Ironwood Forest National Monument

The Ironwood Forest National Monument is located about 25 miles northwest of Tucson. Taking its name from one of the longest living trees in the Arizona desert, the 129,000-acre Ironwood Forest National Monument is a true Sonoran Desert showcase.

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Ironwoods are found only in the Sonoran Desert and the Monument supports the highest densities of ironwood trees in the world. It has exceptionally dense wood and may reach 45 feet in height and live for more than 1400 years. They act as "nurseries" to other species of plant and animal life and occupy an essential spot within the Sonoran Desert ecosystem.

Keeping company with the ironwood trees are mesquite, palo verde, creosote, and saguaro, blanketing the monument floor beneath rugged mountain ranges named Silver Bell, Waterman and Sawtooth. In between, desert valleys lay quietly to complete the setting. The elevations range from 1,800 to more than 4,200 feet. Three areas within the monument, the Los Robles Archeological District, the Mission of Santa Ana del Chiquiburitac and the Cocoraque Butte Archeological District, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places dating from about A.D. 600 to 1450.

The massive Silver Bell complex started as a prospect in the early 1870s. As mining in the area expanded the town of Silver Bell was created. Its population grew to over 1,500 people in the early 1900s and the community included a post office (est. 1904), mining and railroad offices, a Wells Fargo, stores, a school, two saloons, a Chinese bakery, a barber, a doctor, a justice of the peace, a deputy sheriff, hotel, and dairy. Sadly, by 1954 Silver Bell was completely abandoned.

In 1952 ASARCO began open pit operations in the region and today more than 1.8 million tons of ore and waste are mined every month from the mines four open pits. The tailings stretch for miles as you work your way around the Silver Bells. Unfortunately the area is completely closed off, but we did find the old cemetery and a few other smaller mines in the area to explore.

The route is mostly easy graded roads or simple high clearance roads. One stretch leading to an old mine was a VERY narrow solid 3.0 shelf trail with sheer drop offs. No issues driving the route with my Tacoma. There are also two hikes just over 1 mile each. Driving through the Ironwood National Monument requires crossing two parts of the Santa Cruz River, each crossing about 100 yards apart.

The area is a prime example of rugged Sonoran Desert with vast, thick forests of saguaros. I had heard that several rare, crested saguaros (sometimes called “cristat” saguaros) were in the area but didn't get lucky enough to see any.

We passed the old ghost town of Sasco (Southern Arizona Smelting Company). A smelter was built here in 1907 and many residential and commercial buildings were erected in this planned community. A power plant associated with the smelter supplied power to Sasco, the various mines, and town of Silver Bell. There are an amazing number of walls, structures, and remains. Today the area is a popular paint ball playground.

Thanks AzTacoma for taking this trail and writing this report! A small portion of this report was obtained by the BLM.