loaf-shaped mound of volcanic rock that rises above the plain all by itself. The surrounding area is covered in solar collectors, the whole area a "solar farm".
I went north onto Arlington School Road for about a half mile. It makes a soft dog-leg bend west and becomes Narramore Road. Peak 1227 rises above, running about a mile in length. I looked for a way in toward the peak.
There is one main entry road and a number of lesser tracks that go in. I discovered that this area is the domain of shooters. I saw one guy set up and shooting. I found a track and followed it in, taking random tracks and angling toward the peaks northwest tip. There was another person parked nearby, probably shooting, I assumed.
I parked on a small rise, well apart from any shooters. The area around me was littered in shooter crud, such as shells, wooden and cardboard targets, ammo boxes, and various objects sacrificed as shooting targets.
The mountain is completely covered in black volcanic rock, except for the west-facing slopes, which seemed to have had their rocks removed, leaving the whiter underrock behind, all up to about a hundred feet above the plain. Not sure why, maybe to be turned into gravel.
I started up the slope, which was rocky, but very gently inclined. I hopped from rock to rock. Brush was light, but spider webs were everywhere. I got up about a hundred feet. I noticed the guy nearest me was leaving, and there were no other shooters, so I dropped down slightly onto an old track presumably from the rock-removal days.
The track got me up another hundred feet. It was gravelly and loose, but a little easier to walk on. It ends, and I angled left and back onto the bigger rocks. I then just followed these to the top, which is broad with about fifteen possible highpoint rocks.
The one-way hike did not take long, about fifteen minutes, covering a little under a mile. I saw a cairn, but no register or other hints of past visitors, not even a random coke can or water bottle. The shooters evidently have no interest in the highpoint.
I did not stay long. I never stopped nor sat for a rest. This was strictly a pad-my-count peak. I wanted to get moving down in case more shooters arrived. I made good time going down the rocks and I was back to my car in another fifteen minutes. I was surprised it was still not yet 11 a.m..
This little mound was a perfect bonus peak. It is not attractive and not a worthy destination on its own, and I would never bother with it otherwise. But now I had a three-peak day, and was feeling pretty good (and tired).
So now to get back into town. I followed Old US-80 back to "New" AZ-85, then Interstate-10 back to the borg. I was back to my hotel after an hour, where I showered. I then went onto campus for a few hours to be useful.
This was a fruitful journey. I had low expectations for Gillespie Volcano, but loved the area and found it to be much prettier than I was expecting. Logistics were simple, all land was open to the public, and while slightly warm, all the snakes were still asleep in their holes.
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