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Oct 11, 2021 — Rincon Peak can be hiked in conjuntion with Mica Mountain by taking this route and continuing north from Happy Valley Saddle. However, I had just hiked Mica Mountain the day before and had no interest in revisiting it. Rincon Peak can be accessed for a dayhike from other directions too, as well as via longer backpacking routes, but I was content to dayhike it from the Miller Creek Trailhead. This route seemed like the most standard option and it was quite nice. Any car can reach the trailhead, though short sections of the road might require sedans to go slowly.
The Miller Creek Trail is a little difficult to follow at times, but for differing reasons as the hike progresses. Initially the trail weaves over Miller Creek multiple times and it's clearly been washed out enough that locating it on either side of the creek might take a moment. Once the trail heads through the pretty meadows at the base of the Rincon Mountains and enters Saguaro National Park, the trail then gets rockier and poorly marked. Cairns help quite a bit, but it's not an easy trail. I never got lost, but I did have to backtrack once or twice after missing a hidden switchback. Coming back was much easier, since many cairns seemed like they were placed for the descent. Fortunately the light problem-solving makes the length of the hike go by more pleasantly. The Miller Creek Trail zig-zags up the bouldery terrain and gains elevation pretty quickly until it enters a forested gully that leads up to Happy Valley Saddle. The gully is shaded and totally different from the hike so far. I was really enjoying the trail overall, especially after the Douglas Spring Trail's monotony the day before.
Once at Happy Valley Saddle, I took in the view toward the distant Rincon Peak. The trail continued south and passed Happy Valley Campground. It was easy to follow, and descended only slightly as it continued through a heavily forested area, an unexpected treat. There was even a narrow creek for a short time that the trail paralleled. What followed was a few miles of somewhat boring walking with occasional nice views to toward Mica Mountain to the north. Oddly, rather than stick to the ridgeline, the trail hugged the range's western slope. Eventually I made it to a junction with the Rincon Peak Trail. The Rincon Peak Trail began climbing somewhat steeply and then very steeply. In fact, I was surprised by the steepness of the last half mile. It was a quad-killer for a around 800 vertical feet. Just below the summit was a summit register box, and then light Class 2 led to the summit. The views were really nice.
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