Level: hard
Distance: 6 miles out and back
Time: 6 hours
Elevation gain: 2,600 feet
My friends from Tucson invited me to hike Flat Iron at the Superstition Mountains a couple weekends ago. They have this tradition to hike it yearly and my friend loves the energy of the Superstition Mountains. This was my third time hiking Flat Iron and I was happy I got invited because last time I went by myself and it was not a great experience (after some emotional trauma).
We started the hike around 7:45am on a Saturday. It costed $10 per vehicle to get into Lost Dutchman Park so I recommend carpooling if you could to save a few bucks. The parking lot was already filling up by that time so I was glad we started early, especially on a weekend. I used the bathroom facility before we started, which was clean with running water and hand soap. We walked past campsites and cabins before we get to the actual trailhead to Siphon Draw, where the fence was. The beginning terrain was pretty rocky and can get annoying at times. You can clearly see the "flat iron" early on the hike.
The first mile was relatively easy and flat. Then we hit the basin. Since we did it in February, there was snow up on the mountain and the basin had water from the melting snow. While it was cool to see running water, the icy patches of snow made it difficult to hike down because it got slippery.
After the basin came the saddle, which can get crowded with people taking a break or trying to find footing to hike down. Up and down the saddle was pretty steep. On the way down, my friend and I were on our butts and hands to slowly "crawl" down like a crab. I personally don't have great balance and am afraid of falling and many people just carefully and slowly hike down sideway. Do as you please and what works for you. After the saddle, the trail can be hard to follow, but keep left and against the rock "wall". The trail also has these faded blue/white dots to guide you, however, it's a popular trail so almost always there are people around (unless you go super early). Also after the saddle is when the hike gets difficult. You can see from the photo below how steep the hike becomes.
The hike then becomes more of a climb, which is why some people recommend wearing gloves to do this hike. I never wore gloves on this hike, but my hands did feel raw that night. There were several spots where I needed help getting up or down because my short legs could not reach and my friends helped me. How I knew I was almost to the top was by the infamous "wall". This time around, my friends showed me an alternative way up that was to the left. Once you get past that "wall", then you get to a relatively flat surface and Flat Iron is to the right.
We went to the actual Flat Iron for some amazing views, ate our snacks, and took many photos. On the way back, we decided to go to the right and to our surprise, that side also had beautiful views and was less crowded. We saw some folks hiked up even further to what looked like hoodoos (probably not the correct name).
It took us total of 6.5 hours and we took many breaks and stayed at the top for a while so it's probably more like 6 hours. Alltrails states the average time is 4 hours. I'm definitely not a fit person, but 4 hours seem fast for the average folk.
Let me know if you've done this hike and how you like it! Or if not, would you try it???
-Petite Hiker
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