OK, my arm is hurting so here goes:
I have visited El Dorado several times and enjoyed the view of Saddle Mountain to the southwest while soaking in hot spring water. I had heard that there was a trail to the top but never did the research to learn more. I found a trip report of sorts that was posted on the internet by some folks formerly associated with El Dorado. Here is the Web address:
http://www.thecatdragdinn.org/smh/saddlemtnhike.htmlMore information can be found on the HikeArizona Web site:
http://hikearizona.com/decoder.php?ZTN=191To sum up the trail is about 3 miles in length (r/t) and takes about 3.5 to 4 hours to hike. It has about 1,600 ft. in vertical elevation gain so it is moderately difficult. Most trip reports indicate that you would have the mountain to yourself especially on a weekday.
My suggestion would be to do the hike early in the day and spend the afternoon and evening relaxing and soaking at El Dorado in their hot spring waters:
http://el-dorado.com/The best time to go would be late October-early November or April-early May. Otherwise, it would be too warm/hot during the day and too cool in the evening.
If anyone is interested in giving it a try, I would volunteer to go along as the local guide.
