There is no public access road provided by the BLM to the Coyote Mountains Wilderness Area. MORE INFO >>>
There is no public access road provided by the BLM to the Coyote Mountains Wilderness Area. This wilderness is surrounded by state, reservation, and private land. Permission to drive on an access road through the King Anvil Ranch property is granted by the owner during the months of September through February (access closed March through August). This access road also crosses Arizona State Trust Land. The owner of the King Anvil Ranch and the Arizona Game Fish have provided a sign in station for you to register your visit. Please sign in and sign out at the station. Furthermore the Arizona land managers require that you obtain a recreation permit to drive across Arizona State Trust Land. The application for this permit ($15/year) can be found at: http://www.land.state.az.us/programs/natural/rec_permit.pdf
BETA PHOTO: The Elephant's Trunk as seen from Wily Javelina on...
Description
The Elephant's Trunk is a long, fun adventure route in a backcountry setting that is hard to beat. The most moderate established route in the area, it is mostly 5.5 or less, but varying rock quality and tricky pro will keep you on your toes.
The route follows the striking left profile of Elephant Dome.
Start at the foot of the buttress below the left end of Elephant Dome.
P1) Climb easy fifth class buttress on okay rock for a pitch (5.6), until the terrain flattens out and you can walk over to the bottom of Elephant Dome proper. This should put you in a large saddle/notch at the left end of Elephant Dome.
P2) Climb moderate face, generally following the vague arete, for a rope's length to belay ledge.
P3)From belay, step left to a few steep moves (5.7) past a bolt then back right over crappier rock and up to another good ledge.
P4-6) Follow easier climbing two to three more pitches to summit.
Descent:
While there are other options, the commonly accepted descent these days is to rappel off fixed gear down the W/NW side of Elephant Dome. Look for the first bolted station at the bottom of a gully. WARNING: Hazards abound on this descent. Be cautious of loose rock when pulling rope between rappels. This rappel also has a well-deserved reputation for stuck ropes. Doing this in the dark would be stressful to say the least.
The rappel puts you in the canyon between Elephant Dome and Table Dome. From there it is a 20 minute hike around the same buttress you started on, and another few to get back on trail.
Location
Approach as described for Mendoza Canyon, but head for the far west end of the Elephant Dome, not the east end as you would for B-Cubed and Elephantiasis. A large buttress descends from the left end of the dome down to the desert floor. Aim for the toe of this buttress.
Based on the comments about the descent described above, I'd have to recommend the east side descent (described under B-Cubed). The east side descent has the distinct advantages of 1) requiring only one (60M) rope, 2) very low possiblity of stuck ropes (and would be very easy slab climbing to unstick them if need be), and 3) puts you on the ground very near your packs instead of having to go down, around the formation, and up again.
great climb! Walk down gully between two domes and rap off bolts on slab. One old rap station needs repair but not necessary to get down. Great day on loose rock and wonderful exposure and views. Its mostly common sense.
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